American History X Blu-ray

American History X

 (1998)

Crime | Drama



Derek Vinyard is dangerous, a coiled fury of hate who leads a neo-Nazi gang. But time and events start to change him. He reassesses his ways while doing time for manslaughter and emerges from prison eager to keep his younger brother (Edward Furlong) from falling victim to the thug cycle of violence and payback. It may be too late.

For more details about American History X on Blu-ray, see the American History X Blu-ray Review

Starring: Edward Norton, Edward Furlong
Director: Tony Kaye

American History X Blu-ray, Video Quality

 

Considering the film's uncomfortably grim and gritty imagery, cinematography, and thematic content, the Blu-ray edition of American History X boasts a relatively remarkable 1080p/VC-1 transfer that puts its standard DVD counterpart to shame. Colorized scenes are surprisingly vibrant and well saturated, delivering natural skintones, simmering contrast, and nicely resolved black levels (in all but a few nighttime shots). While Kaye tones down the warmest aspects of his palette at times, he continually allows vivid reds and stark blues to find their way back into the presentation. His black-and-white flashback sequences have been perfectly preserved by Warner's encoders as well, reproducing the diverse midtones and well-delineated shadows of the original print with ease. Granted, overall clarity takes a fair share of hits -- edges sometimes grow soft, indistinct textures often prevail, and the film's heavy grain frequently robs the picture of its finest details. Regardless, such shortcomings should be attributed to Kaye's aesthetic choices rather than any mysterious technical deficiency. By my estimation, Warner's filmic presentation is wholeheartedly faithful to its source. Moreover, I didn't encounter significant instances of artifacting, digital clutter, edge enhancement, noise reduction (DNR), or crush. Minor banding briefly plagues a handful of daytime exterior shots, but never becomes a distraction.

American History X may not turn heads with crystal clear definition or jaw-dropping dimensionality, but it does present the film exactly as it was meant to be seen. Personally, I'm thoroughly satisfied with the results.

American History X Blu-ray, Audio Quality

 

American History X features an exceedingly subdued Dolby TrueHD 5.1 surround track that, despite numerous stretches of silence, whispered conversations, and soft musical cues, should satisfy audiophiles and fans of the film alike. Dialogue is consistently intelligible, sound effects are well balanced within the soundscape, and each element is nicely prioritized within the mix. And even though the experience's limited LFE presence and passive rear speaker support doesn't flex any serious sonic muscle, subtle ambience and convincing acoustics nevertheless create a fairly immersive soundfield. My only complaints revolve around some stocky pans and imprecise directionality. While the quality of the on-set recordings and looping sessions are probably to blame, voices occasionally hop from one speaker to the next without a proper transition or reason to do so. Will it bother most people? I doubt most viewers will even notice it... or, for that matter, care. Ultimately, Warner's quiet TrueHD track marks a solid effort on the part of the studio that doesn't suffer from any debilitating or distracting problems.

American History X Blu-ray, News and Updates

• Today on Blu-ray - April 7th - April 7, 2009


• Warner Specs More April 7th Releases - January 27, 2009


• Warner Announces 10 Blu-rays for April 7th - December 18, 2008

American History X Blu-ray, Forum Discussions

Topic

Replies

Last post