Blu-ray Movies

May 2012

Lyrical Animation from Studio Ghibli

Disney 108558
Format: Blu-ray, DVD

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Studio Ghibli is to Japan as Disney is to America, so it seems entirely appropriate that Disney started releasing Ghibli animated films in the United States. Until now, most of the Japanese studio's films have been under the thumb of master animator Hayao Miyazaki. The Secret World of Arrietty marks the first time Ghibli has gone out of the gate with a largely different production crew. Hiromasa Yonebayashi directs well for his first feature-length assignment, no doubt tethered to the Ghibli tradition by Miyazaki's poetic screenplay.

Miyazaki and his partner Isao Takahata built a firm foundation for Studio Ghibli and added personnel who are devoted to the studio's style of animation and can execute it with thorough professionalism. The filmmakers do well enough with storytelling, but not on the masterful level of Pixar, or even Disney, for that matter. It is possible, then, that one might remember the look of a Ghibli film more than its characters or content. It's a look that beautifully shows off the HD video format when experienced through Blu-ray Disc.

The Secret World of Arrietty is very loosely based on The Borrowers by Mary Norton. Its focus is on little people who live beneath the floorboards of human houses. Their world looks very much like ours in many ways, and they are called "borrowers" because they borrow items from their unsuspecting human host family that will not be missed: a lump of sugar, spices, thread, needles -- almost any household item that they need. Arrietty (voiced by Mirai Shida in the native Japanese release and Bridgit Mendler in the English-language dub) is a young girl of the little people who lives in such a house with her mother and father. One day a human boy comes to stay in the house, and we learn that he has a heart condition and has been brought to the country to rest and gather energy for his operation. He sees Arrietty and, against convention (and a huge difference in size), the two become friends. Arrietty helps the boy gain emotional strength that will help him through his operation, while she and her family struggle to move to a new location (once seen by a human, the film tells us, the little people have to move on).

Disney has been reluctant to release Ghibli films in the US with their original Japanese soundtracks and subtitles, as we would expect a live-action film to be handled. The studio has instead opted to make English versions with well-known American stars. They have, however, provided the original soundtracks on their Ghibli DVD and Blu-ray Disc releases, as well as the English subtitles needed by most if they watch the movies with the Japanese soundtrack enabled (I am told that often these subtitles are translations of the English dub, not the original Japanese). I'm of a mind that the original Japanese is the way to go. Dearly as I love Carol Burnett and Amy Poehler, they just don't seem right as Japanese characters, and too much subtlety is lost in translation. Both the Japanese and English soundtracks are DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1, so you can choose without sacrificing the overall sound format.

The video is luscious, with all the rich color shadings intact as well as magnificent shadow detail and perfect contrast. Ghibli artists perfectly capture all the subtle shades in one color; their movies are perfect for checking your color saturation. Whether reproducing the dulcet rustling of grass or the boom of thunder, the soundtrack handles everything well, with a good nod to 360-degree atmospheric sounds throughout most of the film. The somewhat curious yet appealing Japanese-Gaelic music sounds just fine. The extras are slim. There's a feature with the original Japanese storyboards, and there are a couple of entirely lame music videos along with the original Japanese trailers.

If you haven't seen a Ghibli Studios film, check this one out. Then hunt for the studio's real masterpieces: Howl's Moving Castle, Porco Rosso, and Spirited Away. These aren't available on Blu-ray yet, but they're pretty sure bets for future releases.

Be sure to watch for: There's a visually delightful scene at almost any point in this visually stimulating movie, but I was particularly taken with one at the end of the film. As Arrietty, her parents, and her friend Spiller are floating down the river in a teapot, Arrietty looks down and sees a fish swimming in unison with them beneath the water. For me that was a moment of pure magic.

. . . Rad Bennett
radb@soundstagenetwork.com

April 2012

An HD Version of the Classic That Launched Abbott and Costello's Career

Universal 61121092
Format: Blu-ray

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Universal Studios is celebrating its 100th anniversary this year by restoring many of its classics and releasing them in handsome Blu-ray book editions. So far we've had Out of Africa, To Kill a Mockingbird, The Big Lebowski, and All Quiet on the Western Front. Now we have Buck Privates, the first movie about the draft and the film that shot Bud Abbott and Lou Costello into superstardom. Though the movie is a comedy, and much of it slapstick, at its core it's emphatically patriotic, and audiences craved a big dose of patriotism after the bombing of Pearl Harbor.

