Guest BlackFlash Posted October 25, 2008 Posted October 25, 2008 The Orphanage: US disc, region A locked Picture quality: This is a near flawless VC-1 encode. Colours and skin tones are completely natural with no off-colour hues apart from in one "dream" sequence. Detail and texture levels are as good as those in No Country for Old Men. In fact, I think this is one of the best VC-1 encodes I have seen. The little noise/grain that I saw was in the context of the plot and seemed totally deliberate. The opening scene of a camera panning down from the top of some trees to the driveway leading up to the Orphanage defines the picture quality of the whole movie, i.e., excellent. 9.75 out of 10. Audio quality: This disc comes equipped with a Spanish 7.1 DTS Master Audio soundtrack. This is most definitely not Pan's Labyrinth having a far more conventional plot/storyline which was in places reminiscent of Poltergeist if far less sensationalist. That's not to say the film is bad since I found it eerie and gripping all the way to the end. I cannot say the ending was entirely unexpected, but it was definitely not standard fare.
Sunshine Ed Posted October 26, 2008 Posted October 26, 2008 (edited) Dead Space: Downfall The movie: The movie is the animated prequel to the new EA video game Dead Space. It fills in the back story that occurs before the start of the game, with a mysterious artifact being found on a desolate planet and various grim events taking place from this point onwards. Take a pinch of Aliens, a dash of Event Horizon and throw in a big dollop of The Thing and you'll get Dead Space: Downfall. It's a brisk movie, at just 74 minutes long, and there's enough action to keep you happy, but very little characterization at all. The plot is pretty linear, and anyone who already owns or has played the game knows how the movie must end. But, if you are watching Dead Space: Downfall, I'm assuming that you know what you are letting yourself in for. The animation is a bit basic. I kept wishing that Production I.G had done the film while watching it, as there are nice ideas and set pieces during the movie, they just lack the visual punch that a better animation studio could have given them. There is a mix of traditional 2-D animation and computer generated 3-D used throughout the film, and the two mesh well. It just would have been nice to have a more textured style for a story that relies so heavily on atmosphere. In conclusion, Dead Space: Downfall doesn't look as good as the game that spawned it, and certainly doesn't hold a candle to the fear and paranoia that the game can create. It's pretty mindless fun that you will enjoy, as long as you don't have overly high expectations. If you want to find out some of the background details to the wider Dead Space story, its worth a rent. (3 out of 5) Picture Quality: Difficult to call this one. It's an AVC-1 encode and my impression is that the transfer from the source is very accurate, however, the animation itself isn't the greatest. Those of us spoiled by excellent anime such as Vexille, Ghost in the Shell or Appleseed will probably be somewhat disappointed by the quality of the animation. It's on a par with older anime such as Wicked City or AD police. The style used is very reminiscent of the Aeon Flux cartoons. Having said that, the picture quality itself is very good, most apparent when the visuals are of the Ishimura or other spacecraft or technology, as these are 3-D computer models integrated into the standard 2-D animation. The blacks are strong (which is good as the movie is set in deep space) although reds aren't as vivid as they might have been (and trust me, there is a lot of red spurting around in this movie). As such I think it's a very accurate representation, though I wish a different animation studio had been used to produce the movie. (3 out of 5) Audio Quality: A TrueHD audio track, but this isn't put to great use. The surround sound is very front heavy, with the rears getting very little work out, which is a shame as a bit more effort in the sound design would have greatly assisted in creating a truly creepy atmosphere. Dialogue is clear throughout, but some of the voice work leaves a little to be desired. Some of the actors obviously think that to convey any emotion in an animated movie you must SHOUT YOUR LINES ALL THE TIME! (3 out of 5) Edited October 26, 2008 by Sunshine Ed
