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SONY

MOVIE INFO

Director:
Scott Beck, Bryan Woods
Cast:
Adam Driver, Ariana Greenblatt, Chloe Coleman
Writing Credits:
Scott Beck, Bryan Woods

Synopsis:
An astronaut crash lands on a mysterious planet only to discover he's not alone.

Box Office:
Budget
$45 million.
Opening Weekend
$12,328,361 on 3405 screens.
Domestic Gross
$32,062,904.

MPAA:
Rated PG-13.

DISC DETAILS
Presentation:
Aspect Ratio: 2.40:1
Audio:
English DTS-HD MA 5.1
English Audio Descriptive Service
Portuguese Dolby 5.1
Spanish DTS-HD MA 5.1
French DTS-HD MA 5.1
Thai Dolby 5.1
Subtitles:
English
Chinese Simplified
Chinese Traditional
French
Korean
Portuguese
Spanish
Thai
Closed-captioned
Supplements Subtitles:
English
Chinese Simplified
Korean
Portuguese
Spanish
Thai

Runtime:
93 min.
Price: $38.99
Release Date: 5/30/2023

Bonus:
• Deleted Scenes
• “Set in Stone” Featurette
• “Future of Yesterday” Featurette
• “Primordial Planet” Featurette
• “Final Showdown” Featurette
• Previews


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RELATED REVIEWS


65 [Blu-Ray] (2023)

Reviewed by Colin Jacobson (June 7, 2023)

10 years ago, it looked like Adam Driver would stick with a career focused on character dramas. However, he agreed to play a major role in the Star Wars Sequel Trilogy, a choice that altered his trajectory.

Somewhat, at least, as Driver continues to concentrate on the kind of fare he did pre-Star Wars - albeit often with bigger budgets. Nonetheless, Driver shows openness to Action Hero Status, as he demonstrates with 2023’s 65.

On the planet Somaris, a pilot named Mills (Driver) takes a job that will keep him from his wife Alya (Nika King) and daughter Nevine (Chloe Coleman) for two years. He dreads so much time away from his family, but Nevine suffers from a life-threatening illness that the pay from this gig will help treat.

On the return trip home, though, Mills’ ship crashlands onto an unknown planet. There he deals with deadly threats.

As longtime readers know, I try hard to avoid spoilers, and that becomes a challenge with 65. The nature of the place Mills ends up – and the time period in which the movie takes place – offer major twists, ones that I don’t know if I should reveal.

Oh, to heck with it. If you want to avoid this info, look away!

The movie’s title refers to the story’s era, as it takes place on Earth 65 million years ago. On its own, that seems like a neat idea, though it becomes one that falls into the “high concept” domain.

Basically 65 provides an opportunity to see an advanced civilization face off against dinosaurs. Of course, the film could use a fictional planet as a location to send a future Earth astronaut – or not involve Earth at all. It’s science-fiction – there could be Space Dinosaurs, too!

That means the twist in which an alien lands here feels somewhat superfluous. This conceit allows for cutesy moments – ones I also won’t describe to avoid more spoilers – but outside of semi-cleverness, these add little to the tale.

At its core, 65 shows potential. No one goes into a movie like this with the expectation of anything other than a brisk mix of Star Wars and Jurassic Park, so it’s not like viewers anticipate more than a fun popcorn flick.

Which I would embrace – if 65 actually managed the “fun” part of the equation. Unfortunately, it takes itself too seriously and fails to deliver the requisite action thrills.

In addition to the obvious influences I mentioned, 65 often feels like it borrows heavily from the Alien franchise. Some of that relates to the classic 1979 film, but we also find obvious links to 1986’s Aliens.

The ship Mills pilots comes with passengers, almost all of whom die when the vessel crashes. Young Koa (Arianna Greenblatt) exists as the only survivor other than Mills.

And Koa becomes an extremely obvious echo of Newt from Aliens. The role exists literally for no reason other than to offer “dino bait” and give Mills a personal connection/goal beyond his own survival.

Just as Newt offered a stand-in for Ripley’s lost daughter in Aliens, so does Koa give Mills a connection to his own child. This all seems transparently manipulative and unnecessary.

