In LAST LOOKS, Charlie Waldo (Charlie Hunnam) is an ex-LAPD superstar who left the force and now lives a life of simplicity and solitude deep in the woods. Alistair Pinch (Mel Gibson) is an eccentric actor who spends his days drunk on the set of his TV show. When Pinch’s wife is found dead, he is the prime suspect and Waldo is convinced to come out of retirement to investigate what happened. The case finds Waldo contending with gangsters, Hollywood executives and pre-school teachers, all in pursuit of clearing Pinch’s name … or confirming his guilt.
For thoughts on Last Looks, please check out our discussion on The Video Attic here.
Video Quality
RLJE Entertainment brings Last Looks to Blu-Ray with an excellent 1080p video presentation. The presentation provides a significant amount of depth on display, especially in the interior shots. When this film goes into Charlie’s trailer or explores the city more, the details present as impressively sharp in all lighting conditions. The image is clean with the bright color palette popping off the screen. The film employs splashes of vivid colors within the clothing and production design, which makes for a very bold image. The black levels are appropriately deep and inky, but digital noise does prove to be a minor issue at certain moments in the film. The flesh tones are natural with subtle details showcased well in close-ups and medium shots. You should not expect anything less from a modern movie on Blu-Ray. RLJE has given this film a pleasing presentation.
Audio Quality
The Blu-Ray comes with a DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio track that is quite excellent without being domineering. Music plays an undeniable role in establishing the mood of the narrative, and this track does a great job of filling the room in a truly enveloping way. Dialogue comes through clearly without ever falling victim to overlapping voices or an overbearing soundtrack. Everything is mixed perfectly with directionality accurately rendered across all channels. The sounds of the city provide a good amount of activity in the rear channels, and music stirs up some intense activity in the low end. This track honors the spirit of the movie with an immersive journey that ranks as something worthy of praise. This release comes with optional English SDH, French and Spanish subtitles.
Special Features
- The Making Of Last Look: An eight-minute featurette in which the cast and creative team discuss their fondness for the script, the direction of Tim Kirkby, working with noir tropes, the trajectory of the characters and more. This is mostly pretty surface level, but it offers a few decent insights.
Final Thoughts
Last Looks is a fitfully charming detective story which never forgets to have fun, but does struggle to provide innovation within the narrative when desired. The main draw for this film is the charismatic performance from Charlie Hunnam, who is dead set on being a quirky character actor rather than the pretty boy leading man his face wants him to be. Mel Gibson admittedly delivers an entertaining performance playing a larger-than-life character that leaves an impression. Not all of the elements come together in the end, but there are enough individual facets that work well enough to warrant a viewing. RLJE Films has released a Blu-Ray featuring a great A/V presentation and a single fluffy supplemental feature. If you are a fan of twisty detective stories with healthy doses of humor, you will likely have a good time with this.
Last Looks will be available to purchase on Blu-ray and DVD on April 12, 2022.
Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the Blu-Ray.
Disclaimer: RLJE Films has supplied a copy of this disc free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.
Dillon is most comfortable sitting around in a theatre all day watching both big budget and independent movies.
