The Blu-ray Blog » Robert Duvall

Coppola’s The Conversation coming to Blu-ray

Brenden — Wed, 03 Aug 2011 04:42:17 +0000

It occurs to me that I freak out about a lot of movies, claiming this one or the other is my favourite, or in my top 5 of all time list, or something. But honestly, I really do feel that way. I really am that passionate and in love with these films. I only bring this up because I know I’m about to say it all over again in reference to Francis Ford Coppola‘s The Conversation. Hand on my heart, it’s honestly one of the best films ever made. One of my favourites. In my top 5. For reals. And now it’s heading to Blu-ray, from the same team who gave us last year’s nigh-on perfect Apocalypse Now Blu-ray releases. I can’t breathe. This is all too much. This actually might be the Golden Age of Blu-ray, as Bill Hunt claims it to be…

Francis Ford Coppola’s provoking mystery-thriller stars Gene Hackman as Harry Caul, an expert surveillance man. A routine wiretapping job turns into a nightmare when Harry hears something disturbing in his recording of a young couple in a park. His investigation of the tape and how it might be used sends Harry spiraling into a web of secrecy, murder and paranoia. Set against the backdrop of San Francisco, “The Conversation” is a harrowing psychological thriller that costars Cindy Williams, Frederic Forrest and Harrison Ford and symbolizes the uneasy line where technology and privacy cross.

THE CONVERSATION
(October 25, 2011 – MSRP $24.99)
Video: 1.85:1 1080p
Audio: DTS-HD Master Audio

Special Features:

Screen Tests
On-location Retrospective Featurette
Interviews with Director Francis Ford Coppola and Composer David Shire
Archival Footage
Archival Audio
Audio Commentaries
Making-of Featurette
Marketing Gallery
Theatrical Trailer

Top 5 New Blu-ray releases for the Week of February 22

Brenden — Wed, 23 Feb 2011 02:21:46 +0000

I probably could’ve finished this Top 5 list on time yesterday, but for some reason I had a hell of a time deciding which disc should end up in the number one slot this week! I know, that’s a ridiculous reason to hold an article but… well, you’re right. That wasn’t the only hold up. I also had a long day in the office that kept me from it. Never a dull moment in the world of journalism.

So, here it is now, this week’s Top 5 list, a day late but hopefully still useful to you in deciding which Blu-ray discs to pick up this week. As always, clicking the Blu-ray package art will zip you over to Amazon where every purchase make through our links helps this site stay on its feet. We appreciate every single click and thank you again for continuing to read The Blu-ray Blog.

1. GET LOW

“Academy Award winner Robert Duvall (1983, Best Actor, Tender Mercies) is Felix Bush, the “Hermit of Caleb County,” a man so haunted by his secrets that he has lived in quiet desolation in the Tennessee backwoods for over 40 years. Realizing that he is near his own mortality, Bush decides to have a “living funeral party,” inviting people to tell their stories about him. Enlisting the help of Frank Quinn (Golden Globe winner Bill Murray, 2004, Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy, Lost in Translation) and Buddy Robinson (Lucas Black, Legion), Bush goes through a process of self-discovery, allowing him to deal with his past secrets, including ones involving old flame (and new widow) Mattie (Academy Award® winner Sissy Spacek, 1980, Best Actress, Coal Miner’s Daughter). ”

Get Low really came out of nowhere for me. Until seeing a trailer for the film on an earlier Sony Blu-ray disc, I had no idea it existed. It’s the feature film debut of director Aaron Schneider, who previously won an Academy Award for his 2003 short film Two Soldiers, and it’s one hell of an effort. For starters, this thing looks gorgeous. And I guess it should, seeing as how Schneider comes from a background of cinematography. Add to that a brilliant, nuanced script (apparently based on a true story) and a cast that’s beyond reproach and you’ve got a real winner on your hands. One of the best films I’ve seen in ages. And a film that will probably float under the radar, eclipsed by more high-profile releases. What a shame.

Sony affords Get Low a damn-near perfect Blu-ray presentation with rich colours, deep blacks and tons of detail. I can’t get over how beautiful this Blu-ray is. And it sounds just as nice, with a clean, crisp DTS- HD Master Audio 5.1 track that won’t rattle the china but provide a pleasant, well-defined sound stage.

Highly recommended!

SPECIAL FEATURES:

Commentary with Robert Duvall, Sissy Spacek, Director Aaron Schneider & Producer Dean Zanuck
The Deep South: Buried Secrets
Getting Low: Getting Into Character
A Screenwriter’s Point of View
Cast & Crew Q&A
On the Red Carpet

AMAZON: $24.99

2. 3 from Criterion: FISH TANK, SENSO, SWEET SMELL OF SUCCESS

Yeah. Three new Criterion Blu-ray discs in one day. What more is there to say? You’re about to break your bank account.

