OVER THE WEEKEND...
3db Audioholic Slumlord Jul 18, 2025 #8,127 Yesterday's movie selection The American (2010) ⭐ 6.3 | Crime, Drama, Thriller 1h 45m | R www.imdb.com
Yesterday's movie selection The American (2010) ⭐ 6.3 | Crime, Drama, Thriller 1h 45m | R www.imdb.com
3db Audioholic Slumlord Saturday at 12:05 PM #8,130 I watched this on 4K disc last night. Captain America: Brave New World (2025) ⭐ 5.6 | Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi 1h 58m | PG-13 www.imdb.com
I watched this on 4K disc last night. Captain America: Brave New World (2025) ⭐ 5.6 | Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi 1h 58m | PG-13 www.imdb.com
Kaskade89052 Audioholic Samurai Yesterday at 5:01 PM #8,131 Over the past week or so... At least this contained the footage removed, apparently, from the Shout Select 4K recently released...
Over the past week or so... At least this contained the footage removed, apparently, from the Shout Select 4K recently released...
Kaskade89052 Audioholic Samurai Yesterday at 5:02 PM #8,133 Being very fond of this film, I was excited to get it in as a rental in 4K (I already own the Theatrical Cut via Paramount's original anamorphic DVD). Watching the Theatrical Cut: Right off the bat, Arrow's video transfer was a bit brighter in certain areas, somewhat the same compared to the DVD in others (I never saw the Director's Cut Blu-ray, as I cannot stand that version of the film); I expected the opening Wonder Wheel sequence in Coney Island (a place I've been to many times as a youngster growing up in NY) to visually blow me through the wall with the vibrant colors, but this was surprisingly subdued and very similar to the DVD. As that opening scene resolves and just before "Cleon" makes his first speech to the Warriors about going to the conclave, the image was just as noisy and unstable as on the DVD, and this was probably due to film stock condition. After that, it cleared up but still showed softness and some other problems in the same areas I remember; some colors really begin to pop here and there, such as the flashing red and blues of the police cars and the blood on Ajax's face, but all in all (to me) it wasn't a night and day difference over the SD presentation. What DID impress me was the way some of the details were just off the charts in terms of closeups and certain elements -- for example, when the camera zooms in on the faces of the some of the gang members, you could actually make out the purple/red acne scarring (as they're supposed to be young) and the redness around their eyes after some of the fighting they engaged in. Watching the DVD the very next night to compare, this is sort of lost with the SD resolution. As for the audio -- I ran the Dolby Atmos track, which was dumbed down on my system to the TrueHD core, and it really did nothing for me. In fact, I even mentioned to my wife that the mono mix on the DVD seemed more appropriate for the film, and it was also considerably louder than the TrueHD track. From the very beginning, Barry D.V.'s thumping synthesized score was somewhat muted, even though it was now spread to the left and right mains, and the whole mix needed volume goosing throughout. However, it was nice to finally watch this film with a surround mix after all the years I've watched it on the DVD with the 2.0 mono track (I used to own the Director's Cut on DVD, and this contained a remixed Dolby Digital 5.1 track, but I quickly sold it because I hated that version, as I said); it was cool to hear the roar of the gangs during Cyrus' speech in the beginning, bellowing from the surround channels, as well as some effective elements like a helicopter flyover during the graveyard scene early on. The biggest problem with the audio was that it seemed "hollow" in nature, not really packing much punch of any kind (and I don't run any room correction in my AVR), and while some may argue it's because I wasn't actually HEARING the Atmos audio, I reject that, because the TrueHD is the same basic signal without the overhead cues. It just didn't wow me all that much, and I felt like this is one of those rare (for me) older films that just work better with its original mono audio scheme. I also noted a couple of moments where they seemed to be some dialogue steering errors, such as when a character was speaking or yelling and it should have come from the center position, but instead bled to the left and right mains (I believe this happened during the end fight scene with the Warriors and the guys in the bathroom, when "Mercy" begins shouting). Considering a purchase down the line, perhaps... DISC 1 (THEATRICAL CUT)
Being very fond of this film, I was excited to get it in as a rental in 4K (I already own the Theatrical Cut via Paramount's original anamorphic DVD). Watching the Theatrical Cut: Right off the bat, Arrow's video transfer was a bit brighter in certain areas, somewhat the same compared to the DVD in others (I never saw the Director's Cut Blu-ray, as I cannot stand that version of the film); I expected the opening Wonder Wheel sequence in Coney Island (a place I've been to many times as a youngster growing up in NY) to visually blow me through the wall with the vibrant colors, but this was surprisingly subdued and very similar to the DVD. As that opening scene resolves and just before "Cleon" makes his first speech to the Warriors about going to the conclave, the image was just as noisy and unstable as on the DVD, and this was probably due to film stock condition. After that, it cleared up but still showed softness and some other problems in the same areas I remember; some colors really begin to pop here and there, such as the flashing red and blues of the police cars and the blood on Ajax's face, but all in all (to me) it wasn't a night and day difference over the SD presentation. What DID impress me was the way some of the details were just off the charts in terms of closeups and certain elements -- for example, when the camera zooms in on the faces of the some of the gang members, you could actually make out the purple/red acne scarring (as they're supposed to be young) and the redness around their eyes after some of the fighting they engaged in. Watching the DVD the very next night to compare, this is sort of lost with the SD resolution. As for the audio -- I ran the Dolby Atmos track, which was dumbed down on my system to the TrueHD core, and it really did nothing for me. In fact, I even mentioned to my wife that the mono mix on the DVD seemed more appropriate for the film, and it was also considerably louder than the TrueHD track. From the very beginning, Barry D.V.'s thumping synthesized score was somewhat muted, even though it was now spread to the left and right mains, and the whole mix needed volume goosing throughout. However, it was nice to finally watch this film with a surround mix after all the years I've watched it on the DVD with the 2.0 mono track (I used to own the Director's Cut on DVD, and this contained a remixed Dolby Digital 5.1 track, but I quickly sold it because I hated that version, as I said); it was cool to hear the roar of the gangs during Cyrus' speech in the beginning, bellowing from the surround channels, as well as some effective elements like a helicopter flyover during the graveyard scene early on. The biggest problem with the audio was that it seemed "hollow" in nature, not really packing much punch of any kind (and I don't run any room correction in my AVR), and while some may argue it's because I wasn't actually HEARING the Atmos audio, I reject that, because the TrueHD is the same basic signal without the overhead cues. It just didn't wow me all that much, and I felt like this is one of those rare (for me) older films that just work better with its original mono audio scheme. I also noted a couple of moments where they seemed to be some dialogue steering errors, such as when a character was speaking or yelling and it should have come from the center position, but instead bled to the left and right mains (I believe this happened during the end fight scene with the Warriors and the guys in the bathroom, when "Mercy" begins shouting). Considering a purchase down the line, perhaps... DISC 1 (THEATRICAL CUT)
Kaskade89052 Audioholic Samurai Yesterday at 5:03 PM #8,134 RIP Bruce...viewed in honor of the anniversary of the legend's passing.
Kaskade89052 Audioholic Samurai Yesterday at 5:08 PM #8,137 Gearing up to see the new one in theaters, God help me...
