Redline: Special Edition – MVD Marquee Collection (Blu-ray)

Theatrical Release Date: USA, 2007
Director: Andy Cheng
Writers: Robert Foreman, Daniel Sadek
Cast: Nathan Phillips, Nadia Bjorlin, Angus Macfadyen, Eddie Griffin, Tim Matheson, Jesse Johnson, Barbara Niven

Release Date: May 30th, 2023
Approximate Running Time: 93 Minutes 18 Seconds
Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1 Widescreen / 1080 Progressive / MPEG-4 AVC
Rating: PG-13
Sound: Dolby Digital 5.1 English
Subtitles: English, Spanish
Region Coding: Region Free
Retail Price: $19.95

"On the streets of Los Angeles and Las Vegas, daredevil drivers race the world's most exotic cars for million dollar bets. But as the stakes rise, so does the danger - from deadly crashes to kidnapping and murder - and only the fast and furious survive. With adrenaline-pumping action and some of the rarest, most expensive high performance vehicles ever raced and obliterated on film, Redline roars into high gear and doesn't let off the gas until the final explosive rush." - synopsis provided by the distributor

Video: 4.25/5

Redline comes on a 25 GB single layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 19.7 GB

Feature: 18 GB

The source used for this transfer is in excellent shape. Colors and flesh tones look correct; image clarity, black levels, and compression are strong.

Audio: 3.75/5

This release comes with one audio option, a Dolby Digital 5.1 mix in English. The audio is in great shape. Dialog comes through clearly; everything sounds balanced and robust when it should. Included are removable English and Spanish subtitles.

Extras:

Extras for this release include a theatrical trailer (2 minutes 26 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an archival featurette titled Redline at the LA Auto Show (3 minutes 34 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), and an archival featurette titled Under the Hood:The Making of 'Redline (11 minutes 47 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles).

Other extras include trailers for Action USA, Kill Zone, and LA Wars.

Summary:

When discussing Redline, one cannot look past the influence that The Fast and the Furious films had on it. Sure, Redline is a slight tweak of the same concept. But where it really counts are the car driving sequences, where these two films clearly overlap.

The narrative revolves around Natasha, an automobile mechanic who also happens to be an incredibly skilled driver. Not wanting to be a race driver since her father, who was a professional race car driver, died in a crash. She reluctantly becomes a driver in a high-stakes race when her mother is kidnapped.

From a casting perspective, Redline had a good cast that featured a few recognizable faces. Notably, Eddie Griffin (Undercover Brother) plays the role of a record mogul named Infamous; Tim Matheson (National Lampoon’s Animal House) plays the role of a film producer named Jerry Brecken; and Angus Macfadyen (Braveheart) plays the role of Michael, a man who amassed his fortune through nefarious means. These three characters take part in high-stakes races.

Though there are more recognizable faces in the cast, Nadia Bjorlin, whose casting in the role of Natasha is given the most screen time, She does a good job in the role of the protagonist. That said, the bulk of the performances range from campy caricatures to adequate.

From its opening moments, Redline makes it clear that the main attraction is the cars. With the narrative not being much more than a means to showcase fast cars. Also, there is an ample amount of eye candy in Redline in the form of scantily clad women. Ultimately, Redline is a fun film that overflows with style.

Redline gets a first-rate release from the MVD Marquee Collection that comes with a strong audio/video presentation.

Written by Michael Den Boer