Fish Tank is a modern masterpiece by British director Andrea Arnold (contender for the number one slot this week) and one of the finer films to be released on Blu-ray so far this year. Senso is far from Visconti‘s best film but you’ll want to take in the luscious visuals via this lush Blu-ray transfer. And Sweet Smell of Success is awash in neon-noir city landscapes, painted with biting, smart dialogue from Burt Lancaster and Tony Curtis, looking better than ever on Blu.

All three are highly recommended.

AMAZON: $24.99 each

3. ALL -TAR SUPERMAN

“Fueled by hatred and jealousy, Lex Luthor masterminds an elaborate plot to kill the Man of Steel – and it works. Poisoned by solar radiation, Superman is dying. With weeks to live, he fulfills his life’s dreams – especially revealing his true identity to Lois Lane – until Luthor proclaims his ultimate plan to control the world with no alien hero to stop him. Powers fading, Superman engages in a spectacular deadly battle with Luthor that could truly trigger the end of Earth’s Greatest Protector. This startling and gripping DC Universe Animated Original Movie stars the voice talents of James Denton, Anthony LaPaglia, Christina Hendricks and Ed Asner.”

I’ll have a full review of this disc up shortly. In short, if you’re a fan of Superman or DC Comics superheroes or animation in general you owe it to yourself to pick up a copy of All-Star Superman. Not only is it a brilliant story that gets to the heart of the character but the disc is packed with some of the best features WHV and DC have conjured up for their line of straight-to-video animated specials thus far.

AMAZON: $17.49

4. MEGAMIND

““A smart, funny and original treat,” Michael O’Sullivan, The Washington Post, Megamind puts a whole new hilarious twist on the superhero movie. Packed with high-flying action and non-stop laughs, the smash hit starring Will Ferrell, Brad Pitt, David Cross and Tina Fey will debut in DreamWorks Animation’s Blu-ray + DVD Combo Pack which includes the all-new comedy-adventure MEGAMIND: THE BUTTON OF DOOM, plus hours of bonus features and exclusive interactive Blu-ray features including picture-in-picture storyboards, behind the scenes footage, interviews, music videos, the lost scene, a comic book creator, an insider tour of Megamind’s Lair, interactive games, and so much more. ”

Megamind actually doesn’t hit the shops until this Friday, February 25th. We’ll be giving away a copy of the Blu-ray disc in the next couple of days so keep your eyes open!!

AMAZON: $19.99

5. BIRDEMIC: SHOCK AND TERROR

“It is a tender love story. A graphic horror shocker. An urgent ecological warning. And around the world, it became the must-see midnight movie sensation of the year: From writer/producer/director/visionary James Nguyen The Master Of The Romantic ThrillerTM comes the story of a sexy lingerie model (Whitney Moore) and a successful software salesman (Alan Bagh) on a weekend getaway to a quaint Northern California town. But when the entire region is attacked by millions of homicidal birds, their picturesque paradise becomes a winged hell on earth. Can mankind now survive the avian onslaught of BIRDEMIC? Hollywood legend Tippi Hedren of Hitchcock’s THE BIRDS co-stars in the global cult movie phenomenon that Videogum says might end up being the greatest film of all time! ”

I haven’t seen Birdemic for myself but it looks like a barrel of fun. The perfect modern late-night film to share, intoxicated with your best pals. I can’t wait to check this one out!

AMAZON: $16.49

ANIME OF THE WEEK: FLCL: COMPLETE COLLECTION

“When the three powerhouse creators of Eden of the East, Gurren Lagann and Neon Genesis Evangelion bumped heads, they spawned the series that broke all the rules – then broke the mold. Naota is a detached sixth-grader afflicted by the pangs of puberty. He’s fooling around with his brother’s ex-girlfriend when a crazed girl on a motor scooter runs him over, brains him with a bass guitar, and moves into his house. This pink-haired girl, Haruko – who claims she’s an alien – hurls Naota into the middle of a mega-corporation’s secret agenda. Oh, and now giant battling robots shoot from his skull. Mix in mind-bending animation and tunes that echo through your cerebellum to top off the trip that will have you falling hard for FLCL. ”

Outside of Macross and the animation of Studio Ghibli, FLCL is the absolute best that Japanese animation has to offer. It’s wild, imaginative and always stunning to look at. There’s more heart and more creativity in each frame of this short 6-episode series than any other I’ve seen in my last twenty-five years of anime viewing. Sadly, I understand this Blu-ray presentation is another up-conversion from FUNimation and far from the most impressive high-def image we’ve seen on Blu. I’d like to see the results for myself before making on the call on the discs but I’ll stand behind the series itself as one of the best ever.

