Why So Blu?

The Lookalike (Blu-ray Review)

Looking at this film and all the actors and producers involved, it seems quite clear that The Lookalike was a script that a lot of people had faith in.  There is, indeed, a fun, pulpy story being told here, with enough characters, dark humor, twists, and turns to make for what could have been a fun crime comedy-drama.  Unfortunately, director Richard Gray (the writer’s husband) does not seem to possess enough skill in the way of flashiness to really bring out the entertainment that should be had in an over-the-top story like this.  Still, the effort was made, so now a Blu-ray exists for people to check it out for themselves.

Film:

The story has been surmised as follows: Drug lord William Spinks (John Savage) has a curious obsession with Sadie Hill (Gillian Jacobs) and uses family friends Bobby (John Corbett) and Frank (Steven Bauer) to get to her. But when Sadie’s death jeopardizes a major deal, Bobby and Frank set out to find a replacement, a lookalike to fool Spinks. The shady plan propels an ex-basketball champion (Jerry O’Connell), a deaf beauty (Scottie Thompson), an addict (Justin Long), and an aspiring actress (Gillian Jacobs, again) into an unlikely romance and a desperate quest to start over.

The Lookalike basically has the type of plotline fitting of a crime comedy coming from the mind of 2000s Guy Ritchie, except for the inclusion of women in pivotal roles.  It makes little difference, except for finding ways to incorporate romantic angles and some dirty, sex-related plotlines into a typical crime story about some seemingly good people trying to find their way out of bad situations, while the inept bad guys do their best not to get caught.  Aside from the film’s moral stance, which is shady, but somewhat compelling, there is only so much to praise here, given the merely decent performances on display and a refusal for the film to have more fun with its setup.

Justin Long, Gillian Jacobs, and Jerry O’Connell are all actors who have a natural level of charisma that should allow them to be fairly enjoyable to watch.  It is of little surprise that they come out looking the best, but if a film cannot capture these actors all that well, there is even less to say about someone like Steven Bauer, who is pretty awful in this movie, let alone Gina Gershon or Luis Guzman, who have minor roles.  John Savage was apparently the veteran ‘get’ for this film, but even his minimal presence can only do so much, when the filmmaking does not rise above the challenge to make things more interesting.

As far as crime dramas and neo-noirs go, The Lookalike has the semblance of a good film overruled by that spark that could have really pushed things into more entertaining territory.  There is some jazziness in the score, some nice moments, and a few clever lines, but it is just not enough.  I was all for hoping this solid cast could make the best of things, but even at just over 90 minutes, the film ended up as a miss.

Video:

Encoding: MPEG-4 AVC

Resolution: 1080p

Aspect Ratio: 2.40:1

Clarity/Detail: The Lookalike is a decent looking film.  The low budget shows in places, as the sets can only be so elaborate, but, for the most part, we get a level of clarity in the various settings that keep things a bit above average.

Depth: Some of the club-based scenes allow for a good enough understanding of the dimensionality present in the film.

Black Levels: Minor signs of crush present, but the black levels tend to be deep enough.

Color Reproduction: The night time scenes, which there are a lot of, allow for some nice use of color in the form of lighting and costumes. It comes off well in this transfer.

Flesh Tones: Facial textures are appropriately fitting and provide a nice level of detail.

Noise/Artifacts: Nothing all that noticeable.

 

Audio: 

Audio Format(s): English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio

Subtitles: English SDH

Dynamics: The audio range here allows for enough in the way of clearly hearing the score, dialogue, etc. There is enough in the way of audio elements to make this the best aspect of the disc.

Low Frequency Extension: There are some solid moments for the LFE channel to work with.

Surround Sound Presentation: The track is balanced and clear, making for a fine audio experience.  The rear channels get enough to work with in terms of atmospheric sound and everything, overall, comes out quite well.

Dialogue Reproduction: Everyone is loud and clear.

 

Extras: 

Next to nothing is offered aside from a few deleted scenes and a standard Making-of, which all play in order, once you select a feature from the top.

Features Include:

• Deleted Scenes (HD, 4:00) – Four deleted scenes that seem to have just been excess material.
• Behind the Scenes (HD, 14:45) – A standard look at how this film came to be.
• Trailer

Summary:

The Lookalike looked like it had promise.  A good cast is here, but they only do so much for the film.  The plot is pulpy enough to work, but the direction does not quite push it where it needs to go.  The tone is nearly there, but still awkward in a lot of places.  Basically, the film misses the mark.  The Blu-ray is decent enough, with a solid audio track, but lacking in the way of extras.  Only so much to recommend here, which is not all that much to begin with.

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