Overview: Colonel Michael Bishop’s (Mark Dacascos, John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum) last mission went horribly wrong. Destroyed from within… sabotaged. His was the only body dragged from the ashes of a black operation that never happened.

After years of recovery, Bishop thought he escaped the Black Ops and began a successful new life as a bodyguard to the rich and famous. He was the best, with skills most men died learning. But his past caught up with him. His clients began to die violently, at the same shadowy hand that conspired against his Black Op unit.

Now he must go own one last mission to destroy the faceless men that run an army that doesn’t exist in this “underrated gem” (The Action Elite) from director Tibor Takács (The Gate) co-starring Carrie-Anne Moss (The Matrix), Tony Todd (Candyman) and Graham Greene (Dances with Wolves).

Blu-ray Verdict: In my opinion, this film is a hidden gem. Although some may find the plot line a trifle tortuous, this is more than compensated for by the film’s realistic feel and likeable cast.

As the film is not effects-heavy (thanks to a lower than blockbuster budget) attention has instead been paid to creating a believable environment rather than a showy one. The film appears to have the benefit of a good military advisor for the firearms and combat sequences are particularly well executed and accurately represented.

Directional cues are used to good effect to allow us to follow the heroes train of thought in pivotal situations, and I was particularly pleased not to see the usual overindulgent victim setup sequences which tend to plague many films in this genre.

Neither is this a film which plays down to the audience by stating and restating the obvious, but trust me when I say that it is rather refreshing to watch a film which actually credits the viewer with some degree of independent thought.

Although Sabotage definitely focuses more towards Len Deighton than Ian Fleming, Mark Dacascos makes a very credible leading man, with his character having just enough background development to lend credibility to his actions, rather than swamping us with flawed hero cliches.

In closing, the film was obviously never going to break any box office records, but it does show very clearly that you can still have a good film without resorting to the visual overkill of big budget effects.

FYI: The surnames of the two lead characters are Bishop and Castle, which are both chess pieces. These are obviously in reference to the theme of the film, which is that the people involved are manipulated like chess pieces. [G.L.]

Collector’s Edition Special Features:
Main feature presented in 1080p HD in its original 1.78:1 aspect ratio
Audio: LPCM 2.0 Stereo
Optional English Subtitles
NEW! Interview with actor Mark Dacascos (HD, 32:11)
NEW! Interview with Actor Tony Todd (HD, 13:24)
Mark Dacascos trailer reel
Double-sided artwork
Collectible Mini-Poster