The Son of No One (a J!-ENT Blu-ray Disc Review)

Filmmaker/screenwriter Dito Montiel reunites with actor Channing Tatum in a crime thriller.  Featuring a solid cast and great cinematography, “The Son of No One” will appeal to Channing Tatum fans and those who enjoy popcorn crime thrillers.

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TITLE: The Son of No One

FILM RELEASE: 2011

DURATION: 94 Minutes

BLU-RAY DISC INFORMATION: 1080p High Definition (2:35:1), English Dolby TrueHD 5.1, Spanish Mono, Subtitles: Spanish

COMPANY: Anchor Bay Films

RATED: R (Violence, Pervasive Language and Brief Disturbing Sexual Content)

RELEASE DATE: February 21, 2012

Directed by Dito Montiel

Written by Dito Montiel

Executive Producer: Boaz Davidson, Danny Dimbort, Patricia Eberle, Cassian Elwes, Alex Francis, Joy Gorman, Avi Lerner, Jake Pushinksy, Richard Rionda Del Castro, Trevor Short, Trudie Styler

Producer: Avi Lerner, Dito Montiel, John Thompson, Holly Wiersma

Line Producer: Brian Bell

Music by Jonathan Elias, David Wittman

Cinematography by Benoit Delhomme

Editing by Jake Pushinsky

Casting by Kerry Barden, Karen E. Etcoff, Paul Schnee

Production Design by Beth ickle

Art Diretion by Michael Ahern

Set Decoration by Carrie Stewart

Costume Design by Sandra Hernandez

Starring:

Al Pacino as Detective Charles Stanford

Channing Tatum as Jonathan White

James Ransone as Officer Thomas Prudenti

Ray Liotta as Captain Marion Mathers

Katie Holmes as Kerry White

Ursula Parker as Charolette “Charlie” White

Jake Cherry as Jonathan Milk” White

Brian Gilbert as Young Vinnie

Tracy Morgan as Vincent Carter

In this searing police thriller, Jonathan (Channing Tatum) is a second-generation cop who gets in over his head when he’s assigned to re-open a double homicide cold case in his Queens neighborhood. An anonymous source feeding new information on the long-unsolved murders to a local reporter (Juliette Binoche) leads to evidence suggesting a possible cover-up by the former lead detective (Al Pacino) who was on the investigation. As Jonathan digs deeper into the assignment, a dark secret about the case emerges, which threatens to destroy his life and his family. Written and directed by Dito Montiel, Son Of No One also stars Tracy Morgan, Katie Holmes, Ray Liotta and Jake Cherry. Music by David Wittman and Jonathan Elias.

Former punk punk musician and Versace model Dito Montiel has come a long way in his life and career.   In 1989, Montiel and his band Gutterboy received notoriety when their band signed a $1 million record deal with Geffen Records and after cashing in with a big recording contract, the band was dropped by the label.

The experience would lead Montiel to writing a best-selling book titled “A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints” and would follow with a film adaptation which he wrote and direct.

In that film, Montiel worked with actor Channing Tatum (“G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra”, “Dear John”, “Step Up”) for the very first time and worked together in the 2009 film “Fighting”.

In 2011, Montiel would write and direct his third film “The Son of No One” and would reunite with Channing and the independent film would also feature talents Al Pacino (“The Godfather”, “Scarface”), Ray Liotta (“Goodfellas”, “Smokin’ Aces”), Katie Holmes (“Batman Begins”, “Go”, “Dawson’s Creek”) and Juliette Binoche (“The English Patient”, “Blue”, “Dan in Real Life”).

The film was selected to close the 2011 Sundance Film Festival and now, “The Son of No One” would receive a Blu-ray and DVD release courtesy of Anchor Bay Entertainment.