Mostly a series of vignettes that happen after Abbott and Costello are drafted into the army, Buck Privates was a social phenomenon, but taken overall as a movie it's merely very good. That said, it contains some five-star moments. Some of these have to do with Abbott and Costello's word-play classics, such as "Dice Game" and "You're Forty, She's Ten." Some of the slapstick is classic as well, such as the scene where Costello is being drilled with other recruits and can't remember left from right. Some of the biggest moments come from the Andrews Sisters, the popular singing trio that became voices from home during the darkest hours of World War II. The scenes filmed here are among the trio's best, particularly their harmonies in "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy" and "Apple Blossom Time."

Universal's restoration is most impressive. This Blu-ray ranks up there with Casablanca and Criterion's best black-and-white titles. The opening scenes predict what is to come. The movie opens on the street in front of an army recruiting center where there's a big crowd of men, mostly wearing suits (as was the fashion then). You see tweeds, plaids, stripes, and paisley patterns, not to mention the uniforms, both police and military. There's such high definition and perfect contrast that you can sense the texture of each piece of clothing. Throughout the movie you'll find that same excellent definition and contrast, though a few of the scenes in the army camp are a little blurred. The mono sound has been cleaned up so that the dialogue is easily heard without any hiss and the Andrews Sisters sound amazingly clean and clear.

Not all of the extras are interesting. "100 Years of Universal: Unforgettable Characters" is a piece of promotional fluff, but "100 Years of Universal: Restoring the Classics" is worthwhile. We're told in general how the films are restored, and the extra contains the best explanation of grain that I've heard. There's also a pretty interesting, if not deep, extra on Carl Laemmle, the eccentric founder of Universal Studios. Last but not at all least, we find a curious little 1993 documentary (in color except for the film clips), Abbott and Costello Meet Jerry Seinfeld, which has a lot of scatter-shot snippets from Abbott and Costello classics, including their television show.

The Blu-ray book packaging is sturdy, attractive, and substantial, and its pages contain Abbott and Costello bios as well as those of the leading players. There’s also text of two of the famous routines -- "Dice Game" and "Drill." Many pages of the original press book are reproduced, as are a half-dozen or more original posters. You'll either view Buck Privates as dated or as a fascinating trip back to a different time, seen clearly in HD. Take the latter route and spend an enjoyable evening with two of the greatest comics of all time (OK, three if you include Seinfeld, who appears in the extras).

Be sure to watch for: During the opening scenes mentioned above, the camera discovers a large group of men being sold a bill of goods by huckster Abbott. Abbott is in the distance, with the men huddled around him toward the foreground. The Blu-ray definition is so good here that the scene has palpable three-dimensionality.

. . . Rad Bennett
radb@soundstagenetwork.com

April 2012

Everything Falls into Place for the Best Mission Yet

Paramount 14626
Format: Blu-ray, DVD

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The Mission: Impossible franchise, in which Tom Cruise has served as both star and producer, has had its up and downs. Each film has had a different high-profile director, with Brian De Palma, John Woo, and J.J. Abrams helming the first three. For number four we have Brad Bird, and everything has finally clicked. But wait, you might have said (and might still if you didn't see this movie last summer in a theater), doesn't Brad Bird direct cartoons? Well, yes, he has directed some of Pixar Animation Studios' best movies, and this is his first live-action film. Then again, one of those animated features, The Incredibles, is one of the best action-adventure flicks of all time. It just happens to be animated.

With Bird on board and Cruise totally involved as usual, Mission: Impossible -- Ghost Protocol is an action movie that works on all levels. It has big set pieces featuring seemingly impossible daredevil stunts, tension and suspense, exotic locations, and an intense hand-to-hand fight for a finale. In its scope and precision it reminded me a bit of a Bond movie without all the froth, or a Bourne movie with a larger budget.