AMAZON: $24.99

ALSO AVAILABLE ON BLU-RAY THIS WEEK
Clicking an image will take you to Amazon.com where you can learn more about and purchase the Blu-ray disc:

Top 5 New Blu-ray releases for the Week of December 14

Brenden — Tue, 14 Dec 2010 16:21:34 +0000

What a tough week! On first glance, it didn’t seem to me that there was a whole lot hitting the shops but then, when I began to assemble the TOP 5 list, I quickly discovered otherwise. There’s some great stuff here, including a couple of films that my girlfriend has claimed are the best movies she’s seen all year and a whole lot of amazing catalogue releases including the first ever North American Hammer Films release in HD!

1. THE A-TEAM

I had no choice but to rank The A-Team tv-to-cinema adaptation as the number one Blu-ray release this week, as my girlfriend claims it’s the best film of the year. Honestly, we saw it in the theatre several months ago and I thought it was fun and far more coherent than I expected it to be. The performances are strong (Liam Neeson doing his best grizzled George Peppard with Bradley Cooper and Sharlto Copley following up their spotlight gigs in The Hangover and District 9 respectively) if not a bit tongue in cheek and the action is way over-the-top fun. It’s ok! But my girlfriend couldn’t stop raving about it. And my nephew couldn’t stop raving about it. So, there must be something there. Of any of the new Blu-ray discs out this week, The A-team is most likely the best bet to entertain a wide audience.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

The Devil’s in the Details: Inside the Action with Joe Carnahan
Never-Before-Seen Deleted Scenes
Gag Reel
Plan of Attack
Character Chronicles
Visual Effects Commentary with Visual Effects Supervisor James E. Price
BD-Live

AMAZON: $22.99

2. TRUE GRIT

Hot on the heels of the Coen brothers’ remake comes Paramount‘s high-def debut of the Henry Hathaway original True Grit. What an amazing film! Not only does it feature John Wayne in one of his final performances (and what a performance it is!) but the film can also boast great early turns by Dennis Hopper and Robert Duvall! The Blu-ray contains all the same features as the previously issued DVD (excellent commentary track and handful of featurettes) but is technically a step-up. The DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 sound track is dialogue and center heavy but opens wide for the rich, robust Elmer Bernstein soundtrack while the 1.85:1 presentation seems to be the most film-accurate on home video to date, exhibiting greater detail, more accurate colour and just a hint of film grain. My guess is that the studio used an slightly older HD master and could bump the detail up a hair with a fresh one but I doubt we’ll be seeing another release of this duster anytime soon so fans need to rush out and grab this one up while they can!

AMAZON: $17.99

3. THE BLACK PIRATE

I can’t even believe that in 2010 we’ve seen such amazing silent era films as Metropolis, The General and Battleship Potemkin released on Blu-ray! I feel a bit spoiled, to be honest. And today sees the addition of another silent great to the roster – Douglas Fairbanks‘ fun, two-strip technicolor The Black Pirate is out on Blu-ray, thanks to the great folks at Kino. The disc is a revelation, looking so much better than you’d expect and offering the choice of the original 1926 Mortimer Wilson orchestral score in Linear PCM 2.0 or a DD 2.0 Lee Erwin organ score. Kino has really knocked it out of the park here! And the the disc just gets better, as it includes a wealth of quality special features including a very informative commentary track from film historian Rudy Behlmer, a b&w “Talkie” version of the film and heaps of outtakes and stills. Highly recommended!

AMAZON: $25.99

4. THE TOWN

Ben Affleck sure is making a lot of effort not to suck lately. He must’ve gotten tired of churning out duds like Daredevil and Gigli and instead, now seems to be putting forth a serious effort to deliver some decent films onto the cinemascape! The Town is his second dramatic crime-thriller following the 2007 Gone Baby Gone. The Blu-ray disc features two cuts of the film – the 125-minute theatrical cut and 153-minute extended version – both crammed onto one disc without seamless branching (there are little to no noticeable quality issues despite the low-bandwidth video encodes.) They offer significant differences and are both worth watching, along with Affleck’s commentary track, which dissects the additions. The hearty DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 brings the love and may bust-up your glassware with all it’s punchy gusto. Muscular audio design and dynamic range will leave you breathless.

AMAZON: $24.99

5. THE OTHER GUYS

My review copy of The Other Guys arrived last week. As the credits were rolling my girlfriend announced that this was the best film she had seen all year. I reminded her that she had previously claimed that The A-team was the film of the year. She offered up a “hrmpht” and asked to see the gag reel.

