K-11 Blu-ray offers solid video and audio, but overall it's a mediocre Blu-ray release
On waking up after a bender, a record producer finds himself imprisoned in a cellblock reserved for homosexuals and ruled by a transsexual diva. If he hopes to survive this brutal new world, he'll first have to learn to navigate the power structure.
For more about K-11 and the K-11 Blu-ray release, see the K-11 Blu-ray Review published by Brian Orndorf on May 9, 2013 where this Blu-ray release scored 2.5 out of 5.
"K-11" marks the directorial debut for longtime script supervisor Jules Stewart, though she's probably best known as the mother of "Twilight" superstar and famed stammer queen Kristin Stewart. Only able to talk her kid into a voice cameo for her first helming gig, Stewart is left without star power and a decent budget to bring her prison epic to life, with only a few tricks, some unusual sexual tension, and an overabundance of quirk and chaos to help sell her vision to the audience. "K-11" is an odd feature and it's rarely a successful one, sweating up a storm to come off edgy and unconventional. Tonally unsteady and dramatically asthmatic, the picture is only moderately tolerable due to few technical strengths and a key role played by Kate del Castillo, who manages to make a slight supporting turn into a grand display of camp, menace, and cockeyed sex appeal Stewart should've made the focus of the entire film.
Drugged out of his mind, record producer Raymond Saxx (Goran Visnjic) has been arrested for the murder of a rock star carrying on an affair with his wife -- a crime he doesn't recall committing. Taken to jail before his trial, Raymond greets corrections officer Johnson (D.B. Sweeney), a coked-out monster who sees monetary value in the man, taking him to a secluded wing of the facility known as "K-11," a holding pen for gay inmates. Tossed into the melee while enduring a painful detox, Raymond is overwhelmed and irritable, only making friends with delicate abuse victim Butterfly (Portia Doubleday), a fragile girl who endures daily rapes from hulking prisoner Detroit (Tommy Lister). Ruling K-11 is Mousey (Kate del Castillo), an aggressive gangbanger transvestite who masterminds a drug trafficking ring with boyfriend Ben (Jason Mewes). Desperate to find his way out of K-11 while facing a troubling legal future, Raymond reluctantly adapts to his new surroundings, piquing Mousey's curiosity and Johnson's wild-eyed ire.
Although marketing for "K-11" works tirelessly to sell the effort as some type of wink-happy comedy prefabricated for future drag queen mimicry, Stewart actually takes the premise quite seriously, using her time within the jail setting to explore the rituals of inmate life, detailing hierarchies, violence, and corruption within the tight confines of K-11. It's hardly "Oz," but the attention to the slog of jailhouse life is moderately compelling, studying Raymond's frustrations with placing phone calls and absorbing intimidation from his fellow felons. We also follow the lead character as he discovers the structure of pill distribution, punishment tactics, and the value of silence when positioned near aggression. Captured in a single concrete space filled with beds and "driveways," the K-11 atmosphere is communicated sufficiently (shot sensibly and crisply by Adam Silver), especially when the screenplay (credited to Stewart and Jared Kurt) fans out to meet some of the other personalities that occupy the room, including musician Hollywood (Billy Morrison), dim-wit Crystal (Tara Buck), and delicate Precious (Markus Redmond).
The trouble with "K-11" is that it has no idea what type of movie it wants to be. Failing to become a full-blooded incarceration picture, Stewart fudges the editing to transform Raymond's rude awakening into a mystery, stringing along a question of guilt concerning his role in the rocker's death, with the suspect too zonked out of his mind to recall the crime in question. While the subplot is introduced as a top priority, it eventually falls by the wayside, gone from the feature for long stretches at a time before it's revealed to be completely inconsequential to the plot. It's a weird misdirection that attempts to pump more drama into a slack story, with Stewart feeling around in the dark for anything that could hook the viewer into the effort. "K-11" is actually more about the drug trade than anything, observing Johnson fighting rabidly to keep product flowing through the system, allowing him to snort up a few layers for himself, losing control of his defiant prisoners.