The plot is simple yet detailed. The team is trying to stop a madman from obtaining codes that will let him hijack a satellite and fire deadly missiles that will rid the earth (in his mind) of pesky human beings. Cruise once again plays Ethan Hunt, and his dynamic team consists of beautiful Jane Carter (Paula Patton), computer geek Benji Dunn (Simon Pegg), and William Brandt (Jeremy Renner). Pegg, who often adds levity at just the right moment, seems set to play for a while in this franchise as well as another one, Star Trek, in which he plays Scotty. The focus in Mission: Impossible -- Ghost Protocol is on Cruise, who certainly earns it with an impassioned, committed, and athletic performance, but Pegg also deserves special mention, as do Patton and Renner.

This movie was a huge hit on the big screen, and it's pretty magnificent on home video. Last week I saw War Horse, which was acclaimed as a demonstration disc, and this one's just about as good, with perhaps better video. Only a few soft interiors knock a half star off the picture rating, but most of the time, especially in outdoor scenes and flyover shots, the picture is incredibly sharp and clear. The sound is big with lots of things going on in the surrounds, though there are suspenseful moments where silence creates tension that's peppered with edgy noises. As a whole, the soundtrack is entirely appropriate for whatever scene it accompanies, as is the score by Michael Giacchino. Everything in this film works together hand in glove.

The extras are contained on a second Blu-ray Disc and divided into several categories: "Mission Accepted" (three featurettes about daily filming and SFX); "Impossible Missions" (shorter featurettes on various aspects of filming, including one on Giacchino and the music); and deleted scenes (with commentary from Bird). There's also a theatrical trailer.

If you have a big screen and a taste for action-adventure films, this Blu-ray is a must to own or rent. It will likely lose a lot on a small screen, so try to see it on a large one -- it's one of the best action films to come along in several years. Your mission, should you choose to accept it: watch it and enjoy.

Be sure to watch for: In chapter 2, during the first big attempted heist of the movie, Carter is in a brick tunnel with a flashlight. Notice the detail of the bricks, the shadow detail, and the contrast, which are all A-plus. This ought to be a good scene for checking your system's resolution and contrast.

. . . Rad Bennett
radb@soundstagenetwork.com

April 2012

A Blockbuster Home-Theater Demo Disc for the Whole Family

Touchstone 109482
Format: Blu-ray, DVD

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War Horse started as a novel for young people by Michael Morpurgo. Nick Stafford then adapted the story for the stage, and we now have this sweeping, romantic film, directed by Steven Spielberg with a script by Lee Hall and Richard Curtis. With its sweeping vistas, large scope, and undiluted sentiment, it seems a tribute to John Ford, particularly the final scene.

As the movie opens we see a colt being born on a hillside in Devon, England. We are then introduced to Albert Narracott (Jeremy Irvine), who names the horse Joey and quickly bonds with him. Times get hard for the Narracotts, and as the World War I begins Joey is sold to the army. The handsome horse starts a journey that takes him to France and the middle of the war, then back to England again. Along the way Joey meets memorable characters who take care of him in their own ways. War is the villain in War Horse, as we're shown good and likable people on both the English and German sides.

The movie is adroitly cast with actors who seem to have lived in their parts as much as their well-worn costumes. Emily Watson is perhaps the best known, but many faces might look familiar. Contributing to the film's authentic feel is the fact that English actors play English characters and Germans play Germans.

The amazing photography of Janusz Kaminski finds its way to Blu-ray Disc looking quite impressive. The opening scenes of the English countryside are colorful in a travel-bureau way; the fields, moors, and quaint cottages and towns look like places you'd want to visit. When the British army gets to Europe, the colors become more muted, and for the grim scenes of battle they become cold, gray, and brown, with little relief. It's a variable setup that suits the action and works magnificently well in underscoring different moods.

The audio is flawless. The surrounds add a lot of atmosphere, and the dialogue is clean and easy to understand. Near the end of the movie there's a battle scene in "no man's land" that has incredibly loud and accurate gunfire, especially that of the howitzers. It was so real that I could imagine acrid gunpowder hanging heavy in the air. My cat took off to his secret hiding place, and that might be a warning to parents with young children. This is a family film, but the intensity of some scenes should be screened in advance. Teens should have no problems.