“The Son of No One” is a film that focuses on police officer Jonathan White (played by Channing Tatum).  He is a married to Kerry (played by Katie Holmes) and has a young, ailing daughter who has seizures.  So, both parents are often concerned of the well-being of their daughter.  But for Kerry, she is quite concerned that Jonathan has been transferred to an area two hours from Staten Island (a not so great area) and is now constantly working late hours and is never home for the family.

But their sanctity and Jonathan’s piece-of-mind is shattered when a journalist named Lauren Bridges (played by Juliette Binoche) has printed letters of a possible coverup in 1986 and it is hurting the precinct’s image, especially for Captain Marion Mathers (played by Ray Liotta) who is running for re-election.

These letters startle Jonathan as the letters is anonymously targeted towards him.

Through occasional flashbacks, we are taken back to 1986. Jonathan who was known as “Milk”, lived in the projects and he and his best friend Vinnie had tough lives.  There were drug dealers, pedophiles and creepy people living in his building and the two were always the target of these individuals.

That year, a young Milk killed two people and we are told through flashbacks in 1986 of why he killed them and how he and his friends have kept the murders secret.

But one detective knows that Milk was responsible, Detective Stanford (played by Al Pacino) also was Milk’s father and swept the murders under the rug and covered everything up.

But someone from Jonathan’s past is trying to expose the cover-up and also expose Jonathan’s involvement by sending letters to a journalist hoping to air the NYPD’s dirty laundry.

Captain Marion Mathers is concerned about the press that Lauren is getting for publishing the anonymous letters and wants Jonathan to look into it.  Especially since it may destroy his and the precinct’s reputation.

As Jonathan becomes paranoid of who would release the information and try to hurt him, could it be his old friends from the projects?  Or is someone else responsible?

VIDEO:

“The Son of No One” is presented in 1080p High Definition (widescreen 2:35:1).  The picture quality is fantastic as there is great clarity, detail and good use of cool and warm colors.  Black levels are deep, skin tones are natural and possibly the best part of this Blu-ray release is its visual presentation.

Cinematographer Benoit Delhomme (“1408″, “The Boy in the Striped Pajamas”, “The Proposition”) did a wonderful job and great choices on the film’s lighting and Benoit’s cinematography looks fantastic on Blu-ray!

AUDIO & SUBTITLES:

“The Son of No One” is presented in English Dolby Digital 5.1 and Spanish Mono.  The film is primarily a dialogue-driven film but there are moments such as Jonathan’s car being rammed or a scene with multiple gun shots that does utilize the surround channels.  But it’s dialogue and surround environments and its ambiance that plays the biggest role in the lossless soundtrack.

Subtitles are in Spanish.

SPECIAL FEATURES

“The Son of No One” comes with the following special features:

If there is one major positive I can say about Dito Montiel films, it’s the fact that he is able to bring together an impressive cast for his films.

From his working relationship with Channing Tatum for three films, while “A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints” featured impressive casting, “The Son of No One” is quite intriguing that you have Al Pacino and Juliette Binoche starring in this indie crime thriller.

With that being said, it’s great to see Channing Tatum taking on a different type of role that he is cast in.  Usually, he is cast in younger roles or military roles but this time around, he’s a family man with a wife and kid and one mysterious past.  It’s a role that doesn’t require too much emotion and if anything, the character role suits Tatum very well!

As a cop, who along with a few others are keeping a secret that the main protagonist, Jonathan, murdered two junkies when he was young and living in the projects.  While the film had potential, the pacing was interrupted by constant flashbacks and uninspired acting.   And for a solid cast, you would think these talents would be better utilized.  Especially if you have Al Pacino in your film.

I wish I could say that Al Pacino was magnificent but he was barely utilized in the film. Sure, his character plays a pivotal role but I wish his character had much more going on, than these few short scenes.

Casting Tracy Morgan for a crime thriller, may seem a bit odd.  But Tracy Morgan was much easier to take-in as there are no in-your-face jokes or outrageous behavior.  If anything, he does a fine job of playing a restrained character who is emotionally messed up!  No wisecracking at all. This is probably the most serious role I have seen him star in and while he wasn’t utilized all that much, during his scenes…he did a good job playing a serious role.

