Based on a terrific British mini-series, aired 25 years ago, "EDGE OF DARKNESS," while at times predictable, still has plenty of surprises, fine acting and tight direction. Mel Gibson stars as Tom Craven, a Boston Detective, whose young daughter is killed in a shooting, first appearing to be directed at him. However, as Craven digs deeper, a giant conspiracy, involving politicians, corporate intrigue and international arms dealing, are behind the killing and the death-toll only grows larger, as Craven wreaks the kind of vengeance his character in "PAYBACK" would've been proud of.

Ray Winstone as a mysterious "cleaner," for botched and difficult conspiracy-related killings, is fantastic, although, even his final scenes feel uncomfortably predictable and unbelievably out of character. Danny Huston as the main corporate baddie, is sadly poorly developed, and comes across as a caricature, unworthy of his considerable talent. However, even with these setbacks, the overall tight direction, acting and production values, make "EDGE OF DARKNESS" one of the more satisfying films to be released on blu-ray, thus far in 2010.

WARNER BROS. has provided the correct 2.40:1 aspect ratio for this VC-1 1080p blu-ray and dvd.  Colors are vibrant in virtually every scene. Colors on the dvd are impressive, but no way near the richness presented on blu-ray. Detail is impressive on both formats, however the hi-def image, especially during exterior scenes, offers notably greater depth. Contrast is much better on blu-ray than dvd, although blacks aren't as deep as found on many better WB blu-ray releases. Depth on the blu-ray, generally offers "jump-off-the-screen" type of imagery, completely lacking with the dvd counterpart.

WARNER BROS. has provided a DTS-HD MA 5.1 mix for the blu-ray and Dolby Digital 5.1 sound for the dvd. Being mostly dialogue-driven, this isn't an aggressive mix, although surrounds and bass create some stirring moments when employed.  Chase scenes, gunshots and the like are when the mix is most lively, but generally, the atmosphere is subdued, even in terms of musical cues, with all important dialogue receiving flawless reproduction.

The lossy mix is generally on par with the Standard Dolby Digital mix of the dvd, although bass is notably deeper within the DTS-HD mix.

Extras are made up of various, so-so featurettes, with only the ones devoted to the director and the adaptation process, worthwhile. Deleted scenes make it obvious as to why they were cut to begin with.