BLU-RAY REVIEW

A Walk Among The Tombstones

Featured In Issue 194, February 2015

Picture4
Sound4.5
WSR Score4
Basic Information on new release titles is posted as soon as titles are announced. Once reviewed, additional data is added to the database.
(Studio/Distributor):
Universal Studios Home Entertainment
(Catalog Number):
61142522
(MPAA Rating):
R
(Rating Reason):
(Retail Price):
$
(Disc Type):
(Widescreen Edition):
Yes
(Full Screen Edition):
No
(Running Time In Minutes):
114
(Color Type):
Color
(Chaptered/Scene Access):
Yes
(Closed Captioned):
(Regional Coding):
(Theatrical Year):
(Theatrical Release):
(Direct-To-Video Release):
No
(Disc Release Date):
(THX® Digitally Mastered):
(Director):
Scott Frank
(Screenplay/Written By):
(Story):
(Music):
(Director Of Photography):
(Production Designer):
(Visual Effects):
(Costume Designer):
(Editor):
(Supervising Sound Editors):
(Re-Recording Mixers):
(Executive Producers):
(Co-Producers):
(Producers):
(Academy Awards):
(Principal Photography):
(Theatrical Aspect Ratio):
(Measured Disc Aspect Ratio):
(Disc Soundtrack):
DTS HD Lossless 5.1
(Theatrical Sound):
(Theatrical Re-Issue Soundtrack):
(DTS Bit Rate):
(Dolby Digital Bit Rate):
(Additional Languages):
(Subtitles):

Based on Lawrence Block's series of mystery novels, A Walk Among The Tombstones stars Liam Neeson as Matt Scudder, an ex-NYPD cop turned unlicensed private investigator who reluctantly agrees to help a drug trafficker (Stevens) hunt down the men who brutally murdered his wife. When he PI learns that this is not the first time that these men have committed this sort of twisted crime––nor will it be the last––he must blur the line between right and wrong as he races to track the deviants through the backstreets of New York City before they kill again.

Special features include the featurettes Matt Scudder: Private Eye (HD 06:26) and A Look Behind the Tombstones (HD 12:07), upfront previews, and an UltraViolet digital copy.

The 2.39:1 1080p AVC picture exhibits a perfectly natural appearance, with well-balanced color saturation. Hue are earthly cast with a slight warm brownish brush that enhances the sense of naturalness. Fleshtones are generally naturally rendered. Contrast is decently balanced with deep blacks and revealing shadow delineation. The overall appearance is overcast and subdued, with a few segments that are stylized for dramatic effect. Overall, the picture exhibits nitty gritty, but natural imagery that perfectly suits the storytelling.

The DTS-HD Master Audio™ 5.1-channel soundtrack is essentially dialogue intense, with a center channel focus, augmented with segments of violence that energizes the segment. Atmospherics are generally subtle with sound effects and Foley enhancements. The orchestral music score is the element that provides the best sense of dimensional envelopment and dynamics, with bass energy heightened during the more intense scenes, as well as powerful directionalized gunfire and rain-intense thunder storms that pound the soundfield. This is a rather subdued soundtrack for a thriller, but it has its moments.