Ray Liotta in a film is a giveaway.  If you seen his films, you know what kind of character he will be. And that’s all I have to say about Liotta, without giving too much away.

And last, we have Katie Holmes.  She plays the sweet, caring wife but there is unexplored areas that I found a bit frustrating because as a wife who is concerned about your husband, somehow her role was shut down after a major emotional scene.  It’s unfortunate because her role could have been explored much more, but she seems to have disappeared during the last leg of the film’s storyline.

Once again, this is the problem I have with “The Son of No One”.  Character utilization was poor, seemed rushed and while the plot had potential, this back-and-forth between present-time and flashbacks seem to hurt the pacing of the film.  If anything, would rather have less focus on the young actors, more focus on the major talents of this film.

With that being said, “The Son of No One” is not a terribly bad film.  In fact, the film featured awesome cinematography from Benoit Delhomme and an intriguing crime thriller that kept you interested.  It’s an intriguing film but when it comes down to it, the screenplay does feel as if it was rushed.  For a film with a strong cast, I also wish that there was better utilization of the characters during the present-time storyline.

As for the Blu-ray release, the picture quality is fantastic and as for special features, the audio commentary was quite interesting, despite the momentary commentary gaps.

Overall, “The Son of No One” may appeal to Channing Tatum fans or anyone that enjoys popcorn crime thriller.

THE SON OF NO ONE on BD/DVD on 2/21/12

ANCHOR BAY FILMS AND MILLENNIUM FILMS PROUDLY PRESENTS
A NU IMAGE PRODUCTION

THE SON OF NO ONE
Written and Directed by Dito Montiel
STARRING CHANNING TATUM, TRACEY MORGAN, KATIE HOLMES, RAY LIOTTA, JULIETTE BINOCHE,
AL PACINO and JAKE CHERRY

“Exhilarating and Powerful”
-–Avi Offer, NYCMovie Guru

Available on Blu-ray™ and DVD February 21, 2012

BEVERLY HILLS, CA – Anchor Bay Films is proud to announce the release of The Son of No One on Blu-ray™ and DVD, February 21, 2012.  A 2-disc Blu-ray™+DVD combo pack will also be available.  Hailed as   “A riveting piece of filmmaking [featuring] one of the best casts of the year” by Joel Amos, MovieFanatic.com, The Son of No One is agripping thriller about how far one police officer will go to keep his darkpast hidden and protect his family.  The release also contains deletedscenes and audio commentary with Writer/Producer/Director Dito Montiel and Editor/Executive Producer Jake Pushinsky.

Jonathan (Channing Tatum 21 Jump Street, The Vow) is a second-generation cop who gets in over his head when he’s assigned to re-open a double homicide cold case in his Queens neighborhood. An anonymous source feeding new information on the long-unsolved murders to a local reporter (Juliette Binoche Cosmopolis, Dan In Real Life, ) leads to evidence suggesting a possible cover-up by the former lead detective (Al Pacino The Godfather, Scarface) who was on the investigation. As Jonathan digs deeper into the assignment, a dark secret about the case emerges, which threatens to destroy his life and his family.

Channing Tatum delivers a gritty and memorable performance, while New York mainstay writer and director Dito Montiel (Guide to Recognizing Your Saints) is at the top of his game. Also starring Tracy Morgan (NBC’s “30 Rock”), Katie Holmes (Batman Begins), Ray Liotta (Goodfellas) and Jake Cherry (Night at the Museum), The Son of No One is a tense and powerful thriller filled with suspense, secrets and lies.

