Almost Human (2013) [Blu-Ray]

Director: Joe Begos

Cast: Graham Skipper, Josh Ethier, Vanessa Leigh

Release Date: Now Available on Blu-Ray & DVD

A Review By: Kevin Lovell

Film Rating: 8/10
Disc Rating: 10/10

 

Plot Summary:

Mark Fisher disappeared from his home in a brilliant flash of blue light almost two years ago. His friend Seth Hampton was the last to see him alive. Now a string of grisly, violent murders leads Seth to believe that Mark is back, and something evil is inside of him.

‘Almost Human’ tells the story of a man named Mark, who two years ago mysteriously disappeared in a flash of blue light, his girlfriend and his best friend Seth the last two people to see him. After years without a sign, Mark mysterious reappears, but he is not the same Mark that vanished. Leaving a trail of murder and blood, ex-Mark makes his way back to his home town, but his intentions are unknown and there is something very odd going on, not to mention the dreams and nosebleeds currently plaguing Seth can’t possibly be a mere coincidence.

‘Almost Human’ was an incredibly pleasant surprise of a film. Joe Begos does an absolutely phenomenal job with his feature length debut, and he personally is credited as writer, director, producer and even the photographer. He also has a small cameo in the film as a news reporter. ‘Almost Human’ perfectly merges together the genres of alien invasion/abduction films and splatter-fest slasher films into a truly impressive hybrid that is not to be missed. It perfectly utilizes the eerie and questionable intensity that is so rare these days in movies dealing with alien invasions/abductions, and then it dares to take it a step further and perfectly integrates a wealth of bloody carnage into the mix, resulting in a rare and impressive piece of cinema as well as a truly impressive debut for newcomer Joe Begos, a name I will absolutely be keeping an eye on in the future.

A number of the cast do more than capable jobs in their respective roles, such as Josh Ethier who is eerily perfect in the role of Mark. The only harming factor to ‘Almost Human’ is that a number of the performances aren’t nearly as well portrayed and the overzealous acting from a few of the cast do catch the attention of the viewer and detract a bit from the experience, but rest assured it’s nothing unbearable. I’ve certainly seen numerous performances that were far worse than these and it doesn’t detract from the overall experience of this phenomenal film. I would highly recommend all genre fans, as well as those who can appreciate a unique and original film, definitely give this one a shot. It should also be noted that the Blu-Ray release looks and sounds fantastic and is also absolutely loaded with extra goodies, which you can read much more detailed information about immediately below.

VIDEO:

The Blu-Ray release of ‘Almost Human’ is presented in a full 1080p High Definition presentation utilizing the film’s original 2.35:1 Cinemascope aspect ratio. The video presentation here looks quite astounding; especially when you consider the likely minimal budget that ‘Almost Human’ was surely produced with. All of the colors and lines are detailed, smooth and spot on, with everything looking pretty marvelous as a whole, right down to the edges of the picture. This is a very impressive high definition video presentation that should leave fellow genre fans more than satisfied.

AUDIO:

The Blu-Ray release features an uncompressed 5.1 channel DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack that is as wild and intense as the film itself. The noises and audio effects which play such an important role in the film’s tone are intensely magnified here and it really helps bring you into the movie more than you can imagine, almost tempted to cover your own ears when the loud whine or other audio effects starts hitting. This lossless multichannel soundtrack constantly hits full force throughout and also consistently holds up to the task impressively.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

In addition to top notch video and audio presentations, the Blu-Ray release of ‘Almost Human’ is also completely jam-packed with a truly impressive collection of bonus content. Included on the release is a detailed and in-depth ‘Making Of’ feature that clocks in at a whopping 45 minutes in length and provides an impressive and thorough look at the making of the film. Also included are two audio commentary tracks, Joe Begos’ short film ‘Toxin’ (which is a short 4 minute film that is pretty fantastic itself and definitely worth a watch in my opinion), a Vintage TV Spot and Trailers, photo gallery, behind the scenes footage and more. As you can see, this Blu-Ray has no shortage of bonus goodies and should keep fans enthralled for a good long while following their viewing of the film.

*Please note that the above images are taken from the Blu-Ray and resized. They additionally will suffer quality loss as a result of .jpg compression. Larger versions of each image can be viewed by clicking on the image. All images and content included on this Blu-Ray release are the property of their respective owners.

Film Rating: 8/10
Disc Rating: 10/10

‘Almost Human’ is now available to own on Blu-Ray & DVD from IFC Midnight & MPI.