As 2018 comes to a close I thought it would be a good time to share my favorite physical releases of the year. I am a big supporter of physical media and will continue to support it. I like owning my movies that I can hold, not in some cloud somewhere. I love box art. This year was a great year for exclusive Steelbooks at Best Buy. Some of them will make my list. In deciding the number I fell on the most obvious one, 18.
Number 14 is the western epic, Hostiles!
Hostiles is a beautifully shot, deliberately paced hell of a movie. Hostiles opens with a mother, father and their three children living on the frontier. Everything seems peaceful until the family is attacked and ultimately murdered by a Comanche war party. The lone survivor is Rosalee, the mother.
After the intense opening moments of Hostiles, we meet Captain Joseph Blocker, who is ordered to take Yellow Hawk, a dying Cheyenne war chief back to his tribal land on Montana. Blocker does not want this assignment, he wants to retire. Blocker is threatened with a court martial as he was ordered by President Harrison, Blocker agrees. Blocker and Yellow Hawk have a complicated and war torn history that plays out as they learn about each other and themselves. Along the way, Blocker and his party stumble on Rosalee and her three “sleeping” children. Soon Blocker takes Rosalee with him and his party as they make their long, bloody journey to Montana.
Hostiles is at times brutal. It also has some truly remarkable character moments. Christian Bale as Blocker is fantastic. Bale is a pro at being a tortured hero. Although Bale does a lot of heavy lifting he also has a lot of help from the supporting cast. Rosamund Pike is stellar as the grieving mother Rosalee. Wes Studi can always be counted on to deliver the goods. Two amazing actors have small but vital roles. Ben Foster is downright chilling as Sergeant Wills, his scenes are filled with tension. Scott Wilson plays an important role towards the end of the film. Wilson brings his A-Game.
I love westerns. They don’t make enough of them anymore. Hostiles proves that there are still some great stories to be told from the American frontier.
The 4K UHD video presentation of Hostiles is stunning. This movie needs to be seen in UHD. The colors take full advantage of HDR. One of the best looking UHD’s out there.
Hostiles fights with a winning audio mix. Dialogue is important in a movie that has many quiet moments. The UHD delivers these exchanges crystal clear. The action is pulse pounding as well. The war cries and the firing guns sound extremely impressive.
There is only one extra on both the standard Blu-Ray and also in a rare move it is also included on the UHD. The one extra is a great one however, a full length making of Hostiles, called A Journey of the Soul. It’s over an hour long and is pretty good.
Hostiles is a great film on a great UHD Blu-Ray. While the dark story and deliberate pace might not be for everyone, this is one great film.
Film: A
Video: A+
Audio: A+
Extras: B+
Overall: A