2 Guns Blu-ray Review
By: MattInRC
Universal's home release of 2 Guns looks and sounds great, but will its shallow character development and flashbang action doom it to the bargain Blu-ray bin?
I love me some double cross in film. Look back into history and you'll see Payback, Jackie Brown, and even Iron Man with elements of the double cross. While the buddy-copy 2 Guns is a punchy action film ripped from a comic book, the film also channels about every action subgenre imaginable, and is full of wise-crackin' mirth-filled moments, sexual advances, and enough cussing and the aforementioned double-cross to fill a tip jar. Unfortunately, it's not very inventive and actually overdoes the double-cross by adding a third- and even fourth layer to muck things up. Its arrival onto home video gives us a chance to break down a film with enormous potential, but one which ultimately is just merely watchable.
The Movie - 3.5/5
Bobby (Denzel Washington) and Stig (Mark Wahlberg) are criminals for hire, except that they're not really criminals. Stig is an undercover Navy officer, while Bobby is an undercover DEA agent, neither of whom knows each other's true identity. Circumstances bring the two together as they plan to steal $3 million from the Mexican drug lord Papi Greco (Edward James Olmos). They each think this act will benefit their respective agencies, only to discover that the vault contains $43.125 million. When neither party gets their promised back up upon the successful heist, the two split up, with Stig taking the cash, and Bobby taking a bullet. As the full effect of their robbery becomes apparent to them, the two rejoin forces to find the real owner of the cash, while several agencies descend upon them. But who does the money belong to: Stig's commander Quince (James Marsden), Papi Greco, Bobby's oft-nude lover Deb (Paula Patton), or the psychotic CIA agent Earl (Bill Paxton)?
A film like this will remind you a lot of other stuff, including 2010's The Losers which boasted a similarly amazing cast but came up short in its story. Here, Director Baltasar Kormákur and Writer Blake Masters miss the potential for a deeper telling, surrounding us instead with action we've already seen in better productions and dropping fancy one-liners like they were on a BOGO free sale at K Mart. It's a lot like this year's Escape Plan, which we loved because it found a better balance, keeping the one-liners to a minimum while emhasizing better action. 2 Guns doesn't take itself seriously enough, creating caricatures rather than giving our characters something meaty to say. At the same time, I get the impression that Wahlberg and Washington don't really care whether we hate what they're doing or not; they seem to enjoy each other's ad-libbing while trying desperately to keep this production afloat. Even Paxton and Olmos seem to relish their roles, leaving Marsden and Patton out in the cold with lines that never develop them past one-dimensional driftwood. Still, we liked the implausible action of the film, the slow motion shootouts, and the comedy, even if the story is hopelessly muddied and filled with gigantic plot holes. I guess my forgiveness lies in seeing actors go outside of their comfort zones: it's nice once in awhile to see the usually serious Washington and the unflappable Wahlberg in something this wild and gangling.
The idea of film like this remaining in the movie-going consciousness is hard to fathom, as there seems to be so many more (and better) like it out there. Escapism is not a new thing in American cinema, but 2 Guns misses the point, settling in as a 'switch off your brain affair' rather than something slightly deeper and better for its efforts. Perhaps that was the point from the start, but its result won't stick with you past the end credits. If your hope is to see great actors having a good time, and you're willing to see past the plot holes and numerous nods to the genre, 2 Guns will serve as an excellent mode of transportation.
The Video - 4.5/5
2 Guns impresses with an MPEG-4/AVC transfer that keeps the grain but gives us striking detail in every scene. For a film like this, shot outside in dusty locations, it's nice to see Universal able to bring the grit and grain from Kormakur's digital print over to the home market. Colors are a bit saturated with contrast a tad off, but that's not Universal's fault, rather an understated quality from our director. Blacks are only crushed when the brightness of a desert scene takes over; most of the time, we get nice transitions into shadows, with detail apparent on clothing and guns. Skintones look lifelike, both from a color standpoint and in their clarity. Lines and wrinkles on Washington's aging face look as good as those on Wahlberg's, with Patton's long hair showing off each strand. Detail on clothing is also exceptional, as is the aging nature of the towns our two guys visit throughout the picture. Finally, we failed to see any evidence of banding, aliasing, or artifacting, reminding us of other inferior products that attempted to shoot outside. Sometimes, those can result in too much grain or in outdoor brightness obliterating detail; thankfully, Kormákur and Director of Photography Oliver Wood's techniques have transferred over very well. From a visual standpoint, this one is a winner.