As previously mentioned, only del Castillo has the sheer screen force to escape Stewart's directorial slumber, with the actress tasked to play a man dressed up as a woman. It's a hefty thespian workout, as Mousey is not just your average transvestite, but a force of chola nature, armed with a killer body covered in tattoos, pancake makeup, and eyebrows that recall Ursula the sea witch from "The Little Mermaid." It's a woozy mix of unnerving sex appeal and bullying behavior, and del Castillo is the only member of the cast who finds the perfect note of ballistic intimidation to play, stealing the movie while Sweeney goes overboard impersonating a coke fiend and Visnjic stumbles around aimlessly, clearly miscast in a critical role. Mousey should really have her own adventure, and I applaud del Castillo's heroic commitment to a difficult part.
The AVC encoded image (2.40:1 aspect ratio) presentation for "K-11" does feature particularly strong fine detail, with facial details a standout, capturing a realistic sense of skin, with make-up particulars on Mousey remain especially vivid. Prison textures are also open for inspection, lending a cold, concrete starkness to the image, showing equal presence with fabrics. Colors are generous, making the most out of deep reds for bloodshed and tattoo ink, while various shades of blue are preserved in cellblock outfits. Hues especially impress with costuming, leaving full greens and browns on guard uniforms. Banding is present throughout, along with occasional traces of ghosting. Blacks are largely preserved, good with depth of hair. Skintones are natural, providing distinct differences in illness and chemical addiction.
The 5.1 DTS-HD MA sound mix only really expands beyond the front stage for faint incidents involving distance and for echoing prison announcements, rarely engaging the surrounds for any meaningful reason. Dialogue exchanges are locked tightly, sustaining subtle changes in vocal inflection and accent work, while degrees of concern and panic register crisply. The group dynamic is also welcoming and properly arranged. Scoring is largely forgettable, though it never intrudes on the performances. Low-end is seldom taxed, leaving a palpable lightness to a movie that strives for blunt authenticity.
Commentary with co-writer/director Jules Stewart and producer Tom Wright, Jr. is a dry affair that struggles to drum up much excitement for the picture. The participants stick closely to technical tidbits, emphasizing the authenticity of the prison setting and the inmate dynamic, also pointing out individual crew efforts, including scoring and sound design. Stewart is in control of the informational flow, and while she delivers a great deal of BTS footage, her energy is lacking, also slipping into silences and play-by-play mode on occasion. The track is for die-hard fans only.
Behind-the-Scenes (1:56, HD) is an extremely brief look at life on and off the set, touring dressing rooms and watching the shooting of a single sequence. There's just not enough here to satisfy.
Deleted Scenes (6:14, HD) offer a cold opening that essentially negates any attempt to build a murder mystery around Raymond's imprisonment. Also included is a moment of sensuality between Mousey and Raymond (which explains their sudden third-act comfort), and time with one of Butterfly's mental breakdowns.
Interviews (18:56, HD) speaks to Goran Visnjic, Kate del Castillo, D.B. Sweeney, and an assortment of cast and crew members. Most of the interviewees are alert and excited to be discussing the movie, poring over character and praising Stewart's enthusiasm for the script. However, the chats retain their promotional nature, most recorded during filming.
"My Liberty" (3:24, HD) is a music video from co-star Billy Morrison.
Photo Gallery (1:30) collects promotional pictures from the shoot.
"K-11" is habitually ugly, as Stewart often mistakes extended scenes of suffering and rape for tension, and the revenge-fueled climax resembles sitcom shenanigans, with resolutions coming too easy for the characters. While it's an undeniably original look at the prison genre, "K-11" is far too messy and unfocused, growing more unbearable and baffling with every directorial and editorial mistake Stewart makes.
Breaking Glass Pictures and Libertine Films have announced the Blu-ray release of first-time director Jules Stewart's K-11, starring Goran Visnjic, Kate del Castillo, D.B. Sweeney, Jason Mewes, Portia Doubleday and Tommy Lister. K-11 streets on April 23rd.