That hurdle overcome, War Horse proves to be a blockbuster home-theater demonstration title for the whole family. Its anti-war stance can provide good family discussion material, while its sweeping vistas and incredible sound mix will draw everyone in as the story races to a joyous conclusion that will leave your heart in your throat. Experiencing this wonder will have you asking, as I did, why Hollywood stopped making feel-good films like this one.

The four-disc set, which I reviewed, puts the Blu-ray movie on the first disc, the extras on a second Blu-ray disc, a DVD version of the film on the third, and a digital copy on the fourth. The extras pertain to the making of the film, and they're professional in every way. I especially enjoyed the one that shows John Williams conducting his magnificent score.

Be sure to watch for: Scene 11 opens with marching shadows as the camera tilts up to show the soldiers casting them. Spielberg does that often in this film, focusing first on what you might not expect to see and then revealing it as part of something you were expecting.

. . . Rad Bennett
radb@soundstagenetwork.com

March 2012

A Stunning Video Transfer Graces This Criterion Release

The Criterion Collection 7
Format: Blu-ray

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On April 15 of this year, we'll celebrate the 100th anniversary of the sinking of the ocean liner Titanic, a catastrophic event that claimed 1517 lives and changed the way we look at safety on the high seas. Leading up to the anniversary, several major events are planned. James Cameron will host a National Geographic show on April 8 that purports to be the final word on the event. Cameron assembled a prestigious team and invested many man-hours into the effort. At the same time, Cameron will re-release his Academy Award-winning film from 1997 in 3D. On April 14, the anniversary of the Titanic's collision with the iceberg, and April 15, the day it sank, ABC will air a new miniseries.

First at the gate, however, is Criterion's new Blu-ray of the black-and-white classic, A Night to Remember, which will hit stores on March 27. It was first theatrically released in 1958 and is perhaps the most accurate and least romantic telling of the story (of course Cameron's findings might change a lot of that). That's not to say, however, that this film has no feeling -- there are poignant vignettes that stick in the memory, such as a father kissing his sleeping son as he places him in a lifeboat, knowing he himself will stay behind to drown.

The commentary by Don Lynch and Ken Marschall (author and artist of Titanic: An Illustrated History) helpfully points out which parts of the film are accurate and which combine events or rely on supposition. Marschall is a member of Cameron's team, so it will be interesting to see if he has to refute himself once the National Geographic special has aired. It seems clear from his Criterion commentary, recorded in 1994, that he and Lynch felt that much careful research went into making A Night to Remember, and that most sets looked exactly like the real thing.

I personally find it amazing that such an accurate portrayal could be presented without the tools of today. The Titanic used in the movie is a huge model, over 30' long, and there are high-quality special effects. There were no digital assists back then. The acting is superb with a cast taken mostly from a British pool of character actors, but you'll be able to put names to a few faces, such as soon-to-be-Bond-girl Honor Blackman, and David McCallum, who still enjoys a busy professional career playing on today's hit show NCIS. Roy Ward Baker's direction is crisp and well paced, and though we all know the inevitable ending, he builds a keen sense of suspense throughout the film.

Criterion's black-and-white picture for A Night to Remember is about as good as it gets. The picture is sharp and clear, damage has been banished from the frame, and contrast is spot on. Shadow detail is excellent, which is important as so much of the story happens at night (the real event would have been more frightening, as it was a moonless night). The sound has been cleaned up and restored to a clean monaural track that's clear for dialogue and satisfactory for sound effects as well as William Alwyn's music score.

In addition to the excellent commentary, there's a 1993 documentary on making the film, a lengthy interview with survivor Eva Hart, a 1962 Swedish documentary commemorating the 50-year anniversary, and a fascinating BBC documentary (in color) on the iceberg's journey from birth to shipping lanes. There's also a handsome booklet with period art, photos, and an essay by Michael Sragow, a writer for the Baltimore Sun.

James Cameron's film, with its fictional love story, is sweeping and romantic, but I feel that A Night to Remember better conveys the actual event. It makes a wonderful impression in Criterion's stunning edition.

Be sure to watch for: The opening shot of chapter 24 is a close-up of the Titanic’s hull with lifeboats lowering and rowing away. Look for the great moving shadow on the bottom right of the frame and the detail in the ropes lowering the boats.