glenmulder Posted October 26, 2008 Posted October 26, 2008 (edited) HDMS Review - The Incredible Hulk -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Movie Title:- The Incredible Hulk - http://www.hdmoviesource.com/catalog/produ...366936ee1546686 Technical Specs:- Plays in REGION A.B.C Players.///Video Video codec: AVC MPEG 4 Video resolution: 1080p Aspect ratio: 2.35:1 Audio English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 English: Dolby Digital 2.0 French: DTS 5.1 Spanish: DTS 5.1 Subtitles English SDH, French and Spanish Discs 50GB Blu-ray Disc Two-disc set Digital copy | 2008 | 113 mins | Rated PG-13 | Movie:- 4.5 Out Of 5 - The Incredible Hulk kicks off an all-new, explosive and action-packed epic of one of the most popular Super Heroes of all time. In this new beginning, scientist Bruce Banner (Edward Norton) desperately hunts for a cure to the gamma radiation that poisoned his cells and unleashes the unbridled force of rage within him: The Hulk. Living in the shadows — cut off from a life he knew and the woman he loves, Betty Ross (Liv Tyler) — Banner struggles to avoid the obsessive pursuit of his nemesis, General Thunderbolt Ross (William Hurt), and the military machinery that seeks to capture him and brutally exploit his power. As all three grapple with the secrets that led to The Hulk's creation, they are confronted with a monstrous new adversary known as The Abomination (Tim Roth), whose destructive strength exceeds even The Hulk's own. Cast: Edward Norton, Liv Tyler, Tim Roth, Tim Blake Nelson, William Hurt Director: Louis Leterrier Video:- 5 Out Of 5 - REFERENCE QUALITY VIDEO - This is the best Universal disc out there plain and simple. I'm the 1st to pick up on artifacts, artifacts from noise, from film grain, but The Incredible Hulk is flawless. The quality of film grain is incredible, and never ever breaking up into artifacts - amazing. The contrast is very very strong, and most movie's that have high contrast shots have jet blacks, meaning the high contrast washes away all the black level detail. This movie has both high contrast and some of the best black level detail I've seen from any Blu-Ray. The color's are also very bold and extremely colorful, you can tell that Universal are using some of the best camera's around, and transfered to Blu-Ray with zero loss. I had to check the video codec & Universal have made the move like other studio's to use mpeg 4. From looking at this title it looks as though Universal are the new kings of video performance on the Blu-Ray. This disc is perfect in every way, MPEG 4 is here to stay, and I believe that this is the new REFERENCE title, and every Blu-Ray will always be compared to this. TRUELY AMAZING! EDIT - After reviewing the movie the Video Codec is actually MPEG 4 & the review has been editted. Audio:- 5 Out Of 5 - REFERENCE QUALITY AUDIO - The audio is DTS MASTER AUDIO and is without doubt the best audio I've ever heard on any movie. The dynamic range is huge from this movie, and some of you may have some angry nieghbors after demo-ing many scene's from this movie. The bass is huge and your definately going to need something big to power this movie to get it sounding it's best. Surround sound material has a perfect balance of effects when needed, and when it's needed it delivers. Vocal dialogue is also very smooth and very clear, and I cannot flaw the audio in any way. This is the best sounding disc available on Blu-Ray bar none. Unbelievable!!! Summary:- 5 Out Of 5 - THIS IS WHAT BLU-RAY IS ALL ABOUT!!! An action movie that truely takes advantage of the technical, high end aspects of home theater. Anyone that enjoys high end video and audio performance; then this is the disc for you. Everyone with a Blu-Ray Player must own The Incredible Hulk, a demo disc in the truist sense of the word. The movie is obvious and predictable, but aren't all action movie's, I really enjoyed this movie, and the actions scene's will take your breath away. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!! Reviewed by Carl Mulder. Edited October 26, 2008 by glenmulder
Guest BlackFlash Posted October 26, 2008 Posted October 26, 2008 Black Book: US disc, region free Picture quality: A pretty good if not reference quality MPEG4AVC encode of this movie. The opening scenes in Israel being particularly detailed. Not that the rest of the movie lacks it, but these very bright outdoor scenes seem to transfer well. But again, there is occasionally this odd yellowish hue which seems to haunt MPEG4AVC encodes. Maybe I'm seeing things. This is a definite improvement over the standard DVD that I rented when this film was released. 8 out of 10. Audio quality: You may choose from PCM uncompressed or 5.1 Dolby Digital. Not ideal I would guess. For me, Dutch is somewhere between English and German...I've never formally learned to speak it but I can understand, lol. Most people will remember Paul Verhoeven for Basic Instinct or Starship Troopers...perhaps that awful movie Showgirls. This is an intelligent movie about a Jewish woman's activities in the Dutch resistance during World War II.
