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Site created 12/15/97.
page created: 11/13/06
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| Short
Takes on Current Titles Now Available in HD |
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| The
release of this dark (figuratively and literally) western by Clint
Eastwood in 1992 and its subsequent winning of numerous awards
seemed to mark the zenith of Eastwood's career, but after a brief
pause, he has gone on to even greater heights in the new century
with Mystic River, Million
Dollar Baby, and Flags of Our
Fathers. Meanwhile, he has resisted any urge to return to
the western, allowing Unforgiven
to stand as his summary of everything he feels about the genre. Its
story of an aging ex-gunfighter driven by first circumstance and
then inevitability to his old ways is a film of endless satisfaction
on all levels. Every previous home video release of this film (from
laserdisc to DVD to DVD SE) has given us an improved view of it and
this HD version is no exception. It's still not perfection because
the odd edge effect is evident and skin tones don't always seem
quite right, but the detail in the face of the difficult night and
gray weather scenes is impressive and the film's cinematography is
very well showcased by the sharpness and depth of the image. The
Dolby Digital Plus 5.1 sound track is also very impressive offering
subtle surround effects and more aggressive sounds associated with
the weather and gunshots with equal aplomb. The DVD SE's supplement
package is included in standard definition on the HD disc. It's a
fine assemblage of commentary and documentaries that covers pretty
well all the bases. Aside from The
Searchers, Unforgiven
is the only western so far available in HD and a package that's hard
to beat. |
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| I
know Bill Hunt's already done an extensive review of Apollo
13 previously on The Bits,
available
here, but I just wanted to express my admiration for this
terrific film too. It's very difficult to filmize a real event that
one has lived through and still manage to capture it in such a way
that the drama and suspense seem as equally real as the actual
occurrence once did. Apollo 13
is one film that succeeds admirably in that regard. The tension of
the crew's final minutes of re-entry through the atmosphere, for
example, is nail-biting stuff no matter how many times you see it. I
might rate the video and audio a point higher than Bill did (the
ratings above are Bill's so as not to confuse things), but that's
quibbling - this is a very solid presentation in all respects, with
special nods to the image detail throughout and the combined audio
and video experience of the Apollo 13 lift-off in particular. |
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| I'm
a sucker for submarine films, and although this is not one of the
very best ones, it's still diverting entertainment. Of course the
history is wrong as it was the British who captured the first Enigma
machine from a German U-boat and the plot is rather contrived, but
the filmmakers do manage to convey the era well and reflect the
youthful age of military personnel of the time. With action
sequences that are suspensefully staged and characters (despite most
being the usual stereotypes) who are well acted, the almost two-hour
running time passes quickly. It helps that the HD image transfer is
excellent with both interior submarine scenes and exterior sea
scenes (frequently in gloom or cloud) offering excellent detail and
colour replication. Edge effects were a minor quibble with the DVD
version, but are virtually non-existent in HD. The sound is offered
in Dolby Digital Plus or DTS 5.1 and is demo quality in all
respects. The special features are appreciable and informative. A
winner! |
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| Were
you a fan of the book but hesitated to see the movie because of
uncertainty about the performance-based animation that forms its
basis. Or were you a Tom Hanks fan who hesitated because you
wondered if embodying six of the story's characters, including the
little boy who's the central figure, the Train conductor, and Santa
Claus himself, might just be a bit too much? Well, hesitate no
longer. This is a magical entertainment that fully captures the
original story, celebrates the joyfulness of Christmas, and really
conveys the ambivalent state of mind of youngsters on the cusp of no
longer believing in Santa Claus. What could be better than a
steam-powered train that serves hot chocolate and takes you on a
thrilling rollercoaster ride to a magical land that looks exactly
like one's best imaginings of Santa's North Pole home? And what
could be better than viewing it in the friendly confines of one's
own home on Christmas Eve in HD? Virtually nothing, given the disc
that Warners has made available. The image is spotless and
incredibly vibrant with nicely saturated colour, excellent image
detail, and no evidence of edge effects whatsoever. The Dolby
Digital Plus 5.1 track is a fine match for the video in degree of
excellence. It shines best whenever the train is the focus of
things, delivering satisfyingly deep base, but handles more subtle
sounds with good clarity and presence too. The DVD SE's supplements
have been included on the HD DVD and there is a wealth of items, but
too few have real heft. Like the supplements on some of the Harry
Potter films, they're aimed at a younger audience in many
respects. Add this one to the list of perennial holiday standards. |
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| Batman
sure has been kicked around over the years. He received decent
treatment in a couple of 1940s Columbia serials although neither are
high water marks for that format. He was then subjected to the
indignity of the campy 1960s television series. His return to the
big screen in the generally appealing Batman
(although I never warmed to Michael Keaton) seemed to presage better
things, but subsequent sequels sullied the franchise. Then we got a
rebirth last year with Batman Begins.
