Entourage - The Movie - Blu-ray

Movie: Actually, everything looked like a happy ending: Vince (Adrian Grenier) got married, Ari (Jeremy Piven) took a well-deserved retirement to save his marriage, and everything was just fine with the rest of the gang for a change. But Vince's marriage barely lasted longer than Ari's retirement. Now the former agent runs a studio for which Vince is desperate to make his first directorial effort - a modern take on the Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde story. Eight months later, filming is nearly complete. However, as Vince continues to go over budget, not only him, but Ari is threatened with closure. While Eric (Kevin Connolly) tries everything to mend fences, Ari has to beg a wealthy financier (Billy Bob Thornton) for more millions for the studio's prestigious project. But more money is only available if the film is any good. And so the rich Texan sends his son Travis (Haley Joel Osment) of all people to L.A. with Ari to look over Vince's shoulder. And the already nervous superstar is not at all pleased about that.

From 2004 to 2011, Vincent Vince Chase and his entourage gave pay-TV network HBO good ratings. Loosely based on producer Mark Wahlberg's experiences as a young actor in Hollywood, the series was nominated for a total of 17 Emmys and 9 Golden Globes, with Jeremy Piven in particular taking home awards as Vincent's choleric agent Ari. With the final episode of the eighth season, the series was actually given a well-rounded finale. Nevertheless, the wish for more stories about Vince, E, Turtle, Drama, Ari and Co. came up again and again from the fans and the producers. This wish has now been answered in the form of a feature film, which follows the series finale more or less directly.

No question: those who loved the series will also like the feature film. Because basically, the theatrical version feels like a montage of four series episodes. The possibilities of the cinema were really only exhausted with the slightly more prominent guest stars and the spectacular excerpt from the fictional film-within-a-film Hyde. Otherwise, Entourage is to the big screen exactly what Entourage was to television. The story is nice and provides ample opportunities for nice gags and glimpses into the beautiful glow of Hollywood. Beautiful people with attractive bodies, luxury mansions, and plenty of celebrity faces from show business and sports cavort around Vince and his friends.

While the struggle to finish Hyde is undoubtedly the main plot, E, Turtle, and Drama are also given their own little storylines: E becomes a father, though is no longer involved with the very pregnant Sloan (Emmanuelle Chriqui). He seems to be enjoying life as a single man - but secretly he is still very attached to the love of his life. Turtle, on the other hand, falls for famous wrestler Ronda Rousey and really goes all out for a date with her. And Drama finally gains unexpected popularity when a video surfaced on the internet showing him masturbating. He didn't ask for this kind of fame, though.

The movie also gives these smaller subplots enough time to unfold, so fans of all the characters get their money's worth. And other characters you've grown to love over the course of the eight seasons also make guest appearances, some of them brief, including Billy Walsh, Lloyd, Shauna, and Dana Gordon. All of this makes the Entourage movie a gift for fans. Those who don't know the series or weren't particularly enthusiastic about it, on the other hand, won't be able to do much with this look behind the scenes of the dream factory. Overall, there is a very clear for this: absolutely worth seeing!

Picture + Sound: Technically, the film presents itself on the Blu-ray from its best side. The picture is absolutely clean, the color scheme very coherent and also the tuning of contrasts and black levels provides not only in the brighter outdoor scenes, but also in darker scenes for the right atmosphere. When it comes to sound, of course, the English audio track in particular scores with a very lively DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 mix. But the German Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack is also powerful enough to leave a positive overall impression. This is also helped by the occasional good surround moments achieved by the soundtrack, atmospheric ambient noises and minor sound effects. Good!

Extras: For fans, there are a few extras worth watching here. Starting things off is The Gang (approx. 14:18 min.). Here, those involved talk about the beginnings of the series and the road to the feature film. We continue with Hollywood Baby (approx. 8:28 min.) and a look at the fake-making-of-the-film-within-the-film Hyde (approx. 4:34 min.). Six unused scenes (approx. 18:39 min.), including a long version of the party scene, and a couple of blown scenes (approx. 2:46 min.) are also on the program. The last two (rather unnecessary) featurettes deal with the youngest member of Entourage (approx. 2:16 min.), Ari Gold's son (approx. 1:59 min.).

Conclusion: Entourage is a successful continuation and also a well-rounded conclusion to the popular HBO series. Even though the film feels more like a compilation of several series episodes rather than a major motion picture, fans will get their money's worth here. The Blu-ray presents the film in very good picture and sound quality and also offers a few nice extras. If you loved the series, you simply can't pass up this disc. Recommendable

An article by Frankfurt-Tipp