Top Gun Blu-ray Disc (Tony Scott, 1986)

Paramount (USA)
2.35:1 1080p
109 minutes
Audio: Dolby TrueHD 5.1 English; DTS MA 6.1 English; DD 5.1 French; DD 5.1 Spanish
Subtitles: Optional English, English SDH, French, Spanish, Portuguese
Extras: audio commentary; making-of featurettes; Best of the Best: Inside the Real Top Gun; storyboards; Behind the Scenes; Survival Training; Tom Cruise Interviews; music videos; TV spots

Released: 29 July 2008
Blu-ray case

Top Gun was one of a handful of titles (the others being the Jack Ryan flicks) that Paramount decided to release on HD DVD without any extras even though plenty were commissioned for the SD DVD versions. There was considerable consternation given that some people don’t like one title hogging precious storage space, so Paramount has made things right. Top Gun is now on Blu-ray with all of the “Special Collector’s Edition” bonuses offered by the two-disc SD DVD set.

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Top Gun won an Oscar for the song “Take My Breath Away”. While the song is about falling in love, the title could just as well describe the movie’s sound design. To me, Top Gun has always been a rather slight action movie as much of the “action” takes place during flight training sessions. Having airplanes booming from one end of the room to another isn’t as impressive as what you get with on-the-ground battle sequences. Yet, to be fair, most guys just love having low frequencies rattle their bones (either for real or by a subwoofer), so despite a history of shaky video presentations, Top Gun has remained demo material for many home-theatre enthusiasts (even if it has never been reference material).

By now, Top Gun is a take-it-or-leave-it deal. The jingoism was so appalling to Paul Newman that he mentored Tom Cruise away from such scripts while they worked on The Color of Money, but most people who saw this in theatres before they turned eighteen just remember how cheesy, over-the-top, and campy the movie can be. Top Gun may be one of cinema’s greatest ironies--the Navy used it as a recruiting film even though it is filled with (unintentional) homoeroticism.

Truth be told you, I don’t have a special place in my heart for Top Gun like many other red-blooded American guys of my generation, but I do like that Oscar-winning song. “Take My Breath Away”, indeed. Damn.

Video:
The video looks very similar to the HD DVD’s, so any differences can probably be attributed to the way that the machines output the picture.

On Blu-ray and HD DVD, Top Gun exhibits some wear-and-tear. Colors are not as strong as with recent movies, and several shots have light sprinklings of dust. The stock footage and second-unit photography can be fairly grainy. Nevertheless, the 2.35:1 1080p transfer reveals a remarkable level of detail that is frequently breathtaking (no pun intended).

Audio:
The Top Gun Blu-ray Disc sports the same dynamic Dolby TrueHD 5.1 English track as the HD DVD as well as a DTS MA 6.1 English mix. The DTS MA encode comes on rather strong (and may be uncomfortable for some viewers, especially those who live in apartment complexes such as myself). Then again, one watches Top Gun in large part for the sonics, right?

It is quite possible that this busy mix never rests. Even the “quiet” moments are filled with songs. The rears are very aggressive, though discrete directionality effects are limited to fly-bys across the front soundstage. The pulsating synthesizer music score pings stereo pulses from left to right with such ferocity that your head starts bopping after a while to keep up with the separation.

You can also watch the movie with DD 5.1 French and DD 5.1 Spanish dubs. Optional English, English SDH, French, Spanish, and Portuguese subtitles support the audio.

Extras:
Well, fans can now get rid of all of their previous copies of this movie as the Blu-ray has it all (until the next Special Edition comes along, of course).

You get a spliced-together audio commentary (skippable), six featurettes that function as a long-ish documentary, storyboards, vintage featurettes (“Behind the Scenes” and “Survival Training”, vintage Tom Cruise Interviews, music videos, and several TV spots. The disc even includes “Best of the Best: Inside the Real Top Gun”, a featurette comprised of interviews with the personnel at the real flight school. (This was available only as a Best-Buy exclusive when the two-disc SD DVD was first released.)

There aren’t any trailers, though this has been a common omission from many home-video optical discs for some time now.

Jack Ryan Blu-ray Discs

(The Hunt for Red October, John McTiernan, 1990)
(Patriot Games, Phillip Noyce, 1992)
(Clear and Present Danger, Phillip Noyce, 1994)
(The Sum of All Fears, Phil Alden Robinson, 2002)

Paramount (USA)
2.35:1 1080p
135/116/141/123 minutes
Audio: Dolby TrueHD 5.1 English, DD 5.1 French, DD 5.1 Spanish
Subtitles: Optional English, English SDH, French, Spanish, Portuguese
Extras: audio commentaries; featurettes; theatrical trailers (HD)

Released: 29 July 2008
individual Blu-ray cases

Time heals many wounds. In Paramount’s case, the studio is now offering the Jack Ryan spy thrillers in high-def with all of the SD DVDs’ extras. Previously, the studio prepped the four movies on HD DVD as movie-only vanilla discs. Also, the HD DVDs were available only as a box set, but after much Internet outcry from folks who didn’t want to have this-or-that title in their collections, the studio is selling the Blu-rays individually. Clearly, Paramount has listened to the fans.

(The HD DVD box set was first delayed due to a packaging error and then canceled outright when HD DVD ceded the high-def battle to Blu-ray, though Amazon.com has been known to sell the set from time to time.)

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The Hunt for Red October is a superb thriller because it never forgets that a personal game being played by one man may have large-scale ramifications. The Soviets are willing to risk war in order to avoid losing face. The Americans are willing to risk war in order to avoid losing first-strike capabilities. Everyone is doing his best to appear “helpful” to the other side in order to paste a diplomatic face on a volatile situation. The feints and phantom gestures orchestrated by military commanders on both sides of the Iron Curtain are mesmerizing. Yes, it’s true that the world is a better place now than it was when two nuclear superpowers gripped each other in an embrace of death. Still, in all honesty, I kind of miss the bad ol’ days--they were simpler than today’s bad days.



Patriot Games was a considerable step back for the Jack Ryan series after the engrossing The Hunt for Red October. For starters, Harrison Ford brought nothing dynamic to the lead role. With the exception of Han Solo and Indiana Jones, Ford plays every character as a “confused middle-aged man”. I’m not asking Ford to display a great emotional range in every movie, but a little variation would make him more palatable to me than he is now. Also, how many times do we have to look at him doing his “huff-and-puff” run? Patriot Games begins with Ford huffing-and-puffing in slow motion as he runs towards his family across a town square. He huffs-and-puffs in slo-mo yet again in Clear and Present Danger. He did everybody a favor by not huffing-and-puffing in The Sum of All Fears.



Clear and Present Danger was competently and professionally made. However, it features the kinds of clichés, routine explosions, and not-so-intriguing conspiracies that make discerning viewers yawn. We’re supposed to accept the Jack Ryan character as a hero just because he has a nice wife and two cute kids. We’re supposed to believe that the President and his advisors are the bad guys because they are fighting a secret war against drugs. I realize that movies use shortcuts to avoid lengthy expository dialogue, but the script for Clear and Present Danger insults viewers’ intelligence. The truth of the matter is that if real life situations were that simple, we wouldn´t be facing the kinds of problems that plague us.