Although not perfect because of a second half that threatens to
verge into sort of over-editing and overblown action sequences that
characterize so many current action movies, the film succeeds
overall due to fine casting decisions (the most important of which
are Christian Bale as Batman, Liam Neeson as a mysterious teacher,
and Gary Oldman as young detective Gordon), direction by Christopher
Nolan that elicits a fair degree of emotional response to the
material as well as developing considerable suspense, and a first
half that presents an inspired turn on the nature of Batman's
origins. The HD presentation is excellent. Whether in a depressing
Chinese prison, atop a windswept and snowy Asian mountain, on a
glittering ice-covered lake, in the crisp brightness of a sumptuous
mansion, or in the gloom of a decaying Gotham city, the image
impresses with an incredibly detailed, three-dimensional, and
film-like character. Blacks are deep and colours are completely
natural. With no evidence of compression effects, this is a superbly
authored disc. Equally impressive is the sound experience, offered
in both Dolby Plus 5.1 and Dolby TrueHD 5.1. The film offers the
full sonic experience of an action film with effective use of the
surrounds and impressive LFE, yet subtle surround and background
effects are also well handled when the situation warrants. The music
score (by Hans Zimmer and James Newton Howard) is a dynamic presence
throughout. The disc includes all the features from the previous
two-disc DVD version presented here in standard definition. Also
included is an IME (In-Movie Experience) - an HD-DVD exclusive that
is essentially a combined audio/video commentary that can be engaged
optionally to accompany the movie. It's not continuous but is a
generally effective supplement. It features director Christopher
Nolan, writer David Goyer, and other crew and cast members. The
supplement package may not be quite a home run, but with the quality
of the film transfer, Batman Begins
is one of the best HD-DVD offerings available. |
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| The
first Mission: Impossible
movie started off the franchise on a promising note. It was fairly
well-acted and possessed of a fairly complex plot that actually
allowed one to think a bit. Then came the sequel which, directed by
John Woo, sacrificed intelligence for the sort of ridiculous action
sequences that are somehow believed necessary to maintain attention
nowadays. Now we have the third installment which was viewed in some
quarters as a box office disappointment despite its $400M worldwide
gross. The film itself is an improvement on the previous one as more
time is devoted to developing the Ethan Hunt character played by Tom
Cruise. To be sure, plenty of action is retained in diverse
locations such as Berlin, the Vatican, and Shanghai. The best of
these sequences is the Vatican one which really captures the spirit
of the old TV series. The Shanghai scenes look nice, but the premise
of one of the major set-pieces there (our hero jumps off a building,
swings on a cable like a pendulum from one skyscraper to another,
and falls on a sloped roof where he manages to shoot two guards as
he slides to the edge) really stretches things. Still, the overall
effect of the movie is diverting and makes for a decent popcorn
experience. Enhancing that is a really fine HD-DVD presentation
utilizing two discs. The image is another superb effort rivaling
that for Batman Begins among
current film releases on HD-DVD. This film is full of colour and
texture not to mention some difficult night-time scenes, but all are
rendered sharply and with fine detail. Blacks are very deep and
stable while skin tones are accurate. There are no edge effects
evident. The Dolby Digital Plus 5.1 audio track is also reference
quality with very active and effective use of the surrounds not to
mention a thorough workout for one's subwoofer. The latter is
particularly noticeable during the attack on the bridge sequence
(somewhat reminiscent of True Lies,
which sure would be welcome in HD too). The supplements are very
extensive though a little repetitive - comprising an enhanced audio
commentary by Tom Cruise and director J.J. Abrams that also expands
into a video format like Warners' In Movie Experience and over two
hours worth of making-of type information. The latter are basically
the same as present on the Standard DVD, but most are presented in
HD on the HD-DVD disc. A reasonably entertaining movie with a great
disc presentation. Note that Mission:
Impossible III in HD-DVD is available separately or as
part of a box set known as the
Mission:
Impossible - Ultimate Missions Collection and also
containing HD-DVD versions of Mission:
Impossible and Mission
Impossible II. Both titles are also available in Blu-ray
Disc format as well. Barrie Maxwell barriemaxwell@thedigitalbits.com |
Barrie Maxwell - Main Page
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