. . . Rad Bennett
radb@soundstagenetwork.com

March 2012

Cary Grant and Grace Kelly Sizzle on the French Riviera

Paramount 14637
Format: Blu-ray

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During the 1950s, Alfred Hitchcock produced a cornucopia of classic films -- Strangers on a Train (1951), Dial M for Murder (1954), Rear Window (1954), The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956), Vertigo (1958), and North by Northwest (1959), with Psycho and The Birds still to come in the '60s. All of these films are critically acclaimed masterpieces, and smack dab in the middle of this prestigious collection is To Catch a Thief (1955). Though not as great as the others, the movie has its following, largely, I think, because of its two stars: Cary Grant and Grace Kelly.

Grant was coaxed out of self-imposed retirement to play John Robie, a reformed jewel thief who had been a hero for France in World War II and who's now a suspect in a rash of burglaries. Kelly was on her third (and as it turned out, her last) outing with Hitchcock, who had cast her twice before as his ideal blonde heroine. After Kelly went off to become Princess Grace of Monaco, Hitchcock would work with Doris Day, Janet Leigh, Kim Novak, Eva Marie Saint, and Tippi Hedren. They were all very good but never recreated the magic that Hitchcock found in Kelly.

Though Grant was nearly twice as old as Kelly, the two sizzle together in a debonair and elegant manner as a couple with instant chemistry. Since the censors were bent on making this film adhere to code standards, Hitchcock had his way by stuffing it full of sexual innuendos. A film made today will have more nudity and sex, but it will have to strain to be sexier than Grant, Kelly, and fireworks over the Mediterranean.

There are some fine character actors (such as Jessie Royce Landis and John Williams) in To Catch a Thief, but the third star, after Grant and Kelly, is the French Riviera, photographed with loving care by Robert Burks, who won an Oscar for his efforts. I remember this movie as one that justified the high-definition VistaVision process, and seeing the image on a 65" screen in an excellent Blu-ray transfer solidifies that impression. The sweeping outdoor photography is often breathtaking, and the loving close-ups of Kelly are just as impressive in a different way.

The first 20 minutes of this movie have given home video viewers fits because of the moiré patterns caused by Grant's shirt, with its closely spaced horizontal stripes. I'd like to be able to tell you the effect has been cleared up, but such is not the case. The distracting shimmer is still there, though not nearly as pronounced as in earlier VHS and DVD releases.

The sound is Dolby TrueHD in stereo, and it's clean and crisp. A great deal of the movie has no music and is devoted to the smart script by John Michael Hayes, so it's good that dialogue can be easily understood. There are quite a few extras, many of them featuring Hitchcock's daughter, Pat, who sheds light on the making of the movie as well as life at home with Hitchcock as a father. There are more featurettes, as well as a commentary with Hitchcock historian Dr. Drew Casper. My favorite is the 15-minute featurette on Edith Head, the greatest costume designer that Hollywood has ever known.

To Catch a Thief is not quite what you'd expect from "the master of suspense," but it's sassy and smart, always beautiful to look at, and worth seeing for Grant, Kelly, and the Riviera.

Be sure to watch for: Chapter 5 opens with a high-perspective long shot of a huge flower market. The leaves on the trees are clear, a lamp in the foreground is sharply delineated, and a background building, perhaps a quarter mile away, is also well defined. The colorful, postcard-perfect scene has a great sense of depth and is most impressive.

. . . Rad Bennett
radb@soundstagenetwork.com

February 2012

A Literate Film Well Worth Seeing Again

Warner Home Video 21997-1
Format: Blu-ray

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Returning to a film you haven't seen in 25 years can be interesting. Will you enjoy it as much as you once did? In my case, Dangerous Liaisons not only lived up to my expectations; it surpassed them. I remembered the somewhat glib surface, but I'd forgotten (or never noticed) the dark undertone of the script, which dissects the nature of cruelty.

Set in pre-revolutionary France, the movie is based on Christopher Hampton's play, which was in turn based on the novel Les Liaisons dangereuses by Choderlos de Laclos. We're introduced to the two main characters at the beginning of the movie when we see their elaborate daily dressing ritual. The Marquise Isabelle de Merteuil (Glenn Close) and Vicomte Sébastien de Valmont (John Malkovich) were once lovers but now bide their decadent time by destroying the relationships and lives of others. To them it is a game, but we soon learn that their actions are really more sinister and can produce unwarranted tragedy.

