Elite Squad Blu-ray

Elite Squad

 (2007)

Action | Crime | Drama | Thriller



Winner of the 2008 Golden Bear at the Berlin Film Festival, Elite Squad presents an astonishing and intimate look at Rio de Janeiro’s vast and intricate web of police corruption. It is 1997 and hundreds of thousands live in Rio’s notorious favelas – the volatile slums on the edge of the city. Drug trafficking militias have complete control within the slums while the police run their criminal enterprises outside. Being an honest cop in this environment makes you a target for both, as new recruits Neto and Matias soon discover.

For more details about Elite Squad on Blu-ray, see the Elite Squad Blu-ray Review

Elite Squad Blu-ray, Video Quality

 


Presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1, encoded with VC-1, and granted a 1080p transfer José Padilha’s Elite Squad arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Optimum Releasing.

Elite Squad arrives on Blu-ray with an impressive transfer where the basics are notably strong. In fact, it is somewhat surprising to see how well it looks in 1080p given the fact that an overwhelming amount of it was shot with a hand-held camera at night. This being said, the color-scheme in Elite Squad is practically impossible to describe accurately – boosted yellows, overflowing into orange and red, are countered with heavy blacks, which during the shooting scenes make it almost impossible to follow all of the action taking place on the screen. Apparently, this is precisely what José Padilha intended so he could accurately recreate the sense of chaos reigning in Rio’s slums. Contrast is equally difficult to describe. During the daylight scenes the film looks sharp and vivid, but during the nighttime scenes the vividness often evolves into a large sea of lush colors imitating a large neon billboard. Add to the mix the jerky motion produced by the hand-held camera and this is the best description I could provide for the, in my opinion, incredibly complex video structure Elite Squad boasts. The actual print, however, is very healthy – it is free of debris, marks, and dirt. Furthermore, I did not detect any disturbing patterns of macroblocking. The only critical note I have pertains to a small amount of video noise, which is mostly noticeable during a few of the indoor scenes. Aside from that, Elite Squad looks very strong. (Note: This is a Region-B “locked” release which you won’t be able to play on your Region-A hardware. You must have a Region-Free, or native Region-B, player).

Elite Squad Blu-ray, Audio Quality

 


This Blu-ray disc contains a Portuguese: DTS-HD MA 5.1 mix and optional English subtitles. Elite Squad packs an enormous amount of action and the DTS-HD MA track certainly treats it right. The chaotic shooting scenes from the slums sound absolutely incredible, and you will be hard-pressed not to recognize how effective the audio is in enhancing the sense of paranoia José Padilha and team opted for. Furthermore, there is a lot of activity in the rear channels (screams, random shots, etc) and those of you with elaborate audio equipments will undoubtedly be pleased with the manner in which the DTS-HD MA mix delivers. The supporting music soundtrack is generally quite convincing as well. Finally, the dialog is clear and very easy to follow. I personally did not detect any hissing, pops, or cracks.

Elite Squad Blu-ray, News and Updates

• Elite Squad Gets Blu-ray Release - November 7, 2008

Elite Squad Blu-ray, Forum Discussions

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