About Anchor Bay Films
Anchor Bay Films is unique in that it offers the creative community a fully integrated distribution capability on all platforms and an international solution extending beyond the U.S.  Anchor Bay Films is a division of Anchor Bay Entertainment and is on the ground providing quality distribution with operations in the U.S., United Kingdom, Canada and Australia, as well as distribution capabilities in other key territories. The company focuses on a platform release strategy for its films with an eye toward maximizing theirpotential across all ancillary distribution platforms. Upcoming is Corman’s World about Academy Award® winning filmmaker Roger Corman which premiered at Cannes 2011.  Films in its library include the critically-acclaimedcomedy City Island starring Andy Garcia and Solitary Man starring Michael Douglas as well as the 2011 releases of Kill the Irishman starring Ray Stevenson, Vincent D’Onofrio, Val Kilmer and Christopher Walken and Toronto Film Festival award-winner Beautiful Boy with Maria Bello and Michael Sheen.  Anchor Bay Entertainment is a subsidiary of Starz Media, LLC (www.starzmedia.com) which is an operating unit of Starz, LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Liberty Media Corporation (NASDAQ: LMCA).

Actors Josh Duhamel, Katie Holmes and Blair Underwood onstage during the 68th Annual Golden Globe Awards nomination announcement in Beverly Hills

Actors Josh Duhamel, Katie Holmes and Blair Underwood onstage during the 68th Annual Golden Globe Awards nomination announcement held at the Beverly Hilton Hotel on December 14, 2010 in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images). Content © 2010 Getty Images All rights reserved.

Photo Gallery: 68th Annual Golden Globe Nomination Announcements in Beverly Hills (December 14, 2010)

Photos of actress Katie Holmes, actors Blair Underwood and Josh Duhamel and Hollywood Foreign Press Association president Philip Berk onstage during the 68th Annual Golden Globe Awards nomination announcement held at the Beverly Hilton Hotel on December 14, 2010 in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images). Content © 2010 Getty Images All rights reserved.

Katie Holmes arrives at the Variety’s 2nd Annual Power of Women Luncheon in Beverly Hills

Actress Katie Holmes arrives at the Variety’s 2nd Annual Power Of Women Luncheon at the Beverly Hills Hotel on September 30, 2010 in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images). Content © 2010 Getty Images All rights reserved.

Tom Cruise & Katie Holmes at the premiere of “The Romantics” in NYC

Celebrities photographed at The Romantics premiere, held at the AMC Loews theater, in New York City, NY on September 7, 2010. Among those in attendance: Tom Cruise, Katie Holmes Fame Pictures, Inc. Content © 2010 famepictures All rights reserved.

THE ROMANTICS, Starring Katie Holmes – Watch the Official Trailer Now!!

You can now watch the official trailer for THE ROMANTICS exclusively on Apple Trailers!!
http://trailers.apple.com/trailers/independent/theromantics/

THE ROMANTICS opens in New York and Los Angeles on September 10, and will expand throughout September.

For more info, visit: www.theromanticsmovie.com <http://www.theromanticsmovie.com/> .

Directed by Galt Niederhoffer

Starring Katie Holmes, Josh Duhamel, Anna Paquin, Elijah Wood, Malin Akerman, Adam Brody, Jeremy Strong, Rebecca Lawrence, Dianna Agron and Candice Bergen

Over the course of one raucous night at a seaside wedding seven close friends, all members of a tight, eclectic college clique, reconvene to watch two of their own tie the knot.  Laura (Katie Holmes) is maid of honor to Lila (Anna Paquin), her golden girl best friend.  The two have long rivaled over the groom, Tom (Josh Duhamel).  Friendships and alliances are tested and the love triangle comes to a head the night before the wedding, when the drunken friends frolic in the nearby surf and return to shore… without the groom. Based on the heralded novel by producer, novelist, director Galt Niederhoffer, THE ROMANTICS is a Zeitgeist love story and generational comedy that breathes new life into the genre and recaptures the camaraderie of youth.

THE ROMANTICS on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/theromantics
Follow THE ROMANTICS on Twitter: http://twitter.com/the_romantics

Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes at the “Knight and Day” premiere in Spain

Tom Cruise and wife Katie Holmes attend ‘Knight and Day’ premiere at the Lope de Vega Theater in Seville, Spain. (Photo by Carlos Alvarez/Getty Images). Content © 2010 Getty Images All rights reserved.

