Film
Will (Hayden Christensen), a broker from Wall Street visits the town where he grew up. While there, by being in the wrong place, at the wrong time, he is forced to evade a police Chief Howell (Bruce Willis – Marauders, Red 2), who is investigating a robbery. Will must evade the authorities and recover a bag of stolen money, which he must now use to exchange for his son’s life.
First Kill is a pretty average crime story, with a bit of action. The plot twists are predictable. The story is shallow, and characters flip between good guy and bad guy every few minutes. However, one does not feel a sense of support either way.
The action unfolds, and things happen, however that is pretty much all. As a film to watch when you have nothing else to do, First Kill is fine. If you’re looking for anything more than a way to pass the time, such as something engaging or intellectual, seek those elsewhere.
Better left for when the film appears on television, First Kill is average, in every way possible. It’s not bad, but, that is about all is has going for it.
Disc
Overall, First Kill is a decent disc technically, with an enjoyable, if run-of-the-mill main feature.
First Kill is available now, to purchase on disc, in South Africa.
Video
Video is encoded at a high average bitrate, with no visible artefacts on screen. There is no visible colour bleed, and detail in darker scenes is good. Colours are vibrant, as needed.
Viewers with the relevant hardware or software could scale up to a larger or higher resolution screen, should they wish.
Video for the various menus, being static, does not have any visible artefacts, and has a decent level of detail, not looking sharpened.
Audio
Audio is encoded at a high average bitrate. Dialogue is clear via the centre speaker, with the weight of the soundtrack carried by the front channels. There is a fair use of the surround channels, serving to expand the on-screen world, add environmental sounds, and to further draw the viewer into the action.
Navigation
Navigation is simple, and easy to follow. The main menu is a static menu, with accompanying music. There are text links to play the main feature, chapters, and audio.
The chapters sub-menus each contain four medium sized colour, motion thumbnails, for a total of twelve chapters.
The audio sub-menu has two text links for surround 5.1 and stereo 2.0, allowing you to choose soundtrack.
Bonus Features
There are no bonus features, except for trailers for Kidnap, Wonder Wheel which autoplay at the beginning of the disc.
While these can be individually fast-forward, or skipped, they can not be accessed again via the disc menu system.
Packaging
Packaging for the disc is pretty standard, with a poster showing the two leads, on the front, as well as the films title.
The rear has a synopsis, some images from the film, and the usual technical detail.
