James Bond Blu-ray Collection: Volume 2 Blu-ray

James Bond Blu-ray Collection: Volume 2

Action | Adventure | Thriller



This Blu-ray release includes the following titles, see individual titles for specs and details:

From Russia with Love Blu-ray    James Bond Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer | 1963 | 110 mins | Rated G | Oct 21, 2008 Secret agent James Bond battles the all-enveloping tentacles of an international crime syndicate called SPECTRE. The organization's mad plan for world supremacy unfolds with the icy efficiency of a chessmaster's complex... Action / Adventure / Romance / Thriller

Thunderball Blu-ray    James Bond Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer | 1965 | 130 mins | Rated G | Oct 21, 2008 In a bold and deadly scheme, the evil SPECTRE organization hijacks a NATO plane and seizes two atomic warheads, each capable of killing millions of innocent people. As the world is held hostage by the threat of a nuclear... Action / Adventure / Crime / Thriller

For Your Eyes Only Blu-ray    James Bond Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer | 1981 | 127 mins | Rated PG | Oct 21, 2008 Roger Moore makes his fifth appearance as 007 in this, the twelfth Bond film. In this outing, the renowned British double agent must locate a weapons system known as ATAC, which controls Great Britain's submarines, after it... Action / Adventure / Thriller

For more details about James Bond Blu-ray Collection: Volume 2 on Blu-ray, see the James Bond Blu-ray Collection: Volume 2 Blu-ray Review

James Bond Blu-ray Collection: Volume 2 Blu-ray, Video Quality

 



From Russia with Love

Encoded with the AVC Mpeg-4 compression codec, framed at the film’s original aspect ratio of 1.66:1 and presented in full 1080p, From Russia With Love makes its high definition debut in a stunning Blu-ray package of incredible quality. For a 46 year old film, the folks over at MGM and Lowry Digital Images have done a remarkable job cleaning up the film and removing any annoying print damage. The film looks fresh and ready for action.

Some might notice a few slight instances of edge enhancement on From Russia With Love; fortunately, this occurs rarely and is barely noticeable. Otherwise, the transfer features black levels and contrast fitting a picture of 60s origin, a remarkable level of detail, vivid, if slightly dated, color reproduction and an absolute absence of additional digital artifacts and anomalies. I’ve never seen From Russia With Love look anywhere near this good; Bond fans are going to be in heaven with this excellent Blu-ray release. Highly recommended.

Thunderball

MGM has given Thunderball the royal treatment on Blu-ray. The film was restored using the Lowry grain reduction / restoration process and looks truly fantastic. Thunderball is presented in its original theatrical aspect ratio of 2.35:1 and it’s worth noting that this is the first of the Bond films to be filmed in this widescreen format. Unsurprisingly, MGM has opted for a Mpeg-4 / AVC high bitrate encode in full 1080p as well. For a 43 year old film, Thunderball looks spectacular. I was amazed at the level of detail and contrast the image displayed. There are a few flaws that are apparent from the source, but the encoding is virtually flawless.



Thunderball displays a few anomalies befitting a film of its age. There is an occasional amount of flicker present that comes across the lower left quarter of the picture. In addition, there are also a few instances of lessened contrast and color density probably resulting from damaged film elements. Make no mistake, these are very slight issues and don’t detract from the enjoyment of this 43 year old film in any way. The source is also amazingly clean and free of any distracting compression artifacts. Ultimately, Thunderball has probably never looked this good and it has certainly never been presented for home viewing in anything approaching the quality of this set. Highly recommended!

For Your Eyes Only

Generally speaking, films of the early 1980s aren't revered for their fantastic image quality. Perhaps a series of uninspiring film stocks are to blame; perhaps it's just the aesthetic of the time that seems uninspired in retrospect. Whatever the reason, For Your Eyes Only suffers from that same boring and bland early 80s filming stye that manages to neither inspire nor impress. One certainly can't blame the folks at MGM; they've delivered the film in an uncompromising manner using the AVC Mpeg-4 compression codec at full 1080p, while retaining the film's original theatrical aspect ratio of 1.85:1.

