Whiteout (Blu-ray)

For some reason, Dominic Sena hasn’t directed that many theatrical movies over the years. While his stuff hasn’t always been the most complex of material to grace the silver screen, he’s still managed to display a clear knack for being able to keep the audience interested. Kalifornia featured a serial-killing Brad Pitt, Gone In 60 Seconds had Angelina Jolie getting turned on by fast cars, while Sword Fish had Halle Berry whip out her norks to the delight of men all over the globe.

And Whiteout’s big plus point? Kate Beckinsale stripping down to her underwear and getting into a fogged up shower cubicle. Is it hot? Yep, indeedy – but it’s nowhere near enough to warrant sitting through and hour and a half of dumb slasher nonsense that gets more absurd by the minute. Plus, it’s in the trailer anyway.

Based on the popular graphic novel of the same name (shocker), Whiteout sees Beckinsale take on the role of Carrie Stetko – a US marshal who’s been spending a few years guarding an Antarctic research facility while trying to forget being the target of an attempted murder a few years before. With a few days to go before her placement ends, the past comes back to haunt her when a corpse is wheeled in and she’s left to investigate the continent’s first ever murder. As the temperature drops and the blizzards set in, it’s soon apparent that she’s stuck in the most isolated place on earth with a killer on the loose.

Yes, it sounds bloody brilliant, but problem is that the actors all seem to be phoning it in and the script has moments that are so stupid that it’ll actually make you feel thick for persevering. That would be bad enough, but the worst thing is that this potentially great thriller has been sapped of all suspense, so that you simply don’t give a toss whether or not the characters snuff it. It’s particularly noticeable around the halfway mark, when Stetko has a fierce battle with the killer and, only moments after escaping by the skin of her teeth, risks giving herself radiation poisoning. If this film was in school, it’d be held back a year.

As for the Blu-ray goodies on board, it’s visually not bad. The interiors are certainly well defined and colourful, but the real highlights are the outdoor scenes. Displaying distinct shades of white during an Antarctic blizzard, the result is pretty impressive. Of course with all the fast moving snow, there is a little bit of blur but it’s nevertheless a good looking movie. Likewise, the audio is clear throughout even the most hectic of action scenes, where the wind, frantic breathing and snow-shuffling footsteps all compete for aural dominance. In all, it’s a decent looking and sounding disc.

As for the extras, they’re pretty so-so. On board are a couple of featurettes, which include a neat one that covers how much of a pain it can be to film at the South Pole. Elsewhere we get the trailer and a handful of deleted scenes that really aren’t much cop. With nothing in the way of HD exclusive extras, it makes for a relatively disappointing disc. In fact, it would have been a good idea if they’d included the graphic novel, as they did with the super-duper US edition of Watchmen. At least then there’d be a reason to buy it. Never mind.   

Overall Verdict: A decent looking and sounding disc for a supremely dumb film. Even a scantily-clad Kate Beckinsale isn’t worth the hassle of this ordeal.

Special Features:
‘Whiteout: The Coldest Thriller Ever’ Featurette
‘Whiteout: From Page to Screen’ Featurette
Deleted Scenes
Trailer

Reviewer: Jordan Brown