# Jonah Hex - Blu-ray Review



## Dale Rasco (Apr 11, 2009)

[img]http://www.hometheatershack.com/gallery/file.php?n=4840&w=o[/img]*Title: Jonah Hex
Starring: Josh Brolin, John Malkovich, Megan Fox, Will Arnett, Michael Fassbender
Directed by: Jimmy Hayward
Written by: Mark Neveldine, Brian Taylor
Studio: Warner Bros.
Rated: PG-13
Runtime: 81 Minutes
Release Date: 10/12/2010* 

*Synopsis:* (3.5 out of 5)
*Video:* (4.5 out of 5) 
*Audio:* (5 out of 5) 
*Extras:* (3 out of 5) 
*Overall:* (4 out of 5) 




*Synopsis:* :3.5stars:
Jonah Hex opens with Hex (Brolin) tied to posts as he is made to watch as Quentin Turnbull (Malkovich) gives orders to his soldiers to murder Hex’s family for betraying the confederacy and murdering Turnbull’s brother Jeb. Before leaving, Turnbull brands the side of Hex’s face leaving him for dead and horribly disfigured. As the opening credits begin to run, Hex narrates the next couple of years in which Turnbull has been killed before Hex could extract vengeance upon him. We also learn that Hex can now talk to the dead as a side effect of him almost dying at the hands of Turnbull.[img]http://www.hometheatershack.com/gallery/file.php?n=4841&w=o[/img] 

We catch up with Hex, who has now become a bounty hunter, some years later as he brings four wanted men in for payment. After a brief discussion with the town law, who unwisely decides not to pay Hex, we are treated to a barrage of gunfire in which our lone anti-hero is the victor. After retrieving what is owed to him, he exits the town on his horse as the sheriff’s office explodes in the background.

The next scene opens on a train that is transporting a group of soldiers as it is viciously attacked by a band of masked gunmen. After separating the train and making off with its payload, the gunmen blow up the remaining cars killing everyone on board. As the scene comes to a close, one man removes his mask and we find Hex’s old commanding officer Quentin Turnbull behind this act of terrorism. As one act of terrorism is soon followed by more, President Grant (Quinn) must now call in the one man that can stop Turnbull, and the one man that has a score to settle with him as well.

[img]http://www.hometheatershack.com/gallery/file.php?n=4842&w=o[/img]Jonah Hex is based on the DC Comics dating back to the early 70’s and not what I would call a tent pole franchise within the DC Universe. In my opinion, Jonah Hex as a movie felt more like a missed opportunity than anything else. Characters were not fleshed out at all and Warner’s decision to go with a ‘PG-13’ rating rather than an ‘R’ rating really limited what could be done. I did think that the action sequences were pretty well done and the visuals in the film were very good to look at and with an 81 minute runtime, the movie felt fairly fast paced and never appeared to lag. That being said, I think Jonah Hex could have benefitted greatly by being taken into more of a Tombstone meets The Crow type of film rather than the finished product.

Don’t get me wrong, Jonah Hex wasn’t a bad movie, it just wasn’t a great one either. I like Josh Brolin and he seemed to capture the spirit of Jonah Hex and John Malkovich did a fine job as usual. Even Megan Fox wasn’t as annoying as I often find her to be. The rest of the cast did about as well as you would expect from a movie like this one. There are no awards to be handed out in fair such as Jonah Hex; it is just an unapologetic western/action movie that succeeds in holding your attention even if it is only for 81 minutes.


*Rating:* 
Rated PG-13 for intense sequences of violence and action, disturbing images and sexual content.

*Video:* :4.5stars:
Jonah Hex is presented in 1080P MPEG-4 AVC with an aspect ratio of 2:40.1 and looks fantastic. I really think they did an outstanding job on this transfer as should be expected for a movie like this. There is a wide palette of colors that pop off of the screen from one scene to the next that never come across as too vivid or overpowering. Hues are about as perfect as I have ever seen and skin tones are natural and full of life. Details within the landscapes are almost infinite as rock formations and landscape details can be truly mesmerizing to look at. I really enjoyed the sequences where Hex is confronted by Turnbull just before his death in a sort of a dream sequence that really is quite vivid and brilliant looking.

Additionally, the black levels are off the charts as night scenes give way to an endless series of shadows that can almost go on forever. Shadows are extremely well defined with discernable edge enhancments or black crush. Indeed this entire transfer is quite a remarkable presentation and could easily be one of the top ten I have seen this year.


























*Audio:* :5stars: 
What can I say but WOW! Jonah Hex has been given the 5.1 DTS-HD-MA codec and the results are pretty much perfect. I got a lot of enjoyment and satisfaction from listening to this audio presentation. Cannons fill the room with a full throttled roar that penetrates your seats and shakes your bones. The bass is deep, intrusive and extremely dynamic as the before mentioned cannonball shots may very well rival ‘Master and Commander’. Explosions and the deep roars of firestorms are equally impressive but not overly done either. I really enjoyed it and can tell that the filmmakers put a lot of effort in making this presentation all it could be.

Additionally, dialogue was crystal clear and extremely well textured. From the beginning narration through the end of the film, voices were a pleasure to hear and never came off drowned out in the midst of all the action. The score was well done and lent itself well to the atmosphere of the movie, but there were no memorable passages either. Overall I thought it was a truly inspired audio presentation that was very well executed.

*Extras:* :3stars:

Deleted Scenes
The Inside Story of Jonah Hex
The Weird Western Tales of Jonah Hex
Digital Copy and DVD


*Overall:* :4stars:

Overall I found Jonah Hex to be an enjoyable movie that doesn’t take itself too seriously. I did find what I felt to be several missed opportunities within the story however; that is just my opinion as my family found it to have everything they were looking for. In the end I will end up picking this one up myself just to have the A/V presentations as I felt the cannonball scenes will merit several replays. I say if you are looking for a fun little popcorn movie in the vein of ‘The Mummy’ series to show off your system then rent it. 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:


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## celica_pete21 (Aug 27, 2009)

*Re: Jonah Hex - Bluray Review*

Great review Dale! I was actually on the fence of seeing this one, but I think I might have to give it a chance. :T


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## Dale Rasco (Apr 11, 2009)

*Re: Jonah Hex - Bluray Review*

Thanks Steffen, it is really a good popcorn movie but nothing realistic by any stretch of the imagination. Definitely worthy of a rental.


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## bassman_soundking (Nov 4, 2008)

*Re: Jonah Hex - Bluray Review*

Thanx for the review, might give it a watch.


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## recruit (May 9, 2009)

*Re: Jonah Hex - Bluray Review*

I meant to comment earlier Dale and great review :T and I understand where you are coming from with its rating, I would of liked to see this with an R rating :huh:


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## k0rww (Nov 8, 2006)

*Re: Jonah Hex - Bluray Review*

Thanks for the review. 

Looks like a good action movie that's entertaining as long as you don't take it too seriously.


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## sparky77 (Feb 22, 2008)

I watched this movie tonight and at -15 it bottomed out my 2 Tang Band W8-740P's and they're only powered by a 100w dayton sa-100 per sub, with a built in second order highpass at 18hz. No other movie has bottomed them out, not even the transformers movies, which I think got close. Thinking it may be time for eq with such a little sub system. Anybody else have similar issues? Other than that it was a great movie, and not nearly as bloody as I was expecting, violent, yes, but not bloody.

edit: It wasn't even the cannonball scenes that bottomed out the subs, it was just the ambient dramatic effects that went infrasonic and produced the characteristic clacking noise.


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