First Blood Blu-ray

First Blood

 (1982)

Action | Drama | Thriller



He never fought a battle he couldn't win. Academy Award-nominee Sylvester Stallone stars as war hero, ex-green Beret John Rambo in the one that started it all! First Blood is an explosive action-thriller that will keep you on the edge of your seat until the final, powerful frame.

For more details about First Blood on Blu-ray, see the First Blood Blu-ray Review

Starring: Sylvester Stallone, Richard Crenna, Brian Dennehy, David Caruso, Jack Starrett
Director: Ted Kotcheff

First Blood Blu-ray, Video Quality

 


First Blood is not a fancy, glossy, bright picture and will never rival the best of the best transfers of the slick and modern action movies, but this 2.35:1, 1080p transfer is solid. This is a rather drab looking film that takes place mostly at night and in a damp forrest. Colors don't overly impress, but there is not a lot of color to be seen in the first place. Shades of dark greens, blacks, and browns permeate the length of the film. This is a rather two-dimensional looking image, but it looks great for its age and compared to the various DVD and VHS versions of the film, this Blu-ray disc is nothing short of brilliant. Blacks are spot-on for the majority of the movie, but here and there they lighten up to a dark gray. Detail is good but not extremely high. The image is neither very sharp nor overly soft. Skin tones look natural. Overall this is a fine presentation of a movie that is 25 years old.

First Blood Blu-ray, Audio Quality

 


Lionsgate presents First Blood with two audio options: a 1.5 Mbps DTS 5.1 track and a 5.1 Dolby Digital EX track that runs at 640 kbps. I sampled both but listened to the DTS track for the majority of the runtime of the movie. This is a loud and aggressive track. Goldsmith's score plays rather subtly and crescendos beautifully several times throughout. It's clear and mesmerizing in how perfectly it complements this film. Bass is aggressive. Explosions sound great and rumble your seat. There is some good use of the surround channels here and there, but for the most part this is a front-heavy mix with good separation of the front channels. My only complaint is that dialogue can sound a bit muddled at times, but it's mostly just fine. Not as rambunctious as modern action soundtracks, First Blood is still a fine example of how good a quarter of a century old track can sound.

First Blood Blu-ray, Forum Discussions

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