Many reviews of 2002’s The Sum of All Fears mention 9/11 and “the new post-Cold War era”. However, comparing the fictional events in All Fears to the real-life incidents following the September 11, 2001 attacks on America is like comparing apples to oranges. Yes, it’s true that apples and oranges are both fruits, and it’s true that detonating a nuclear device on American soil and slamming airplanes into American edifices are both attacks on America. However, the qualitative and quantitative outcomes of global nuclear war and non-geopolitical terrorist attacks differ greatly. Therefore, while I can understand that a lot of people developed instant, vicarious links between 9/11 and war-themed movies like All Fears, I have to say that those people are...wrong.

The kind of story that All Fears relates is, in a sense, much more catastrophic and “old school” than the kinds of attacks orchestrated by Al-Qaeda. Tom Clancy’s novels focus on traditional geopolitical philosophies, even if the villains aren’t all from the same country. Also, while Al-Qaeda may be capable of inflicting horrible pain and death, it does not have the ability to destroy civilization as we know it. In order for truly catastrophic events to occur, the world’s great powers--from a conventional point of view--would have to participate in the destruction. The Cold War may be over, but China, France, India, Israel, Pakistan, Russia, the United Kingdom, the United States, and who knows what other countries still have nuclear weapons. Right now, Russia and the U.S. may be “friendly”, but being friendly doesn’t preclude the triggering of hundreds of thousands of nuclear missiles. The chemical and biological weapons of Third World countries worry us because they can be transported anywhere in the world with relative ease, but the religious fundamentalist remains very much what he has always been in the grand scheme of things--a pesky pest. The more things change, the more things stay the same.

Video:
All four movies are presented in 2.35:1 1080p. As with Beowulf, it looks like Paramount is taking advantage of 50-gigs of breathing room. The Blu-ray Discs’ video transfers are noticeably better than the HD DVDs’ transfers.

The quality varies widely, with the oldest (Red October) looking the worst and the newest (All Fears) looking the best. The live-action shots of actors in sets or outdoors are fairly good--deep blacks, robust hues, etc. However, the special effects sequences and second-unit footage are as murky as ever. Sure, things are sharper than what you get with DVD and VHS, but dirty water is still dirty water. There is some edge enhancement, and grain can be a problem at times. Also, the video transfers look a tad soft. This is to be expected of the first three movies, though even All Fears has soft moments.

Audio:
The audio is the best feature of these discs. All of the movies carry Dolby TrueHD 5.1 English encodes. Dialogue is clean and intelligible at all times. The music score for Red October leans towards the front, but the other discs spread music around the room, too. Explosions are thunderous and tight, and in the case of Red October, the rear speakers and the subwoofer create claustrophobic environments. All Fears has the best audio (in part because it expertly handles classical music cues), and Red October ranks second. The routine, rote Patriot Games and Clear and Present Danger tie for a distant third.

You can also watch the movies with DD 5.1 French and DD 5.1 Spanish dubs. Optional English, English SDH, French, Spanish, and Portuguese subtitles support the audio.

Extras:
The Hunt for Red October
You can opt to experience the film listening to an audio commentary by director John McTiernan. McTiernan is one of Hollywood’s top action directors, and he brings a taut sensibility to a movie that is more of a drama than a war flick. Technical-minded viewers will enjoy the director’s discussion of filmmaking techniques, and fans of Red October can enjoy his anecdotes about on-the-set difficulties and triumphs. However, I was disappointed that McTiernan doesn’t really talk about the politics that inform the narrative.

The DVD also offers viewers “Beneath the Surface”, a making-of featurette that has new interviews with key filmmakers. I was surprised that both Sean Connery and Alec Baldwin appear in “Beneath the Surface” because Connery isn’t known to do much publicity for home video releases and because Baldwin walked away from the role of Jack Ryan amidst a storm of bad publicity, ill tempers, and foul will. At any rate, the interviewees mention some of events that led up to the making of the movie, but again, no one really analyzes the final product compared to the grand scheme of things.

Finally, you can watch the film’s theatrical trailer (HD).

Patriot Games
“Patriot Games Up Close” is a making-of featurette that offers recently-conducted interviews with members of the cast and crew. Mostly, we see producer Mace Neufeld (the only primary filmmaker who’s worked on all the Jack Ryan movies) talk about fairly obvious details. Everyone else, including director Phillip Noyce, talks about everybody else in the most positive of terms, as if making the movie was a love-fest that was problem-free.

The only other extra is a theatrical trailer (HD).

Clear and Present Danger
“Behind the Danger” is a nearly-thirty-minute featurette that offers interviews with members of the cast and crew. However, it’s a rather lightweight piece. Since most of the featurette is retrospective in nature, you don’t get a lot of promotional fluff from the interviewees. However, when everyone is talking about how “dedicated” and “professional” and “talented” everyone else is, you don’t really want to stick around for the end of the wax job.

The only other extra is a theatrical trailer (HD).

The Sum of All Fears
Audio commentary #1 features director Phil Alden Robinson and cinematographer John Lindley. The two men talk a lot about the technical aspects of filmmaking, as is to be expected with crew members, but they also touch upon some of the ways the film’s themes were developed via visual cues rather than through dialogue exclusively. Audio commentary #2 features Robinson and novelist Tom Clancy. Clancy points out the differences between the movie and his book, but Robinson manages to explain why certain compressions had to be made in order to massage the massive story into a two-hour feature film. While the men carry an interesting conversation for most of the movie’s running time, they have less and less to say towards the end (when they lapse into minutes of silences).

A total of seven featurettes appear on the Blu-ray Disc. They branch off into categories called “A Cautionary Tale” and “Visual Effects”. In “A Cautionary Tale”, you will find “Casting” and “Production”. “Casting” gives us a couple minutes’ worth of actors talking about how great everyone else is. “Production” touches upon only the surface of the making of the movie. In “Visual Effects”, you will find five featurettes that look at specific set pieces in the movie--“Carrier Attack”, “A-4”, “Hospital”, “Motorcade”, and “Helicopter”.

Finally, there’s the theatrical trailer (HD).

--Miscellaneous--
The one (teeny) drawback to these movies’ collective appearance on Blu-ray is a lack of a box set for people who like all four outings, so you miss out on a nice cardboard box and maybe five bucks in savings.

Beowulf: Director’s Cut Blu-ray Disc (Robert Zemeckis, 2007)

Paramount (USA)
2.35:1 1080p
114 minutes
Audio: Dolby TrueHD 5.1 English, DD 5.1 French, DD 5.1 Spanish
Subtitles: Optional English, English SDH, French, Spanish
Extras: Beowulf in the Volume (PIP video stream); web-based extras; A Hero’s Journey: The Making of Beowulf (HD); The Journey Continues (HD); Beasts of Burden: Designing the Creatures of Beowulf (HD); The Origins of Beowulf (HD); Creating the Ultimate Beowulf (HD); The Art of Beowulf (HD); A Conversation With Robert Zemeckis (HD); deleted scenes (HD); theatrical trailer (HD); Easter Egg: John Malkovich (HD)

Released: 29 July 2008
Blu-ray case

Paramount’s Beowulf: Director’s Cut HD DVD release was a tremendous effort. This Blu-ray has all of the substantive content and improved video/audio. Therefore, this disc is one of the best Blu-ray releases yet, even with the five-month lag behind the HD DVD’s appearance. It’s even better than the UK Blu-ray, which doesn’t have the PIP video track or the trailer.