This is a real return to form for the team that brought you Anchorman. Will Ferrel and all his cohorts (too many brilliant comedians to name here) are in top form, improving their way through a mostly incoherent buddy-cops-versus-evil-businessmen plot. The laughs don’t stop when the film is over as the special features, of which there are a multitude, act as an extension of the films gags, offering up hours of deleted scenes and cut-loose improv comedy. After watching all the ad-libbing on the set I’ve got to wonder if the shooting script wasn’t maybe just a loose outline.

AMAZON: $22.99

6. VAMPIRE CIRCUS

Yeah, I know. It’s another six-disc Top 5 list this week. But I just can’t let the post publish without talking about Vampire Circus! I haven’t seen the Blu-ray disc yet so I can’t speak to the quality of Synapse Films‘ work yet but I’m just so damned happy that somebody is manning up and releasing a Hammer film in high-def! This bad boy really looks fantastic on the surface, packed with special features including an all new documentary on the making of the film. I’m sincerely hoping for the best with this disc and praying, if it’s up to snuff, that you’ll all go out and buy a copy. Maybe then the studios will see that there’s an audience for these films in HD. Here’s hoping that the classic Dracula and Frankenstein films make their way onto Blu by this time next year!

AMAZON: $20.49

NEW THIS WEEK ON 3D BLU-RAY:

AMAZON: $31.99 , $29.99

ALSO AVAILABLE ON BLU-RAY THIS WEEK
Clicking an image will take you to Amazon.com where you can learn more about and purchase the Blu-ray disc:

Top 5 New Blu-ray releases for the Week of October 19

Brenden — Tue, 19 Oct 2010 15:22:34 +0000

This is ridiculous. I don’t know if I’ve ever seen so many brilliant titles being released on Blu-ray disc on a single day! I’m not quite certain how a film or Blu-ray fan is meant to survive, you know, afford food and rent while keeping up with all of this awesomeness! Sigh…second and third jobs, here I come!

As always, we appreciate every click on our Amazon links and any purchases you make through them. Those clicks keep The Blu-ray Blog and this column in particular alive, so thanks so much.

1. APOCALYPSE NOW: THREE DISC FULL DISCLOSURE EDITION

Despite the incredible force of new Blu-ray disc releases this week, Francis Ford Coppola‘s dangerous masterpiece of war and death, Apocalypse Now battles its way to the top of the heap. This feature-packed 3-disc set seems to be the definitive edition of the film, presented here with both cuts enjoying stunning new transfers and kitchen-ware rattling sound. This is without question one of the most highly anticipated Blu-ray discs of the year among cinephiles and it delivers in every regard. Don’t miss out on it!

Special Features:

Apocalypse Now – The 1979 Cut and Apocalypse Now Redux
“Hearts of Darkness: A Filmmaker’s Apocalypse” including optional audio commentary with Eleanor and Francis Ford Coppola
48-page collectible printed booklet with special note from Francis Ford Coppola, never-before-seen archives from the set, behind the scenes photos and more
John Milius Script Excerpt with Francis Ford Coppola Notes
Storyboard Gallery
Photo Gallery, including images from photographer Mary Ellen Mark
Marketing Archive
“A Conversation with Martin Sheen” interview by Francis Ford Coppola
“An Interview with John Milius” interview by Francis Ford Coppola
Complete Francis Ford Coppola interview with Roger Ebert at the 2001 Cannes Film Festival
Monkey Sampan “lost scene”
Additional Scenes
“Destruction of the Kurtz Compound” end credits with audio commentary by Francis Ford Coppola
“The Hollow Men,” video of Marlon Brando reading T.S. Eliot’s poem
“The Birth of 5.1 Sound” featurette
“Ghost Helicopter Flyover” sound effects demonstration
“A Million Feet of Film: The Editing of Apocalypse Now” featurette
“The Music of Apocalypse Now” featurette
“The Synthesizer Soundtrack” article by music synthesizer inventor Bob Moog
“Heard Any Good Movies Lately? The Sound Design of Apocalypse Now” featurette
“The Final Mix” featurette
“Apocalypse Then and Now” featurette
“The Color Palette of Apocalypse Now” featurette
“PBR Streetgang” featurette
“The Color Palette of Apocalypse Now” featurette

Amazon: $41.99

Also available in a 2-Disc Special Edition: $26.99

2. SEVEN SAMURAI

All right, this is a total no-brainer. In fact, this disc should have been out years ago and been every Blu-ray owner’s very first purchase. But the extra time with the film elements has afforded Criterion the opportunity to improve upon the insanely great transfer they offered up on the last DVD edition of The Seven Samurai, allowing them to knock this very first North American high-def presentation of the film out of the park! You’re going to have to see it to believe it. Very highly recommended!