Let’s throw in superfluous as well. Of course, I like depth in action fare when done well – such as with Aliens, which integrates Newt and Ripley’s maternal journey in a way that benefits the movie’s emotional resonance.

During 65, though, these elements – and the frequent maudlin views of Poor Dying Nevine – feel like they exist for no reason other than to stir the heartstrings. They don’t, as they seem so cheap and clumsy that they backfire.

It doesn’t help that it often feels like we spend more time with scenes in which a mopey Mills views video messages from Nevine than anything else. A movie based around an alien astronaut who fights dinosaurs should probably focus more heavily on scenes in which an alien astronaut fights dinosaurs.

Really, that’s all anyone in the prospective audience wants from 65. Give us relentless spaceman vs. dino action and we’ll go home happy.

Unfortunately, 65 ignores that basic mission far too much of the time. While not a terrible movie, this becomes a surprisingly dull one that fails to achieve its simple goals.


The Disc Grades: Picture A-/ Audio A-/ Bonus C-

65 appears in an aspect ratio of 2.40:1 on this Blu-ray Disc. As expected, this became a fine presentation.

At all times, sharpness appeared positive. As such, I thought the image seemed accurate and well-defined.

I noticed no signs of shimmering or jaggies. The movie lacked any print flaws.

Teal? Check. Amber? Check.

Color-related creativity? Not really. The hues followed predictable stylistic paths, but the Blu-ray executed them in a positive manner.

Blacks were always deep and tight, and I saw good contrast as well. Shadows seemed clear and appropriately opaque. The Blu-ray became a strong reproduction of the film.

65 came with solid audio, as its DTS-HD MA 5.1 mix used all the channels in a lively, involving manner. Dinos, vehicles, weapon-fire, and other action elements popped up from all around the room and delivered a smooth, engrossing soundscape.

This meant nearly constant material from the surrounds. The back speakers delivered a high level of information and created a great sense of place in that domain. All of this melded together in a vivid, satisfying manner.

Audio quality was also strong. Music seemed full and bold, while speech was consistently natural and crisp.

Effects became the most prominent component, of course, and packed a solid punch, with positive clarity and range. The audio of 65 delivered the goods.

A few extras appear here, and we find four featurettes. Set in Stone runs four minutes, 21 seconds and involves co-writer/co-directors Scott Beck and Bryan Woods, producers Deborah Leibling and Zainab Azizi, and special effects supervisor Mark Hawker.

“Stone” looks at the long-time friendship/partnership between Beck and Woods as well as their approach to the project. A few insights emerge but the piece largely remains superficial.

Future of Yesterday lasts four minutes, 56 seconds and brings notes from Beck, Woods, Azizi, production designer Kevin Ishioka, property master Ed Borasch Jr., special effects designer Shane Dzicek, visual effects supervisor Chris Harvey, and actor Ariana Greenblatt.

Here we learn about sets and props, locations and audio. Despite its brevity, “Future” brings a good look at the topics.

Next comes Primordial Planet, a two-minute, 30-second segment. It brings a promotional view of the notion of Earth 65 million years ago and doesn’t become especially interesting.

Lastly, Final Showdown goes for 10 minutes, 14 seconds and displays a storyboard to final film comparison for the movie’s climax. It becomes an enjoyable view of this domain.

Five Deleted Scenes span a total of eight minutes, three seconds. These bring a mix of minor character beats and a little more action but nothing noteworthy.

The disc opens with ads for The Woman King, Missing, Big George Foreman, Bullet Train and The Pope’s Exorcist. No trailer for 65 appears here.

One would expect a movie that pits an astronaut versus dinosaurs to offer a lively thrill ride. In the case of 65, one would anticipate incorrectly, as the movie largely becomes a slow and not especially compelling journey. The Blu-ray boasts excellent picture and audio as well as a small allotment of bonus materials. I like the concept of 65 but the end result fails to live up to its potential.

Viewer Film Ratings: 3 Stars Number of Votes: 4
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Review Archive:  # | A-C | D-F | G-I | J-L | M-O | P-R | S-U | V-Z | Viewer Ratings | Main