Notorious Blu-ray delivers stunning video and audio in this fan-pleasing Blu-ray release
In just a few short years, Notorious B.I.G. rose from the streets of Brooklyn to become one of
the most influential hip hop artists of all time. B.I.G. was a gifted storyteller; his narratives
about violent life on the streets were told with a gritty, objective realism that won him
enormous respect and credibility. His stories were universal and gave a voice to his generation.
The East Coast-West Coast Hip-Hop War of the 1990s cost the lives of two of the genre's most
talented artists -- the West's Tupac Shakur and the East's Notorious B.I.G. Christopher Wallace,
A.K.A. "Biggie Smalls," A.K.A. "Notorious B.I.G.," has left a lasting impression on his fans through
both his impressive vocal talent and his lyrics that express his life, his thoughts, and his dreams.
His life and times now captured on film in a sometimes riveting, sometimes bland, but always
intriguing 2009 film aptly titled Notorious, longtime fans have the opportunity to relive
their hero's rise to the top and untimely demise, while newcomers to the artist's music, life, and
death just might come out of the experience with a new respect for the frailty of life, the meaning
behind the lyrics, and an appreciation for the musical style that both took Biggie to the top and,
ultimately, cost him his life.
Biggie living the high life.
Notorious begins in 1983 Brooklyn where a young Christopher Wallace (Christopher
Wallace, Jr. in his film debut) comes to realize that he must do more than pen his own lyrics if he
is to survive life
on the streets. Despite the attempts of his mother (Angela Bassett, Meet the Browns) to
keep him in school and raise him right, Christopher, by age 17 (Jamal Woolard also in his film
debut), finds
himself knee-deep in the Brooklyn drug scene, dealing for a living and continuing to write lyrics
on the side. What was once a small business run out of his bedroom has become a thriving
enterprise -- until he finds himself under arrest. While in prison, Christopher hones his rapping
and lyric-writing skills, and upon his release, his talent is immediately recognized. Soon
thereafter, Christopher signs a record deal with Producer Sean Combs (Derek Luke, Miracle at St.
Anna), birthing the rapper known as "Notorious B.I.G." and "Biggie Smalls."
Notorious
chronicles the ups and downs of Biggie's life, focusing on his women, his children, his associates,
and the rivalry with the West Coast and rapper Tupcac Shakur (Anthony Mackie, We Are Marshall)
that will ultimately cost Biggie his life.
While Notorious proves to be a highly watchable biopic and serves as a decent primer for
newcomers to the rapper's life, music, and legacy, the film as a whole never manages to rise
above the level of "mediocre." The artist's life and untimely death makes for fascinating material,
but the movie goes about showcasing it rather blandly and without much enthusiasm. Once
Biggie reaches stardom, the movie takes on a generic and tedious feel as it meanders towards the
inevitable. Although Notorious does a decent enough job of portraying Biggie as a
character that most audiences should come to care for, if not even, perhaps, relate to in some
way or another, his death
comes without as much raw emotion as one might expect. It comes both suddenly and
expectedly, though the
former, at least, does both reflect on and speak of the frailty of life. Perhaps it is a case where
the shock is lessened by the anticipation, but the scene fails to elicit as powerful a response as it
should. Angela Bassett provides what
there is of an emotional core, her character remaining strong and loving throughout, and her
reaction to her son's funeral procession that sees the streets lined with thousands of adoring fans
pulls the heartstrings more than any other scene or development in the film.
Notorious, despite a rather bland second half, is well-directed by George Tillman Jr. (Men of Honor). He
allows his stars to shine brightly and with minimal intrusion by shots that take attention away
from the performances and dialogue. Indeed, the performances in Notorious are
generally above-average, with young Christopher Wallace, Jr., Biggie's real-life son, portraying his
father in the film's early segments. Christopher brings talent, enthusiasm, and respect for and
understanding of the material to each of his scenes, the entirety of his performance inspired and
seemingly far beyond his years. As the adult version of Biggie, Jamal Woolard delivers a
contemplative and tough yet also carefree and tender performance. While one's acceptance of
the
performance will likely depend on one's familiarity with the artist's life and work, Woolard
captivates in
most every scene and brings a sense of wonder to the Hip-Hop lifestyle. His performance is
particularly enthralling for newcomers who may know little more than Biggie's face or a beat from
one of his songs; for the
uninitiated, Woolard becomes Biggie, a character that is easy to embrace despite some
questionable life decisions. At worst, audiences will glean from his character and performance a
greater understanding of
the inner-workings of the Hip-Hop lifestyle and maybe even a respect for the man and his music.
Notorious comes to Blu-ray with a high quality 1080p transfer, framed inside a 2.40:1
window. The imagery as presented is consistently sharp and crisp, accompanied by
well-above-average levels of detail in most every scene. Colors, too, are bold. The many shades of
blue, green,
red, orange, and others seen throughout, particularly in the bright and bold clothing, offer strong
clarity and vibrancy, with a natural flair that lends to the movie a good, realistic appearance. The
urban jungle that is 1980s Brooklyn looks fantastic, too, cinematically pure and revealing all the
texture and detail of the bricks, pavement, and other objects seen scattered about the streets. The
film sees several dark, smoky interior shots, and these, too, hold up well under the scrutiny of
1080p. Film grain spikes, deliberately so, here and there, but is generally minimal in appearance
throughout the course of the movie at normal viewing distances. Finally, flesh tones remain stable
and natural throughout. Notorious offers a fine representation of how a movie with plenty
of varied looks can excel on Blu-ray.