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Motion-capture computer animation took a huge leap into photorealism with 2001’s Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within. The movie’s poor box-office performance caused many to think that this area of computer animation would be laid to rest. Instead, motion-capture animation is used extensively for special effects and stunts that would be too dangerous/costly if performed for real by humans. Effects enthusiasts such as James Cameron and Robert Zemeckis use their clout to build upon the foundation laid by Final Fantasy.

Zemeckis himself made a huge digital leap with 1994’s Forrest Gump. Gump offered scene after scene after scene of Tom Hanks believably inserted into archival footage. Thus, we got Hanks shaking hands with JFK and showing Lyndon Johnson his bare buttocks. Zemeckis and Hanks re-teamed for another huge digital leap with 2004’s Polar Express. 2007’s Beowulf is kind of more-of-the-same as Polar Express. A lot of time was expended upon using video cameras and computers to record human actors acting with wire-frame furniture and props, and a lot of time was expended upon rendering digital-puppet versions of the actors into computer-drawn worlds.

Computer-generated images have come a long way since 2001, but while Beowulf certainly looks far more three-dimensional than Final Fantasy, I’m surprised that overall techniques have not improved in other areas. The “humans” move jerkily, and facial expressions are almost non-existent even though Pixar has shown that expressivity IS possible. Also, everything looks very “plastic” and lacking in heft (i.e. physical weight). Final Fantasy shared the same problems, but believe it or not, they aren’t as visible in Final Fantasy as they are in Beowulf. To be fair, this might be a result of our familiarity with Ray Winstone, Anthony Hopkins, Robin Wright Penn, and Angelina Jolie. (Final Fantasy paired famous voices with designed-from-scratch faces.)

Beowulf is based on old Viking legends, but given the huge sums of money thrown at the motion-capture process, Zemeckis opted for a mindless-action-visual approach rather than one that illuminates the legends’ serious themes. I’m not sure who’s meant to enjoy this movie. It’s too simple-minded and silly to be appreciated by adults, and it’s too violent and “mature” for kids. Teens will laugh at the period settings.

However, home video often has a way of re-inventing the wheel. The extras provide an eye-opening look into one of cinema’s possible futures.

Video:
It’s always difficult evaluating motion-capture animation. Digital sources don’t get damaged the way that film prints can be harmed, but the image looks fake and “plastic” despite the three-dimensional appearance and our familiarity with the famous actors. In a sense, motion-capture animation challenges us to negotiate our responses to reality. Do we sit back and enjoy the pictures for what they are, or do we keep thinking about how un-expressive and constipated Winstone, Hopkins, Wright Penn, and Jolie appear to be?

The 2.35:1 1080p image is flawless, offering vivid colors and great shadow detailing. It’s up to you to decide if you can stand watching 114 minutes of motion-capture animation. The video encode seems to take advantage of the extra space accorded by a 50-gig Blu-ray Disc. There are slight improvements over the HD DVD’s video, mostly in terms of image stability.

Audio:
Motion-capture animated movies tend to have thunderous sound mixes in order to give the images some “heft”. Beowulf is no different from its brethren. The Dolby TrueHD 5.1 English track is like something out of the lowest reaches of Hell. As impressive and powerful as the HD DVD’s DD+ 5.1 track is, the TrueHD mix is noticeably richer and fuller (though by a tiny bit).

The shouting, screaming, roaring, explosions, fireballs, rain, thunder, and clanging metal assault you from every angle. The subwoofer constantly pounds your chest. The overbearing music score doesn’t know when to quit. Dialogue is always intelligible, though just barely. Is this demo material? Certainly. Was it pleasant listening to this movie? Nah...I’m still nursing a headache.

You can also watch the movie with DD 5.1 French and DD 5.1 Spanish dubs. Optional English, English SDH, French, and Spanish subtitles support the audio.

Extras:
Like the HD DVD release, this Blu-ray offers all of the SD DVD’s extras--and more. You also get the added benefit of convenience since you don’t have to switch discs as you do with the two-disc HD DVD set.

Like the domestic HD DVD, this disc features a PIP video stream. The studio is billing this feature as “Beowulf in the Volume”, a reference to the soundstage that was used for motion-capture shooting. The PIP video stream is comparable to the one found on Warner’s 300 HD DVD. For the length of the movie, you can watch real human actors performing their scenes as well as animatics.

“A Hero’s Journey: The Making of Beowulf” is a half-hour examination of the production. This one provides numerous behind-the-scenes footage and comparison shots of motion-capture with final-product scenes. “A Hero’s Journey” is surprisingly substantive and almost devoid of back-slapping self-praise.

“A Hero’s Journey” includes an interactive option. Basically, you get a “pop-up” trivia track as well as branching featurettes.

You can watch the branching featurettes by themselves in “The Journey Continues”.

“Beasts of Burden: Designing the Creatures of Beowulf” examines the development of the movie’s monsters.

“The Origins of Beowulf” discusses the story’s roots.

“Creating the Ultimate Beowulf” highlights the intensive work by actor Ray Winstone and computer-effects specialists to mold a memorable protagonist.

“The Art of Beowulf” heaps praise on production designer Doug Chiang, whom Zemeckis admits basically created the movie’s entire look.

“A Conversation With Robert Zemeckis” is a recording of Zemeckis at a Q-and-A session at USC (where he attended college).

A collection of eleven deleted scenes reveals how the movie looked during early animatics stages. (The SD DVD only has six deleted scenes.)

Finally, you get Beowulf’s theatrical trailer and an Easter Egg featuring John Malkovich.

--Miscellaneous--
The Blu-ray seems to be lacking the HD DVD set’s Internet interactivity, though with HD DVD’s demise, there’s not much HD DVD Internet interactivity to be had anyway.

Star Trek: The Original Series, Season 2 Re-mastered (various directors, 1967-1968)

Region 1 Paramount (USA)
NTSC, 1.33:1
1311 minutes
Audio: DD 5.1 English, DD 2.0 mono Spanish, DD 2.0 mono French
Subtitles: Optional Spanish, French
Extras: Billy Blackburn’s Treasure Chest: Rare Home Movies and Special Memories; “More Tribbles, More Troubles” (with optional audio commentary) from TAS; “Trials and Tribble-ations” from DS9; Trials and Tribble-ations: Uniting Two Legends; Trials and Tribble-ations: An Historic Endeavor; To Boldy Go...; Life Beyond Trek: Leonard Nimoy; Kirk, Spock, & Bones: Star Trek’s Great Trio; Designing the Final Frontier; Star Trek’s Divine Diva: Nichelle Nichols; Writer’s Notebook: D.C. Fontana; original episode previews; Star Trek: Favorite Moments

Released: 5 August 2008
custom box set

During the past decade, Star Trek fans have become used to making return trips to video stores (or post offices for e-tailers) because elaborate box sets were damaged and needed to be replaced. Star Trek: The Original Series, Season 2 Re-mastered is no different (at least for me). Before I removed the shrinkwrapping plastic, I could hear plastic bits rattling inside the box. After I removed the shrinkwrapping, the box fell apart in my hands. The front half of the case didn’t stay attached to the back half because the hinge was cracked and a plastic latch at the top of the case had snapped off. The plastic shards/dust scratched the discs during shipping.







