The Lookalike Blu-ray Review

The Lookalike is presented on Blu-ray by Well Go USA with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in a 2.35:1 aspect ratio. Utilizing footage shot with the Red Epic camera, the film predominantly features dusky tones often associated with nightclubs or dimly lit environments. This choice impacts the eye-popping fine detail, which becomes more apparent in outdoor or brightly illuminated scenes. The image remains clear with close-ups revealing sharp and well-defined textures. However, some minor instances of banding crop up, particularly in darker scenes when bright lights intrude, an issue mostly isolated to nightclub sequences.

In terms of technical details, the encoding is performed in MPEG-4 AVC at 1080p resolution, providing a commendable level of clarity and detail throughout the film despite its low-budget roots. Depth is effectively conveyed in several club-based scenes, highlighting the dimensionality within the frame. Black levels are generally satisfying, although there are occasional signs of crush. On the color reproduction front, nighttime scenes stand out with vibrant lighting and costumes that translate well in this transfer. Facial textures maintain a fitting level of detail with appropriately rendered flesh tones. Noise and artifacts are minimal, maintaining a smooth visual quality.

Overall, The Lookalike's Blu-ray presentation successfully navigates its low-budget constraints, delivering a viewing experience marked by clear imagery and effective use of color, with only minor technical imperfections.

The Lookalike’s DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track delivers an impressive audio experience marked by clarity and balance. The sound design excels with a well-executed surround sound presentation, ensuring ample utilization of the rear channels for atmospheric effects, particularly in crowded club scenes. Fidelity is excellent, and dynamic range is notably wide, allowing both quiet dialogue and impactful sequences to be distinctly audible. Dialogue reproduction is consistently clean and crystal clear, highlighting the careful attention to voice clarity throughout the film.

In addition to its robust surround sound capabilities, the track also offers solid low-frequency extension, with the LFE channel providing some substantial moments that enhance the overall impact of the audio. The score and ambient environmental effects are effectively channeled through discrete channels, contributing to an immersive soundscape that enhances the viewer's engagement. The track balances different audio elements smoothly, making the audio quality one of the strongest aspects of this Blu-ray release.

Overall, The Lookalike’s audio presentation succeeds in creating an engaging listening experience through its well-balanced dynamics, clean dialogue, and effective use of the surround channels.

The extras section of "The Lookalike" Blu-ray offers a minimal but somewhat engaging selection of additional content. The key highlights include four deleted scenes that total around four minutes, providing insight into material cut from the final edit. Additionally, a 14:45-minute "Behind the Scenes" featurette provides a conventional yet informative look at the film's production process. The disc is designed to automatically transition between features and then to previews for other Well Go USA releases, ensuring a seamless viewing experience. While the extras are limited, they do offer some value in understanding the film's development process.

Extras included in this disc:

• Deleted Scenes: Four scenes that appear to be excess material.
• Behind the Scenes: Standard look at how this film came to be.
• Trailer

The Lookalike begins with the potential of a gritty, Tarantino-esque thriller, centering on lowlife drug dealers Bobby (John Corbett) and Frank (Steven Bauer) as they try to impress drug lord William Spinks (John Savage). Their scheme involves Sadie (Gillian Jacobs), a call girl with a personal connection to Spinks. However, an accident leads them to seek a lookalike named Lacey (also Jacobs), setting the stage for a dark and twisted narrative. This promising setup is quickly muddled with improbable plot twists and bizarre coincidences, diminishing its initial impact.

The film's complexity is compounded by an overabundance of subplots, including the fraught relationship between brothers Holt (Justin Long) and Joe Mulligan (Jerry O'Connell). Joe, a former basketball star, is romantically involved with Mila (Scottie Thompson), a cancer survivor with a prosthetic leg, while Holt's new girlfriend turns out to be Lacey. Despite the involvement of capable actors, the convoluted storylines detract from their performances. The absence of Tarantino's sharp humor leaves the thriller feeling overwrought and underdeveloped, missing the mark of engaging dark comedy.

"The Lookalike" presents an intriguing premise supported by a talented cast, but unfortunately, falls short in execution. The film delves into a labyrinth of coincidences and serendipitous events that stretch the boundaries of believability, resulting in a narrative that feels contrived and overly dependent on suspension of disbelief. The dialogue oscillates between being absurd and incoherent, compromising the actors' performances, which could have otherwise elevated the material to a more engaging level.

The direction, while ambitious, fails to fully realize the potential of the plot's pulp-inspired elements. There are moments where the tone nearly hits its mark but ultimately remains awkward and unbalanced throughout. Despite these shortcomings, the technical merits of the Blu-ray release are commendable. The video quality is generally clean with good color reproduction, which does justice to the film's visual style. Additionally, the audio track delivers robust sound, albeit with limited extras to enhance the overall package.

In conclusion, "The Lookalike" struggles to coherently bring its intriguing setup to fruition. While it boasts a competent cast and strong technical aspects in its Blu-ray format, these attributes are not enough to counterbalance the film's narrative and tonal flaws. Potential viewers might find some merit in technical quality and performances, but overall, there is limited enthusiasm to recommend this release.