Blu-Ray Best Of The Best - for discussing releases only

[JP]

I'm writing a Dissertation about animation and how it's mostly gone down the crapper right now, so this sort of stuff is really grating on me.

Interesting!!!

Any particular period or type of animation or just animation in general?

[dvdmike]

I noticed American Psycho, Black Hawk Down, Rising Sun and Black Rain (heard hit or miss on this one) on Blu-Ray today. Is the image quality worth shelling out for these? Are there further re-issues of these movies in the pipeline?

For the Disc no,yes,yes For the movies yes,yes,yes

[Lyris]

I have the US release of American Psycho. The video quality is fairly dreadful I'm afraid, pity because it's one of my favourite comedies. It's so ringy and lacking in detail that all of the actors look as if they've been deep fat fried.

Interesting!!!

Any particular period or type of animation or just animation in general?

Since the 50s, basically. In other words, since it started to go wrong

[GODZOOKI]

Anyone picked up 30 Days of Night yet? Any opinions on the PQ? Mine still has not turned up!

[JP]

Since the 50s, basically. In other words, since it started to go wrong

Lol Bloody critics and reviewers eh?

[dvdmike]

Anyone picked up 30 Days of Night yet? Any opinions on the PQ? Mine still has not turned up!

Its not offically out till the end of Feb the fact that we can get it early is a boon !
Its a new film mastered by Sony should be good

[Lyris]

Yes indeed. Did anyone see VOLVER, by the way? I really liked it.

Video's not the best and, sorry to sound like Nuts magazine, but Penelope Cruz is very cute. I mean, "HAWT"!

[Angry the Clown]

Yes, exactly, and Remy would have been remodelled to look like Patton Oswalt. Oh, and the film would have been called "Ratz"

And be littered with pop culture references and have a 'hip' soundtrack.

As much as I love Aladdin I do consider it chiefly responsible for transitions we've been stuck with in western animation from the 90s to the present day as far as getting a big name star, filling it with pop culture gags and having a well known Jewish comedian playing a wise ass character (though Gottfried's turn as Iago IS brilliant).

(I'm writing a Dissertation about animation and how it's mostly gone down the crapper right now, so this sort of stuff is really grating on me).

I've always admired how Pixar don't attempt to hype the names in their cast like Dreamworks do (Dreamworks let their entire promotions revolve around who's doing the voices). It's rare - and I can only think of select promotions for the first Toy Story and Cars - where a trailer or TV spot made any mention of who was doing the voices in a Pixar film. They've also never gone for names for the sake of the name (even Hanks was on board for Toy Story prior to his first Oscar win). They really are unique in this modern film industry.

I've dug up an old Billy West interview from a couple of years ago that you might enjoy (and may even consider it of some use) where he rips into big name celebrity voice talent in modern animated movies. He's such a gem... http://www.harrisonline.com/audio/billywest06.mp3

[Strider]

currently sitting on Assassination of Jesse James and In the Valley of Elah. Watched Across the Universe the other day and it was really, really impressive.

[dvdmike]

Across is stunning the grain is so sharp and the picture detailed

[Lyris]

Thanks for that Angry, that interview should be of lots of use! Agree totally about Aladdin...

[Jebus]

Watched a few blu-rays this weekend. Last night was TMNT which wasn't a bad film (not great though) and was visually stunning. The scene in the rain was just wonderful! Like I say though, the film is "okay" but I wouldn't watch it again.

But the one I would watch again was Pans Labyrinth which was simply put, a stunning film in every way possible. Audio superb, Video beautiful, Film itself INCREDIBLE. I'd not seen it and now I have it's one of my favourite films of recent times. Just brilliant

[Lyris]

Run Lola Run arrived this morning. I was expecting this one to go badly wrong, but it hasn't. It's just a film source reproduced as well as possible - not always "Knock your socks off" but it looks as good as possible and often, that's very, very good indeed. (I think I spy some Scratch Removal artefacts at 17:28 though, the

->Open Spoiler<-

blind woman's walking cane seems to get mistaken for a film scratch

but I could be wrong).

This is why I trust Sony PHE now. They appear to really know what they're doing with Film. If this had been a Universal disc you can bet it'd have ended up looking like Cat People with DNR and edge enhancement cranked...

Edit: what did I just say... American Gangster on HD DVD arrived too. Film sourced, DNR'd, lowered detail, ugly to look at. Makes this morning's HD DVD news a lot easier to take - Universal better sharpen up when they (hopefully) come to BD.

[Bleeders]

Watched 30 Days of Night over the weekend; not bad PQ-wise, but found the film utterly boring, fell asleep halfway through it and woke up near the end witnessing the

->Open Spoiler<-

piss-poor mock Blade 2 ending

[Lyris]

It could be worse Bleeders, I was going to see that at the cinema but somehow got roped in to seeing Good Luck Chuck instead