glenmulder Posted October 26, 2008 Posted October 26, 2008 HDMS Review - Indiana Jones & The Kingdom Of The Crystal Skull -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Movie Title:- Indiana Jones & The Kingdom Of The Crystal Skull - http://www.hdmoviesource.com/catalog/produ...roducts_id=2061 Movie:- 4 Out Of 5 - Indiana Jones' (Harrison Ford) newest adventure begins in the desert Southwest in 1957 -- the height of the Cold War. Indy and his sidekick Mac (Ray Winstone) have barely escaped a close scrape with nefarious Soviet agents on a remote airfield. Now, Professor Jones has returned home to Marshall College -- only to find things have gone from bad to worse. His close friend and dean of the college (Jim Broadbent) explains that Indy's recent activities have made him the object of suspicion, and that the government has put pressure on the university to fire him. On his way out of town, Indiana meets rebellious young Mutt (Shia LaBeouf), who carries both a grudge and a proposition for the adventurous archaeologist: If he'll help Mutt on a mission with deeply personal stakes, Indy could very well make one of the most spectacular archaeological finds in history -- the Crystal Skull of Akator, a legendary object of fascination, superstition and fear. But as Indy and Mutt set out for the most remote corners of Peru -- a land of ancient tombs, forgotten explorers and a rumored city of gold -- they quickly realize they are not alone in their search. The Soviet agents are also hot on the trail of the Crystal Skull. Chief among them is icy cold, devastatingly beautiful Irina Spalko (Cate Blanchett), whose elite military unit is scouring the globe for the eerie Crystal Skull, which they believe can help the Soviets dominate the world... if they can unlock its secrets. Indy and Mutt must find a way to evade the ruthless Soviets, follow an impenetrable trail of mystery, grapple with enemies and friends of questionable motives, and, above all, stop the powerful Crystal Skull from falling into the deadliest of hands. More Movie Info @ - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indiana..._Crystal_Skull Video:- 5 Out Of 5 - This is the 1st THX Certified Blu-Ray I've seen and let me tell you; its amazing. How Lucasfilm have stylized the movie to look like the originals is beyond me, but they have done it. The general color tone is very similar to the original movie's and looks very authentic. The camera's are about as good as it gets, the resolution is pin sharp and filled with color. Even with the stylized look it still pumps out rediculously good looking color, and I have never seen a new movie that has the feel of a great classic movie like this. The disc is basically perfect, but I do have to nit-pick...The disc doesn't get a reference quality review just because I felt that there were issues in the backgrounds of some shots, specifically at the end in the church. Noise or artifacts Im not quite sure, with a mix of film grain, and I am being very picky here. I give reference quality to discs that don't have any flaws. Considering that this is THX's 1st disc I am suprised that the quality is this high, and I hope to see more THX Blu-Rays in the future. A great looking disc. Audio:- 5 Out Of 5 - REFERENCE QUALITY - There is no doubt in my mind that Indiana Jones is a reference disc in terms of audio. The THX logo alone at the start of the movie is unbelievable and has to be heard on a high end system to really hear how dynamic it is. The movie also some of the best if not the best sound I've ever heard, in terms of sheer sound quality and dynamic range. I always pick up of vocal quality and Indiana Jones is almost too good, the quality isn't harsh like some Blu-Rays, but completely smooth sounding. You must turn this movie up loud because the soundstage is huge!!! This is a flawless sounding disc, and finally proves to me that DOLBY TRUE HD when given great material is equal in every respect to DTS MASTER AUDIO. AMAZING!!! Summary:- 5 Out Of 5 - I don't think the movie is up with the best Indiana's, but it was certainly fun to watch, with the video and audio being incredible means this is a must own title. Highly recommended. Reviewed by Carl Mulder
mfedley Posted October 27, 2008 Posted October 27, 2008 Glen, Just to let you know, we normally only include personal reviews if you have seen the title yourself in this thread. If your known as Carl as a pseudonym then all is ok then. Also other forum members, if I am incorrect feel free to correct me Best Regards, Mathew
Guest BlackFlash Posted October 27, 2008 Posted October 27, 2008 Glen,Just to let you know, we normally only include personal reviews if you have seen the title yourself in this thread. If your known as Carl as a pseudonym then all is ok then. Also other forum members, if I am incorrect feel free to correct me Best Regards, Mathew I would agree with you wholeheartedly and I also see no need to provide a link to a website selling the movie. I imagine most forum members have preferred websites where they purchase their discs. Seems like blatant advertising to me.
