United States 
|
|
|||
|
||||
|
Most Popular Blu-ray Deals at Amazon
|
Show latest price drops |
 $19.99 |  $16.99 |  $24.99 |  $15.99 |  $19.99 |  $9.49 |  $19.99 |  $9.49 |  $15.49 |  $45.49 |  $16.99 |  $7.99 |  $16.99 |  $11.99 |  $19.99 |
|
|
|
United States
|
|
|||
|
||||
|
Most Popular Blu-ray Deals at Amazon
|
Show latest price drops |
$19.99 | $16.99 | $24.99 | $15.99 | $19.99 | $9.49 | $19.99 | $9.49 | $15.49 | $45.49 | $16.99 | $7.99 | $16.99 | $11.99 | $19.99 |
|
|
|
Halloween Starter Pack Blu-ray
The Thing / Dawn of the Dead / Land of the DeadUniversal Studios | Not rated | Sep 30, 2008
Halloween Starter PackHorror | Sci-Fi     For more details about Halloween Starter Pack on Blu-ray, see the Halloween Starter Pack Blu-ray Review Halloween Starter Pack Blu-ray, Video Quality  The Thing Rating: 4/5 The Thing infests Blu-ray with a fine-looking 1080p, 2.35:1-framed transfer. Obviously, The Thing has never looked better on home video than it does here. The film's open, featuring a background of white arctic snow contrasted against a bright daytime sky, is pure in its presentation and a pleasure to behold, particularly for those who have seen the film countless times before. Still, there is some noticeable noise against some of the brightest backdrops that may bother viewers looking for the smoothest picture available, but it peaks in such scenes and is never very noticeable through the rest of the film. Colors are somewhat dull, a reflection of the nature of the movie and not a shortcoming of the transfer. Colors look fine, however, every shade rendered very well in the context of the film, with the brighter, outdoor, snowy scenes showing a bit more depth and vibrancy than the dim interiors. Black levels are fairly good. Flesh tones are accurate, if not a bit pale, but considering the cold, unforgiving temperature, that's to be expected. What makes the disc look so good is the detail inside the compound. It's rather drab and colorless, but it looks worn and beat up, old and lived in, cold and lifeless, and every little nuance shines through, a tribute to the wonderful set design in the film. Sure, it's pedestrian, but it is meant to be, and it's stunning on this disc. Detail is increased considerably over the previous DVD edition in every regard. The Thing boasts a fine transfer that offers quite the upgrade from previous standard definition versions. Dawn of the Dead Rating: 3.5/5 Dawn of the Dead infests Blu-ray with a 1080p, 2.35:1-framed transfer. Detail is excellent in many scenes and the transfer often conveys a sharp, crisp image that pops right off the screen. Black levels are decent, if not a bit crushed, however. Dawn of the Dead features a distinctive color palette; the interior mall shots are sometimes a cold, somber shade of green, but the film takes on many other tones, too, from bright, natural exteriors to dim basements and garages, all running the gamut of visual styles. The film oftentimes alters drastically in its visual conveyance of the story. From scenes exhibiting extreme amounts of noise in dark, poorly lit locales, to bright, clean, eye-catching scenery that is nothing short of amazing, the film manages to keep viewers interested to see what sort of visual cues the film will take on next. There is sort of a processed, artificial look to much of the film which stays true to its intended look. The clean, steely look of the mall comes through fine, with plenty of eye-catching detail to be found. Grain and noise is seen aplenty, particularly over bright whites, and while some shots are clean, others are caked in speckles and other blemishes. Dawn of the Dead is a frustrating transfer at best; its wide array of color schemes, locales, and textures sometimes translate well to high definition, and other times make for a fairly nondescript experience. With its greater attention to detail, however, the transfer is still a solid step up from the standard definition DVD. Land of the Dead Rating: 4/5 Land of the Dead bites into Blu-ray with a solid 1080p, 2.35:1-framed transfer. Colors are excellent throughout the film, and even in the dark, bathed-in-blue sequences that open the movie, they stand out as natural under any lighting condition. Black levels are superb in most scenes, but a few shots show a hint of gray in the darkest areas. Detail is very good in most every shot. The wear and tear on the vehicles, particularly Dead Reckoning, shines through. The gore, in classic Romero style, looks fantastic as every severed limb, ripped chunk of flesh, exposed innards, decapitated heads, and drop of blood are clearly revealed in many shots throughout the movie. Grain spikes in a few scenes; otherwise, it's not present in abundance. Flesh tones veer to the red side of the spectrum and appear somewhat unnatural. Despite being drenched in darkness, the image has quite a bit of depth and many scenes jump off the screen. The interior of Kaufman's penthouse apartment is rich and lifelike with solid colors and realistic textures. Land of the Dead won't be nominated for year's best transfer, even if the contest was only between other Universal titles, but the transfer holds its own and, through its dark style, holds its own nicely. Halloween Starter Pack Blu-ray, Audio Quality  The Thing Rating: 4/5 They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, and one might imagine that the film's title