The discs don’t have any disc art, so they look like combos. Therefore, I was hopeful that maybe these were secretly HD DVD/DVD combos. When you try to play the discs “face down”, the machine gives you an error message. If CBS and Paramount aren’t going to use one side of the disc, then why not put something on that side instead of making it look like the discs have two sides of content??? I can think of only one explanation--the disc manufacturer simply used combo discs that were already set aside for Season 2’s production run but didn’t encode anything on the HD DVD side.





This new box set has eight discs. Most of the discs have four episodes each, though some have only one or two episodes because disc space was required for bonus materials. For example, Disc Five has “The Trouble With Tribbles” from TOS, “More Tribbles, More Troubles” from Star Trek: The Animated Series, and “Trials and Tribble-ations” from Star Trek: Deep Space Nine as well as related featurettes from one of the DS9 box sets.

The original film elements were restored and re-mastered, so the episodes look much cleaner than ever. New computer-generated visuals replace the 1960s’ use of practical effects such as matte paintings, plastic model ships, and optical effects. Much of what the characters see on the viewscreen was also changed. Thus, you no longer see poor quality stock shots and gaffes such as Scotty using a phaser gun that doesn’t shoot a phaser. The new computer effects are surprisingly not intrusive at all and maintain the spirit of the show’s original aesthetics. The opening theme was re-recorded with today’s audio technology, and Shatner’s opening monologue was re-mastered.

Video:
The video transfers are native 1.33:1 encodes of the re-mastered episodes with new computer effects. The only way to get the broadcast versions of these episodes is to buy the previous SD DVD box sets or forty individual SD DVDs.

With the new transfers, some shots now have a little more information on the top, the bottom, or the sides. On the whole, you’ll see a marked improvement compared to the previous DVD releases. The most-noticeable differences are the colors, which are now very saturated. The strong hues and improved clarity emphasize details such as make-up (particularly during close-ups, to the point where Shatner and Nimoy sometimes look like drag queens!). You’ll also notice just how high and revealing those short-short miniskirts are; I was astonished to see that Nichelle Nichols and Grace Lee Whitney wore costumes that were little more than the swimsuits with skirts from the early 20th Century.

On the downside, the film prints aren’t entirely free of damage or debris. The use of soft focus and spotlights make some faces look like they’re melting (usually the women to make them “glow”), and this approach to filming is made very apparent because of the sharp contrast between regular focus and soft focus. Some backgrounds also yield blobbing/blocking.

Audio:
The primary audio is DD 5.1 English. The re-recorded theme song sounds much better than the other music and sound effects that weren’t updated. This is due to the improved dynamic range of today’s audio technology. The Enterprise’s whooshes from in front of the viewer off to the back sides will cause many heads to turn. Shatner’s monologue also sounds more commanding and robust than ever.

The remainder is impressive for a 1960s TV show--clean and intelligible, but bear in mind that the audio was originally mixed in mono. Therefore, some bass response is still rather hollow, and some music cues sound wobbly.

You can also watch the show with DD 2.0 mono Spanish and DD 2.0 mono French dubs. (Alas, you don’t get the original mono English tracks.) Optional Spanish and French subtitles as well as optional English closed captions support the audio.

Extras:
The new extras:
“Billy Blackburn’s Treasure Chest: Rare Home Movies and Special Memories” is a collection of footage that actor Billy Blackburn shot while he was on the set. The footage has been edited with interviews with Billy Blackburn talking about his experiences.

As previously mentioned, you get “More Tribbles, More Troubles” (with optional audio commentary) from TAS and “Trials and Tribble-ations” from DS9. You also get the “Trials and Tribble-ations: Uniting Two Legends” and “Trials and Tribble-ations: An Historic Endeavor” featurettes from one of the DS9 box sets.

The extras ported from the previous box set:
“To Boldy Go...” is an overview of Season 2. “Life Beyond Trek: Leonard Nimoy” allows the real Spock to talk about his passion for photography. “Kirk, Spock, & Bones: Star Trek’s Great Trio” looks at what made the three characters such a great team. “Designing the Final Frontier” reveals how sets, costumes, and other effects are crafted. “Star Trek’s Divine Diva: Nichelle Nichols” is a close look the actress who played Uhura. “Writer’s Notebook: D.C. Fontana” shines a light on a key writing contributor. Finally, you can watch the original episode previews (i.e. “Next week on Star Trek” commercials).

The extra that was on the Best-Buy-exclusive bonus disc:
In “Star Trek: Favorite Moments”, celebrities, cast, crew, and fans recall their favorite memories.

What’s been lost from the previous box set:
You no longer have the text commentaries for “Amok Time” and “The Trouble With Tribbles”, “Production Art”, the Photo Log, and the four Easter Eggs.

--Miscellaneous--
The discs are held in square plastic trays that are bound together like the pages of a book. The tray-book is enclosed within a cardboard slipcase. Instead of a booklet, you get four plastic cards that provide information about the discs’ contents. Everything is housed inside a plastic shell with a front that has to be pulled forward to open the case.

Update (2 August 2008): The CBS PR rep kindly sent me another copy due to the general damage sustained by my original review copy. Unfortunately, the second copy was also damaged. The two halves of the outside case were knocked apart, and some of the disc trays were shattered. Therefore, I had to combine the best elements from both copies in order to have one "good" set.

Star Trek: The Original Series, Season 2 Re-mastered

Well, I just received my review copy, and it looks like we're in for another round of disappointment.

The easily-damaged case arrived...damaged. A piece of plastic that helps to lock the case was snapped off, and the hinges at the bottom were also busted. Other bits of plastic were flying all over the place, too, so plastic shards/dust scratched up the discs during shipping.

The discs don't have any disc art, so they look like combos. Therefore, I was hopeful that maybe these were secretly HD DVD/DVD combos. When you try to play the discs "face down", the machine gives you an error message. If CBS and Paramount aren't going to use one side of the disc, then why not put something on that side instead of making it look like the discs have two sides of content???

A full review will be published soon...

The Deal (Stephen Frears, 2003)

Region 1 Genius Products (USA)
NTSC, 1.78:1 16x9 enhanced
80 minutes
Audio: DD 2.0 stereo English
Subtitles: Optional English SDH, Spanish
Extras: audio commentary by writer Peter Morgan and producer Christine Langan; A Conversation With Stephen Frears; biographies of Tony Blair and Gordon Brown; previews for other movies

Released: 29 July 2008
keepcase

Given the successes that The Queen (with Helen Mirren portraying Elizabeth II of the UK) enjoyed, it’s understandable why the folks at The Weinstein Company are selling The Deal as a “prequel”. However, as with many marketing plans, this one stretches the truth a bit. Although The Queen and The Deal share many key principals, including director Stephen Frears, writer Peter Morgan, producer Christine Langan, and actor Michael Sheen as Tony Blair, the two movies are very different in subject and tone. The Queen focuses on Elizabeth II, and The Deal focuses on Tony Blair and Gordon Brown. Moreover, Blair comes across as complex and sympathetic in The Queen, but he seems shallow and self-serving in The Deal.

