Collateral: 4K UHD Review
I am pretty confident if I asked most of my friends what their favorite film directed by Michael Mann is, they would respond with 1995’s Heat. For me however, my pick would absolutely be Collateral. This is a film that just grabbed me and didn’t let go when it was released in theaters and I have revisited it countless times since. Having said that, I found myself quite curious when Paramount announced that they were releasing it on 4K. To me, this is not a title that screamed for the upgraded format. It is dark, seriously lacks any vibrant colors (with the-exception-of shots of the Staple Center in the background) and it was shot with a mix of film and early digital technology. I won’t sit here and tell you that the new 4K release does wonders for the film and is a huge improvement over the Blu-ray, because that isn’t the case. However, there are smaller details that do improve upon the picture.
L.A. Cab driver Max (Jamie Foxx) is having a good start to his long night after getting the phone number of a beautiful layer named Annie (Jada Pinkett Smith), a passenger who took a near instant liking to the driver with dreams. The initial conversation between the two is sweet and yet very honest. It also gives us a chance to get to know what kind of person Max is. Within minutes of Annie’s exit, Vincent (Tom Cruise) hops in the cab and offers Max $600 to take him to five different stops throughout the night to visit with friends and then drop him back off at the airport. It is at the first stop however when a body falls out of an apartment window and onto Max’s cab, that the driver realizes that Vincent is a hitman.
Obviously, Max wants no part of the killing but Vincent has no plans to let his driver go and now Max must take the guy with the gun around the city to complete his job. Meanwhile, an undercover cop named Fanning (Mark Ruffalo) is trying to figure out who killed one of his witnesses and how the other murders that follow are connected. If you don’t count Interview with a Vampire, 2004’s Collateral would be our introduction to Tom Cruise’s first portrayal of a “believable” villain, and wow, does he sell it. One of the things that makes this film work so well other than the gritty look and building tension is the performances of both Foxx and Cruise. These guys are great together in both the film’s exciting moments as well as the quiet ones. This is definitely not a one-note film and Mann expertly directs the film from Stuart Beattie’s screenplay. This is a far cry from the writer’s other scripts for 30 Days of Night, G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra and I, Frankenstein.
Although the audio is the same as the Blu-ray which uses DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1, I don’t have any issues with that. It sounds perfectly fine, especially paired with the gritty nature of the film. The Dolby Vision upgrade though as I mentioned before has very nuanced changes that most won’t even notice. I would say the improvements are most noticeable in the film’s more intimate moments. Either when the characters are sitting in a jazz club having a conversation or the character close ups in the cab where much of the story takes place. All the bonus features included in this release, were previously included on the Blu-ray, so none of the bonuses are new. I would say if you are a fan of Collateral and don’t already own the Blu-ray, then pay a little more and go for the UHD. I don’t feel an upgrade is necessary but recommended if you want to ad the film to your collection.
Bonus Features:
- Commentary by Director Michael Mann
- City of Night: The Making of Collateral
- Special Delivery
- Deleted Scene with Commentary
- Shooting on Location: Annie’s Office
- Tom Cruise & Jamie Foxx Rehearse
- Visual FX: MTA Train
By: Marc Ferman