Destroyer (2018)

[tardif]

Bluray.com reviewer Jeffrey Kaufman does it again! The discs has 2 X COMMENTARY TRACKS and a 19 minute making of documentary and it only gets a measly 2 out of 5 in the extras department! Doesn’t even bother to review the extras as per usual as well.

[Paul.R.S]

Originally Posted by PrestonXI

Just watched the Blu-ray from NetFlix last night.

Were the supplements on there or was it a "Rental Copy"?

[Splatterpunk]

Intimate and bruising, Karyn Kusama’s DESTROYER from 2018 features Nicole Kidman getting uglied up for her role as an LAPD detective intent on getting some revenge. The film is essentially a small-scale character centric crime tale that’s presented in a realistic but stylish way.

In the present, Erin Bell (Kidman, looking absolutely scorched and hollowed out) is an emotionally distant alcoholic cop. Haunted by her past, she maintains a barely functional relationship with her ex, Ethan (Scoot McNairy), and struggles to parent her teenage daughter, Shelby (Jade Pettyjohn), in any meaningful way. When a dangerous figure from Bell’s undercover days named Silas (Toby Kebbell) resurfaces, she is given the opportunity for both bloody catharsis and to make amends to her broken family. Through a series of flashbacks, we see the younger, more vibrant Bell and her partner Chris (Sebastian Stan) infiltrate Silas’ gang of armed robbers. Meanwhile, in the current timeline, we watch Bell systematically hunt down her former underworld associates in a bid to discover the whereabouts of the ruthless Silas. Notable supporting players include Tatiana Maslany, Toby Huss, James Jordan, Zach Villa, Beau Knapp, and Bradley Whitford.

Kusama’s husband, Phil Hay, and Matt Manfredi wrote the script. Purposefully structured, we are given an intense character study that nevertheless allows for Kidman to realize the role in a not exclusively verbal way. We’ve seen this type of story before, but it’s usually from a male perspective, or in a way that’s coded as male. In Kusama and Kidman’s hands, Hay and Manfredi’s story feels every bit as gritty as the genre requires, while giving us a female antihero that’s not exaggerated or meant to be sexy. Kidman disappears into the role, and does a great job of delineating the two timeframes, going as far as to speak in two separate manners. I completely bought everything about her performance and it’s her raw intensity that carries the film’s 121-minute runtime. Everyone else does fine work, with Maslany, Pettyjohn, and Stan resonating the most after Kidman.

Shot on location in Los Angeles by Julie Kirkwood, this is a sunbaked, blinding LA that’s decidedly unglamorous and mundane. Kirkwood’s photography is sleek without being slick, and brings an epic heft to the narrative, albeit in a micro, almost compact way. Bell’s story is completely grounded, but we see her as just this side of mythical. The imagery is integral to complimenting the fatalistic quest-like tone, while still dragging us through the dirt. I wouldn’t necessarily call this an action film, but the action sequences are strong. There are a couple fight scenes that are downright brutal, with Kidman’s slight lanky frame exacerbating the violence she doles out and receives. Theodore Shapiro’s score is distinctive and ominous, succeeding at invoking existential dread and raising our hackles as we dive deeper into Bell’s murky reality.

Makeup is a central aspect of the piece. Kidman and a few of the supporting players are seen both in the present and in the flashbacks that take place approximately seventeen years prior. So, this not being a lavishly budgeted studio picture, there’s no CGI de-aging ala THE IRISHMAN going on. I have to say the makeup is very well done, however it borders on distracting. I understand that Bell is supposed to be this burnt out husk of a person, but her transformation is almost too much, almost too on the nose. Kusama and company are capably subtle in most of the rest of the film, so this aspect is glaring in its ostentatiousness. Again, it looks realistic, and Kidman still delivers underneath it, but it maybe goes a tad too far.

Karyn Kusama’s DESTROYER takes some familiar tropes and reinvents them for a film that feels fresh and satisfying. I avoided extensively detailing the plot, as there are a few surprises, so beware reading more about it. It’s a heavy piece, but not oppressively so, and I was engrossed with Nicole Kidman’s performance, despite some misgivings about her makeup. Recommended for fans of CARLITO’S WAY, DRIVE, and YOU WERE NEVER REALLY HERE.

[GiorgioV]

UK Blu digital copy:
C7332SKMCZ9U41N3

[017]

Can anyone confirm if this is Region B compatible?