Special Features:

All-new, restored high-definition digital transfer
Two audio commentaries: one by film scholars David Desser, Joan Mellen, Stephen Prince, Tony Rayns, and Donald Richie; the other by Japanese-film expert Michael Jeck
A 50-minute documentary on the making of Seven Samurai, part of the Toho Masterworks series Akira Kurosawa: It Is Wonderful to Create
My Life in Cinema, a two-hour video conversation between Akira Kurosawa and Nagisa Oshima produced by the Directors Guild of Japan
Seven Samurai: Origins and Influences, a new documentary looking at the samurai traditions and films that impacted Kurosawa’s masterpiece
Theatrical trailers and teaser
Gallery of rare posters and behind-the scenes and production stills
New and improved English subtitle translation
PLUS: A booklet featuring essays by Peter Cowie, Philip Kemp, Peggy Chiao, Alain Silver, Kenneth Turan, Stuart Galbraith, Arthur Penn, and Sidney Lumet and an interview with Toshiro Mifune

Amazon: $36.49

3. PSYCHO

That’s right. Coppola. Kurosawa. Now Hitchcock. Incredible! Now, I haven’t gotten my grubby hands on a screener of Psycho so I can’t speak to the quality of the transfer here. But this release is a pretty big deal for Universal and I would be shocked if they buggered it up to any degree. I suspect that the film is going to look and sound better than ever, now on Blu and packed to the gills with a great set of extras.

Amazon: $17.99

4. PREDATORS

Aaargh!! Predators!!! Fox sent me an early review copy of the film…ON DVD!!! I really got a kick out of it – so much better than Predator 2 or any of the “Aliens vs.” films but nowhere near as genius as the Governator original – but I have no idea what the Blu-ray looks and sounds like. It was a pretty dark film but considering that it’s a brand-spanking-new release, it should by all rights be brilliant in high-def.

Amazon: $24.99

5. MOULIN ROUGE and ROMEO + JULIET

Add director Baz Luhrmann to the long list of esteemed directors with classic films debuting on Blu-ray today, though in his case, as classic as his films may have become they aren’t nearly of similar vintage. Nevertheless, these are both wonderful, colourful movies that have both been given a great deal of attention in their transition to Blu-ray by the director himself, to ensure that the transfers were handled in the best possible fashion to suit his vision. I honestly can’t wait to sit down with both films myself and witness the results!

Amazon: $18.49 each

6. THE ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW

What? Huh? There’s a sixth entry this week? But..this is a Top 5 list, isn’t it?

Okay, yeah, I’m cheating but damn, I can’t let the week pass without pointing out this incredible Rocky Horror Picture Show Blu-ray package. Again, I haven’t received my review copy yet (the perils of being a Blu-ray reviewer in Canada!) but from all accounts the film looks and sounds stellar, better than it deserves to considering its origins. There are a ton of special features and the whole thing is packaged up in a nice hardcover digibook, perfect for your upcoming Halloween cross-dressing party!

Amazon: $18.49

ANIME OF THE WEEK: Eden of the East: The Complete Series

It’s very possible that Eden of the East might go beyond “anime of the week” to be classified as “anime of the year”! This eleven episode animated series created by Kenji Kamiyama, writer-director of the popular Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex series, proved so popular with audiences in Japan that two feature films were rushed into production following its conclusion (the Blu-ray boxed set includes the series’ episodes only but I’m certain that we’ll see both The King of Eden and Paradise Lost on the format in the coming months).

The story centers on Akira Takizawa, a young man with no memories, dropped into the middle of a layered conspiracy with nothing more (and when I say nothing more, I mean nothing more) than a gun and a cell phone with access to billions of Yen and a woman who can make any request he makes a reality. It sounds bizarre but Akira quickly discovers that he is one of 12 chosen individuals, agents called Seleção who have the power to save a Japan that has grown dangerously lackadaisical and “careless”. And if, for some reason, he fails in his mission, he will be murdered.

The excellent, well designed Production I.G. animation of Eden of the East looks great on Blu-ray, if not a bit soft. I have to believe that the haze over the image is a stylistic choice and not a result of poor up-resing of the animated elements. Either way you slice it, the shows are a joy to watch in high-def. The original Japanese Japanese Dolby TrueHD 5.1 audio track is pleasant and immersive, while not overly expressive. There’s also an English Dolby TrueHD 5.1 for those who prefer to avoid subtitles.

Disc-2 of the set provides a host of excellent special features, the finest of the lot being the multiple interview featurettes with most of the primary creatives and performers from the show. There are also trailers, TV spots and a textless version of the closing song animation.

Highly recommended!

