Criminal Activities isn’t a half bad crime-drama especially by direct-to-video standards. The performances from Michael Pitt and Dan Stevens were good and even John Travolta in his limited appearance gives the film some weight.
Criminal Activities
(2016)
REVIEW NAVIGATION
The Movie | Special Features | Video Quality | Audio Quality | Overall
Genre(s): Crime, Drama, Comedy
RLJ Entertainment | NR – 94 min. – $29.97 | February 16, 2016
Date Published: 02/02/2016 | Author: The Movieman
  |
|
THE MOVIE – 3.25/5 |
|
Plot Synopsis: Four friends (MICHAEL PITT, DAN STEVENS, CHRISTOPHER ABBOTT, ROB BROWN) stumble into a deal too good to be refuse: an inside stock tip that can net them millions. But when the investment goes bad, they learn that their funding came from a notoriously ruthless crime boss (JOHN TRAVOLTA)… and it’s payback time. Now they must successfully kidnap a family member (EDI GATHEGI) of a rival kingpin in order to erase the life-threatening debt. In way over their heads, if they can complete the assigned task without screwing up, they just might escape with their lives.
Quick Hit Review: Considering the streak direct-to-video flicks have had of late, I honestly didn’t have very high expectations for Criminal Activities and although it’s hardly great, it still has just enough to offer to the point where I not only was entertained (for the most part) but didn’t once regret watching it. It also helps that John Travolta, albeit in a cameo-appearance capacity, seemed to at least be trying. The main cast is also decent with Michael Pitt making for an all around jackass, Dan Stevens proving to be a star on the rise and the relatively unknown Edi Gathegi possessing some charm as the kidnap victim. Helmed by actor Jackie Earle Haley, marking his directorial debut, Criminal Activities is an entertaining flick that actually might be worth at least a rental, outside of that, I can probably see this airing on cable in no time. |
SPECIAL FEATURES – 1.25/5 |
|
This release comes with a title-embossed slip cover. Interview with John Travolta and Jackie Earle Haley (8:32; HD) – The two actors, with Haley also serving as director, discuss the project and the characters during a press junket. Deleted Scenes (2:09; HD) – We get a couple scenes that didn’t make the cut and honestly, none of them would be missed. |
VIDEO – 4.0/5 |
| Criminal Activities is presented with a 1080p high-definition transfer and a 2.40 widescreen aspect ratio. For the most part this is a fine looking video with bright colors and natural-looking skin tones. The darker scenes are fairly stark with no discernible instances of artifacts or aliasing. |
AUDIO – 4.0/5 |
| The movie comes with a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track which is a tad heavy at times but otherwise is rather clear with crisp sounding dialogue levels throughout. Any ambient noises make use of the front and rear channels making for a decently in-depth lossless track. |
OVERALL – 2.5/5 |
| Overall, Criminal Activities isn’t a half bad crime-drama especially by direct-to-video standards. The performances from Michael Pitt and Dan Stevens were good and even John Travolta in his limited appearance gives the film some weight. The Blu-ray released by RLJ offers good video/audio transfers but a thin amount of bonus material. |
Check out some more screen caps by going to page 2. Please note, these do contain spoilers.