Arctic Tale Blu-ray features mediocre video and audio in this mediocre Blu-ray release
Set in the vast snow kingdom at the top of the world, Arctic Tale is a real life adventure from the people who brought you March Of The Penguins. Join narrator Queen Latifah as she follows two very different arctic creatures, Nanu, the polar bear cub and Seela, the walrus pup, through exciting and harrowing struggles for survival. Armed only with their natural instincts and mothers guidance, these inspiring animals face countless trials and challenges in a beautiful icebound world that is rapidly melting beneath them.
Billed as "a perfect family film," Arctic Tale did little more than inspire simultaneous yawns from my son and I as early as its fifteen-minute mark. I can't say I was surprised. Released by National Geographic for a limited theatrical run in 2007 (presumably in hopes of generating momentum similar to March of the Penguin's unexpected journey to box office success and Academy Award acclaim), the documentary was brushed off by both audiences and critics, leaving it to forever languish on videostore shelves as middling family fodder. Too simplistic for adults, too dry for kids, and too contrived for documentary fans of any age, the film makes its way to Blu-ray in to try and find a more forgiving following.
Amusing fluff and amazing photography doesn't amount to a captivating documentary...
Cobbled together from fifteen years of footage captured by filmmakers Adam Ravetch and Sarah Robertson, Arctic Tale uses cheap edits and quick cuts to tell the wholly-manufactured story of a female polar bear cub named Nanu and a female walrus calf named Seela. While the documentary stops short of using voiceovers to cram cutesy dialogue down their throats, narrator Queen Latifah is on hand to clumsily imprint two distinct personalities onto the composite animals. The forgettable script she's been handed in the recording booth tells us what Nanu and Seela are thinking, feeling, and experiencing as they struggle to survive the elements and learn to adapt to their surroundings. Humanizing the animals wouldn't bother me nearly as much if their stories weren't being mashed into the same narrative -- especially since polar bears and walruses aren't the neighborly Arctic species they're portrayed to be in the film. As it stands, Ravetch and Robertson seem more obsessed with weaving a tall tale than documenting the developmental stages, behavioral patterns, and survival instincts unique to each animal.
Personally, I found myself caring less and less about where Nanu and Seela ended up as the filmmakers took more and more manipulative liberties with their stories. Admittedly, my son burst into welcome fits of laughter on a few occasions -- when one particularly jumpy polar bear cub continually fell into his cave's opening, when an older walrus attempted to teach her calf how to climb onto a sheet of ice, and when the young cubs would wrestle playfully in the snow -- but, more often than not, he kept asking me when Arctic Tale would "stop being so boring." As a parent, I actively look for family-oriented documentaries to show my son (instead of the latest episodes of aimless cartoons like SpongeBob). The catch is that a documentary has to engage him with its educational content and its entertainment value. Arctic Tale did neither. As a filmfan, I want a stirring documentary that pulls me into a world I've never known; a production that captures my imagination as readily as it compels me to learn more. To my dismay, Arctic Tale was a failure in this regard as well.
Alas, by the time Ravetch and Robertson trot out inevitable warnings about global warming and remind viewers of their responsibility to planetary health, the filmmakers have neglected to make a proper case as to why polar bears, walruses, and the icy arctic are worth saving. Their argument seems to be that Nanu and Seela are so cute, so decidedly human, that decency and compassion should drive mankind to change its ways. However, seeing as humanity has ignored similar pleas to save species in the past, Arctic Tale's environmental cries fall by the wayside and, frankly, get lost in the shuffle. In the end, the film offers nothing more than superficial introductions to its arctic subjects and reel after reel of noteworthy photography.
A stunning video presentation is often the saving grace of an otherwise tedious or monotonous documentary. The film itself may not be interesting, but even watching mediocrity unfold in gorgeous high definition can make it all worthwhile. Sadly, Arctic Tale's 1080p/AVC-encoded transfer is an inconsistent mess, suffering from poor fine detailing, rampant edge enhancement, and other technical issues like intermittent artifacting, frequent print damage, errant noise, and some of the most distracting, intrusive grain I've encountered in a Paramount release since Hustle & Flow. Don't get me wrong, I'm glad the studio didn't slather the image with DNR (Digital Noise Reduction) to resolve the issue, but the grain that appears is often much sharper and refined than the animal fur and ice formations it disrupts. Thankfully, the majority of these problems seem to accompany the film's polar bear footage -- the walrus scenes look much better and have fewer pitfalls to overcome. The downside is that the impact of the overall presentation peaks and plummets on a regular basis, making it all too easy to overlook some of the transfer's positive qualities (attractive contrast leveling, the appearance of vibrant blues, and fairly well-resolved blacks). Ultimately, if you don't fall for Arctic Tale's particular charms, you aren't going to find anything else to redeem the release.
Even with the proper expectations in place, Arctic Tale's Dolby TrueHD 5.1 surround track is still a disappointment. Queen Latifah's narration sounds pinched at times, muffled at others. Part of the problem can probably be attributed to her breezy, lighthearted delivery, but the recording itself lacks the crispness and clarity necessary to bolster an impressive documentary mix. Considering her voice is the only notable element in the soundscape -- animal cries, splashing water, and sliding ice are quite underwhelming -- the result is a muddy, front-heavy affair that wasn't nearly as involving as the on-screen imagery. Granted, a few brief instances of LFE weight and rear speaker aggression do find their way into the presentation, but they're gone almost as quickly as they came. As such shortcomings are all-too-often par for the course, documentary regulars will probably shrug their shoulders. However, I expect a lossless surround track of this nature to at least attempt to convince me that a polar bear or a walrus has somehow stumbled into my home theater.
The Blu-ray edition of Arctic Tale arrives with two featurettes: a tiresome, twenty-three minute behind-the-scenes documentary and a secondary, six-minute short about polar bear spotting. Unfortunately, it's all rather mundane and, aside from a high definition presentation of the film's theatrical trailer, all of the supplemental video content is presented in 480p.
Don't waltz into Arctic Tale expecting an experience similar to March of the Penguins. Latifah is a poor choice for a narrator, the film's pacing will bore most kids, and its forced, contrived plot will turn off anyone looking for a legitimate documentary on arctic animals. The Blu-ray edition doesn't fare much better. Its ugly video transfer, lifeless TrueHD audio track, and small smattering of supplements isn't worth the cost of admission. My advice? Give it a rent and see if it's something you're family will enjoy before you drop too much cash on a purchase.
Paramount Home Entertainment has announced that they will bring the documentary 'Arctic Tale' to Blu-ray on April 21st. This family focused documentary tells the story of polar bears and walruses in the deep arctic north. Featuring a voice over by Queen Latifah, ...
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