'The Gift' Coming to Home Video & Digital HD in October from Universal Pictures

"THE GIFT" DEBUTING ON BLU-RAY COMBO PACK, DVD AND DIGITAL HD OCTOBER 27, 2015 FROM UNIVERSAL PICTURES HOME ENTERTAINMENT

Revenge comes in an artfully wrapped package in "The Gift," a chilling psychological thriller available on Blu-ray, DVD, Digital HD and on Demand October 27, 2015, from Universal Pictures Home Entertainment. From STX Entertainment and Blumhouse Productions ("Whiplash," "The Purge") "The Gift" is a suspenseful and thrilling morality tale that earned a "Certified Fresh" seal on Rotten Tomatoes with a remarkable score of 93%. The Blu-ray and DVD are packed with chilling bonus features including a riveting alternate ending, deleted scenes, feature commentary with writer and director Joel Edgerton, and more.

"The Gift" asks the question, "Can you really go through life having never wronged anyone?" Simon (Jason Bateman) and Robyn (Rebecca Hall) are a young married couple whose life is going as planned until a chance run-in with Simon's high-school acquaintance sends their world into a narrowing tailspin. At first Simon doesn't recognize Gordo (Joel Edgerton), but after a series of uninvited encounters and mysterious gifts prove troubling, a horrifying secret from the past is uncovered after more than 20 years. As Robyn learns the unsettling truth about what happened between Simon and Gordo, she is forced to contemplate: how well do we really know those closest to us, and are bygones ever really bygones?

BLU-RAY and DVD BONUS FEATURES:

• Alternate Ending
• Deleted Scenes
• Karma for Bullies
• The Darker Side of Jason Bateman
• Feature Commentary with Writer/Director Joel Edgerton

The film will be available on Blu-ray with DIGITAL HD and UltraViolet and DVD.

• Blu-ray unleashes the power of your HDTV and is the best way to watch movies at home, featuring 6X the picture resolution of DVD, exclusive extras and theater-quality surround sound.
• DVD offers the flexibility and convenience of playing movies in more places, both at home and away.
• DIGITAL HD with UltraViolet lets fans watch movies anywhere on their favorite devices. Users can instantly stream or download.

FILMMAKERS
Cast: Jason Bateman, Rebecca Hall, Joel Edgerton
Directed By: Joel Edgerton
Written By: Joel Edgerton
Produced By: Jason Blum, Rebecca Yeldham, Joel Edgerton
Executive Produced By: Jeanette Volturno-Brill, Couper Samuelson, Luc Etienne, Robert Simonds, Adam Fogelson, Oren Aviv,Donald Tang, Dennis Wang, James Wang
Director of Photography: Eduard Grau
Production Designer: Richard Sherman
Edited By: Luke Dulan
Casting By: Terri Taylor, CSA
Costume Design By: Terry Anderson
Music By: Danny Bensi, Saunder Jurriaans

TECHNICAL INFORMATION BLU-RAY:
Street Date: October 27, 2015
Copyright: 2015 Universal Pictures Home Entertainment
Selection Number: 64173126
Layers: BD-50
Aspect Ratio: Widescreen 2.40:1
Rating: R for language
Languages/Subtitles: English SDH, Spanish and French Subtitles
Sound: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1, Dolby Digital 2.0
Run Time: 1 hour, 49 minutes

TECHNICAL INFORMATION DVD:
Street Date: October 27, 2015
Copyright: 2015 Universal Pictures Home Entertainment
Selection Number: 64173127
Layers: Dual
Aspect Ratio: Anamorphic Widescreen 2.40:1
Rating: R for language
Languages/Subtitles: English SDH, French and Spanish Subtitles
Sound: Dolby Digital 5.1, Dolby Digital 2.0
Run Time: 1 hour, 49 minutes


Read our review of "The Gift."

You can use the links below to order the US Blu-ray or UK Blu-ray.

 

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The Gift (2015) - Movie Review - STX Entertainment

NOT EVERY GIFT IS WELCOME

A young married couple's lives are thrown into a harrowing tailspin when an acquaintance from the husband's past brings mysterious gifts and a horrifying secret to light after more than 20 years. With a plot like that, it sounds like a either a stalker thriller or a revenge film right? Well, that is only partially true. I went in watching the film thinking, okay, I have seen the trailer a couple times so I have a pretty good idea what to expect. The problem with that logic was, the film had more going on than I was anticipating. I know there tends to be several different trailers for films. So perhaps there is one that gives away a bit too much information on the film and I did not see it. Maybe not. I have had films in the past, ruined by oversharing trailers. Do yourself a favor if you are interested in seeing the film, skip any more trailers to avoid any chance of spoilers. If you are not familiar with the film, I will include a short TV spot at the end. I think often, too many trailers ruin the effectiveness of films by giving the viewer way more information than they need. But I digress. 

"The Gift" is the directorial debut of Joel Edgerton, who also stars as Gordo. The film also stars Jason Bateman (Simon) and Rebecca Hall (Robyn). Simon and Robyn are a married couple who have just moved to California, not too far from where Simon grew up. While out shopping, Simon is approached by Gordo, an old classmate. Simon does not initially recognize the man until he states his name. After exchanging pleasantries and getting Gordo's phone number so they can catch up some time, the couple depart the store. 

The next day a gift is found waiting at their front door. After finding it to be from Gordo, a bit of uneasiness settles in and Simon is clearly not pleased. However, Robyn does her best to explain that it is a nice gesture and they should give him a chance since after all, he is just trying to be nice. Next thing you know, Gordo shows up at the house, uninvited and unexpected. But, he is kind and pleasant and soon finds himself invited to dinner by Robyn. 

From there things get very interesting and over the coarse of the film, the audience finds itself wondering, what exactly is going on. Every one tells lies, be it tiny white lies or full blown tall tales. Every one also has secrets. As you will find out, lies and secrets will be exposed. The truth can be damning and it can also be liberating. "The Gift" does a great job at keeping the audience in suspense and often wondering what is going to happen next. Joel Edgerton was masterful at building the tension in the film, bringing it to a roaring crescendo during the third act and then flooring the audience with its climax. 

I hope that this film finds the large audience that it deserves. But I feel it may unfortunately, slip under the radar of most moviegoers.  Perhaps good word of mouth will help it at the box office. The main trio of actors (Edgerton, Bateman and Hall) gave terrific performances and were very real and believable in their respective roles. The film also sports a fine supporting cast, even with some familiar faces like Busy Philipps (Cougar Town) and Wendell Pierce (The Wire). The music in the film is put to good use by helping to further enhance our sense of fear at just the right moments. "The Gift" was a far better film than I was expecting. A run of the mill thriller, it is not. 

RATING: 4 / 5


UPDATE: Read our news on the home video release of "The Gift."

 

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