KATIE HOLMES, WILL SMITH AND JADA PINKETT SMITH, ANGELA LANSBURY, MARK SANCHEZ, DANIEL RADCLIFFE, PAULA ABDUL AND STANLEY TUCCI HAVE BEEN ADDED AS PRESENTERS ON “THE 64TH ANNUAL TONY(R) AWARDS,” TO BE BROADCAST LIVE FROM RADIO CITY MUSIC HALL IN NEW YORK CITY, SUNDAY, JUNE 13 ON THE CBS TELEVISION NETWORK

Katie Holmes, Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith, Angela Lansbury, Mark Sanchez, Daniel Radcliffe, Paula Abdul and Stanley Tucci have been added as presenters on THE 64TH ANNUAL TONY(R) AWARDS, live from Radio City Music Hall, Sunday, June 13 (8:00-11:00 PM, live ET; delayed PT) on the CBS Television Network. The awards honor theater professionals for distinguished achievement on Broadway.

As previously announced, actor Sean Hayes (“Promises, Promises) will host the awards show. The evening will feature performances by Green Day, “Glee” stars Lea Michele and Matthew Morrison, and performances by the Tony-nominated Best Musicals “American Idiot,” “Fela!,” “Memphis,” “Million Dollar Quartet,” and the Tony-nominated Best Musical Revivals “La Cage aux Folles” featuring Kelsey Grammer, “A Little Night Music” featuring Catherine Zeta-Jones, and “Ragtime.” Casts from the musicals “Come Fly Away,” “Everyday Rapture,” and “Promises, Promises” will also be performing throughout the evening.

Previously announced presenters for the 2010 Tony Awards include: Antonio Banderas, Justin Bartha, Patrick Breen, Laura Bell Bundy, Laura Benanti, Cate Blanchett, Michael Cerveris, Kristin Chenoweth, Viola Davis, Michael Douglas, Kelsey Grammer, Brian d’Arcy James, Rosemary Harris, Patrick Heusinger, Scarlett Johansson, Anthony LaPaglia, Laura Linney, Lucy Liu, Jan Maxwell, Idina Menzel, Helen Mirren, Alfred Molina, Matthew Morrison, Chris Noth, Bernadette Peters, David Hyde Pierce, Eddie Redmayne, Tony Shaloub, Liev Schreiber, Denzel Washington and Raquel Welch.

The Antoinette Perry “Tony” Awards are bestowed annually on theatre professionals for distinguished achievement. The Tony is one of the most coveted awards in the entertainment industry and the annual telecast is considered one of the most prestigious programs on television.

This year marks the 64th anniversary of the Tony Awards, which were first held on April 6, 1947, in the Waldorf Astoria’s Grand Ballroom. It will be the 13th year that the historic Radio

City Music Hall is home to the Tonys. The ceremonies are presented by Tony Award Productions, which is a joint venture of the League of American Theatres and Producers and the American Theatre Wing, which founded the Tonys in 1947.

The Tonys were founded in memorial to Antoinette (“Tony”) Perry, the American Theatre Wing’s World War II chairperson. The winners are selected by the governing board of Actors Equity, The Dramatists Guild, Stage Directors and Choreographers Society, the United Scenic Artists, the Association of Theatrical Press Agents and Managers, the Casting Society of America, the American Theatre Wing and members of The Broadway League.

Ricky Kirshner and Glenn Weiss of White Cherry Entertainment will return as executive producers. Weiss will also serve as director for the 11th consecutive year.

RATING: To Be Announced

Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes at the National Movie Awards in London

Actor Tom Cruise and actress Katie Holmes attend The National Movie Awards at Royal Festival Hall in London on May 26, 2010. UPI/Rune Hellestad Photo via Newscom
Content © 2010 Newscom All rights reserved.

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