Cold Warriors: Wolves and Buffalo Blu-ray

Cold Warriors: Wolves and Buffalo

 (TV) (2013)

Cold Warriors: Wolves and Buffalo Blu-ray offers solid video and great audio in this fan-pleasing Blu-ray release
For thousands of years, wolves have hunted buffalo across the vast North American plains. Although westward settlement of the continent saw the virtual extinction of these vast herds and their eternal predators, this ancient relationship was not lost altogether.

For more about Cold Warriors: Wolves and Buffalo and the Cold Warriors: Wolves and Buffalo Blu-ray release, see the Cold Warriors: Wolves and Buffalo Blu-ray Review

Narrator: JEFF TURNER

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Cold Warriors: Wolves and Buffalo Blu-ray Review

Hate buffalo? Boy howdy, do I have a documentary for you.

Reviewed by Brian Orndorf, April 7, 2013

Although this "Nature" program is titled "Cold Warriors: Wolves and Buffalo," most of the program takes place during the spring and summer seasons, while the production's preference for wolves upsets any promised balance. It's a strange documentary that seeks to understand how the animals work to survive harsh, remote conditions, yet ends up a highlight reel of hunting, following a group of wolves, the Delta Pack, as they figure out how to pick off buffalo calves and maintain nourishment to keep their cubs fed. Those expecting a detailed inspection of wildlife and instinct are bound to be disappointed with the effort, and if you happen to adore the buffalo, I wouldn't recommend a viewing.



Our guide into a vast state park located in Northern Canada is Jeff Turner, noted nature photographer and a man determined to understand the push and pull experience shared by wolves and buffalo. Taking to the skies in a helicopter and into the fields inside a blind, Turner accepts a front row seat to the Circle of Life, observing the Delta Pack relentlessly attack a herd of buffalo, attempting to devour the young and the old as a way to preserve the group during the lean months. While "Cold Warriors" commences in the brutal winter, Turner eventually finds the bulk of his footage in warmer weather, monitoring a routine of hunting and travel to help explore his subject matter.

Cold Warriors: Wolves and Buffalo Blu-ray, Video Quality

 

The AVC encoded image (1.78:1 aspect ratio) presentation provides the basics of a PBS nature special without much in the way of disruptions. A minor amount of banding is present and there's a little pixelation during swift scenes of pursuit. Colors are stable and meaningful, preserving the deep greenery of the landscape, while blood red cuts through as harshly as intended and lavender skies retain their majesty. Fine detail is acceptable for a special that spends much of its run time photographing animals from afar, maintaining textures of fur and naturalistic particulars. Shadow detail is equally communicative, allowing for inspection of deep fur patterns and distances.

Cold Warriors: Wolves and Buffalo Blu-ray, Audio Quality

 

The 5.1 Dolby Digital sound mix presents some sonic expanse to match the visuals, with surrounds primarily arranged to articulate scoring depth and some distant atmospherics. Primary force is carried in the front stage, with Turner's narration acceptably pronounced, though his natural vocal thinness isn't as powerful as a professional voiceover professional. Animal sounds are crisply defined and supported, never overwhelmed by musical efforts. Some low-end is felt with charging buffalo stampedes, but there's little heaviness to the largely composed work.

Cold Warriors: Wolves and Buffalo Blu-ray, Special Features and Extras

 

There are no supplementary features on this disc.

Cold Warriors: Wolves and Buffalo Blu-ray, Overall Score and Recommendation

 

Plenty of buffalo are marked for death in "Cold Warriors," and it's clear Turner sides with the wolves, showing concern for the Delta Pack, while little in the way of sympathy is offered to the buffalo, and those guys take a serious beating during the program. The focal imbalance is off-putting, and the general repetition of "Cold Warriors" grows tiresome. Its cinematographic beauty and message on environmental protection against human intrusion (in this case, the mad dash for Canadian oil) is never in doubt, but the rest of the work comes off uninspired and bizarrely biased.

PBS has announced the Blu-ray release of three nature documentaries due early in the Spring: Life on Fire: Wildlife on the Volcano's Edge on March 26th, Nature: Cold Warriors - Wolves and Buffalo on April 2nd, and Nova: Earth from Space on April 30th.