mrdenn1s Posted October 28, 2008 Posted October 28, 2008 (edited) Glen, Thanks for the link / review. I dont care if you wrote it or not. DIE HARD QUADRILOGY PQ - Pretty good on all 4 discs. DH3 and 4.0 are a little better than 1 and 2, however, the concersions all round are strong. 4/5 AQ - Excellent in DTS- MA on all disks. Explosions have punch and dialogue is clear 4.5/5 Overall- A great buy for Die Hard fans...Yippee Ki Yay Mother F%^#&r !!!!!! Edited October 28, 2008 by mrdenn1s
Guest Posted October 28, 2008 Posted October 28, 2008 Glen,Just to let you know, we normally only include personal reviews if you have seen the title yourself in this thread. If your known as Carl as a pseudonym then all is ok then. Also other forum members, if I am incorrect feel free to correct me Best Regards, Mathew I would agree with you wholeheartedly and I also see no need to provide a link to a website selling the movie. I imagine most forum members have preferred websites where they purchase their discs. Seems like blatant advertising to me. Correct gents, the idea is our own personal reviews and definitely not a connection to other websites, in fact the mods frown upon this as a rule
mfedley Posted October 28, 2008 Posted October 28, 2008 From memory, this will be coming out as a 4 Pack soon which is not an JB exclusive. I would also call DH4 being close to reference quality DIE HARD QUADRILOGYPQ - Pretty good on all 4 discs. DH3 and 4.0 are a little better than 1 and 2, however, the concersions all round are strong. 4/5 AQ - Excellent in DTS- MA on all disks. Explosions have punch and dialogue is clear 4.5/5 Overall- A great buy for Die Hard fans...Yippee Ki Yay Mother F%^#&r !!!!!!
mfedley Posted October 29, 2008 Posted October 29, 2008 If it's written by your son, it probably is relavent. Any other thoughts fellow members?? ok sorry guys Carl is actually my Son
mrdenn1s Posted October 29, 2008 Posted October 29, 2008 From memory, this will be coming out as a 4 Pack soon which is not an JB exclusive. I would also call DH4 being close to reference quality I bought it 3 weeks ago from JB as a 4 pack
mfedley Posted October 29, 2008 Posted October 29, 2008 The Godfather Part 1 Hi All, Managed to snag this tonight when I went to JB. They were next to the register so asked if I could have one. They said yes, and thus you recieve a review for the OZ version before the official release. Movie: 4.5/5 - Do I need to say anything more?? PQ: 3.5/5 - The PQ is a big jump from the original 2001 DVD version, but still has quite a bit of grain, and I have seen better transfer for movies from this time (like Robin Hood on HD). There is an increase in detail (such as being able to count the number of different coloured cookies on a table during the opening wedding scene, but I just feel there could have been more. I know that most of the problems come from the source, but I can't give it any higher than this. AQ: 3/5 - Now, this was a dissapointment. I was hoping that they may try and include something extra with the audio with this one (such as the haunting audio in 2001 A Space Odyssey), but to no avail. How hard would it have been to even start the movie with the classic godfather melody coming from all 5 speakers, not just the front speakers (it is DD True HD so it has the potential to do the trick). A major comment on the highdefdigest review of gunshots sounding tinny is also correct. The rear speakers are used sparingly. The only scene which really used then for more than a couple of seconds was the Robert shooting the Turk & the captain (I think thats correct in regards to names). Personally, I think is will be a buy for most people. If you are not too sure, maybee a trip down to your local blockbuster or simular is in order for a decision to purchase Best Regards, Mathew
Guest BlackFlash Posted October 29, 2008 Posted October 29, 2008 (edited) Having bought the US version of the Godfather trilogy I have to say, Mathew, I think you've reviewed it fairly. The sequel is a little bit better PQ wise, but not much. Edited October 29, 2008 by BlackFlash