Amazon: $36.99

ALSO AVAILABLE ON BLU-RAY THIS WEEK
Clicking an image will take you to Amazon.com where you can learn more about and purchase the Blu-ray disc:

[VIDEO] Apocalypse Now Blu-ray Trailer

Brenden — Thu, 26 Aug 2010 13:08:29 +0000

The Apocalypse Now Blu-ray sets are some of the most highly anticipated of the year. And in a year where we’re seeing the debut of film collections like The Alien Anthology and The Back to the Future Trilogy on Blu, that’s saying something.

I anticipate that these transfers are going to be rock solid, reference quality jobs, much like Coppola‘s Godfather set, with little-to-no DNR and edge enhancement used to process the image. We’ll know for sure in just under two-months! In the meantime, until the Blu-ray discs hit store shelves on October 19th, check out this trailer promoting the Lionsgate releases.

Apocalypse Now, Hearts of Darkness doc coming to Blu-ray in October

Brenden — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 14:48:44 +0000

This has got to be some of the most exciting Blu-ray news so far this year. And that’s really saying something in a year jam-packed with incredible news and releases on the format! Lionsgate and American Zoetrope, Francis Ford Coppola‘s film studio, have announced a multi-year home entertainment distribution agreement which will see them bringing his acclaimed film Apocalypse Now to Blu-ray this October. Even more exciting, as far as I’m concerned, is that this deal will cover the eventual release of Coppola’s The Conversation, a film I consider to be his finest and one of my all-time favourites from any director.

From the press release:

“With new transfers supervised directly by Coppola, Apocalypse Now will premiere on Blu-ray in two deluxe editions: the 2-Film Set and the 3-disc Full Disclosure Edition. The 2-Film Set will include both Apocalypse Now – The 1979 Cut and Apocalypse Now Redux and will also include over nine hours of special features. The Full Disclosure Edition will include the seminal making-of documentary Hearts of Darkness, a 48-page collectible booklet and storyboard, photo and marketing archives.”

No word yet regarding the timing of the release of The Conversation on Blu but rest assured, we’ll stay on top of it and let you know as soon as we hear anything.

APOCALYPSE NOW: TWO DISC SPECIAL EDITION
(October 19, 2010 – MSRP $39.95)
Video: 2.39:1 1080p
Audio: DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio

Special Features:

Apocalypse Now – The 1979 Cut and Apocalypse Now Redux
“A Conversation with Martin Sheen” interview by Francis Ford Coppola
“An Interview with John Milius” interview by Francis Ford Coppola
Complete Francis Ford Coppola interview with Roger Ebert at the 2001 Cannes Film Festival
Monkey Sampan “lost scene”
Additional Scenes
“Destruction of the Kurtz Compound” end credits with audio commentary by Francis Ford Coppola
“The Hollow Men,” video of Marlon Brando reading T.S. Eliot’s poem
“The Birth of 5.1 Sound” featurette
“Ghost Helicopter Flyover” sound effects demonstration
“A Million Feet of Film: The Editing of Apocalypse Now” featurette
“The Music of Apocalypse Now” featurette
“The Synthesizer Soundtrack” article by music synthesizer inventor Bob Moog
“Heard Any Good Movies Lately? The Sound Design of Apocalypse Now” featurette
“The Final Mix” featurette
“Apocalypse Then and Now” featurette
“The Color Palette of Apocalypse Now” featurette
“PBR Streetgang” featurette
“The Color Palette of Apocalypse Now” featurette

APOCALYPSE NOW: THREE DISC FULL DISCLOSURE EDITION
(October 19, 2010 – MSRP $59.99)
Video: 2.39:1 1080p (Features), 1.33:1 1080p (Documentary)
Audio: DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio

Special Features:

Apocalypse Now – The 1979 Cut and Apocalypse Now Redux
“Hearts of Darkness: A Filmmaker’s Apocalypse” including optional audio commentary with Eleanor and Francis Ford Coppola
48-page collectible printed booklet with special note from Francis Ford Coppola, never-before-seen archives from the set, behind the scenes photos and more
John Milius Script Excerpt with Francis Ford Coppola Notes
Storyboard Gallery
Photo Gallery, including images from photographer Mary Ellen Mark
Marketing Archive
“A Conversation with Martin Sheen” interview by Francis Ford Coppola
“An Interview with John Milius” interview by Francis Ford Coppola
Complete Francis Ford Coppola interview with Roger Ebert at the 2001 Cannes Film Festival
Monkey Sampan “lost scene”
Additional Scenes
“Destruction of the Kurtz Compound” end credits with audio commentary by Francis Ford Coppola
“The Hollow Men,” video of Marlon Brando reading T.S. Eliot’s poem
“The Birth of 5.1 Sound” featurette
“Ghost Helicopter Flyover” sound effects demonstration
“A Million Feet of Film: The Editing of Apocalypse Now” featurette
“The Music of Apocalypse Now” featurette
“The Synthesizer Soundtrack” article by music synthesizer inventor Bob Moog
“Heard Any Good Movies Lately? The Sound Design of Apocalypse Now” featurette
“The Final Mix” featurette
“Apocalypse Then and Now” featurette
“The Color Palette of Apocalypse Now” featurette
“PBR Streetgang” featurette
“The Color Palette of Apocalypse Now” featurette

