Face/Off (HD DVD, 2007, 2-Disc Collector's Edition; Widescreen)

Face/Off falls into the genre of Neo Noir - a pseudo genre that is used to describe those films that follow the same themes and use elements of those Film Noir movies that were popular in a changing post-World War 2 culture. The "hard-boiled" detective novels of the 30s were finally being translated into film, although the production code of the 30s didn't allow for a lot of the gritty realism to translate to the screen.
Face/Off is, essentially, an action vehicle for Travolta and Cage. In John Woo's capable hands (this is before his style went too "over-the-top absurd" with M:I-2) Face/Off is an incredible film, shot with brilliant cinematography and care. The character change Cage and Travolta have to play is incredible and showcases both their talents as actors. I have never really liked Nicholas Cage as an actor, but this is the best movie I have seen him in.
I highly recommend this movie. Story. Plot. Acting, all top notch. Watch it. And on HD-DVD, watch it several times and enjoy the beauty of high-def.

My only real problem I had while watching this movie is the volume leveling. Who's idea was it to mix the loudest action scenes so freaking LOUD? I live in an apartment and had to frequently turn down the volume because I don't like to annoy people. The leveling isn't off (voices soft, everything else loud) as one might find in a lot of movies, but it is just mixed VERY loud. Great for the action fan, bad for the considerate audiophile.

Back in the early 90’s I heard of this director John Woo and was very interested in seeing his style of directing since I heard so much about him from his Asian film work with movies such as Hard Boiled and The Killer. Since DVD and mainstream Asian cinema wasn’t as popular as it is now watching those titles were almost impossible until Woo transitioned himself to American cinema. His first attempt was Broken Arrow, which in my opinion was Woo’s practice film. It had solid action but the attempt to make a solid action film just wasn’t there, with plot holes and some a story that wasn’t very interesting it made for a mediocre film. Woo’s second attempted was Face/Off and even though it had an implausible storyline Woo’s keeps the script and action fast and furious. Nick Cage (Castor Troy) and John Travolta (Sean Archer) give superb performances, in a nutshell the story goes as this. Nicks character is an FBI agent whose son was killed by John’s and Nick has been on his hot trail ever since. Eventually Nick catches John and is put into a comatose state where they hold him in a secret medical facility run by the government. Using the latest and most cutting edge technology Nick is pushed to surgically switch faces (yes, you heard me right) with John so he can become him to pump John’s brother who was caught and put in prison. Nick needs to find out where a bomb is that John touted is armed and ready to go somewhere in Los Angeles. John mistakenly wakes up from his coma and forces the doctor who did Nick’s procedure to put Nick’s face on his so he can find Nick (and his face) to become himself again. John then finds out what Nick is doing, goes to the prison to let Nick know he knows the gig is up, and also tells his brother about the switch. John gets his brother out of prison and Nick is left for dead, but soon escapes to go and find John. Throughout the movie there are spectacular action sequences involving chases, gun fights (known as gun-fu), and hand to hand combat. The story as implausible as it seems does work and Woo’s directive style gives the movie flair and style that movies even today don’t have. The action is spectacular but not overwhelming and it feels like each set piece is done with the utmost style and substance. Woo is known for even making weak stories work with his excellent directing style. That coupled with some great cinematography, soundtrack, and sound design give this movie a definite must buy for action fans. In HD it’s even better, for the movie being 10+ year old the transfer is awesome and it is a definite title to show off you home theater and HDTV set up. This HD set is also another 2-disc edition from Paramount and it’s going to be a sad day when they stop making HD-DVD’s because they will now only make HD title in the Blu-ray standard. If you buy this film you can’t go wrong, great action, awesome performances, and a top tier transfer is a must have for your HD collection. My favorite American John Woo film and one of my favorite action movies of all time!

Great movie with lots of action and an interesting story line.

The acting of Nicolas Cage and John Travolta is at its best. The picture quality on the HD DVD is fantastic. Huge improvement over the DVD release. There is a choice of 2 English surround tracks DTS ES 6.1 and Dolby Digital Plus 5.1, both of which sound great. There are also Spanish and French Dolby Digital 5.1. There are special features on the first disk such as deleted scenes and an alternate ending. The second disk contains special features such as the making of the movie.

Over all this is a great HD DVD release.

THIS IS MY FAVORITE MOVIE & WHEN WE WENT TO PLAY IT, THE DVD IS WOULD NOT PLAY... HESITATE TO BUY FROM THEM AGAIN!

If I could leave higher marks 4 this seller I would.The price was great the item was shipped on-time and in perfect condition I'd highly recommend this seller.

I have both blue ray and hd-dvd but the latter prices are still better but you must have a do your home work before you buy your player.

Everything was perfect. Shipping was better then expected and recieved quickly. Will buy from Again.

This movie is a classic Great! Can't wait to watch it. The seller got this to me in record time. I recommend this seller to everyone!

LOVE i could not pay so seller cancelled for me. best seller on ebay, super nice . wish every one on ebay was like this seller. unbelivable how understanding and quick this seller is. thanks you guys are the best no bull.
thanks kollerk