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The Movie: A stellar collaboration between famed writer David Mamet and director Shawn Ryan ("The Shield"), "The Unit" (based upon the book, "Inside Delta Force", written by Eric Hane) follows a group of elite United States Army Special Forces officers dubbed Alpha Team - Sergeant Major Jonas Blane (Dennis Haysbert, "24"), Master Sergeant Mack Gerhardt (Max Martini), Sergeants First Class Charles Grey (Michael Irby) and Hector Williams (Demore Barnes), as well as the latest member of the team, Staff Sergeant Bob Brown (Scott Foley, Felicity). The group head off on various secret missions - from assassinations to protection to rescue and more. The catch is that they cannot tell anyone what they do. Their wives are aware of the tasks that they are faced with, but otherwise, it's as if they do not exist. The series spends time with both the wives, as they cope with the dangers that their husbands face, as well as the missions that the soldiers head out on. These thirteen episodes provide some very effective, tense drama and action. Haysbert, such an intense and commanding presence on "24", provides an award-worthy performance as the leader of the unit, who must keep his men and their mission together. Michael Irby, Max Martini and Demore Barnes are stellar as the other main members of the unit and Scott Foley is excellent as the latest addition, who has to work his way into the group. Regina Taylor is also outstanding as Jonas's wife, who must be a strong leader for the rest of the wives. The elements regarding the missions are marvelous, as the series is able to throw the viewer directly into the middle of the situation. These moments are pure edge-of-your-seat stuff, such as in "Non-Permissive Environment", where an assassination is cancelled after the unit has completed their mission. The result is the team has to go into "escape and evade" mode - everyone must find their own way back home, which Bob finds more difficult than the rest. The first episode has Jonas working his way into a hijacked airliner and dispatching the bad guys on-board. The slow-motion and other editing tricks are not about style, but about highlighting the precision and the mixture of adrenaline and focus required for Jonas to be able to do what he does. The scenes at home are obviously not as gritty and nail-biting, but the actresses do a fine job with their characters and the writing for both sections is certainly quite good. Overall, "The Unit" remains a solid, well-acted drama/action series that keeping cranking up the intensity in each episode. Episodes: 1. First Responders 2. Stress 3. 200th Hour 4. True Believers 5. Non-Permissive Environment 6. Security 7. Dedication 8. SERE 9. Eating the Young 10. Unannounced 11. Exposure 12. Morale, Welfare and Recreation 13. The Wall The DVD VIDEO: "The Unit" is presented by 20th Century Fox in 1.78:1 anamorphic widescreen. The overall presentation is terrific, as the picture remains crisp, clear and well-defined throughout the show. Some minor grain is seen at times, but this is likely an intentional element of the cinematography. No shimmering or edge enhancement was seen, but a couple of minor instances of artifacting were spotted in a couple of scenes. Colors remained bold throughout, with nice saturation and no smearing. Black level looked solid, while flesh tones appeared accurate. SOUND: The show's Dolby Digital 5.1 does provide a solid amount of action during the more intense mission sequences, with the surrounds kicking in discrete sound effects and ambience, bringing the viewer into the middle of the situation quite well. Audio quality remained pleasing, with effects sounding punchy, music remaining crisp and full and dialogue sounding natural and clear. EXTRAS: exec producer Shawn Ryan, producer (and former Command Sergeant Major) Eric Hanley, and actor Demore Barnes offer a commentary for "SERE". There's also a short featurette - "Inside Delta Force". Final Thoughts: Overall, "The Unit" remains a solid, well-acted drama/action series that keeping cranking up the intensity in each episode. The DVD set is a little light on supplements, but audio/video quality is excellent. Recommended. |