(From a chronological perspective, the use of the word “prequel” is also inaccurate as The Deal was made before The Queen.)

The Deal chronicles the development of a power struggle within Britain’s Labour Party during the 1980s and 1990s. Labour fared poorly in a string of elections, which resulted in frequent changes in party leadership. Two young MPs (Members of Parliament), Gordon Brown (David Morrissey) and Tony Blair (Michael Sheen), become Labour’s new stars as they work out of the same cramped office and deliver eloquent speeches that capture the spirit of the country’s dissatisfaction with Conservative policies. When a party chief dies due to a heart attack, Brown and Blair fight to lead Labour in future elections.

Since The Deal was meant for a domestic television release, the movie employs a sort of short hand when it handles British politics. Events are shown without a lot of context, though enough information is provided that even casual observers will get the gist of history’s flow. Stereotypes abound about British reserve, but the archival news clips indicate how electrifying, rowdy, and unruly British politics can be.

As with The Queen, Tony Blair actually seems like a secondary character even though he’s the one who rises to the top of the heap. The movie shows how intellectually powerful Gordon Brown is, and actor David Morrissey has several juicy moments delivering forceful orations. On the other hand, we mostly see Blair during behind-the-scenes moments. Therefore, it’ll be rather difficult for viewers who are unfamiliar with British politics to fathom why Blair became so popular with constituents in Southern England.

Americans surprised by Tony Blair’s staunch support of George W. Bush’s policies will get a chance to see how much the British left despised/despises Blair from the start. As early as his first year in national politics, Blair’s colleagues referred to him as a “Tory” despite his stated allegiances. His attempts to “modernize” Labour were really shifts to the right. “New Labour” is akin to Bill Clinton’s “Third Way”--adopt conservative positions and pretend to care about the poor and underprivileged.

Ultimately, The Deal is too short to be satisfying. Even with the credits added into the running time, the movie is only 80-minutes long. I wanted to see a lot more substance detailing Brown and Blair’s long relationship, I wanted to see how Blair developed his popularity, and I wanted to see how Labour’s party brokers created the opportunity for Blair to rise to the top. I suppose this is only a minor drawback as it’s better to leave viewers wanting additional content rather than complaining about excess.

Video:
Although the movie doesn’t look “cheap”, the final 1.78:1 anamorphic widescreen image is what you would expect of recent TV fare--clean but slightly soft, naturalistic but flat. Colors are generally dull, in part due to the characters’ sartorial choices and in part due to British weather.

Audio:
You get a basic DD 2.0 stereo English track for the audio, which is fine since this is a dialogue-driven drama. The actors’ voices are always audible (but not necessarily intelligible due to their strong accents), though I wish that the annoying electronic score had been mixed at low volume levels.

Optional English SDH and Spanish subtitles support the audio.

Extras:
Writer Peter Morgan and producer Christine Langan contributed a so-so audio commentary. There are many silent patches, and the participants mostly narrate the on-screen action or state the obvious.

“A Conversation With Stephen Frears” provides welcome background information and some of the director’s personal views of recent historical events.

You can read brief biographies about both Tony Blair and Gordon Brown.

Finally, you get a smattering of previews for other movies.

--Miscellaneous--
An insert advertises other movies in The Miriam Collection.

Note: This DVD has several significant subtitle errors. What you would think of as fairly “basic” words for a movie like this--words like “political”--are mis-spelled. Also, during the interview with Stephen Frears, the subtitles indicate that Frears is referring to someone’s “left tenants” when he is actually referring to “lieutenants” (the British pronounce the word with an “f” in the first syllable).

Mar Dulce CD (Bajofondo, 2008)

Surco Records/Decca Label Group
75 minutes

Released: 15 July 2008
custom cardboard case (review copy)

Here in the U.S., many of the people who recognize Gustavo Santaolalla’s name--perhaps most of them--know that he won Oscars for his Brokeback Mountain and Babel scores. He has several other film credits under his belt. Yet, before composing music for movies, Santaolalla was a musician with a couple of bands.



He’s now a member of Bajofondo, a group that includes Juan Campodonico (programming, guitar), Luciano Supervielle (piano, turntable), Javier Casalla (violin), Gabriel Casacuberta (bass), Martin Ferres (bandoneon), Veronica Loza (VJ, vocals), and Adrian Sosa (drums). In contrast to the low-key and even laidback music that characterizes much of Santaolalla’s film music, Bajofondo favors an up-tempo, bass-heavy sound. Brokeback Mountain’s easygoing guitars can make for a pleasant evening of soft listening, but Bajofondo’s new CD, Mar Dulce, is a raucous collection of dance and club music. Even the comparatively mellow tunes have insistent, pounding beats.



Mar Dulce features instrumental and sung music. According to the press notes, the songs were recorded in “real time”, which probably means the final album is comprised of whole takes rather than various takes mixed together and tweaked. The tracks were recorded in various cities throughout the world as the band traveled to perform and to meet with an impressive list of guest artists.

1) Grand Guignol
2) Cristal
3) Ya No Duele (featuring Santullo)
4) Hoy (featuring Juan Subira)
5) Pa’ Bailar (original version)
6) Pulmon
7) Faily Right (featuring Elvis Costello)
8) El Mareo (featuring Gustavo Cerati)
9) El Andean (featuring La Mala Rodriguez)
10) Infiltrado
11) Borges y Paraguay
12) Tuve Sol
13) No Pregunto Cuantos Son
14) Boldozas Majados (featuring Nelly Furtado)
15) Zitarrosa
16) Chiquilines (featuring Lagrima Rios)
17) Pa’ Bailar--Siempre Quiero Mas (featuring Julieta Venegas)

Some of the tracks are clearly influenced by tango music, though the group’s international travels and heavy use of electronic equipment gives the album a flavor that is much more complex than the expected Latin rhythms. The experimental nature of the band’s work probably yields a lot of improvisations, so one can probably expect rather different versions of each song from performance to performance. Listening to Bajofondo’s CDs at home is also a huge gap away from watching the group live as live renditions are accompanied by video screens of various clips and images.



As I already observed, Mar Dulce isn’t an easy-listening album, though it’s perfect for maintaining high spirits at a house party. The sensual and playful melodies will get your guests in the mood for dancing and convivial conversations.

--Miscellaneous--
The review copy that I received came in a custom cardboard case, though the final product will probably be sold with a standard jewel case and a booklet.

