Sabotage (1996) (Blu-ray Review)
- Review Date: Aug 26, 2024
- Format: Blu-ray Disc
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Director
Tibor TakácsRelease Date(s)
1996 (May 7, 2024)Studio(s)
Applecreek Productions (MVD Rewind Collection)- Film/Program Grade: B-
- Video Grade: A
- Audio Grade: A
- Extras Grade: B+
Review
Sabotage is an action flick that starts with a special ops mission that goes terribly wrong. Set in Bosnia in 1993 and staged excitingly with lots of shooting and a high body count, the sequence introduces the film’s two main characters.
As Michael Bishop (Mark Dacascos, Drive), in full camouflage, stealthily approaches a house where terrorists have a group of hostages hanging upside down, he suddenly sees another man in ski mask and tactical gear who got there before him. He radios to his commander, Hollander (Graham Greene, Dances With Wolves), who says it’s not his guy. The masked figure guns down the terrorists, and then kills the hostages. When Bishop confronts him, he removes his mask and Bishop recognizes him as Sherwood (Tony Todd, Candyman), a rogue mercenary. Sherwood shoots Bishop but doesn’t quite succeed in killing him.
Three years later, fully recovered from his wounds, Bishop is working private security for billionaire arms dealer Trent (Richard Coulter, No Contest). As Trent and his entourage exit his private jet, Sherwood, in place on a rooftop quite a distance from the airport, fires a long range sniper gun with telescopic sight at the dealer and kills him on the spot. Seeing a glint coming from the roof, Bishop runs toward the building, dodging Sherwood’s bullets. He’s too late to get Sherwood. Instead, he finds a dead security officer.
FBI agent Louise Castle (Carrie-Ann Moss, The Matrix) enters the scene to investigate the assassination and immediately takes charge. Bishop leaves to visit his wheel chair-bound mentor, gay chess lover Prof. Follenfant (John Neville, The Fifth Element). The professor seems more interested in discussing chess moves with Bishop than in the loss of his client.
Sherwood continues teaming up with other depraved types for subsequent assassinations. The investigation is fast-tracked and Castle has to trust Bishop. Reluctantly, she teams up with him and turns a blind eye to his illegal methods, which include breaking into an ATM machine to get security camera footage to identify the shooter. Inevitably, Castle’s five-year-old daughter is kidnapped, and this leads to a final confrontation between Bishop and Sherwood.
Director Tibor Takács (The Gate, I, Madman) has crafted a fast-paced picture with just enough plot to fill the spaces between shootouts and explosions. The screenplay is fairly routine, with only a few instances of clever repartee. Clearly, the emphasis in this film is action, action, action. The action stuff looks good and is well edited to provide maximum effectiveness. The acting is decent, if not especially distinctive. Moss delivers the typical motherly at home, flinty at work FBI agent. Dacascos gets little chance to display his martial arts ability. Todd dominates his scenes with the cold-eyed look of a B-movie villain.
Dacascos expends a good deal of energy running but is less comfortable in dialogue sequences. Todd’s Sherwood is chilling as a coldhearted killer who knows his job well, is confident in his abilities, and can swiftly neutralize any resistance that comes his way. Todd is a commanding figure, well cast in a movie that paints its story in broad strokes, and Takács and director of photography Curtis Petersen frequently film him from a low angle to accentuate his height and emphasize a look of menace. Moss makes an impressive entrance when she instantly lets local law enforcement know she’s the boss as she stares down a detective who isn’t thrilled to be told he’s been outranked and is no longer in charge.
Sabotage is a solid B picture that may not offer any surprises but is well acted, well directed, and prudently edited. It never bogs down in unnecessary exposition, leaving the visuals to tell the story. Plenty of action keeps the film bustling along until its pyrotechnic denouement.
Sabotage was shot by director of photography Curtis Petersen on 35 mm film with spherical lenses and presented in the aspect ratio of 1.85:1. The Blu-ray from the MVD Rewind Collection features a 1.78:1 aspect ratio. Contrast and clarity are very good, with complexions well rendered. The color palette is broad. In the opening sequence of Bishop creeping through overgrown vegetation to approach the terrorists, the greens of the foliage really pop under the natural sunlight. The most memorable shot follows an animated bullet from Sherwood’s gun as it speeds a great distance to its mark. Details, such as sweat on faces, facial stubble, weapons, and decor in Castle’s home are well delineated. A massive explosion is a visual highlight.
The soundtrack is English 2.0 LPCM. English subtitles are an available option. Dialogue is clear and distinct. Gunfire in the opening scene creates tremendous energy and enhances the action. Guy Zerafa’s score is serviceable and typical of action films, never overshadowing the narrative. Fire from machine guns, 50-caliber rifles, or handguns constitute the primary group of sound effects. An explosion made up of several smaller explosions creates a thunderous roar.
Bonus materials on the Blu-ray release from the MVD Rewind Collection include the following:
- Interview with Actor Mark Dacascos (32:11)
- Interview with Actor Tony Todd (13:24)
- Drive Trailer (1:38)
- Double Dragon Trailer (1:51)
- Angel Town Trailer (2:06)
- Boogie Boy Trailer (2:22)
- Instinct to Kill Trailer (1:11)
Interview with Actor Mark Dacascos – Dacascos was in Australia filming The Island of Dr. Moreau with Marlon Brando when he was contacted about taking over the lead in Sabotage after the original lead “fell out.” He had little preparation time and started filming Sabotage within a day or so of completing his previous film. “I was playing catch-up the whole time.” He speaks about making several films with director Tibor Takács, whom he recalls was always even-tempered on the set. He wasn’t locked into what he was going to do each day; even the action choreography was worked out on the day of filming. He says Tony Todd has a good heart to balance his “mightiness.” When Sabotage first came out, Dacascos didn’t see it with an audience but heard that moviegoers liked it. He made his first movie when he was 19. He’s played leads and supporting roles, good guys and bad guys. He always wanted to be the best actor he could be. At 59 years of age, he still takes acting and voice lessons and has just started learning judo.
Interview with Actor Tony Todd – Todd notes that Sabotage was filmed in Toronto, which he refers to as a party city. He looks for roles different from those he’s played before. He’s known for the films Platoon, Night of the Living Dead, and Candyman. He advises actors to save at least 30% of their earnings. Todd says his character, Sherwood, enjoys planning his hits and has a sense of mayhem. Todd doesn’t watch his own films. He prefers classic film noir with actors like Humphrey Bogart. He also never had any interest in watching dailies during production, preferring to trust his director. Todd started his career in theater and speaks fondly of those early years. He was proud to get his Actors Equity card fairly quickly and comments on the trajectory of his career. “Those were magical times... magical days.”
Also included in the package is a fold-out mini poster featuring artwork from the front cover.
Sabotage can’t compare with heftier-budgeted productions like The Deer Hunter, Black Hawk Down, or Saving Private Ryan, but it looks pretty good for a film with a limited budget and takes the viewer on a thrill ride. Actors Dacascos, Todd, Moss and Greene make a good ensemble, and director Tibor Takács knows how to get the most out of an action picture.
- Dennis Seuling