The Natural Blu-ray Disc Review

Brenden — Tue, 25 May 2010 04:17:21 +0000

THE NATURAL (1984, Blu-ray released April 6, 2010 – MSRP $24.95)

I have never thought of any sport as epic, let alone mythic. But Barry Levinson‘s brilliant 1984 film, The Natural successfully frames baseball as something akin to a tale penned by Homer and paints one very gifted man, wooden bat and leather glove in hand, as a classical hero of sorts. And, oh my, does it ever look good on Blu-ray!

The Natural is technically an adaptation of the Bernard Malamud novel of the same name. But with the addition of the gauzey lens-magic of cinema and a dramatic alteration to the end of the story, it becomes so much more. Levinson has taken this tragic story of a man with unlimited athletic potential, a tale cobbled together from real-life events in the world of the sport, and crafted the ultimate ode to baseball. A film that has become, over the years a filmic-bible of the sport, rife with cues that continue to inspire the baseball films that have followed in its footsteps. There would be no Field of Dreams, Bull Durham or Major League without The Natural.

The story of Roy Cobb (played here in a muscular performance by Robert Redford) is a patchwork of moments from other people’s lives – Jackie Robinson‘s hand-carved wooden bat, the shooting and unexpected comeback of Eddie Waitkus – that, together, create the legend of a man whose desire was nothing more than to be known as the best baseball player that ever was. It’s a simple, charming goal that fuels the story and this modern-day Odysseus on his quest for greatness. The cast is wonderful, featuring acting heavies like Glenn Close, Richard Farnsworth and Wilford Brimley who add to the gravitas and wonder of the film. The early-orchestral work of Randy Newman helps drive the mood of the piece but the pennant here is undoubtedly won by photographer Caleb Deschanel for his stunning, picturesque shots, bathed in the dying light of what is commonly known as “the magic hour” – that time just before sunset when a wheat field looks its most golden. Every film still of The Natural is a postcard.

And Sony takes advantage of the stunning visuals here to deliver a beautiful transfer. One you’ll be proud to have in your collection. Sumptuous yet accurate colours, deep blacks and a healthy grain structure make you feel like you’re looking at a moving painting. What a lovely, film-like image. With an equally lovely, honest DTS-HD MA 5.1 sound track, that faithfully renders every crisp note of Newman’s score while providing a nice sense of atmosphere at every turn. It’s not going to blow your doors off but it is pitch perfect!

The Natural Blu-ray disc ports over the majority of the special features from the 2007 “Director’s Cut DVD” aside from one glaring omission – the longer cut itself. And least, I don’t think it does. There’s some confusion here as the Blu-ray lists the run-time as 138-minutes, which sits between the those recorded on IMDB (134-minutes theatrical and 144-minutes Director’s Cut). Either way, the Blu-ray lacks Levinson’s introduction to that longer, alternate cut of the film. But packs in so many featurettes and full-length docs you won’t mind. I enjoyed the comprehensive three-part “When Lightning Strikes: Creating The Natural” as well as the 45-minute “The Heart of The Natural“, a short film featuring Levinson and baseball Hall-of-Famer Cal Ripken, Jr. Among the numerous other featurettes are gems like “A Natural Gunned Down: The Stalking of Eddie Waitkus“, “Knights in Shining Armor: The Mythology of The Natural” and “Clubhouse Conversations“, a 15-minute chat with a host of notable celebrities of the game and of the sports broadcasting world. The disc is rounded out with BD-Live functionality, Sony’s MovieIQ connectivity, and a collection of HD trailers.

The Godfather: Part II Blu-ray Disc Review

karl — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 13:47:03 +0000

THE GODFATHER (1974, Blu-ray released February 2, 2010 – MSRP $39.99)

I have strong feelings about The Godfather: Part II and I’m not sure where to start talking about them.

First, I guess I want to address the popular opinion that it’s a better film than its predecessor. It is not. It is inferior in many ways; the story is at times confusing and unnecessarily convoluted for the sake of adding ‘intrigue’; the characters behave insincerely, their actions often in service to the movement of the plot rather than their own hearts, and the ending is weak and unsatisfying.

