GoodFellas Blu-ray

GoodFellas

 (1990)

Biography | Crime | Drama



From Nicholas Pileggi's true-life bestseller Wiseguy, GoodFellas explores the criminal life like no other movie. Directed and co-written by Martin Scorsese, it was judged 1990's Best Picture by the New York, Los Angeles and National Society of Film Critics and named to the American Film Institute's Top-100 American Film List. Electrifying performances abound, and from a standout cast that includes Robert De Niro, Ray Liotta, Lorraine Bracco and Paul Sorvino. Joe Pesci walked off with the Best Supporting Actor Academy Award. It "bristles with passion, wit and style" and endures as "an American classic" (Peter Travers, Rolling Stone).

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

Starring: Robert De Niro, Ray Liotta, Joe Pesci, Lorraine Bracco, Paul Sorvino
Director: Martin Scorsese

GoodFellas Blu-ray, Video Quality

 


As far back as I can remember, I always wanted GoodFellas to have good picture quality. Previously released versions did not. All VHS and DVD releases and TV broadcasts of this film appeared dark and lacking in dynamics and detail. The most recently remastered DVD was a marked improvement. But being NTSC, it lacked adequate resolution. Warner's Blu-ray disc features a VC-1 codec and 1080p that, while not reference quality and still a bit dark, is an absolute revelation. I was mesmerized by the detail in faces, fabrics and set design that was all but invisible in previous versions.

Scorcese made use of still frames where he would highlight action with a frozen scene. In these moments, the scope of the improved resolution is made abundantly clear. One good example of a freeze frame is the night shot as the young Henry Hill runs from exploding cars, the level of detail and depth is quite astonishing. The image shows overwhelming contrast, yet it is not oversaturated or smeared. In motion video, the improvement is even more enjoyable, as the full impact of characters' movements and facial expressions is communicated with far greater resolution than NTSC could render.

Throughout the film, black level and contrast ratio are excellent. What strikes me most, though, is the detail and lifelike color that is unmarred by smearing or stepping. Previous versions look like bad notch filters are used. Now that is replaced with a film-like clarity with small grain and excellent depth. As mentioned earlier, the overall tone may be a tad dark, but I suspect the source material would show a similar color balance. The overall effect of the 1080p Blu-ray presentation is to fully update the look of GoodFellas, bringing it into the 21st century and the age of high definition video.

GoodFellas Blu-ray, Audio Quality

 


With its Dolby Digital 5.1 track, the Blu-ray disc was not among the greatest examples of the format's audio performance. Nevertheless, the soundstage was strong, with good clarity and presence in the voices and ample use of the surrounds and LFE channel. Some sound effects, such as footsteps and closing car doors, were startlingly realistic. Others were not as palpable.

One of the signatures of GoodFellas is its soundtrack, which features many well-known hits, spanning the '50s through the '80s. It is heavily weighted toward the earlier recordings, with such classics as Rags to Riches (Tony Bennett), Sincerely (The Moonglows), Speedo (The Cadillacs), Life Is But a Dream (The Harptones) and Beyond the Sea (Bobby Darin). The stereophonics is good, but the music lacks adequate "wow-factor" resolution, making it sufficient for background. When the music comes more to the foreground, however, on later tracks like Sunshine of Your Love (Cream) and Layla (Derek and the Dominos), it is missing the additional musical information that lossless PCM can provide. Still, the DD track's ability to resolve such sounds as squealing tires, gunshots and car engines is quite impressive.

GoodFellas Blu-ray, News and Updates

• GoodFellas 20th Anniversary Blu-ray Recycles 3-Year-Old Disc - February 1, 2010


• Lightning Deal: Watchmen Nite Owl Edition $50, GoodFellas $10 (De... - November 17, 2009

GoodFellas Blu-ray, Forum Discussions

Topic

Replies

Last post

» Show more forum threads