mfedley Posted October 31, 2008 Posted October 31, 2008 The Proposition (US Region Free) Movie Itself: 4/5 - The movie itself can be described as thought provoking, fantastic story telling but not always enjoyable as it can make you uncomfortable. For those who do not know this movie (which is ozzie), it is set around 3 outlaw brothers. Two are captured, one is given a proposition to kill the eldest brother so he and the youngest brother are not hung. As mentioned, the story as very good, along with a strong score which really makes you feel how it would have been like in the 1800's. Picture Quality: 4.5/5 - After starting to watch a lot of new releases, it fails to amaze me how a cheap aussie film can look so much better than what is produced in Hollywood. The level of detail along with 3D feel of the pictures is fantastic. We can hardly call it a transfer (I think it was shot on HD cameras), but it is fantastic. It's worth buying it just to see the barren Queensland outback in full HD. Audio Quality: 4/5 - The audio is good, but is not reference quality. All speakers are used from bullets, the score and general background noise. The use of the specific speakers to give a sense of where a certain noise is coming from has been well thought out. We just need to remember that it is no Pan's Labyrenth (even though this movie is DD True HD) Only shame is this movie is only available in US. It's only $11-13 USD on Amazon, so a couple of months ago this was a cheapie but a goodie. Supposeably this has been one of Amazons better sellers in Blu. Highly reccomended
Guest BlackFlash Posted November 3, 2008 Posted November 3, 2008 Universal Soldier: US disc, Lionsgate/Studio Canal, region free...no mention at all of region on the cover Picture quality: They've used the VC-1 codec for this movie and done a super job. I saw no noise or grain and detail levels in bright outdoor scenes were fantastic for a 16 yr old movie though not so good in darker scenes. Colours were bright and solid and contrast levels were above average. Check out the very black black of Dolph's M60, lol. The only complaint I have is that in darker scenes skin tones tended to be a little more red/brown than natural. Why couldn't The Punisher have been this good? 8 out of 10. Audio: Comes with a 5.1 DTS HD Master Audio soundtrack. Sounded excellent. Recommended to fans of this very silly Jean Claude Van Damme/Dolph Lundgren...errr..."classic".
mfedley Posted November 8, 2008 Posted November 8, 2008 (edited) Walk The Line (OZ Release) Movie Itself: 4/5 - This is a reasonably enjoyable movie. I see it as a must buy for the music (26 and likes to listen to Jonny Cash ) PQ: 4.5/5 - The picture quality can be described as high quality. There is little to no blotching of skin tones like in some Blu & HD releases (feel free to PM me to explain what causes it, I'm not a HD expert!!). My only main complaint is one specific scene which was especially grainy (when Jonny Cash first finds the house next to the lake. This might have been the intention of the director as Jonny Cash has hung over at the time) AQ: 4.5/5 - The DTS HD MA does the job here. Dialogue is well prioritised and there is succificient use of all speakers to provide ambience when needed. My only major complaint is a lack of a 7.1 output instead of 5.1. Then again, I think I'm going to be silently complaining about this to myself for a while to come with most titles Edited November 8, 2008 by mfedley
jel Posted November 8, 2008 Posted November 8, 2008 Master and CommanderRegion A PQ: 4/5 - A good though not brilliant transfer AQ: 4/5 - This is again a largely dialogue driven movie it certainly delivers in the battle and storm scenes just my two cents regarding PQ, I am of the firm belief and always have been that the film has been presented as the director intended both on sd dvd and now on BR, Peter Weir has never been one to tinker thus the presentation. A great tale with strong performances and a good watch A question for those with the BluRay version of this film. The DVD version suffered from banding issues in the fog scene near the beginning of the film. Does the BluRay version suffer the same , or is it now cured in HD?
