Far better than one would likely expect from a direct-to-video release, "THE ENTITLED," has been given the chance to find its rightful fans with a blu-ray release from STARZ/ANCHOR BAY.  Paul is a young, hard-working guy trying to take care of his ailing mom, burdened with her own problems, having to choose between necessary medicine and other looming bills, including the real probability of losing her home.  Paul isn't afraid of working hard, but he's just not finding opportunities, while witnessing the rampant drug-style life of so many rich college kids, oblivious and/or uncaring of how good they have it. 

With no other solution in sight, Paul devises a kidnapping scheme, necessitating the hiring of two troubled cohorts, Dean and Jenna.  While en-route to a weekend trip at a mountain cabin, where three rich kids will meet up with their dads, the kidnapping begins. The rich dads are as devious in their handling of the ransom demands, as they would be in daily corporate maneuvers, and their reactions add a palpable air of suspense and drama to the film's narrative. Unfortunately for Paul, just as his plan begins to feel as if it can work, his violent partners demonstrate their violent tendencies, and death ensues.

While some of the twists and turns are arguably contrived, others aren't and "THE ENTITLED" blends impressive production value, tight direction and writing and a fine cast, culminating in an entertaining thriller. Ray Liotta is always fun to watch, but Kevin Zegers in the lead role of Paul, is most impressive, offering depth that his character needs in order to make one have empathy for him, in spite of what he's doing. Laura Vandervoort, easily one of the most beautiful actresses of the the past decade, also provides a complexity to her character that transcends her from being just a spoiled rich kid. (She is, but there's more to her than that!). While there will be as many unhappy with the film's climax as those pleased, this reviewer found it hit just the right note!  "THE ENTITLED" is a special, easy to be overlooked, but worthwhile film.

STARZ/ANCHOR BAY has provided the correct 1.85:1 aspect ratio for this AVC MPEG-4 1080p blu-ray.  Colors are rich and often vibrant. While the film's design pushes the visual compositions to extremes, there's no hint of over-saturation. Detail is stunning throughout. Sure close-ups of Ms. Vandervoort reveal how close-to-perfect she is, but even darker scenes, as in an escape through the woods sequence, offer deep enough black levels so that nothing is lost. This is a terrific transfer from beginning to end-credits! Great job!

STARZ/ANCHOR BAY has provided a Dolby TrueHD 5.1 mix.  Ambient effects are less creative than the script, however various scenes make good use of discrete effects. While the dynamic range, especially in enhancing the score, is impressive, balance varies. Occasionally, dialogue is slightly overshadowed by the music.

Several extras have been offered including an alternate ending, which some of the viewers present at the review screening greatly preferred over the final offering.

A behind-the-scenes featurette and trailers for other STARZ/ANCHOR BAY releases, are also included.