Evelyn Salt (Angelina Jolie) is living a
fairly typical double life as an undercover CIA agent. Until, that is,
a terminally ill Russian operative appears at her headquarters and
blithely informs her superiors that she is, in fact, a Soviet sleeper
agent whose prime objective is to kill the visiting Russian Prime
Minister. Not wishing to stick around to dispel the claims, Jolie flees
in spectacular and decidedly incendiary fashion. Hunted by her
government, she leads both the American intelligence agencies and the
audience on a thrilling journey throughout the murky world of
counterintelligence and post-Cold War Soviet-US distrust.
Essentially The Bourne Identity with
tits and a wig and with plenty of 007 and The Fugitive
thrown in for good measure, Salt is a rock ‘em, sock ‘em action
juggernaut that barely lets up in intensity for a minute. One of the
most mind-numbingly exhilarating espionage chase films not to star Matt
Damon, it’s one of Jolie’s more accomplished (not to say enjoyable)
performances of late, and undoubtedly one of the most blissfully
high-octane releases of the year. The action sizzles along
relentlessly, a gun-toting Jolie smoulders in an array of disguises and
Aussie director Phillip Noyce (The Saint, The Bone Collector)
has sufficient good taste to ensure that the film’s rather outlandish
plot twists are tempered with emotionality and the odd knowing cinematic
wink.
As befits a popcorn movie of this calibre,
Sony’s impending Blu-ray Deluxe Unrated edition is a cracker. Slated
for local release on December 21, the set features Theatrical
(100 mins), Director’s (104 mins) and Extended (102 mins)
cuts of the film. The latter two of these are unrated, and in
addition to being playable with MovieIQ and added footage markers the
extended edition also features Noyce’s vastly different Alternate
Ending, which is markedly less open ended and perhaps a little more
in keeping with the film’s frenetic, paranoiac ethos.
Boasting impeccable picture and audio
quality and a slew of quality bonus content, Salt’s emergence on
HD marks one of the most satisfying, gratifying Blu-ray releases of the
year. And with Sony thoughtfully choosing a release date so close to
Christmas there’ll be no excuse not to pick up a copy for the man of the
house. Trust me, he’ll thank you.
Audio & Video
The main audio track is an English 5.1
DTS-HD Master, and it’s a scorcher; as big, loud and immersive as could
be hoped for, and definitely a soundtrack designed to give your surround
system a workout. There are also Japanese and German 5.1 DTS-HD tracks,
Turkish and Hindi 5.1s and an English descriptive audio track. Picture
quality is pristine, and the brightness and clarity never falter.
Special Features
Director Phillip Noyce and Sony haven’t
fucked about here either. There’s a fun ‘Spy-cam’ option in
which footage of cast and crew (lots of Jolie) discussing the film pops
up throughout the feature; a fascinating, detailed and highly insightful
Audio Commentary with Noyce; a 30-minute Radio Interview with
Noyce from ‘The Treatment’ series and a string of Featurettes
which feature plenty of behind-the-scenes and interview sequences.
Again Jolie features strongly here, and fans of Mrs Pitt will not be
left wanting for clips, interviews, promo material and BTS footage of
the actress.