Notorious pumps out the beats on Blu-ray with an often stellar DTS-HD MA 5.1 lossless
soundtrack. One might expect a film chronicling the life of one of the world's most famed Hip-Hop
artists to offer tremendous levels of bass, and that assumption is proven correct here.
Notorious packs quite the punch on the low end, and in every scene where bass
accompanies the visuals, the track shines. From the many Hip-Hop beats to the rumbling of an idle
car engine, this track manages to shake the foundation, rattle the windows, and roll the rib cage in
every one of its intense sequences. The track features decent environmental ambience, too; the
sounds of the city at street level or the background ambience in a club or concert hall generally
create a noticeable atmosphere. Dialogue reproduction is also superb. While the track excels in
most every area, there is no doubt that the highlight remains its music and bass. Beats thump out
of the speakers with a great deal of authority and the many concert scenes engulf the listener with
sounds that often "Hypnotize." No doubt about it, Notorious makes for another winning
lossless soundtrack from the potent Fox/Blu-ray combination.
This Blu-ray edition of Notorious features both the theatrical and extended cuts of the
film,
not to mention a long list of bonus materials. First up is a pair of commentary tracks, the first
featuring Director George Tillman, Jr., Co-Screenwriters Reggie Bythewood and Cheo Hodari
Coker,
and Editor Dirk Westervelt. This quartet delivers a passionate track that discusses plenty of
technical details, including the film's accuracy to real-life events. Mixing film-speak and
discussions
of the real-life events, cinephiles and B.I.G. fans alike should enjoy this track. The second track
features Producer/Biggie's Mom Voletta Wallace, Producer/Biggie's Co-Manager Wayne Barrow,
and
Producer/Biggie's Co-Manager Mark Pitts. A more personal track, Ms. Wallace provides an
insightful
and heartfelt commentary while the other two participants discuss more in the way of technical
background on the film and the characters and events depicted therein. The Music is a
pop-up track that displays trivia during each song
heard in the film and even allows users to create a playlist to purchase through iTunes.
Life After Death: The Making of 'Notorious' is a BonusView (Blu-ray profile 1.1)
picture-in-picture feature that takes viewers behind-the-scenes of the story, its characters, and
the film. The segments are also available separate from the movie via a "play all" menu option
(1080p, 26:45). Behind the Scenes: The Making of 'Notorious' (1080p, 27:22) features
an interesting look at the process of assembling the film, beginning with the casting of the title
character and moving
through to how the film came together to find the very essence of the life and times of
Christopher Wallace. I Got a
Story to Tell: The Lyrics of Biggie Smalls (1080i, 9:32) looks at the meaning behind the
words and the man who wrote them. Notorious Thugs: Casting the Film (1080i, 9:05)
examines the casting of the film's additional characters.
Next up, Biggie Boot Camp (1080p, 6:48) looks at the several-month-long program
that prepared the actors for portraying their real-life counterparts. Anatomy of a B.I.G.
Performance (1080p, 5:15) examines how the team brought accuracy to the film through
the study of concert footage. Party & Bulls**t (480p, 3:43) is a recorded performance of
the song as
performed by B.I.G. The B.I.G. Three-Sixty (1080p) allows viewers to more closely
examine the locations and the making of the scenes leading up to Biggie's death. Concluding the
supplements on disc one is a series of ten deleted scenes (1080p, 12:15). Disc two features a
digital copy of Notorious. Replayed on a second-generation iPod touch, the video appears
adequate for a portable presentation, featuring good colors and detail but, again, with heavy
blocking in many scenes. On the audio side, the track pales compared to the lossless soundtrack
and lacks the range and clarity of the Blu-ray, but thumps well enough with strong dialogue
reproduction.
If nothing else, Notorious is likely to leave filmgoers with a desire to learn more about its
title character, though the film also manages to use Biggie's life as a theme on the importance of
understanding and working through differences, living one's dreams, and the frailty of human life.
The film is played
out with plenty of explicit language and adult situations, and is definitely for mature audiences only.
That said, those with an appreciation for the artist depicted in the film, the Hip-Hop culture, or the
history of the East-Coast-West Coast rivalry will get plenty out of the movie, but it also delivers well
enough for newcomers looking for material that may expand their musical (not to mention
cinematic) horizons. Notorious debuts on Blu-ray courtesy of 20th Century Fox with, as
expected of the studio, well above-average results. Featuring near-reference quality video and
audio, not to mention a plethora of bonus materials, Notorious is at least worth a rental for
the curious, and the disc is a must-buy for fans.
20th Century Fox Home Entertainment has announced the technical specs and special features for the upcoming Blu-ray release of 'Notorious: Unrated Director's Cut Collector's Edition', which is due to hit store shelves on April 21st, day-and-date with the DVD release. ...
In an early announcement to retailers, 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment has revealed that they will bring the 'The Wrestler' and 'Notorious' to Blu-ray on April 21st, followed a week later by 'Bride Wars'; all three will be day-and-date with the DVD release. ...
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