# Killers - Blu-ray Review



## Dale Rasco (Apr 11, 2009)

[img]http://www.hometheatershack.com/gallery/file.php?n=4658&w=o[/img]* Title: Killers
Starring: Ashton Kutcher, Katherine Heigl, Katherine O’Hara, Tom Selleck
Directed by: Robert Luketic
Written by: Bob DeRosa, Ted Griffin
Studio: LionsGate
Rated: PG-13
Runtime: 93 Minutes
Release Date: 9/7/2010* 

*Synopsis:* (3.5 out of 5)
*Video:* (4.5 out of 5)
*Audio:* (4 out of 5) 
*Extras:* (2 out of 5) 
*Overall:* (4 out of 5) 



*Synopsis:* :3.5stars:
Our story opens when Jen Kornfeldt (Heigl) takes a vacation to France with her parents to forget her recent breakup with her boyfriend. Mr. Kornfeldt (Selleck) is Jen's overly protective and overly cautious father who just wants what is best, and safest, for his little girl. Mrs. Kornfeldt (O’Hara) is Jen’s lush of a mother who can’t stay out of the bottle.[img]http://www.hometheatershack.com/gallery/file.php?n=4656&w=o[/img]

Once they arrive at the hotel in Nice, Mr. Kornfeldt immediately demands that the hotel move he and his wife to the adjacent room to their daughter’s. Jen takes the quickest path out of the lobby and to her room. Now on the elevator, Jen meets Spencer Aimes (Kutcher) in an odd exchange of mannerisms. The two arrive at the same location near the beach where Spencer asks Jen to meet him later for a drink just before he takes off to assassinate his target. See, Spencer is an agent for the “blah, blah, blah with a license to blah”. You’ll get that one from the trailer. After an incredible vacation together, Jen and Spencer are spending sometime with Jen's parents in which Spencer decides to take the opportunity to ask Mr. Kornfeldt for Jen's hand in marriage.

We soon find ourselves three years down the road and Spencer and Jen are now married living in the suburbs. On the eve of his birthday, Spencer reluctantly accepts an invitation to dinner with Mr. Kornfeldt only to discover that his father-in-law’s mission was to deliver Spencer back to the house where Jen is throwing him a surprise birthday party. The next morning, Jen leaves for a business trip but begins to feel guilty en route to the airport about leaving Spencer on his birthday so she decides to return home. This time the surprise is on Jen when she walks in on Spencer as he is trying to kill his business partner Henry (Rob Riggle) and she soon learns that there is a twenty-million dollar bounty on Spencer’s head. To make matters worse, every hitman within a stone’s throw range is hunting them both in order to collect on the bounty. Now on the run from a horde of killers, Spencer and Jen must find a safe house if they are to survive.

[img]http://www.hometheatershack.com/gallery/file.php?n=4655&w=o[/img]I watched this movie with my teenage daughter and overall I have to say that I enjoyed it pretty well. This is the type of movie that has enough chuckles and action to keep you interested without having to invest too heavily into the characters. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed the characters in the movie and Katherine O’Hara was hilarious as Jen’s alcoholic mother but, there were really no standout performances either. Heigl is as entertaining as she is beautiful and possesses a very genuine charm. I always enjoy watching her movies. I still have a problem watching Kutcher in action without thinking of ‘Michael Kelso’, I don't know if he will ever outgrow that role. Tom Selleck is, well, Tom Selleck and his performance is genuine though a bit quirky.

‘Killers’ is a bit slow getting off of the ground as it takes about 45 minutes for the real action to get going which is one of the reasons I would really call it a romantic comedy more than an action movie but, that’s not necessarily a bad thing either.

*Rating:* 
Rated PG-13 for violent action, sexual material and language.

*Video:* :4.5stars:
So how does the 1080P AVC MPEG 4 transfer with an aspect ratio of 2:35.1 look? Well…. KILLER! Yes, I know, bad pun. The truth is that it looks phenomenal. The scenic landscapes of France are filled with colors and textures that pop out with pristine clarity and perfect hues. Skin tones are natural and facial features are incredibly detailed. Imperfections are flawlessly presented giving the whole appearance a natural and very realistic look. There is an incredible amount of detail in just about every aspect of this transfer from the smallest crevices in wood grain to the architectural and scenic eye candy of the streets of Nice.

Black levels and shadow delineation have infinite depth however; these scenes are few and far between. I have no problem using the R-word as many scenes are near reference quality material full of lush and colorful palettes that bring the film to life. The fighting and shooting scenes are very well paced and not blurred by frantic nonsensical action that plagues so many of today’s movies. Clocking in at an average 26 MBPS, I really can’t find anything to complain about with this video presentation. This is a great transfer and must be seen to be appreciated.
























*Audio:* :4stars: 
Here is where things get tricky. ‘Killers’ is presented in 5.1 DTS-HD-MA and I really can’t recall any recent releases that have had such a clear presentation. The separation between the different things going on in any given scene was phenomenal. I was amazed at how well defined each subtle nuance was and how well each individual piece of the soundscape worked together to give a full and complete production. Dialogue was very articulate and held a lot of depth. Voices never got lost in the action but were equally represented throughout the movie.

My only critique, and it’s a big one for this crowd, is the lack of depth and impact on the low end of the spectrum. Explosions were not felt as much as I would have liked them to be and seem to fade out too quickly. Gunshots were also less impactful than I would have liked them to be. I have a habit of comparing all gunshots and explosions to those found in the ‘Storming the Hotel’ scene found in ‘Hitman’ and Killers just falls short. In the end we have an outstanding audio presentation that just feels a little hollow.


*Extras:* :2stars:


Killer Chemistry: Behind the Scenes with the Killers' Cast and Crew 
Gags 
Deleted Scenes 
Alternate Scenes
Extended Scenes

*Overall:* :4stars:
I found ‘Killers’ to be an entertaining movie that was a little slow on the take off. It doesn’t re-write the genre or expand it into any new territory but it did manage to keep us interested without being pretentious. It was just a by the numbers action oriented romantic comedy and was just what we needed. The video presentation ranges between superb to flawless and really is a treat for you ocular pleasure and the audio presentation will fill your ear canals with sonic goodness even when taking the lackluster bass into account. My suggestion is to rent it for a good date night movie or even a family night movie if you have teenagers. So, until next time campers, have a good day and in case I don't see ya later, a good afternoon, a good evening, and a good night! :wave:


----------



## ILOVEMYHDTV (Oct 4, 2010)

*Re: Killers - Bluray Review*

HI ALL. I WAS DISAPPOINTED BUT THIS ONE. An the ending was very whole hummm.


----------



## bambino (Feb 21, 2010)

*Re: Killers - Bluray Review*

I almost rented this one the other night but allready had more movies in my hands then i had time to watch, anyhow. Good review and from what i've read seams like a decent movie disregarding all the up and down things i've heard about it. Thanks for the great review as always.:T


----------



## celica_pete21 (Aug 27, 2009)

*Re: Killers - Bluray Review*

My wife and I finally got around to watching this, Dale! We definitely enjoyed it. I think I actually enjoyed it more, but only because she is used the the "Just Married" type of Ashton Kutcher and she wasn't sure how to take him in this one. Good movie though, and a great review! :T


----------

