BLU-RAY REVIEW

Devil's Knot

Featured In Issue 188, July/August 2014

Picture4
Sound4
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):
Image Entertainment
(Catalog Number):
DVL00057DVDBD
(MPAA Rating):
Not Rated
(Rating Reason):
(Retail Price):
$34.97
(Disc Type):
Single Side, Single Layer (BD-25)
(Widescreen Edition):
Yes
(Full Screen Edition):
No
(Running Time In Minutes):
114
(Color Type):
Color
(Chaptered/Scene Access):
Yes
(Closed Captioned):
Yes
(Regional Coding):
A
(Theatrical Year):
2013
(Theatrical Release):
Yes
(Direct-To-Video Release):
Yes
(Disc Release Date):
06/10/14
(THX® Digitally Mastered):
No
(Director):
Atom Egoyan
(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):
(French Language):
(Spanish Language):
(Chinese Language):
(Subtitles):
(Cantonese Language):
(Mandarin Language):
(Japanese Language):
(Italian Language):
(German Language):
(Portuguese Language):

Devil's Knot takes place circa May 5, 1993 in West Memphis, Arkansas. Three young boys playing in the nearby woods never come home for dinner. In the rush to find and convict the killers, police focus on a trio of teenagers suspected of devil worship. As the mother of one of the murdered boys (Witherspoon) tries to come to grips with this unspeakable tragedy, she is desperate to believe that the killers have been found and will be brought to justice. It is only when an investigator (Firth) reveals that the evidence doesn't all add up that the community is forced to face the reality that the true killer might still be out there. Based on the book by Mara Leveritt. (Gary Reber)

Special features include a making-of featurette (HD 06:57), as well as Getting Into Character: The Cast (HD 07:48), deleted scenes (HD 05:43), and upfront previews.

The 2.39:1 1080p AVC picture was photographed with the Arri Alexa digital camera system and presented theatrically at 2.39:1 or 1.85:1, but reformatted for the Blu-ray Disc at 1.78:1. The picture exhibits a perfectly natural appearance, with well-balanced hues. Contrast is also well balanced with deep blacks and revealing shadow delineation. Fleshtones are naturally rendered throughout. Resolution is decent, with much of the imagery nicely detailed. The picture is noiseless and pleasing, for an engaging visual experience that exhibits realism. (Gary Reber)

The DTS-HD Master Audio™ 5.1-channel soundtrack is subdued throughout, with a foreboding musical score that underscores the mournful telling of the story. Surround engagement is limited to environmental atmospherics and the score. Dialogue is consistently intelligible and decently spatially integrated. Deep bass extends to sub-25 Hz frequencies within the context of the score, which enhances the sense of a community on the edge during the murder investigation. Overall, this is a satisfying, low-keyed soundtrack that supports the storytelling realism. (Gary Reber)