At its best (and it’s very, very good), the film is a thoroughly engrossing look at the lives of a father and his son. Their journeys to manhood are paralleled through a series of flashbacks, each man defining himself, in his own way, through family. But times are changing, as Michael tells his mother, and the concept of family may no longer be what he thought it was.

The portrayal of Michael Corleone in The Godfather: Part II seems overly melodramatic to me, and that criticism is aimed not at Al Pacino‘s performance, which is every bit as good as it was in the first film, but at the script. I get the impression that the entire story was orchestrated to culminate in Michael’s deplorable act at the end of the movie (I’m trying not to spoil anything for new viewers), which would be fine if that act was driven by any sort of believable motive. I can only surmise that Michael has been driven insane by the series of tragedies that have befallen him in his past, because nothing in his character justifies his eventual actions. It’s such an inelegant leap in reasoning that it makes the whole movement of the plot feel forced and unnatural.

As for the ending, I consider it weak only relative to the first film’s gut-punch of a closing scene. In theory, Part II‘s ending makes sense: I want to see father and son on screen together after watching their stories unfold and play off of one another. But Marlon Brando‘s not in this movie, and no amount of trickery is going to make up for that fact. His presence is required to make that scene work and without him it feels cheap and empty. I get it – they couldn’t get Brando and they did the best they could. But it’s still weak.

Whew. That’s a lot of complaining about what is, for all its flaws, an amazing movie. Where Michael’s story flounders, Vito’s story is magnificent; the scenes in old New York are riveting and every scene that Robert DeNiro is in is memorable.

The Blu-ray presentation is as beautiful as it was on the Godfather: Part I disc – everything is rendered in crisp detail, but the rich, velvety textures and deep blacks maintain the softness of film. We couldn’t ask for a better viewing experience than what’s offered here.

As with the previous disc, this one lacks almost all of the Special Features found in the Godfather Trilogy boxed set. All that remains is a director’s commentary track, which is a good listen, but if you’re a superfan and you want more behind-the-scenes stuff, you’ll have to go beyond these individual releases and buy the whole collection. In fact, even if you’re NOT a superfan but you just want to see the third movie you’ll have to spring for the boxed set because Paramount has no plans to release Part 3 on its own as they did for the first two. I guess I can’t fault their reasoning because, really, who goes out and ONLY buys Godfather: Part 3?

Nobody, that’s who.

The Godfather Blu-ray Disc Review

karl — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 14:47:42 +0000

THE GODFATHER (1972, Blu-ray released February 2, 2010 – MSRP $39.99)

You don’t need me to review the story of The Godfather for you. Chances are, you’ve seen it and you already know that it’s Francis Ford Coppola‘s masterpiece and arguably one of the best films ever made. The last scene of the film is one of my favourite movie endings of all time, and it still gives me chills after countless viewings.

The last time I watched The Godfather was when the Blu-ray box set was released last year and it was a revelation. The film is shot in such deep shadow that no VHS or DVD version was ever able to convey the cinematographer’s original intent, and that’s where this release really shines – lush detail mixed with the blackest of blacks to immerse the viewer in the authenticity of post-war America. There are a couple of scenes (notably the scene in the hospital with Enzo the baker) that look a bit grainy, but I’m pretty sure this is true to the original negatives and the lighting conditions at the time of shooting and, as such, as faithful a representation of the film as possible.

Having seen the Blu-ray edition of the film in the aforementioned box set, I was interested to see how the individual release held up. I sat down to watch it with Amy, who had never seen the movie before, and we dimmed the lights. It was actually more of a treat for me to see her reactions to scenes I’d seen a million times, and the fact that she stayed awake for the whole thing is a testament to Coppola’s honest storytelling and further indication of The Godfather‘s lasting appeal.

The film is exactly the same as what I saw in the boxed collection – beautiful picture quality and sound – the best this movie will probably ever look. The only real difference between the two releases is the lack of any real Special Features on the standalone disc. There’s an audio commentary by Coppola, which is excellent and definitely worth a listen, but that’s it! The wealth of extras from the collected edition are gone. No more ‘making of’ featurettes (some of these were almost feature-length on their own!), no more talks with the writers and composers (my favourite features, showing footage of the creative process and real insight into the craft of filmmaking) and no more ‘family tree’ extras (an in-depth look at who’s who in the Corleone family). Sure, I could do without some of this stuff, but the featurettes would have been nice, especially as Amy was full of questions and hungry for more information following our viewing.

As a fan of the first film and less so of the sequels, I thought I’d be content to own this standalone disc, but due to the lack of additional stuff (and the quality of that missing stuff) I’d recommend that any fan of The Godfather just pick up the trilogy box set. It’s worth it – even if you never bother to crack open Part 3.

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