Down (aka The Shaft) is an incredibly flawed but yet still quite entertaining supernatural horror flick that doesn’t have many surprises to offer and the writing isn’t the best, though watching this amongst friends makes for a good time.
Down
— Collector’s Edition —
(2001)
Genre(s): Horror, Supernatural
Blue Underground | R – 111 min. – $39.98 | October 31, 2017
Date Published: 10/19/2017 | Author: The Movieman
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THE MOVIE — 3.0/5 |
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Plot Synopsis: When the express elevators in New York City’s 102-story Millennium Building start to malfunction, a series of gruesome and deadly “accidents” occur. Elevator mechanics Mark (JAMES MARSHALL) and Jeff (ERIC THAL) attempt to find the cause, with little success. Meanwhile, spunky reporter Jennifer (NAOMI WATTS) is hot on the story and the police lieutenant (DAN HEDAYA) is stumped. At the core is a former Army scientist Gunter Steinburg (MICHAEL IRONSIDE).
Quick Hit Review: Outside of Amsterdamned, I’m not all that familiar with the works of writer/director Dick Maas. I do know Down, a.k.a. The Shaft, is a remake of his own 1983 The Lift, and although I never saw that movie, I did feel this one, even thought it ran too long, was quite a bit of fun even if the storytelling was on the clunky side. The performances also aren’t anything all that impressive. James Marshall was okay I suppose in the lead role though there were spots I wished this had starred Stephen Dorff instead. Naomi Watts, in one of her earlier roles, does what she can with a thinly written character and Michael Ironside, spoiler alert, is a villain. What also stood out was some bad ADR work, particularly any exterior scenes which sounded rather odd.
But as it is, Down is still a fun, polished movie that can be enjoyed amongst friends in the aged old so good, it’s bad category. However, there are some cringe-worthy moments near the end. One is a police officer talking about terrorists attempts on the attack of the World Trade Center 10 years ago (at this moment in the movie, authorities believe terrorists are involved) and another utters the line, “Say hello to Bin Ladin for me.” *crickets* |
SPECIAL FEATURES – 2.5/5 |
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This two-disc release comes housed in a clear HD keep case and inside is a DVD Copy and a booklet. Also included is a reversible cover revealing the original “The Shaft” title and artwork. Audio Commentary – Writer/Director Dick Maas and Stunt Coordinator Willem de Beukelaer and moderated by David Gregory. The track is on the drier side but the pair still delve into the production. The Making of Down (9:25; SD) is a fly-on-the-wall featurette with footage from behind-the-scenes. Behind the Scenes Footage (2:31:24; SD) is more raw footage filmed during production. Also included is a Theatrical Trailer (1:59; HD), two Teaser Trailers (0:36/1:27) and a Poster & Still Gallery. |
VIDEO – 4.5/5 |
| Down crashes onto Blu-ray courtesy of Blue Underground and is presented in its original 2.35 widescreen aspect ratio and a new 1080p high-definition transfer from a 2K restoration from the original negative. I was rather impressed with the picture as it features sharp detail throughout, some fine natural film grain and colors looked nicely balanced without appearing pumped up and oversaturated. |
AUDIO – 4.0/5 |
| The disc includes four options with English & French DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and English & French Dolby Digital Stereo tracks, the English DTS-HD MA 5.1 being default. It wasn’t a half bad lossless track providing clear dialogue from the center speaker while the front and rears were mostly relegated to the elevator crashes, people screaming, etc. |
OVERALL – 3.5/5 |
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Overall, Down (aka The Shaft) is an incredibly flawed but yet still quite entertaining supernatural horror flick that doesn’t have many surprises to offer and the writing isn’t the best, though watching this amongst friends makes for a good time. The Blu-ray released by Blue Underground does have excellent video and audio transfers and an okay selection of bonus features. |
Check out some more 1080p screen caps by going to page 2. Please note, these do contain spoilers.
What about the Blu-ray Main screen and menus?
It’s basically the same as all the other Blue Underground titles. If I get the chance, I’ll do a screen capture of it.