review: POINT BREAK (Blu-ray)

Fox  //  Buy from Amazon.com Young FBI agent Johnny Utah (Reeves) goes undercover at the suggestion of his partner (Gary Busey) to learn if a group of wild surfers is actually a gang of bank robbers. He soon comes under the dangerous spell of the surfers' charismatic leader Bodhi (Swyaze) a mystical mastermind who'll do absolutely anything for a thrill - and expects his followers to do the same. I suppose it's possible that there are some kids reading this review who were born in the mid-80s or even early-90s who have never seen "Point Break" but if that's the case, don't even bother finishing reading this write-up - just go buy or rent it and regale yourself on a bad-ass pre-Matrix Keanue Reeves and see him go toe-to-toe with a surprisingly-tough Patrick Swayze. The rest of this review will be written for the majority of folks who have seen the film, and likely love it's unabashed machismo - this flick is dripping with early-90s cool (even 2 of the Red Hot Chili Peppers have minor roles!) and is always a treat to enjoy. This is one of about 10 films that if I ever happen across while flipping through the channels that I'll end up watching right through to the end... ... so to be able to see it now on high def Blu-ray, looking as good (if not better) as that little movie theater in northern Canada that I first saw this film in over 15 years ago, well that just tickles my heart! Video The 1080p/AVC MPEG-4 high def transfer is solid, and undoubtedly the best this film has never looked. While admittedly lacking the crispness of a modern day film, this is still a strong transfer, and a great looking release, and easily tops the already-impressive special edition DVD release of a couple years back. Audio A remastered DTS-HD Lossless Master Audio 5.1 Surround mix is pretty darn fantastic, easily holding its own against any recent action flick. Extras one big featurette split out into multiple parts deleted scenes photo gallery Closing Thoughts Classic, kick-ass action flick + decent (if underwhelming) extras = worth picking up on Blu-ray