Young and Restless in China (Sue Williams, 2008)

Region 1 Zeitgeist (USA)
NTSC, 1.78:1 16x9 enhanced
106 minutes
Audio: DD 2.0 stereo English
Subtitles: Optional English SDH
Extras: promo reel

Released: 29 July 2008
keepcase

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Buy from Zeitgeist Films

News reports about China inevitably focus on three facets--the country’s booming economy, the paradoxical poverty that plagues most of its population, and environmental pollution. Readers miss out on the psychological and cultural tolls that these problems exact. This gap can be filled by watching social dramas directed by the Sixth Generation, such as Jia Zhangke (The World) and Lou Ye (Suzhou River). This gap can also be filled by documentaries such as Sue Williams’s Young and Restless in China.

Sue Williams has directed several excellent documentaries about China, including the three-part, six-hour China: A Century of Revolution (also available from Zeitgeist Films). Williams has been able to unearth startling human-interest stories that reveal significant shifts in values during the past quarter century. This is especially visible when she interviews two or three generations of a family.

Young and Restless in China profiles several Chinese individuals who range in age from the early-twenties to the late-thirties/early-forties. There are poor migrant workers, a scrappy hip-hop musician, a lawyer fighting for environmental protections, financial consultants, and various businessmen. This cross-section of contemporary society is hardly representative of all of China’s inhabitants, though they are varied enough to give you a sense of how there are many more kinds of “Chinese” than just government bureaucrats, faceless military servicemen, and famous athletes.

Some of the subjects speak candidly about their reactions to what happened in Tiananmen Square. They are either still inspired by the student demonstrations or still afraid of the strong hand of the government’s rule. Some find themselves under surveillance for fighting against indifference. Others, who’ve lived abroad, are reluctant to accept the prevalent political corruption that their countrymen view as a part of the natural order.

The capitalist boom that has characterized China’s seaboard since the 1990s has a high moral price. The hip-hop singer thinks that he’s met the girl of his dreams, and he sent money to her so that she could make the drip to live with him in Beijing. However, even though she keeps in touch with him on the Internet, she never meets with him. Eventually, the rapper decides that he’s been taken for a ride and rues the depressing fact that young city girls only want money. People in the West may be materialistic and superficial, but at least there is generally a pretense that certain romantic notions should prevail. (I don’t want to over-generalize, but this really is the impression that you get after you spend some time in China like I have.)

There’s a genuinely harrowing story as well. When a young woman was a toddler, her mother left their hometown to be a migrant worker in a big city. The mother was abducted and sold by human traffickers. Eventually, more than eighteen years later, the young woman is able to find her mother. Her mother tells her that she was hung from the ceiling and beaten viciously by her new “husband” after trying to escape. The mother wants to go back home with her daughter, but she finds it difficult to leave the life that she’s known for the past two decades.

I’m not an expert on documentaries like my friend Chris Long is, so I can’t quite explicate the analytical reasons why Young and Restless in China is a superb effort. I can tell you that the interviewees’ stories kept my undivided attention and that Sue Williams did a wonderful job cross-cutting between her many subjects. There is a good balance between talking-heads clips and “objective” observations of the participants engaged in their activities.

Young and Restless in China is another excellent movie and DVD from Sue Williams and Zeitgeist Films. I strongly encourage anyone with an interest in China or contemporary global affairs to watch this disc.

Video:
Much of the movie was probably shot with available light, so the 1.78:1 anamorphic widescreen image’s quality depends on shooting conditions. In static indoors environments, shots are usually very sharp and clear. Outdoors, a bright sun can “bleach” the picture, or an overcast day can cause the video to look rather dim. There don’t seem to be any video-compression problems despite the tricky source material.

Audio:
You get a basic DD 2.0 stereo English audio track, though for the material, the audio is plenty sufficient. The participants and the narrator’s voices are always intelligible, which is all that one needs for this kind of material. There is some bass when one of the interviewees’ hip-hop music is played, though it hasn’t been engineered to give your head a pounding headache.

Optional English SDH subtitles support the audio.

Extras:
The only disc-based extra is a promo reel that was used to inform media planners about the movie.

--Miscellaneous--
An insert booklet provides chapter listings, a note from the director, and film and DVD credits.

Superhero Movie Extended Edition (Craig Mazin, 2008)

Region 1 Genius Products (USA)
NTSC, 1.85:1 16x9 enhanced
82 minutes
Audio: DD 5.1 English
Subtitles: Optional English SDH, Spanish
Extras: audio commentary; deleted/alternate scenes; Meet the Cast; The Art of Spoofing; theatrical trailer; previews for other movies

Released: 8 July 2008
keepcase

Miramax has always been presented as a “prestige” label, though the real reason why Harvey and Bob Weinstein had as much autonomy as they did while they were Disney employees was the fact that Dimension Films, Miramax’s “genre” division, minted substantial returns with teen slasher flicks like the Scream series and over-the-top spoofs like the Scary Movie series. When the Weinsteins left the Disney fold, they took the Dimension name and several projects with them. Without the safety net of corporate financing and accounting, the Weinsteins have been beating dead horses in order to stay afloat. Thus, garbage like Scary Movie 4 and Superhero Movie get theatrical releases while Jia Zhangke’s movies are lucky to get home-video distribution here in the U.S.

Superhero Movie’s $25 million take in North America may seem insignificant, but comedies tend to have extended shelf lives on DVD. At the end of long weeks, most people are desperate for a few laughs to lift their spirits, so spoofs tend to rent and sell well during the long run. Undoubtedly, Superhero Movie will pique interest as long as the current stream of comic-book superhero projects continues to flow. However, there is very little to recommend about it. Fans of comic books will want the real thing, and non-fans will be bored by all the references to Spider-man, X-Men, Batman, etc.

The movie is basically a premise-for-premise re-make of the first Spider-man, and there are some random sight gags thrown into the mix. I like watching action and attractive blondes as much as the next heterosexual male, but I was bored by this dull, lifeless flop. I did like the obviously fake sets (studio backlots rather than location shooting) and Stephen Hawking jokes, but I get more jollies from watching Yi Yi than from most comedies.

Video:
The 1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen image is clean and smooth, though you get the over-lit feel that seems to accompany every comedy made during the past ten years. Colors are bright but generic and unmemorable. Some shots are rather soft, though the softness can probably be attributed to the production’s minimal resources that could be devoted to computer-generated effects.

Audio:
The DD 5.1 English track is surprisingly active. The music score during the opening credits is possibly the wittiest thing about this movie. It nimbly and ably mimics the percussive rhythms of Danny Elfman’s “heroic” themes, and you get beats that bounce back and forth between the front mains. Surround activity is fairly heavy, though bass presence is at expected levels for a comedy (loud at times but neither full nor powerful).

Optional English SDH and Spanish subtitles support the audio.

Extras:
Upon loading, the disc plays previews for several other movies.

You get an audio commentary by Craig Mazin and some of the producers that is unexceptional. The participants have a grand time reminiscing about their continued collaborations, though the viewer is stuck with a painfully dull amateur skit.

There are more than twenty deleted/alternate scenes, though with the exception of the “Tom Cruise” footage, none of these are particularly funny or memorable.

“Meet the Cast” introduces you to the actors, and “The Art of Spoofing” tries to place recent mis-fires such as Superhero Movie and Scary Movie 4 on par with other, better spoofs.

Finally, you get the theatrical trailer.

