“Some called Bregna the perfect society. Some call it the height of human civilization. But others know better. The Goodchilds built Bregna to ensure us a future. They built the Relico, a memorial to remind us of what we’ve survived. They built walls to protect us. They tell us that outside, nature has retaken the world. But the real problems lie within. We are haunted by sorrows we cannot name. People disappear, and our government denies these crimes. The Goodchild regime provides for us, as long as we stay quiet. So we trade freedom for a gilded cage. But there are rebels who refuse to make that trade, who fight to overthrow a government that silences us, who fight in the name of the disappeared. They call themselves the Monicans. I am one of them.”
It all started as the brainchild of Peter Chung. It was an adult anime series that aired on MTV from 1991 to 1995. The series looked at a dystopian future where all kinds of “beings” existed, mostly from the practice of too much cloning, which eventually led to mutants and other strange creatures. In this dark future, humanity has fallen to basically two city-states . In Bregna, a scientist-dictator named Trevor Goodchild appears to rule with an iron thumb. They are the blood enemies of the other settlement, Monica. The animated series attempted to take on some highly philosophical themes, and the series was very stylish, calling from both anime and early German Expressionism. While not a huge hit, the animated shows drew in a very loyal following, and it wasn’t long before that material would find itself as a live-action feature film. Unfortunately Peter Chung did not have a ton of input, and wasn’t a fan of the result. The box office numbers were dismal, and any plans for a film franchise pretty much died in 2005 with the release of Aeon Flux. Now the film celebrates its 20th anniversary with a UHD Blu-ray (4K) release.
Charlize Theron stars as the titular character, Aeon Flux. She is a highly trained assassin and a Monican. She is assigned to infiltrate Bregna and kill Trevor Goodchild (Csokas). She is almost an automaton. There’s little humanity about the character until she learns that her sister was killed because they basically thought she was one of the Monicans. Now her assignment is personal. Of course, she discovers things might not be all they appear, and enemies might not really be the bad guys. Enter Oren Goodchild ( Miller) in a case of the old good brother/evil brother trope. None of this really matters, because the film overcomplicates the story and leaves us with pretty much an empty martial arts affair with groundbreaking wirework that reminds us too much of The Matrix. The future has a kind of Blade Runner style, and throughout I can’t help but thinking that it borrows so heavily from others that it never really sets its own place. If you’re satisfied with a lot of choreography fighting without much substance, then this one is for you.
The film had issues from the very beginning. The film was originally intended to be a bit more adult in nature with a lot of nudity and sexual situations. A lot of the film’s intentions become muddy, as director Karyn Kusama literally had the film taken away from her, and the studio finished the film by committee. What you have left is a film disowned by its director and by the story’s creator. It’s no mystery that it didn’t even make back its budget at the box office.
Video
Aeon Flux is presented in an aspect ratio of 2.39:1. The ultra-high-definition 2160p image is arrived at by an HEVC codec with an average bitrate of 55 mbps. The ultra high definition is basically an upgrade from a 2K digital intermediate. That’s a bit of a shame, because it was shot on film, which made it a native 4K source. That doesn’t mean it doesn’t look good. It does, but in a dated and sterile kind of fashion. The film’s natural elements, particularly exteriors and character close-ups, are actually pretty crisp and reference, but the CGI here isn’t very good, and at this resolution it blends poorly with the live elements of the film. There are moments like the closer environmentals that are poor to the point of distraction. The color field doesn’t really improve very much from the older Blu-ray, and I suspect there wasn’t any additional restoration here. Black levels are average, but the HDR doesn’t live up to its potential at all.
Audio
The DTS-HD 5.1 audio presentation isn’t going to show off your system. In fact, it’s identical to the earlier Blu-ray release. No Atmos or expanded surrounds here. Dialog cuts through fine, and it’s at least clean throughout. But it’s not an upgrade at all.
Special Features
The extras are found on the Blu-ray copy and are the exact features from the earlier release. The steelbook is pretty much the only upgrade you’ll get here.
Final Thoughts:
I understand that there wasn’t a lot of restoration or improvement on the film. The audience is pretty limited, as it was when it was released. It’s a great addition if you are already a fan of the film, but I don’t expect there to be much interest beyond that point. It was interesting to see the film. In the 20 years since its release, I had forgotten a lot about the film, and I suspect that will happen again pretty soon. They could keep bringing it back as the media changes, I suppose, but: “It’s not enough! Our minds are unraveling, and every time you bring us back, it gets worse!”