The Audio - 4.5/5
Ever since Universal made the Bourne Identity a first-day purchase, the studio has been a leader and innovator in the home release department. The tradition continues with 2 Guns, featuring a boisterous DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 surround track that kicks down doors, blows up cars, and crunches bone with powerful results. The muscular lossless track is terrific in nearly every way, starting with its forward speakers, which deliver a perfect mix of music, sound effects, and dialogue Nothing ever gets in the way here, allowing each part to play a complimentary role with the center channel, delivering nothing but dialogue. The surrounds are more immersive than one might think, allowing the real style of the film to arise, from diner chatter to chickens clucking in the background. Music from Composer Clinton Shorter also pounds through the surrounds, creating an immersive mix whenever he and Sound Editor William Dean call for it The other asset here comes from the LFE, which pulses and pounds with every throaty Dodge Charger rev and during the climactic third act as a CIA helicopter flies by. There are plenty of opportunities for the LFE to shine, and it certainly makes its presence known. Dialogue - an aspect one might not associate with necessity in a picture like this - is spot on and precise, as is directionality. Universal really does get the most out of its audio tracks, and 2 Guns is no different. It's a very solid track.
The Supplements - 4/5
2 Guns arrives with the right amount of supplements, most of which are insightful but not unique. All the pieces are here, including the quickly disappearing commentary track. Luckily, all of the visual stuff is presented in HD:
Audio Commentary: Much like our actors, Director Baltasar Kormakur is a bit tight at the beginning of this as he joins Producer Adam Siegel; but as time goes on, Kormakur relaxes and ultimately delivers a good commentary. Curious fans of 2 Guns will get many of their questions answered courtesy of our creative team, who discuss how the project started, the obvious cliched nature of the film, and the challenges of shooting several of the action scenes.
Click, Click, Bang, Bang: The Making of 2 Guns (30:18): This is an extensive discussion of all aspects of the film, from a tour of the production and the requisite interviews with cast and crew interviews, to locations used in the film and several design pieces. The four chapters include: Undercover and into Action, The Good, the Bad and the Sexy, Finding the Vibe," and Living Dangerously.
Deleted and Extended Scenes (11:50): Eight scenes are offered, with no music and few finishing touches: Bring a Kid to Work Day, Clown or Frankie, Where's Your Badge, Do Me a Favor, Afraid of Heights, What Comes Around Goes Around, Saddle Up, and Bobby Gets Motel Key.
Previews: BDLive will load a mix of several Universal home video and theatrical releases upon inserting the disc. Our first mix included Fast and Furious 6, RIPD, Dallas Buyers Club, and At World's End. The next time, we got a completely different set, including Kick Ass 2.
Our evaluation copy arrived as a Blu-ray/DVD/UltraViolet Combo Pack with one Blu-ray disc, one DVD, and a Digital HD UltraViolet digital copy. The embossed slipcase is nice enough but no interior artwork is available. Other versions of this movie included a Metalpak from Best Buy.
The Bottom Line - 3/5
For those of us who enjoy a fun, buddy-copy action comedy, 2 Guns tries hard to win our respect. Unfortunately, there are too many twists here, and several of our characters fail to endear us beyond their good looks. It's entertaining, but nowhere near unique. The supplements, video, and audio are very good, with A-list performances from Washington, Wahlberg, Paxton, and Olmos to match Kormakur's gritty desert style. The question is, can we recommend it right now, at a price point currently in the low $20 range? No. But, it seems ripe for the bargain bin or even the next Black Friday. We encourage you to wait until those opportunities present themselves, for that is when the true value of the film will become apparent. 2 Guns is rated R for violence throughout, language and brief nudity and has a runtime of 109 minutes.
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