--Miscellaneous--
You also get a cardboard slipcover, though this is by no means a “premium” title.

The Ruins Unrated Blu-ray Disc (Carter Smith, 2008)

Paramount (USA)
NTSC, 2.35:1 1080p
93 minutes
Audio: Dolby TrueHD 5.1 English
Subtitles: Optional English, English SDH, French, Spanish, Portuguese
Extras: audio commentary by Carter Smith and editor Jeff Betancourt; Making The Ruins; Creeping Death; Building The Ruins; deleted/alternate scenes with audio commentary; theatrical trailer

Released: 8 July 2008
Blu-ray case

My good friend John Puccio and I trade notes about the DVDs and Blu-ray Discs that we review. Our relationship goes way back to 2001, when he convinced DVDTown.com’s EIC to hire me as a staff writer. I’ve come to trust John’s opinion about movies in general. Therefore, when he complained about Drillbit Taylor and The Ruins, I steeled myself for a double whammy.

Drillbit Taylor is every bit as awful as John says, but I was surprised by The Ruins. Don’t get me wrong--The Ruins is no contemporary horror classic like The Others or The Ring (the American re-make), but it is an efficient, nasty little bugger that will give many viewers a serious case of the creeps.

I found the director’s overall approach very refreshing. For starters, Carter Smith didn’t over-edit the movie, so the viewer has a chance to absorb the visuals. In fact, the movie begins at a leisurely pace, patiently observing the interactions of a group of American youths idling in Mexico. The director also eschews “Gotcha!” shots and sudden spikes in audio volume for the most part. Even though viewers will be able to figure out what the villain is very quickly, the most chilling aspect of the story revolves around the fact that the characters are watching themselves dying slowly (as opposed to being macheted to death at moment’s notice). This gives the script a psychological dimension that is rare in the extreme-violence gross-outs like the Hostel and Saw franchises.

Some of the movie’s violence is a bit difficult to stomach, but I don’t feel that it’s gratuitous. One of the characters attends med school, so he performs surgery on the other characters as they endure various ailments. The surgeries are presented very clinically; the matter-of-fact tone doesn’t inspire “Oh, cool!” comments and high-fives from viewers congratulating each other for keeping their eyes open.

The director maintains the same tone throughout the whole movie. With the possible exception of one line spoken by Shawn Ashmore after the German character dies, there aren’t any jokes or campy moments. Like The Others and The Ring, The Ruins plays out “for real” (though without M. Night Shyamalan’s plodding self-importance). There is some nudity early in the script, but the nudity is likewise straightforward and natural. By not condescending to the material, the director elevates the quality of the final product.

I last saw Jonathan Tucker in a movie several years ago in something called 100 Girls, which was a so-so teen comedy with the usual sex raunch. Tucker was quite a surprise in The Ruins. He does a very good job playing an intelligent young man who tries his best to think his way out of an unwinnable situation. Even his portrayal of the character’s sense of American entitlement is believable and not “Rah Rah” clichéd. Every night that he is trapped on that Mayan pyramid, Tucker’s character descends to the base and stares off against his captors. His defiance is based on reason and appeals to humanism, even if he and his captors don’t exchange any words.

Ultimately, the movie is a bit slight, which keeps it from joining the top tier of horror thrillers. We don’t know much about the main characters, though I would argue that they’re not flat stock creations. Also, even though the male lead is obviously very smart, neither he nor the Mayans figure out the best way to contain the villain (just set it on fire). On the whole, though, I’m recommending at least a rental for those who are curious about The Ruins.

Video:
Much of the movie takes place in bright daylight, so the 2.35:1 1080p transfer has bright yellows and oranges. However, as shot by Darius Khondji, the hues are very rich and deep (as opposed to the over-lit palette that you usually get with comedies). The transfer is much, much sharper and far more detailed than the DVD, which is excellent for 480p.

Audio:
The Dolby TrueHD 5.1 English track is very atmospheric. There are several terrific surround-sound effects (the movie is set deep in a jungle), and the music is effectively deployed to maximize the viewer’s sense of creepiness. With the exception of a few gunshots, though, most of the “loud” sounds are “Gotcha!” music cues, so don’t expect a lot of bass presence. The Blu-ray’s audio is not a huge improvement upon the DVD’s (in part due to the lack of “Wow!”-inducing explosions), but the audio is still very, very good.

Optional English, English SDH, French, Spanish and Portuguese subtitles support the audio.

Extras:
The video extras are presented in high-def video.

In their audio commentary, Carter Smith and editor Jeff Betancourt talk about various aspects of the production as well as the editing process, which got them an R rating as well as what they were able to do for the movie’s home-video release. They discuss their rationale for giving the story more/less “hope” in order to intensify the sense of dread.

“Making The Ruins” is a brief introduction to the production. “Creeping Death” sheds light on what practical and computer effects were used to create the villain. “Building The Ruins” focuses on the physical production design.

There are five deleted/alternate scenes with optional audio commentary by Carter Smith. The disc includes the original theatrical ending, which is the most hopeful of the three endings that you get (the Unrated ending, an alternate ending, and the original theatrical ending). The alternate ending is very similar to the Unrated’s ending but also provides a possible set-up for a sequel.

Finally, you get the theatrical trailer.

--Miscellaneous--
If you want the R-rated theatrical cut, then you have to buy a separate DVD. However, it looks like that disc is bare-bones.

The Ruins Unrated (Carter Smith, 2008)

Region 1 Paramount (USA)
NTSC, 2.35:1 16x9 enhanced
93 minutes
Audio: DD 5.1 English
Subtitles: Optional English, French, Spanish
Extras: audio commentary by Carter Smith and editor Jeff Betancourt; Making The Ruins; Creeping Death; Building The Ruins; deleted/alternate scenes with audio commentary; theatrical trailer; previews for other movies

Released: 8 July 2008
keepcase

My good friend John Puccio and I trade notes about the DVDs and Blu-ray Discs that we review. Our relationship goes way back to 2001, when he convinced DVDTown.com’s EIC to hire me as a staff writer. I’ve come to trust John’s opinion about movies in general. Therefore, when he complained about Drillbit Taylor and The Ruins, I steeled myself for a double whammy.

Drillbit Taylor is every bit as awful as John says, but I was surprised by The Ruins. Don’t get me wrong--The Ruins is no contemporary horror classic like The Others or The Ring (the American re-make), but it is an efficient, nasty little bugger that will give many viewers a serious case of the creeps.

I found the director’s overall approach very refreshing. For starters, Carter Smith didn’t over-edit the movie, so the viewer has a chance to absorb the visuals. In fact, the movie begins at a leisurely pace, patiently observing the interactions of a group of American youths idling in Mexico. The director also eschews “Gotcha!” shots and sudden spikes in audio volume for the most part. Even though viewers will be able to figure out what the villain is very quickly, the most chilling aspect of the story revolves around the fact that the characters are watching themselves dying slowly (as opposed to being macheted to death at moment’s notice). This gives the script a psychological dimension that is rare in the extreme-violence gross-outs like the Hostel and Saw franchises.

