Imperium

Daniel Radcliffe stars as an FBI analyst who goes undercover in the white supremacist culture to track a deadly cargo of radioactive material in this "inspired by real events" crime thriller. Imperium offers an opportunity for Radcliffe to shuck off a little more of his Harry Potter innocence as he shaves his head and blithely tosses out anti-Semitic remarks and racist epithets to prove his bona fides to the skinhead punks, militia leaders, neo-Nazis, and media demagogues of the movement. The story sends him through a series of tests that differ from the undercover thriller template only in the details. Unfortunately, writer-director Daniel Ragussis never manages to wind up the tension. But even if viewers are never on the edge of their seats, the film delivers a portrait of an ugly movement that sucks up the angry, disappointed white men who view their own failures as a conspiracy of disenfranchisement, pointing the finger at Jews, African-Americans, Hispanics, Arabs, and pretty much anyone who looks different from them. With so many portraits of the racist fringe bordering on cartoon, it is also worth being reminded that otherwise normal people can get caught up in the propaganda and twisted into hateful beliefs. A strong optional purchase. [Note: DVD/Blu-ray extras include audio commentary by writer-director Daniel Ragussis and writer Michael German, a “making-of” featurette (19 min.), interviews with Ragussis and star Daniel Radcliffe (58 min.), German (30 min.), costar Sam Trammell (11 min.), and Radcliffe (6 min.), as well as a “Living Undercover” behind-the-scenes featurette (4 min.), and trailers. Exclusive to the Blu-ray release is a bonus UltraViolet copy of the film. Bottom line: a solid extras package for this timely but uneven film.] (S. Axmaker)