Verdict
Summary
Most of the characters in the film are right out of the book of clichés (there’s even a dog in peril), but Stallone, who is incredibly watchable in his physical role, manages to elevate the film with his charisma and pathos. Released in the height of the Christmas season of 1996, Daylight bombed, contributing to Stallone’s falling out of favor during the period.
Plot:
A tunnel collapses in New York, and a disgraced man redeems himself by attempting to save the lives of everyone trapped in the tunnel.
Review:
A commuter tunnel underneath the Hudson River collapses, trapping over a dozen survivors in a subterranean wreckage, and a disgraced medical emergency chief named Kit Latura (Sylvester Stallone) is the only human alive who can save them. He does the impossible by finding a way into the wasted lair that used to be the tunnel, and when he gets there to help the survivors find a way out, he’s immediately hated when he is recognized for the disgraced figure of society that he has become. The group of survivors include a bunch of convicts (one of whom is played by Stallone’s real son Sage), a family of three, an elderly couple, a police officer, and an attractive young playwright, who fills in the love interest role for Latura. Featuring deadly escapes from breakaway props, perilous explosions, waterfalls, and various other deathly manifestations caused by the impending obliteration of what remains of the tunnel.
For a Stallone vehicle, the film is careful to restrain him within the confines of what constitutes a “disaster film” with all of the formulaic genre trappings these types of films contain. Disaster films were the flavor of Hollywood in the mid 1990’s (like they were in the late 1970’s), and Daylight certainly delivers on the technical aspect with state of the art special effects and thrills. Most of the characters in the film are right out of the book of clichés (there’s even a dog in peril), but Stallone, who is incredibly watchable in his physical role, manages to elevate the film with his charisma and pathos. Released in the height of the Christmas season of 1996, Daylight bombed, contributing to Stallone’s falling out of favor during the period. His previous several films, Judge Dredd and Assassins were also expensive flops. He made a career comeback with his next one, Cop Land. Daylight was directed by Rob (The Fast and the Furious) Cohen.
Kino Lorber brings Daylight to 4K Ultra HD in a startling new 4K scan that revitalizes the picture quality. Fans of the film will be delighted by this release, and it looks and sounds better than it ever has on home video. Previous special features such as an audio commentary with Cohen, a making-of feature, trailers, and a music video, are ported over from the previous disc releases.