The Adventures of Baron Munchausen Blu-ray

The Adventures of Baron Munchausen

 (1989)

Adventure | Comedy | Fantasy



An extraordinary, fantasy filled masterpiece, The Adventures of Baron Munchausen highlights the amazing journeys of Baron Munchausen, who sets sail in a hot air balloon in search of his old comrades-at-arms. In his travels, the Baron journeys to the moon, visits Venus and Vulcan, and lands in the belly of a giant sea monster and that's just the beginning!

For more details about The Adventures of Baron Munchausen on Blu-ray, see The Adventures of Baron Munchausen Blu-ray Review

Starring: John Neville, Eric Idle, Sarah Polley, Jonathan Pryce, Uma Thurman
Director: Terry Gilliam

The Adventures of Baron Munchausen Blu-ray, Video Quality

 


Sony has pulled The Adventures of Baron Munchausen out of their vault and presented this 1.85:1 framed film in a splendid 1080p transfer. While the presentation cannot hide all of the film's warts, it does bring out the best elements of the look of the film, and the end result is a pleasant, satisfactory, though not eye-popping transfer. This is a fairly colorful film, and all the various shades look fantastic, the red of the Baron's jacket the most obvious of all. The film appears rather grim, bleak, and somewhat dark at first, most of it taking place inside the dank playhouse. Once the Baron begins recounting his journey, the quality improves and the image becomes much more lively, colorful, clean, and clear. The print shows some wear on occasion, as black splotches pop up every so often. Grain is present throughout, and can get rather heavy at times, particularly in long-distance and special effects scenes (see a long-distance shot of the balloon going to the moon, or a close-up of the detached heads of the King and Queen of the Moon). While these scenes do not look "good," this is nothing more than the result of the limitations of the technology at the time showing up here, and the disc represents what was available to the filmmakers back in 1988, and I much prefer the original, "bad" look as opposed to a digitally cleaned-up version. It retains a certain amount of charm that fits into the story and more importantly, blends with the look and feel of the rest of the film. Black levels are excellent. Check out the scene where the Baron and Sally arrive on the moon, or any scene on the moon for that matter. The image can be fairly clear and detailed; one scene that stood out as especially pleasing was one where our heroes are in the water in chapter twelve. Both the characters and the water itself look remarkably clean and bright. The Adventures of Baron Munchausen definitely benefits from a high definition transfer, and the end result should easily satisfy fans. Sony should be proud of their effort on this disc.

The Adventures of Baron Munchausen Blu-ray, Audio Quality

 


Presented in a lossless, high-definition Dolby TrueHD 5.1 soundtrack, The Adventures of Baron Munchausen sounds almost as good as it looks. This magical, fine score is clean, clear, and wonderfully reproduced, the orchestra seemingly playing live in the room with you. The battle scene at the beginning is perhaps best described as "forceful," though a bit muffled and antiquated in definition and clarity. It still packs a punch, but lacks the realism of more modern film soundtracks. This mix is very loud and there is quite a bit going on, and the surrounds remain active throughout much of the film. Similar to Commando, it sounds good for its age and original source. In one early scene, when the Baron sends Berthold to retrieve the wine, quite the ruckus erupts in the listening area, filling the room with loud and powerful sound, somewhat muffled and undefined (like the rest of the track), but proved for a fun listen nevertheless. Some parts of the movie sound like something you would hear in a circus, which makes sense given the look and theme of the movie, and the ridiculousness of the proceedings. Some of Sally’s screams pierce your ears and rattle the ear drums; they are very high-pitched and somewhat obnoxious. The music played at the start of the moon sequence is appropriately bass-y and haunting, and once they arrive in "town," the track livens up with the sounds of celebration and cheer, encompassing the viewer, albeit briefly. Dialogue reproduction caused me no issues as it emanated clearly and distinctly from the center channel. The track makes for an enjoyable aural experience, and once again Sony has done a masterful job bringing this soundtrack into the 21st, lossless audio century.

The Adventures of Baron Munchausen Blu-ray, News and Updates

• Choose Cover for Baron Munchausen Blu-ray Release - December 25, 2007


• The Adventures of Baron Munchausen Announced - December 18, 2007

The Adventures of Baron Munchausen Blu-ray, Forum Discussions

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