New to Blu: January 20 – 26

January 20, 2016 0 Comments

“Everest features a gorgeous 2.40:1 1080p presentation. Featuring full detail clarity, it’s easy to see and appreciate fine facial features, the scenery, and the impressive amount of work that went into the production design work to make the locations look as authentic as possible.”

“The images are particularly vibrant in the 3D version, which made the experience all the more immersive. I only noticed that the depth effect was a little funky in shots of vast scenery — there was ‘depth separation’ between mountains ten miles away, and other mountains far behind them.”

“Everest features a Dolby Atmos (core Dolby TrueHD 7.1 lossless) soundtrack. The 7.1 track has been screened for the purpose of this review, and it’s fantastic.

“The film opens with blustery winds swirling around the stage, and even considering the raw rush of sound, there’s an elegance to the presentation, a balance, an immersion, that instantly conveys the feeling of frigid hopelessness that will come to define the film’s second half.”

Bone Tomahawk: “Of particular note is how DP Benji Bakshi used the advantages of digital cinema to create tableaux at substantial distances from the characters, even at night, showcasing their isolation against vast empty spaces, without losing focus on any element in the scene.”

“The Walk was shot in 2D and converted to 3D in post production, but the results are nevertheless strong to spectacular.

“Sony’s presentation gets the little things right on every front. Detail and colour are strong within the film’s visual style … Colours aren’t exactly exciting, but there’s just enough balance and pop, when necessary, to impress.”

“The 2D presentation is spectacular in its own way … Black levels are solid inky black allowing for a tremendous sense of depth – especially during the third act walk.

“Even in 2D there is a notable sense of vertigo that is still impressive and should please those who don’t own a 3D set.”

“The 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio mix supports the dialogue-heavy film with crystal clear conversations and wonderful spatial awareness. Environmental effects like wind and street noise are frequent and add to the track’s immersive qualities.”

“Bone Tomahawk has a solid transfer that really allows you a great look at the western environment and all the details that come with it.

“This is a dusty film with some great production value, regardless of how small the film may be compared to bigger films. The print comes across great as a result, as it is clean and clear.”

“The 1080p 2.40:1 transfer is sharp to a major fault in my book.

“While colour reproduction is incredibly artistic and consistent, with the dusty browns of the west broken up by some greys in the first act scenes set in town, one longs for at least some level of film grain or a bit of digital noise to give the film a more gritty look keeping in tune with its thematic atmosphere.”

“Of particular note is how DP Benji Bakshi used the advantages of digital cinema to create tableaux at substantial distances from the characters, even at night, showcasing their isolation against vast empty spaces, without losing focus on any element in the scene.

“Achieving the same effect on film would require tricky lighting gimmicks and photochemical manipulations that still might never look as a clean and direct as the same effect with Red photography.”

“With an English DTS-HD MA 5.1 audio track, Bone Tomahawk enjoys a rich and immersive surround sound experience.

“Part of what makes Bone Tomahawk an effective western and horror film is the rich sound design. For a film that is mostly a quiet traditional western, the audio track is filled with a sense of expansive space.”

What could be Woody Allen’s last 35mm production, Irrational Man, features “gorgeous video, subdued but effective audio, and, as is a constant with Allen home video releases, scant supplements” while 5 Flights Up’s “detail is nice and strong and comes through with fantastic clarity“.

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