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Band of Brothers Blu-ray
HBO | 2001 | 705 mins | Not rated | Nov 11, 2008
Band of Brothers(TV) (2001)Adventure | Biography | Drama | History | War     Based on the bestseller by Stephen E. Ambrose, the epic 10-part miniseries Band of Brothers tells the story of Easy Company, 506th Regiment of the 101st Airborne Division, U.S. Army. Drawn from interviews with survivors of Easy Company, as well as soldiers' journals and letters, Band of Brothers chronicles the experiences of these men who knew extraordinary bravery and extraordinary fear. They were an elete rifle company parachuting into France early on D-Day morning, fighting in the Battle of the Bulge and capturing Hitler's Eagle's Nest at Berchtesgaden. They were also a unit that suffered 150 percent casualties, and whose lives became legend. For more details about Band of Brothers on Blu-ray, see the Band of Brothers Blu-ray Review Band of Brothers Blu-ray, Video Quality  "Band of Brothers" arrives on Blu-ray with what is nothing short of a spectacular 1080p, 1.78:1-framed image that offers a significant upgrade over the previous DVD release. Certainly, viewers in search of nothing short of grain-free, brightly colored high definition eye candy will be sorely disappointed with this release. "Band of Brothers" is nevertheless eye candy of its own variety, offering a natural, as-intended look that lends a harsh, gritty, desaturated look to set the mood and period of the series from a visual perspective. Much of "Band of Brothers" is devoid of bright primary colors. Awash in greens, browns, tans, grays, and blacks, the color scheme lends to the film a throwback look that has seemingly become the de facto presentation for World War II movies; a practically identical look was chosen for Saving Private Ryan, and perhaps a somewhat more extreme variation accompanies Clint Eastwood's Letters From Iwo Jima. What makes this look successful for these types of films and series is that it not only punctuates the horrors and gritty reality of war, but it seemingly brings viewers into the middle of the action. The rough, sometimes handheld, hyperactive appearance offers perhaps the closest visual approximation of the ugliness and chaos of war possible through the filmed medium. While the look of the series may be gritty and devoid of an abundance of bright colors, "Band of Brothers" on Blu-ray nevertheless offers viewers a remarkable level of clarity and definition through virtually every inch of the series. Each episode features remarkable attention to lifelike detail and historical accuracy, and the painstaking realism of the series is brought to life like never before on this Blu-ray edition. The transfer reveals fine definition in the lines, contours, and dirt on faces; it features high resolution and clarity through every patch, seam, fray, and accessory that make up the uniforms; and the wear on the weapons seen throughout, particularly the absence of bluing on the barrels and actions of weapons and the nicks and scratches visible on the wooden furniture of the Garands, Thompson submachine guns, and other armaments make them look well-used and appropriately battle-worn. Even smaller nuances, like the various scenes in the first episode that feature the men running up Currahee, reveals small details in the dirt and gravel of the well-beaten path, not to mention the various greenery and weeds that surround it. Black levels are also deep and accurate in virtually every instance; several dark scenes feature the heaviest amounts of grain seen throughout, a fine example being the nighttime drop into Normandy the night before the sea-based invasion on the morning of June 6, 1944. While "Band of Brothers" features a rough look that, upon first glance, might not seem to be the sort of programming that would benefit from the increased resolution Blu-ray has to offer, quite the opposite is in fact true. This Blu-ray edition simply demolishes the DVD edition in its presentation of the series' inherent grain, not to mention a remarkable increase in visible fine detail, texture, and depth. Band of Brothers Blu-ray, Audio Quality "Band of Brothers" explodes onto Blu-ray with a reference quality track that is so good, it's more of an experience than a listen. Presented via a DTS-HD MA 5.1 lossless mix, there is rarely a dull moment throughout the series' 10+ hour runtime. Obviously, it is the series' intense combat sequences that make up the backbone of the track and offer the most activity throughout the soundstage, but there is also a lighter side to the track, a more subtle, environmental, organic portion that creates a perfectly seamless domain in between those scenes featuring exploding shells and incessant machine gun and rifle fire. Ambient effects spread out nicely across all five channels, allowing even the calmest of scenes to bring a lifelike vitality to the experience. Dialogue reproduction is accurate throughout the series. The track also offers a nice sense of spacing and dimensionality amongst the various sound effects. Take the nighttime engagement as seen through flashbacks in episode five; long distance gun shots feature a nice crack, and a resulting echo works its way across the soundstage as the shot lingers and fades into the night. One can almost feel the origins of each shot, the sense of being in the hectic firefight a very real one. The discs' strength lies in the chaos and commotion of the up-close-and-personal combat as depicted throughout the series. The first gun shots of the series are heard in chapter five of the first episode during training exercises, providing listeners with a preview of what is to come, each shot cracking out with pitch-perfect precision. Audiences will feel the rumble of the aircraft propellors as Allied planes fly towards the coast of France, signaling the beginning of the, in the words of General Eisenhower, "Great Crusade." The track provides a sense of total immersion as the scene places the listener in the belly of the craft. As the German flack explodes around the formation of planes, audiences experience one of the most frightening attack sequences they may ever hear. Soon thereafter, audiences are practically dropped out of the plane and onto the ground below where artillery, machine gun fire, and explosions go off all around the listening area. The beginning of a Naval bombardment off the coast of Normandy the following morning sends shells screaming across the soundstage with an accompanying rumble that must be both heard and felt to be believed. Later in the episode, Easy company's assault on the German 88s firing on the Allies storming the beaches represents one of the sonic high points of the series; the heavy guns pound away as the men approach the position, and the firefight that follows is a true marvel of sound technology, seemingly replicating the combat experience with precision. Leaves, terrain, and trees shatter all around; the thuds of the German MG-42s reverberate throughout the soundstage; grenades and explosives demolish the German guns with excellent power; the sequence leaves audiences everything but deaf. Episode six, "Bastogne," offers perhaps the most thunderous, Earth-shaking hour yet on Blu-ray. The sound of exploding trees amidst the cold, lifeless forrest features deep and tight bass that literally shakes the windows. Artillery shells and gunfire emanate from every corner. An air raid sequence on the town itself in chapter seven features explosions as buildings crumble all around and anti-aircraft fire blasts from every corner, making for a terrifying, realistic experience if ever there was one. Needless to say, "Band of Brothers" offers an exquisite, hard-hitting, yet graceful soundtrack that places audiences in the middle of the action like never before. Band of Brothers Blu-ray, News and Updates• Band of Brothers in Amazon Gold Box - December 14, 2009 Amazon's Gold Box deal-of-the-day is a special offer on the HBO miniseries
'Band of Brothers', which only today can be bought on Blu-ray for just $39.99,
or 60% off MSRP. The price history for this title shows that this is the lowest it
has been since February ... • Today on Blu-ray - November 11th - November 11, 2008 Today is Veteran's Day in the United States - a day to remember those who have sacrificed for the country by serving in its military. Today also marks the release of 'Band of Brothers' on Blu-ray, which is - in my humble opinion - the absolute best World War II ... • Band of Brothers Exclusive Features Announced - August 5, 2008 Warner Home Video in conjunction with HBO have announced the exclusive features that will be found on the upcoming Blu-ray release of 'Band of Brothers', due to hit store shelves on November 11th. In addition to the special features already found on the DVD set, ... Band of Brothers Blu-ray, Forum Discussions
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