Back Cover
A Trans-Siberian train journey from Beijing to Moscow turns into a thrilling chase of deception, drug trafficking and murder when Americans Ray(Woody Harrelson) and Jessie(Emily Moritmer) and a pair of fellow travelers, Carlos(Eduardo Noriega) and Abby(Kate Mara), are targeted by ex-KGB detective Grinko(Ben Kingsley).
Movie Review
Transsiberian the movie unfolds in much the same manner the long distance train ride from which it takes it name. It reveals the story and the characters in that smooth, gliding and dreamy manner that train rides envelope their passengers in. The advantages of a graduated approach from a story perspective is that you get to know the characters, the layout of their immediate environment, and a sense of the external world through which the setting of the story takes place.
In many aspects this is an old fashioned movie that relies on atmosphere and character building to draw the audience in. Within the sub-like claustrophobic confines of a train the lives of an American couple intersect and intermingle with those of a traveling couple. Secrets and personal history are shared. Sometimes by accident. Often by design. Director Brad Anderson(The Machinist) strives for realism and avoids employing current day thriller techniques such as convoluted plot twists or jarring edit cuts.
Suspense is built up organically and in a realistic manner. Lingering shots that capture furtive glances by characters or unmasked emotions when a character is not being observed by others are used to great effect here. The story hinges upon Jessie, a woman with a checkered past who is in the process of picking up the pieces of her life and building something better. Her husband Ray has provided that opportunity but Emily still feels the siren call of excitement that was part of her destructive past life style. Carlos picks up on this vibe from Jessie and it is this awareness that propels the movie forward.
With a tightly constructed and plotted as this movie is, it would be a disservice to expand on the plot any further. To do so would diminish the experience for first time viewers. This is a well crafted movie with a great sense of atmosphere peopled with a solid cast, filled with interesting locales and background characters. The realistic tone of the movie adds to the tension because the story is one that seems plausible. Inevitably, the final conclusion veers towards a climax that feels somewhat jarring in tone because of how grounded the story has been until that point. A minor quibble however for a movie that provides an entertaining ride.
Crave Factor – 8
Video
In keeping with the tone and mood of the movie the video here is very natural in appearance. Colours are accurate with no artificial boosting to emphasize one colour over others to establish a mood. It is akin to watching a highly professional version of a home movie. The vast snow bound country side through which the train travels leads one to feel like colours are muted but in fact this presentation is very accurate.
The image is rock solid. As expected with a current release there are no blemishes or dirt to be seen. White and black levels work in tandem to present a great field of depth. Flesh tones are also accurately rendered.
Crave Factor – 8
Audio
The audio track is also designed to reinforce realism. Scenes aboard the train use the surrounds to fill out the expected background noises and conversations to great effect. The rumble and clack of the train wheels plus the creaks and groans of the train cars are very well presented. LFE usage is used sparingly to reinforce train movement. Dialogue is clear and natural sounding.
There is little in the way that is showy here. Only during the climax of the film is there a true use of the LFE channel. That moment packs even more of a punch because of the lack of dramatic use of the audio.
There is no lossless audio included on the disc. There are 640 Kbps Dolby Digital 5.1 and Dolby Digital surround tracks.
Subtitles in English(SDH) and Spanish are included.
Crave Factor – 8
Special Features
The disc is light on features with only one behind the scenes look and trailers for other pictures. Oddly, no trailer for Transsiberian is included.
Trailers
The four clips offered here are all DVD quality and are for the following movies:
- War Inc.
- Sukiyaki Western Django
- Priceless
- Birds of America
Making of Transsiberian(33:56 mins)
Like the movie itself this making of feature avoids the polish and artificial sheen of other such extras and gives a behind the scenes look that is straight forward in a slice of life way. Director Brad Anderson talks about how the seeds for the movie came from the trip he took on said railroad after he graduated from college. From there the logistics of shooting a movie on location, Lithuania stood in for most of the outdoor locations, securing financing from several countries, actors thoughts on the story, character, and director, and determining what was to be shot on location versus studio are covered. Its all done in a very free form and informal basis.
Note the featurette is letterboxed in standard definition and non-anamorphic widescreen.
Crave Factor – 6
Menu & Packaging
Transibberian comes in the Standard opaque BluRay case. No insert is included.
The menu pops up on the left side of the screen and is accessible on the fly while the movie continues to play.
There are menu options for:
Resume: hides the menu
Scene Selection: brings up 3 of the 12 chapter stops which can be scrolled to the desired one
SetUp: audio selections for DD 5.1 or DD Surround, subtitles for English & Spanish
Special Features: Trailers and the behind the scene featurette, Making of Transsiberian
Crave Factor – 8
Conclusion & Final Thoughts
Transsiberian is a well crafted tension laden thriller that builds itself up through storytelling and character building. What its lack in bombast and cheap pyrotechnics it makes up for in skillfully shot character moments and mood setting. Definitely worth a taking a ride on.