creature would agree. In this case, however, Universal's lossless DTS-HD MA 5.1 soundtrack is not simply a lossy imitation -- it's the full thing, The Thing exactly as it was meant to be heard. Whether he writes the music or not, Carpenter's films always feature standout soundtracks, and The Thing is certainly no exception. As expected, it's never sounded fuller and more robust than it does here. The music that plays over the credit sequence to start the movie is clean and precise, with a constant low frequency pulse that sets a most foreboding tone. Then, a flying saucer sweeps past and hurtles toward Earth in a scene that would later be replicated to begin the Arnold Schwarzenegger Action classic Predator. The opening scene in Antarctica, following a chopper and a shooter chasing a dog from above, features the sound of the rotors spinning all around when the camera is placed in or near the chopper. Gun shots crackle precisely in each speaker, the result of great sound design. The entire sequence -- featuring not only the chopper and gun shots but a few explosions -- sounds far better than it has before. One scene that stood out was a rather simple one, and a fairly nondescript one at that. There is often an appreciable atmosphere created in the soundtrack as the harsh, chilled arctic breeze is generally heard blowing around the room, mostly over the front soundstage, but to very good effect nevertheless. It's just one small part of the track that adds to the overall feeling of realism. The film's action sequences also shine. The shrieks of the creature, the power of the flame thrower, and the various audible accompaniments that enhance the special effects are all integrated into the soundtrack with nary a hiccup. Dialogue reproduction never falters throughout. The Thing does not offer an expansive, rich sonic experience as one might expect from the latest summer blockbuster, but taking all things into account, the film has never sounded better at home. Dawn of the Dead Rating: 4.5/5 As with most other Universal Blu-ray titles on the market at the time of this publication, Dawn of the Dead is an absolute blast to listen to, offering listeners a captivating DTS-HD MA 5.1 lossless soundtrack. Dialogue seems a bit low in volume at the beginning of the film, but no such anomalies were noticed once the film gets going full-steam. The volume of sound effects is plenty loud, however, offering listeners an entertaining sonic siege on the aural senses. Surrounds are present and accounted for in nearly every scene. This track is a continuous bombardment of horror action, and it never shies away from exploding into a symphony of well-placed and expertly rendered sound. Bass is thunderous, providing a powerful workout for the subwoofer, through both sound effects and the film's dark, deep, and harrowing score. Guns shots ring out loud and powerful with fine imaging and directionality, sounding full and fairly realistic. The track often creates an immersive 360-degree sound field that draws listeners into the film. Atmospherics are excellent. Music finds its way into the back channels and spreads nicely across the front. The soundstage also takes on an expansive feel as voices echo through the empty chambers of the mall, a great example being a dialogue scene in chapter 14. Dawn of the Dead hits all the right notes, and for a movie primed for a great soundtrack, this one does not disappoint. Land of the Dead Rating: 5/5 Offering listeners a DTS-HD MA 5.1 lossless soundtrack, Land of the Dead brings its horrifying world to glorious life. The sound is rich, full, and immersive, and right from the dread-inducing score over the opening credits, which floods the soundstage with creepy notes and atmospherics, listeners will surmise that they're in for quite the treat. Excellent, rumbling bass accompanies the soundtrack and is palpable in a wide variety of sequences. Surrounds are used effectively and naturally to create a terrifying atmosphere of music and sound effects. Bass-heavy beats fill the soundstage, motorcycles drive to and fro around the listening area, fireworks explode and pop all around, gunfire emerges from every speaker, and splattering corpses and blood smack the pavement with nasty precision. The soundtrack also features some hard-hitting hip-hop numbers playing over one sequence of the film in chapter eight that pulsates and pounds away with clarity and excellent fidelity. Dialogue reproduction is clean and crisp with no volume anomalies to report. This is one loud, tough-as-nails soundtrack that is reference material through and through. It gets the blood flowing and makes the movie all the more enjoyable. Halloween Starter Pack Blu-ray, News and Updates• Today on Blu-ray - September 30th - September 30, 2008 Today marks the beginning of the fourth quarter in retail sales, a time where manufacturers, content providers, and retailers join together in order to provide the largest variety of titles and hardware in anticipation of the holiday gift-buying season. How appropriate ... Halloween Starter Pack Blu-ray, Forum Discussions
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
This web site is not affiliated with the Blu-ray Disc Association. All trademarks are the property of the respective trademark owners. © 2002-2009 Blu-ray.com. All rights reserved. Registration problems | Business Inquiries | Legal Notices |
