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PLEASE NOTE: Michael D's is currently in READ ONLY MODE. Anything submitted will simply not be written to the database.
Lots of stuff is still broken, but at least reviews can now be looked up and read.
Suspect Zero (2004)

Suspect Zero (2004)

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Released 23-Mar-2005
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Details At A Glance

General		Extras
Category	Thriller	Dolby Digital Trailer Theatrical Trailer Trailer-Anacondas: The Hunt For The Blood Orchid, Closer Trailer-Resident Evil: Apocalypse, The Forgotten
Rating
Year Of Production	2004
Running Time	95:33
RSDL / Flipper	RSDL (59:59)	Cast & Crew
Start Up	Menu	Cast & Crew
Region Coding	2,4,5	Directed By	E. Elias Merhige
Studio Distributor	Columbia Tristar F/D Sony Pictures Home Entertain	Starring	Aaron Eckhart Ben Kingsley Carrie-Anne Moss Harry J. Lennix Kevin Chamberlin Julian Reyes Keith Campbell Chloe Russell Ellen Blake William B. Johnson Jerry Gardner Daniel Patrick Moriarty Curtis Plagge
Case	Amaray-Transparent-Secure Clip	Starring
RPI	$39.95	Music	Clint Mansell John McCarthy

Video		Audio
Pan & Scan/Full Frame	None	English Dolby Digital 5.1 (448Kb/s) Czech Dolby Digital 5.1 (448Kb/s)
Widescreen Aspect Ratio	1.78:1
16x9 Enhancement
Video Format	576i (PAL)
Original Aspect Ratio	1.66:1	Miscellaneous
Jacket Pictures	No	Miscellaneous
Subtitles	English Dutch Arabic Bulgarian Croatian Czech Danish Finnish Greek Hindi Hungarian Icelandic Norwegian Polish Romanian Serbian Slovenian Swedish English for the Hearing Impaired	Smoking	No
		Annoying Product Placement	No
		Action In or After Credits	No

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Plot Synopsis

It would be difficult to provide a comprehensive synopsis of Suspect Zero without revealing key aspects of the plot, so I will intentionally keep this short. You also need to be aware that the DVD's back cover contains spoilers, as do many of the reviews for this movie.

Suspect Zero opens with a travelling salesman, Harold Speck (Kevin Chamberlin), sitting in a diner. He is quietly reading a fishing magazine when he is confronted by Benjamin O’Ryan (Ben Kingsley), who clearly knows one or two of Harold’s darker secrets. An agitated O’Ryan rattles Harold sufficiently to make him want to leave the diner in a hurry.

FBI Agent Thomas Mackelway (Aaron Eckhart) has recently transferred to the Albuquerque office to investigate a string of missing person cases. We learn that Mackelway fled Dallas to escape a scandal and that the stress of this is possibly why he suffers from constant headaches. When Mackelway receives a stream of mysterious faxes, with “DO YOU KNOW WHY YOUR HEAD ACHES” written on them, you just know his pill popping isn't going to improve any time soon.

Harold’s body is found on the front seat of his car with a note covering his face. The note depicts a circle with a slash through it and when Agent Mackelway removes the note, we see that Harold's eyelids have been cut away. The killer has left a string of clues, which poses the question - is he taunting the FBI or is he trying to get their attention?

It doesn’t take long before Mackelway's former lover, Agent Fran Kulok (Carrie-Anne Moss), is brought in to assist with the case. The plot fails to exploit the relationship between the two of them so this development doesn’t really serve any great purpose.

Suspect Zero is an entertaining psychological thriller, though it falls short of greatness. Its biggest downfall is the fact that many of the key plot points are revealed early on, leaving a predictable ending that lacks any real suspense.

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Transfer Quality

Video

The video transfer is good but not great.

The transfer is presented in an aspect ratio of 1.78:1 and it is 16x9 enhanced.

The image is quite acceptable but, to be critical, it is a little grainy throughout and often lacks sharpness. The contrast levels are good and the blacks are black.

The colour palette is generally subdued, though this is the intended style of the movie. Skin colours look natural.

MPEG artefacts and film-to-video artefacts are non-existent. Apart from the already mentioned grain, the only problem with the video transfer is the occasional fleeting film artefact. Although they are noticeable they are not particularly annoying.

Subtitles are available in English, Dutch, Arabic, Bulgarian, Croatian, Czech, Danish, Finnish, Greek, Hindi, Hungarian, Icelandic, Norwegian, Polish, Romanian, Serbian, Slovenian, Swedish and English for the Hearing Impaired. I sampled the English and English for the Hearing Impaired subtitle streams. They are well placed and easy to read.

This is an RSDL disc with the layer change occurring at 59:59. The layer change was noticeable on my equipment.

*Video Ratings Summary*
Sharpness
Shadow Detail
Colour
Grain/Pixelization
Film-To-Video Artefacts
Film Artefacts
Overall

Audio

The audio transfer is excellent and is easily the stand-out feature of this disc.

There are two audio tracks available, English Dolby Digital 5.1 (448Kb/s) and Czech Dolby Digital 5.1(448Kb/s). I listened to the default English audio track.

The dialogue was clear and easy to understand at all times. I did not notice any problems with audio sync on this disc.

The musical score by Clint Mansell is quite powerful. He succeeds in creating suspense while providing ample ambience.

The surround channels are used extensively throughout the movie, combining with the on-screen visuals to create a seamless environment. The surrounds fill the room with rain at 4:38 and manage to add an ethereal quality to the ghostly voices at 67:50. The prominence of the surround channels was such that my wife commented on their use and she rarely notices such detail.

The subwoofer actively supports the soundtrack without drawing attention to itself.

*Audio Ratings Summary*
Dialogue
Audio Sync
Clicks/Pops/Dropouts
Surround Channel Use
Subwoofer
Overall

Extras

Apart from a few Theatrical Trailers there are no extras to be had.

Theatrical Trailer

This high quality trailer is presented in an aspect ratio of 1.78:1 and it is 16x9 enhanced. Apart from some grain the quality of audio and video transfers is very good.

Additional Theatrical Trailers

The disc also includes theatrical trailers for Anacondas: The Hunt For The Blood Orchid, Closer, Resident Evil: Apocalypse and The Forgotten.

R4 vs R1

NOTE: To view non-R4 releases, your equipment needs to be multi-zone compatible and usually also NTSC compatible.

The Region 4 version of this disc misses out on:

Commentary Track by Director E. Elias Merhige
Alternate Ending
Four-Part Featurette
Remote Viewing Demonstration
French 5.1 Audio Track
Spanish Subtitles
Theatrical Trailers for Alfie, Enduring Love, The Machinist and Coach Carter.

The Region 1 version of this disc misses out on:

Czech 5.1 Audio Track
Dutch, Arabic, Bulgarian, Croatian, Czech, Danish, Finnish, Greek, Hindi, Hungarian, Icelandic, Norwegian, Polish, Romanian, Serbian, Slovenian, Swedish and English for the Hearing Impaired Subtitles.
Theatrical Trailers for Anacondas: The Hunt For The Blood Orchid, Closer, Resident Evil: Apocalypse and The Forgotten.

The inclusion of a Commentary Track, an Alternate Ending, a Four-Part Featurette and a Remote Viewing Demonstration make the Region 1 version of this disc the clear winner.

Summary

Director E. Elias Merhige has created an edgy psychological thriller with a style that is reminiscent of Seven. To get the most out of Suspect Zero you need to watch the movie without first reading any reviews (other than this one of course) or the DVD's back cover.