Nobody – Blu ray Review

It’s highly recommended that all action movie fans add Nobody to their collection. It’s now available to own on 4K UHD, Blu-ray, DVD, and digital.

Hutch Mansell (Bob Odenkirk) is not a flashy guy. Polo shirts and khakis, brown bag lunches and home in time for dinner with his kids and wife (Connie Nielsen) each night. A family man for sure, but they seem to be growing tired of him. He’s maybe even growing tired of himself. But Hutch has a particular set of skills and when pushed past his breaking point the dam bursts, unleashing years of repressed violent rage. And the result is fucking awesome. Bob Odenkirk kicks so much ass in this movie that you wince with each gnarly hit and never stop smiling for an hour and a half.

Nobody comes from the writer of John Wick and uber-action-producer David Leitch, with Hardcore Henry director Ilya Naishuller honing his skills while putting story first in an impressive leap of filmmaking quality. You might think, “oh I’ve seen John Wick so I don’t need to see this,” but you would be wrong. Sure a lot of the elements are similar but it is 2021 – we’ve seen everything by this point. What matters is if the familiar can feel new thanks to a unique viewpoint or an energy vibing at an unexpected frequency. In that regard, Nobody is both old and fresh but got a spirit all of its own that keeps you hooked. Plus Bob Odenkirk might be the easiest man to watch act in the universe, he just seems so affable, witty, and kind.

Hutch unleashes his inner being on a bus and just destroys some unruly Russian punks but he also takes a hell of a lot of hits. The choreography and camera movements work together to create a symphony of violence that feels incredibly visceral. This bus moment, however, unleashes the full power of the Russian mob to come after Hutch. But after his intense warm-up our man is ready for action and Bob Odenkirk throws his entire body into every action setpiece that follows. He trained like hell and it all shows on screen – it’s an impressive act of physical commitment that makes you feel like if he could do it, maybe you could too.

Just when things can’t get better, the legendary Christopher Lloyd appears as Hutch’s dad (and it turns out the apple didn’t fall far from the tree). And just when it can’t get any better than THAT we meet Hutch’s brother – who’s also a trained assassin – played by the one and only RZA. Honestly, I could watch those three interact with their killer little family dynamic for an entire movie by itself. They levitate the proceedings and add the type of charisma and star power that works effortlessly to make sure you’re having as much fun as you’re supposed to.

Despite being kneecapped by the pandemic Nobody made enough of a splash that we’ll hopefully get some sequels coming our way. Usually that’s the last thing you want – more sequels rarely means more better – but Nobody has not only a world of possibilities to explore but a leading man you absolutely want to spend more time with.

The Blu-ray release features the expected sharp picture and sound but surprises with features that seem standard but contain much more meat than you’d expect.

Deleted Scenes

None of these would’ve added anything to the movie and won’t add anything to your life. They just hint at larger world-building that’s best left to the John Wick Continental series but do give a couple more moments with Hutch’s father-in-law and his asshole brother-in-law.

“Hutch Hits Hard”

Now this is the type of stuff we want to see in these featurettes! Plenty of behind-the-scenes action showing Bob Odenkirk training and practicing intense fight choreography. It’s a marvelous look at the commitment that Odenkirk brings to his work and really impressive stuff.

“Breaking Down the Action”

More of the type of stuff we like to see! This section is comprised of four chunks that go into fascinating detail about the filmmaking craft that went into developing some of the movie’s biggest moments. “Bus Fight”, “Home Invasion”, “Car Chase”, and “Tool & Die” each offer different types of thrills and the makings-of are truly worthwhile.

“Just a Nobody”

This featurette’s a bit more standard-issue but still offers plenty of insight into what goes into the building of the perfect production team. It sounds so easy to just put two and two together but the actual ins n’ outs are more consuming. As subjects trace the development of Nobody from pitch to completion we get a deeper appreciation for the mechanics of this giant system.

Feature Commentary with Actor/Producer Bob Odenkirk and Director Ilya Naishuller

An absolute delight to spend the length of the film hanging out with these two. Bob Odenkirk has such enthusiasm in his voice and sounds like he’s just such a genuine fan of the picture itself. He has so much joy and excitement it’s like he’s pitching you on the movie while you’re watching it. They both offer tons of praise for the cast and crew and while it might be light on technical dissections of the filmmaking process it more than compensates with energy, humor, and heart. Plenty of love for everyone including lots of references to Bobby Digital.

Feature Commentary with Director Ilya Naishuller

Naishuller doesn’t hold back when discussing the arduous process of bringing Nobody to life. Even a look at the inside baseball explaining why the film went from STX to Universal is immediately something you don’t hear much of in most film commentaries. Extra tidbits about casting and constructing the technical side of it all are confidently discussed with ease. Plus, lots of references to Manitoba (the movie was shot in Winnipeg) are a particularly Canadian pleasure. The director seems like a really knowledgeable guy but two commentaries might be asking a lot of even the biggest fans of the film. If you gotta pick only one, of course go with the co-commentary Naishuller does with Bob Odenkirk.

It’s highly recommended that all action movie fans add Nobody to their collection. It’s now available to own on 4K UHD, Blu-ray, DVD, and digital.

Tags: blu ray review, bob odenkirk, nobody

About the Author

Dan Nicholls is a Vancouver-based, lifelong movie geek who's been a projectionist, critic, director, (accidental) actor, and writer in the industry since E.T. phoned home. @dannicholls