For Your Eyes Only looks pretty darn boring; colors are flat and washed out, black levels and contrast are weak and detail isn't particularly impressive. There's a certain pastel quality to the entire film that comes across as amateurish and stylistically dated. However, it's safe to say that the film looks exactly like it should; artifacts are not an issue and the film's grain remains intact and appropriate. What's left, is an image that while accurate, fails to impress. Chalk this one up to style, folks.

James Bond Blu-ray Collection: Volume 2 Blu-ray, Audio Quality

 



From Russia with Love

Much like the other classic Bond releases from MGM, From Russia With Love has been given a spruced-up surround sound mix in lossless 5.1 DTS-Master Audio. It’s an involving track with plenty of surround activity and excellent use of rear directional effects, but does often show the limits of the sound recording equipment used in the 1960. Viewers will often hear a slight hissing sound during the film’s quieter moments, while many of the action effects have a slightly metallic and clunky sound to them.

I wouldn’t classify any of these issues as problems, however. From Russia With Love is a 46 year old film at this point; there are going to be limitations to any material of such an advanced age. I am, however, impressed with how much mileage the sound designers were able to squeeze out of these antiquated tracks. Dialogue is mostly intelligible, with very few passages that sound less than ideal. The film’s score is also well represented and sounds as though it could have been recorded yesterday. While From Russia With Love isn’t going to challenge the likes of Transformers or Black Hawk Down in the sound department, it is a remarkable remaster that provides a well-updated surround experience. Recommended.

Thunderball

In an effort to pump up the audio for Thunderball to a level worthy of the film’s video restoration, MGM has graced the film with a superlative DTS HD-Master Audio lossless 5.1 soundtrack. Again, they’ve done a masterful job of making a 43 year old film feel fresh and new. As with the video, there are times during the audio presentation where the technology of 1965 imparts its limitations on this modern mix, but for the most part, the experience is involving and spectacular.

Thunderball has been carefully remixed for 5.1 and the results are often remarkable. The film’s score sounds as crisp and clear as one recorded yesterday while directional effects and surround usage is tastefully employed. Dialogue is crisp and clear, but occasionally has a tinny and slightly muffled sound. This issue is relatively minor with only a few passages in the film affected. Despite this one flaw, Thunderball has been brought to Blu-ray with a teriffic sound mix that does an excellent job of updating the film for the modern home theater. Highly recommended!

For Your Eyes Only

By the time For Your Eyes Only was released in 1981, film soundtracks had changed a great deal from the predominantly mono affairs of the 1970s. Surround sound had found wider use through the popularity of Star Wars, but someone apparently forgot to notify the powers that be at EON productions. Having seen For Your Eyes Only on DVD, Laserdisc and VHS, it was clear to me that the film needed some serious work to sound even remotely up-to-date for this Blu-ray release. Thankfully, MGM has breathed new life into the film by completely remixing the film's archaic soundtrack and presenting it in glorious 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio. The results are nothing less than astounding.

The most immediately noticeable change comes in the form of increased surround activity and directional effects. There's a palpable sense of atmosphere in For Your Eyes Only that hasn't been present on any previous home video release. Dialogue also benefits from this remixing job; voices, while rooted in the center channel, manage to sound more cohesive and free from distortion. The film's score is also presented in a manner that balances the music more effectively with the film's many action sequences. Now, I don't think anyone is going to mistake what is presented on this Blu-ray with a contemporary action soundtrack, but the results are so massively improved, that I doubt anyone will complain. Highly recommended!

James Bond Blu-ray Collection: Volume 2 Blu-ray, News and Updates

• Amazon Deal of the Day: Bond BD Three-Packs $29.99 Each - September 25, 2009


• James Bond Blu-ray Releases Get Detailed - July 29, 2008

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