Some of the movie’s violence is a bit difficult to stomach, but I don’t feel that it’s gratuitous. One of the characters attends med school, so he performs surgery on the other characters as they endure various ailments. The surgeries are presented very clinically; the matter-of-fact tone doesn’t inspire “Oh, cool!” comments and high-fives from viewers congratulating each other for keeping their eyes open.

The director maintains the same tone throughout the whole movie. With the possible exception of one line spoken by Shawn Ashmore after the German character dies, there aren’t any jokes or campy moments. Like The Others and The Ring, The Ruins plays out “for real” (though without M. Night Shyamalan’s plodding self-importance). There is some nudity early in the script, but the nudity is likewise straightforward and natural. By not condescending to the material, the director elevates the quality of the final product.

I last saw Jonathan Tucker in a movie several years ago in something called 100 Girls, which was a so-so teen comedy with the usual sex raunch. Tucker was quite a surprise in The Ruins. He does a very good job playing an intelligent young man who tries his best to think his way out of an unwinnable situation. Even his portrayal of the character’s sense of American entitlement is believable and not “Rah Rah” clichéd. Every night that he is trapped on that Mayan pyramid, Tucker’s character descends to the base and stares off against his captors. His defiance is based on reason and appeals to humanism, even if he and his captors don’t exchange any words.

Ultimately, the movie is a bit slight, which keeps it from joining the top tier of horror thrillers. We don’t know much about the main characters, though I would argue that they’re not flat stock creations. Also, even though the male lead is obviously very smart, neither he nor the Mayans figure out the best way to contain the villain (just set it on fire). On the whole, though, I’m recommending at least a rental for those who are curious about The Ruins.

Video:
Much of the movie takes place in bright daylight, so the 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen transfer has bright yellows and oranges. However, as shot by Darius Khondji, the hues are very rich and deep (as opposed to the over-lit palette that you usually get with comedies). The transfer is fairly sharp and detailed.

Audio:
The DD 5.1 English track is very atmospheric. There are several terrific surround-sound effects (the movie is set deep in a jungle), and the music is effectively deployed to maximize the viewer’s sense of creepiness. With the exception of a few gunshots, though, most of the “loud” sounds are “Gotcha!” music cues, so don’t expect a lot of bass presence.

Optional English, French, and Spanish subtitles as well as optional English closed captions support the audio.

Extras:
In their audio commentary, Carter Smith and editor Jeff Betancourt talk about various aspects of the production as well as the editing process, which got them an R rating as well as what they were able to do for the movie’s home-video release. They discuss their rationale for giving the story more/less “hope” in order to intensify the sense of dread.

“Making The Ruins” is a brief introduction to the production. “Creeping Death” sheds light on what practical and computer effects were used to create the villain. “Building The Ruins” focuses on the physical production design.

There are five deleted/alternate scenes with optional audio commentary by Carter Smith. The disc includes the original theatrical ending, which is the most hopeful of the three endings that you get (the Unrated ending, an alternate ending, and the original theatrical ending). The alternate ending is very similar to the Unrated’s ending but also provides a possible set-up for a sequel.

Finally, you get the theatrical trailer as well as previews for other movies.

--Miscellaneous--
If you want the R-rated theatrical cut, then you have to buy a separate DVD. However, it looks like that disc is bare-bones.

My Blueberry Nights (Wong Kar-wai, 2008)

Region 1 Genius Products (USA)
NTSC, 2.35:1 16x9 enhanced
95 minutes
Audio: DD 5.1 English
Subtitles: Optional English SDH, Spanish
Extras: Making My Blueberry Nights; Q&A With Director Wong Kar-wai; stills galleries; theatrical trailer; previews for other movies

Released: 1 July 2008
keepcase

During a Q&A session (included on this DVD), Wong Kar-wai talks about how Americans like sweet things, that even the Coca-Cola is sweeter in America than it is in other countries. He uses this line of reasoning to explain why he gave My Blueberry Nights a happy ending. The movie concludes with a picture-perfect overhead shot of two smooching faces lying on a diner counter. It is undeniably romantic and stirring--the stuff of dreams for sure.

The ending may be a bit of a surprise to viewers who’ve grown accustomed to the melancholy of the director of In the Mood for Love. 2046 positively beats you over the head with its thudding, forbidding elegiacism. Thus, Wong’s stated reason for going with a happy ending seems like a cop-out.

Really, though, the ending isn’t the movie’s biggest problem. Rather, on top of being old hat, My Blueberry Nights is as stuffed with clichés as the pies are with filling. A young woman who’s luckless in love (singer Norah Jones in her acting debut) goes on a road trip from NYC to Las Vegas. On the road, she sends postcards to a diner owner (Jude Law, who’s practically a cliché all by himself). It’s quite obvious that the two belong together, but like the oh-so-zany lovers in Serendipity, they feel that they have to run away from each other in order to be together.

Then we have several montages comprised of Wong’s favorite editing affectation, the stutter-step slo-mo. Used once or twice for emphasis, the stutter-step slo-mo is great. Used over and over and over again...what’s Wong trying to convey? That every other moment is important? This is no different from gun-and-edit, which tries to make every scene “exciting”.

The heroine makes a stop in Memphis, where the movie is at its best and worst. The clichés are thicker here than anywhere else, but Rachel Weisz and David Strathairn create heartbreaking and believable characters that are at least worth one’s time. The Memphis section might’ve worked quite well as a stand-alone short on its own.

Natalie Portman continues to lack credibility in any capacity; this time around, she’s a hardened poker player with mannerisms that appear to have been picked up by a teenager from a teacher in charge of the school musical. If I ran into Portman’s character in real life, then I’d be tempted to head for NYC, too.

Movies don’t have to be “realistic”. They can be filled with nothing but “artifice”. However, there has to be some sort of “emotional truth”. My Blueberry Nights is easy on the eyes but sorely lacking when it comes to making connections with your heart or mind.

Video:
I may have had reservations about the movie, but the 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen’s visuals are quite rich and enjoyable on DVD. You get an excellent transfer that does justice to the deep hues, dark shadows, and explosion of Vegas colors that Wong assembled. One can absorb My Blueberry Nights as a purely visual experience much more than a narrative one.

Audio:
Music and careful attention to sound editing are important to Wong’s style, though quite frequently, his movie’s mixes are deceptively “laid back”. My Blueberry Nights has one of those “laid back” DD 5.1 English tracks. Audio is not used to “amp up” the emotions, and most music cues reflect the languid nature of the narrative’s many sleepless nights. There are numerous surround-sound effects, though they’re not designed to call attention to themselves.

Once in a while, the moviemakers opted for jaunty songs with clear bass presence, but they’re not so boomy as to cause you to scramble for your remote’s volume dials.

Optional English SDH and Spanish subtitles support the audio.

Extras:
Upon loading, the disc plays previews for other movies.

“Making My Blueberry Nights” is a bland, undistinguished hodgepodge of film clips and talking heads interviews.

You get more substance from the “Q&A With Director Wong Kar-wai”, though Wong repeats himself between the two extras.

You also get two stills galleries and a theatrical trailer.

--Miscellaneous--
An insert advises consumers about the availability of Miriam Collection titles.