National Security Blu-ray offers solid video and audio in this enjoyable Blu-ray release
When Martin Lawrence ('Bad Boys') and Steve Zahn ('Daddy Day Care') team up as security
guards, no one's safe! LAPD reject and major troublemaker, Earl (Lawrence), got L.A. cop
Hank (Zahn) kicked off the force for brutality. Now, these two guys, who can't stand each
other, are stuck working together aslowly security guards. And they're playing cops to bring
down a smuggling ring if they can stay alive and stay one step ahead of the real cops. Co-
starring Eric Roberts ('The Specialist'), 'National Security' will take you on a wild ride with the
most unlikely heroes ever to wear a badge!
After viewing National Security I finally figured out what happened to Martin Lawrence's acting career. He pigeon holed himself in cop comedies, obviously a genre he enjoys doing. The problem with this career course is that you as an actor, and the films you do become stale and over used. This in my opinion what has killed Martin's film career. Now you add in Steve Zahn as the "straight" guy to Martin, and essentially you have Blue Streak, Bad Boys, Bad Boys II and other similar movies. Apparently audiences had become tired of seeing Martin in this genre again, as National Security didn't exactly make a box office killing just drawing $35 million at the gate, and receiving a lousy 13% on rottentomatoes. I personally have grown tired of the constant racial references, as they have become cliché' and meaningless.
Hank (Steve Zahn) a cop along with his partner is summoned to a crime scene where Hank's partner is killed during a shoot out. He is determined to capture the criminals who killed him. While on patrol, Hank notices Earl (Martin Lawrence) doing what looks a car break in. When he approaches Earl, Earl begins to resist Hank. Just as Hank begins to arrest Earl, a bee starts to circle around them. Earl proclaims he is allergic to bees, so Hank begins swatting at it with his baton. Unbeknownst to Hank, there was a person filming the whole thing, and from a perspective that makes it look like he is doing a Rodney King on him. The video is released to the public, and fearing a Rodney King style riot, they suspend Hank, and prosecute him to the fullest extent. Hank finds himself in court defending himself as Earl's testimony sends him to jail for six months, where every black man has his sights on him. After Hank is released from jail he gets a job as a security guard. During a robbery of a warehouse, Hank and Earl find themselves working together to catch the criminals. This begins the comedic crime fighting partnership of Hank and Earl, as they set out to bust up a smuggling operation.
National Security powers onto Bluray with a 1080p/AVC encoding framed in a 1:85:1 aspect ratio that is above average much like Blue Streak, but not exceptional. The source does have some very light dirt and scratches, but is otherwise pretty clean. Blacks are deep and solid, and contrast appears pretty spot on. Colors are nicely rendered without being oversaturated. Grain is fine and well managed, with only a few scenes having just a little more grain than average. I never detected any compression artifacts or edge enhancement, just a nice sharp film like quality that we pleasing, but not exceptional. This is definitely an upgrade from the DVD and worth the trade up if you are into Martin Lawrence's movies.
National Security sports a serviceable 5.1 English Dolby TrueHD soundtrack encoded at a 16/48 kHz bit and sample rate. Much like Blue Streak, this is a very front centric with spotty surround support. This movie is mostly dialog and it is always clean and clear, and never obscured by effects or music. LFE usage is spotty, but it effectively supports the sound effects and music when called upon. The music will work your sub more than the sound effects will. The overall mix is pretty conservative for the most part, with small spurts of surround action, some ambience, and some front pans. As conservative as the overall mix is, it is not short on dynamics when things get going.
There is not much on this disc in terms of extras, so here is what we get : Commentary sports Director Dennis Dugan perspective on the production of the film, various film related trivia, and working with Martin Lawrence. Towards the end it seems he ran out of things to say. Music Video called N.S.E.W. by Disturbing the Peace. Deleted Scenes are what ended up on the cutting room floor. Alternate Ending which quite frankly isn't so alternate.
This movie is BD-Live enabled to allow you access to Sony's website for extra content.
I am going to say one thing about this movie. It is not as nearly as good or interesting as Blue Streak was. This looked like a used up retread next to it, with Martin leading the charge. What made Blue Streak a nice watch was Martin's freshness and spontaneity, something that is sadly lacking here. Martin just looks like he is going through the motions, playing a stage act with his character. I found Zahn performance a little more refreshing and true to his character. He didn't overplay his hand and stayed steadily in his character. If you are a Martin fan, you will appreciate him doing his thing. For you this is a good buy, and make sure to click through the Bluray.com link to make your purchase. For others I would suggest a rental, for this is not as good as Blue Streak by a long shot.
Sony Pictures Home Entertainment has announced that they will bring five catalog titles to Blu-ray on November 18th. All five films - 'Blue Streak', 'National Security', 'Mirrormask', 'Southland Tales', and 'Revolver' - will feature 1080p AVC video accompanied ...