Guest Posted November 8, 2008 Posted November 8, 2008 Walk The Line (OZ Release)Movie Itself: 3.5/5 - This is a reasonably enjoyable movie. I see it as a must buy for the music (26 and likes to listen to Jonny Cash ) PQ: 4/5 - The picture quality can be described as better than normal. There is little to no blotching of skin tones like in some Blu & HD releases (feel free to PM me to explain what causes it, I'm not a HD expert!!) AQ: 4/5 - The DTS HD MA does the job here. Dialogue is well prioritised and there is succificient use of all speakers to provide ambience when needed. My only major complaint is a lack of a 7.1 output instead of 5.1. Then again, I think I'm going to be silently complaining about this to myself for a while to come Well Matt going to disagree with you on this one, think the movie is 4.5 out of 5 and is a very well told story albeit segmented, PQ and SQ IMO are clearly 4.75, I watched this on Kazz's set up last Tuesday night and it's a brilliant transfer on both audio and picture while not reference, I'm not a Cash fan so I've always been intrigued that this title has managed to get me in. Obviously we're all entitled to our opinions so I respect yours as well, just beg to differ in this case Review equipment W10000 Marantz 7002 Elektra Theatron Pana BD30 and Kazz's speakers and MKII sub
mfedley Posted November 8, 2008 Posted November 8, 2008 (edited) Hi Yorac, Just compared it to some of the other titles I have reviewed and I do agree that I was a bit harsh with the marking. Have changed it accordingly. Also thanks for the message on my profile. I guess I'm getting a bit grumpy in my older age :lol: Best Regards, Mathew Well Matt going to disagree with you on this one, think the movie is 4.5 out of 5 and is a very well told story albeit segmented, PQ and SQ IMO are clearly 4.75, I watched ... Edited November 8, 2008 by mfedley
minbin Posted November 8, 2008 Posted November 8, 2008 Celine Dion: A New DayRegion A PQ: 4/5 - A good transfer but to me probably from an NTSC source so lacks a little AQ: 4.75/5 - An absolutely brilliant track, I listened to the Dolby True track in full but will also post some thoughts later on the uncompressed 96k stereo track when I have a listen to it The Concert - Almost worth watching the features on disc 2 first to understand the concept of the show (I didn't), the show is based on Cirque de Soleil which is an interesting concept, other than that the concert is enjoyable and fans will love it, My Heart will go On has a particularly good sub tester at the beginning Warning: The start up of this disc as in the Sony/Columbia logos are fairly loud and the Columbia theme in particular may make some wonder if they have speaker problems Finally got around to watching this tonight, and after the first view, I am not ashamed to declare that I own this title. This is such a fantastic concert, it's really hard to fault it - except for the loud Sony/Columbia introduction in the beginning like yorac warned. I, of course, didn't heed the warning & had to cop an earful from my better half. PQ 4.5/5 & AQ 5/5 for me. Audio is simply perfect. I could just feel the energy coming from Dion's voice (in 96kHz/24-bit Dolby TrueHD & she's still got it!) from the get go to the uplifting finale. I am not a big fan of Dion but I could do nothing but admire her voice throughout the concert. She also provides intermittent comic relief when she does her dance numbers, but sensibly, she kept it to minimum. Supported by a large number of talented dancers (maybe 50-60 of them filling a large stage & Dion did need them to cover her shortfall), brilliant stage direction, choreography & camera work, only the harshest critics could not enjoy this show. A title well worth the money imo & recommended.
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