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LIONSGATE

MOVIE INFO

Director:
Scott Speer
Cast:
Bella Thorne, Richard Harmon, Dermot Mulroney
Writing Credits:
Jason Fuchs

Synopsis:
Set ten years after an apocalyptic event killed millions and left the world inhabited by ghosts, a high school student investigates a spooky message from the afterlife.

MPAA:
Rated PG-13.

DISC DETAILS
Presentation:
Aspect Ratio: 2.40:1
Audio:
English DTS-HD MA 5.1
Subtitles:
English
Spanish
Closed-captioned
Supplements Subtitles:
None

Runtime: 98 min.
Price: $21.99
Release Date: 12/11/2018

Bonus:
• Audio Commentary with Director Scott Speer and Actor Bella Thorne
• “Novel to Screen” Featurette
• “Remnants” Featurette
• Deleted Scenes
• Previews


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RELATED REVIEWS


I Still See You [Blu-Ray] (2018)

Reviewed by Colin Jacobson (December 4, 2018)

Based on Daniel Waters’ 2012 novel Break My Heart 1000 Times, 2018’s I Still See You introduces us to a setting in which an apocalyptic occurrence resulted in a world that features ghosts. 10 years after this horrible event took place, high school student Roni Calder (Bella Thorne) gets an upsetting contact from one of these spirits.

Disturbed by this, Roni partners with classmate Kirk Lane (Richard Harmon) to investigate. This takes them on a spooky journey as they deal with the boundaries between the mortal coil and the afterlife as well as a current threat.

Unlike the traditional ghost story, the spirits of See exist as “spectral remnants”. This means that they appear as echoes of their living selves, ones that perform the same actions over and over.

Until the twist, that is – and you knew there’d have to be a twist, right? I like the spin the “remnants” brings to the film, and even though we know something spooky/threatening will eventually arrive, See pulls off the shift well.

In truth, See acts as more of a thriller than a ghost/horror story, and that’s where it falters. While it musters enough dramatic energy to keep us reasonably interested, it sputters after a pretty good opening.

Really, the premise does most of the heavy lifting here, and it’s enough for a while. However, once the movie gets more into the thriller elements, it loses energy.

That’s because outside of the supernatural side of things, the movie doesn’t bring much that I’d call fresh to the table. We get a moderately engaging mystery but not one that threatens to turn into anything especially memorable.

Much of that comes from the inherently passive way the plot unfolds. A lot of the “investigation” requires Roni and Kirk to simply watch remnants of past events, so they don’t get a whole lot to do along the way.

This makes See something of a disappointment, as it shows early promise that it doesn’t quite fulfill. Still, it’s better than I expected and not a bad effort overall.


The Disc Grades: Picture B/ Audio B/ Bonus B

I Still See You appears in an aspect ratio of approximately 2.40:1 on this Blu-ray Disc. Expect mainly positive visuals here.

Sharpness appeared good. A few interiors could be a little soft, but the movie displayed nice clarity and definition most of the time. Jagged edges and moiré effects failed to appear, and I also noticed no edge haloes or print flaws.

In terms of palette, See favored quiet tones. It went with gentle teal and/or orange much of the time. These hues lacked much pep but they seemed fine.

Blacks appeared full and dense, while low-light shots gave us acceptable clarity. Nighttime shots tended to seem a bit murky, but not to a substantial degree. Overall, I felt pleased with the transfer.

Though not packed with action, the film’s DTS-HD MA 5.1 soundtrack accentuated the story. Most of the livelier moments related to flashbacks or storms or “the event”, so those managed to use the spectrum in a vivid manner. Otherwise, the film emphasized quiet ambience and not much more.

Within those gentle confines, sound quality satisfied. Music was full and rich, while effects demonstrated nice clarity and accuracy.

Speech came across as crisp and natural, though a few lines showed less than convincing looping. The mix didn’t do much but it seemed fine.

As we shift to extras, we open with an audio commentary from director Scott Speer and actor Bella Thorne. Both sit together for this running, screen-specific look at story and characters, cast and performances, sets and locations, stunts, editing, and photography.

Speer and Thorne generate a perfectly mediocre commentary. They mix filmmaking notes with happy talk to create a decent track but not one that ever threatens to excel.

Two featurettes follow, and Novel to Screen lasts nine minutes, one second. It includes notes from Speer, author Daniel Waters, and screenwriter Jason Fuchs.

As expected, we learn about the book and its film adaptation. It becomes a fairly efficient overview.

Remnants runs 26 minutes, 11 seconds and offers information from Speer, Fuchs, Thorne, production designer Kevin Bird, and actors Richard Harmon and Dermot Mulroney.

The show looks at story/characters, cast and performances, sets and locations, and general topics. “Remnants” gives us a decent “making of” program.

10 Deleted Scenes fill a total of 28 minutes, 15 seconds. Most of these offer character embellishments that focus on Roni and Kirk, but some additional exposition also appears, and we get an action sequence as well.

These work better than usual, as they provide some interesting material. They probably would’ve slowed down the final cut, but they add some good beats.

We can watch the scenes with or without commentary from Speer. He tells us a little about the sequences as well as why they didn’t make the movie. Speer’s notes bring value.

The disc opens with ads for Down a Dark Hall, Kin, Jessabelle and Winchester. No trailer for See shows up here.

At its best, I Still See You gives us a clever spin on the ghost story. However, it loses steam after a strong opening and ends up as a pretty mediocre film. The Blu-ray brings generally positive picture and audio along with a fairly good set of supplements.

See turns into a watchable but erratic tale.

Viewer Film Ratings: 2 Stars Number of Votes: 1
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