Breakdown 4K Review (Paramount)

Breakdown is a 1997 suspense thriller co-written and directed by Jonathan Mostow (Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines, Surrogates, U-571, Fright Show, and Beverly Hills Bodysnatchers). It was co-written by Sam Montgomery (24, Unforgettable, U-571, and Sawbones). It was produced by Dino De Laurentiis (Hannibal franchise, Army of Darkness, Blue Velvet, Maximum Overdrive, Silver Bullet, Cat’s Eye, Serpico, The Dead Zone, Firestarter, Halloween franchise, Dune, and Year of the Dragon). The budget was $36,000,000 and it grossed $50,159,144 worldwide at the box office. Jeff (played by: Kurt Russell from Escape from New York/L.A., The Thing, The Hateful Eight, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, Tombstone, and Big Trouble in Little China) and Amy Taylor (played by: Kathleen Quinlan from Apollo 13, The Doors, The Hills have Eyes, and Event Horizon) are making a huge change in their lives and they are moving to California. They have to drive across the country to get to their new home. They end up stranded in the middle of a desert with car problems. Amy takes a ride from a trucker Red Barr (played by: J.T. Walsh from Sling Blade, Needful Things, A Few Good Men, Red Rock West, Backdraft, and Executive Decision) that offers to help out the struggling couple. Jeff starts to get worried after his wife isn’t at their destinated meeting place. He does his own investigation to track her down but something doesn’t seem right. This new journey has became a total nightmare. Will Jeff be able to find his missing love???? Breakdown is one of the best suspense thrillers in the 90’s and it’s always been extremely underrated. It’s intense atmosphere is loaded with an adrenaline rush flow during all the chaos. This was director Jonathan Mostow’s most impressive work so far and I really wish that he would do more projects like this in the same sub-genre. A married couple decides to take a road trip on their big move. Their vehicle completely shuts down on them which causes this disastrous scenario. It just proves that you shouldn’t trust anyone. Kurt Russell as Jeff Taylor is just your typical normal guy in Breakdown. He’s not a bad ass or some kind of hero like some of his other roles. He’s top notch as a man that’s willing to do anything to save his wife. Kathleen Quinlan as Amy Taylor was solid in this. She is the fiesty companion at first then she’s basically the innocent victim for the rest of it. J.T. Walsh as Red Barr steals the show as the mysterious villain. He is the reason to watch Breakdown. It’s a real shame that he passed away soon after this. Character actor J.T. Walsh was always a high quality bad guy but this was his best one in his entire career. He acts like the Jeff character is delusional and you even start to question it. This wild mystery has all kinds of surprises and twists to it. The rest of the supporting cast includes M.C. Gainey (Con Air), Jack Noseworthy (Event Horizon), Rex Linn (Cliffhanger), Thomas Kopache (Stigmata), Moira Sinise (Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines), and Jack McGee (The Fighter). Breakdown is one of those features that gets better on each revisit, the replay value is excellent. Once it all falls apart, it’s nothing but thrills. It’s very entertaining and it always keeps your attention. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!!! Let’s discuss this high definition presentation and special features from Paramount Pictures! This 2160p (2.35:1) transfer with Dolby Vision and HDR10 is a solid improvement over the previous Paramount Presents home video release from awhile back. The slick cinematography and it’s beautiful locations really shine here. It has a few different audio options which includes English: Dolby TrueHD 5.1, German: Dolby Digital 2.0, and French: Dolby Digital 2.0 tracks on the UHD. Breakdown has plenty of action, suspense, and crazy moments when it comes to the audio. All of the dialogue is very clean, the thrills are elevated, and the music has a huge boost to it. It has English, English SDH, French, and German subtitles. It has an “Audio Commentary” with director Jonathan Mostow and lead actor Kurt Russell. This creative combination breaks down Breakdown. They drop all kinds personal behind the scenes stories and inside information about the 90’s production. It has an “Isolated Score” featuring the complete music from Breakdown as you view it. The rest of the extras are located on the blu ray. It has the almost 11 minute “Filmmaker Focus: Director Jonathan Mostow on Breakdown”. The director sits down for an interview for his suspense thriller. He chats about the origins of the project. He talks about the cast and their performances. He brings some of the important and tough scenes. He shows his appreciation for lead actor Kurt Russell and all the things that he did during the shoot. It has the little over 4 minute “Victory Is Hers: Kathleen Quinlan on Breakdown”. The lead actress shares her experience on Breakdown. He brings up the cast and working with them here. It has the little over 8 minute “A Brilliant Partnership: Martha De Laurentiis on Breakdown”. The producer chats about her work on this film. She talks about Dino and his involvement with it. She brings up some of the same information as director Jonathan Mostow from his interview that’s on the disc. It has an almost 12 minute “Alternate Opening” with optional commentary with the director and an introduction. It has a various “Trailers” from Paramount. It comes with an exclusive slipcover and a blu ray copy of the release. It’s currently only available in the Paramount Scares Vol. 2 set that can be purchased everywhere right now, CHECK IT OUT!!!!