REDEEMING LOVE is a powerful and timeless love story that takes place against the backdrop of the California Gold Rush of 1850. The story centers on Angel (Cowen), who was sold into prostitution as a child. She has survived through hatred and self-loathing, until she meets Michael Hosea (Lewis) and discovers there is no brokenness that love can’t heal. The story reflects the redemptive power of unconditional and sacrificial love with characters and circumstances relevant to the contemporary world.
For in-depth thoughts on Redeeming Love, please see my colleague Cassie Brown’s review from its original theatrical release here.
Video Quality
Universal Pictures Home Entertainment brings Redeeming Love to Blu-Ray with a really lovely 1080p video presentation. The presentation provides a significant amount of depth on display, especially in the interior shots. The production design from the dingy establishment Angel finds herself working in to the immaculate offices that Duke inhabits, along with the fabrics of clothing, provide crystal clear textural details. The image is clean with the warm color palette popping off the screen. The film employs nice splashes of colors within the production design, which makes for a very striking image. The black levels are appropriately deep and inky with no discernible digital noise. The flesh tones are natural with a magnificent amount of detail present in close-ups, especially when said faces are covered in sweat and grime. This Blu-Ray is a top-tier representation of this movie.
Audio Quality
This Blu-Ray comes with a stellar DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio track that captures these locations beautifully. There is little in the way of pure kinetic sequences, but the environmental sounds of the world engage the surround speakers in a really pleasing way. When the characters are walking through the bustling streets there are some really nice ambient details that flesh out the setting such as the clomping of horses. Dialogue is the driving force of the film, and it always comes through crisp and clear without being clipped by any competing sounds. The music in the film fills the speakers in a wonderful, well-balanced way. The various sound effects provide a subtle engagement to the low end of the track. The audio track is an excellent sounding presentation for this feature in all respects.
Special Features
- Deleted Scenes: Nearly eight minutes of deleted scenes are provided here including a scene of Angel overhearing her friend being abused, Mae coming home to reconnect with her family and more. Some scenes include some unfinished digital effects such as a blue screen background.
- Casting Redeeming Love: Four brief featurettes totaling four minutes in which the cast and creatives discuss the casting of Angel, Michael, Mae and Paul.
- From The Author – Francine Rivers: A minute-long piece which shows Rivers signing copies of her books for the crew.
Final Thoughts
Redeeming Love is a movie for a very specific audience, and you are either in it or you are not. The film is not particularly well made and the acting is likewise not going to be winning any awards anytime soon. That’s not to say the performers are not charismatic; they just are not given a chance to really do much of anything besides look nice with this material. This film is for those who want an incredibly cheesy, not particularly passionate, romance – plus some really depressing obstacles . If you are comfortable with some sizable doses of religion, you are going to be in even better shape to appreciate this one. Universal Pictures has provided a Blu-Ray disc that sports a great A/V presentation and a few brief supplements for those who do decide to check it out. This movie is not good, but I can see where it could provide a decent time for a specific audience.
Redeeming Love is currently available to purchase on Blu-Ray, DVD and Digital.
Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the Blu-Ray.
Disclaimer: Universal Pictures Home Entertainment 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.