Close and Malkovich are ideal in their parts, savoring the delicious verbal barbs given to them, but there are many times when we need nothing more than a close-up of their faces to understand their characters. Michelle Pfeiffer is radiant as the virtuous Madame de Tourvel, who will not at first succumb to the Valmont's advances, and Uma Thurman, just starting in movies, is beguiling as Cécile, who not only gives in to Valmont’s instruction but also learns to enjoy seduction as a way to handle men.

The movie looks splendid in this Blu-ray transfer. Film fans will be happy to see grain and will note that Warner Brothers resisted the temptation to hone the picture with digital enhancement. The sharp detail in the costumes, wigs, lace, and embroidery doesn't need any help. The soundtrack is crisp and clear, involving mainly the front three channels, where dialogue is easy to understand. In the back you'll find only ambience for George Fenton's period-perfect music.

The only extras on this Blu-ray Disc are a trailer and commentary with director Stephen Frears and screenplay author Christopher Hampton. The latter is informative and surprisingly low key. Buy this Blu-ray not for the extras, but for the outstanding performances by Close and Malkovich and for the wickedly subtle script, all of which stand up to repeated viewings.

Be sure to watch for: There's one duel in the movie, but I won't tell you who wins in case you've never seen it. The fight takes place in the snow, and we see the loser from above with his attendant and opponent huddled around him. The flowing clothing is black, the snow is white, and the blood is red. It's an unforgettable scene, beautiful in its depiction of horror, like a death flower blooming in the snow.

. . . Rad Bennett
radb@soundstagenetwork.com

February 2012

An Entertaining, Family-Oriented Demonstration-Calibre Disc

Disney Blu-ray 108140
Format: Blu-ray and DVD

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Lady and the Tramp, Walt Disney's homage to canine friends and a time gone by, actually started with some thoughts in the late '30s and went through many reworkings before its CinemaScope release in 1955. The history of the movie's development unfolds in the very interesting "Classic DVD Bonus Features," which are included on this Blu-ray/DVD set. (I reviewed the two-disc package, but there's also a three-disc set that includes a digital copy.) The master animators and score composer Oliver Wallace made the film breathe the last days of the horse and buggy in Middle America, while Peggy Lee's saucy songs and performances made the movie zing for contemporary audiences. The story appeals to both adults and children, as it flawlessly walks a narrow line in portraying death, pregnancy, and a night of passion. Those ideas might fly over the heads of youngsters, but they'll resonate with older viewers.

We all expect great things from a Disney Blu-ray Diamond Edition, and this one doesn't disappoint. Its picture is perfect. Colors pop, backgrounds have texture and detail not readily visible with DVD editions, the print is undamaged and free of artifacts, and the contrast is spot on for both day and nighttime scenes. The soundtrack is presented in both 7.1 and the original 3.0 version, and both sound better than any past presentation of this movie. The iconic spaghetti scene between Tramp and Lady looks and sounds so wonderful that you'll fall in love with it all over again.

Lady and the Tramp's animation is so smooth and fluid that parents could show it to children as a new film and they might not be any the wiser. They might even have a hard time believing that the whole thing was done without a computer. I find it thoroughly amazing myself.

There are some new extras for the Blu-ray, including a trio of deleted scenes. One of these is from a much earlier time when Lady was supposed to have two neighboring dogs vying for her attention, one a snobbish Russian wolfhound named Boris. Another scene is somewhat bizarre. Tramp cajoles Lady into a vaudeville show starring trained dogs, and Lady gets stuck on the stage with a Parisian chorus line of poodles doing the can-can. The creators were surely right to throw this scene out. It would have been totally jarring within the film, but it's fascinating as an extra. None of the deleted scenes are available in motion; they're all displayed with character and storyboard drawings and accompanied by suitable music and narration.

Lady and the Tramp is a timeless film, especially in this Blu-ray edition, which presents it in an immaculate transfer and augments it with some excellent extras that offer an entertaining exploration of the movie's history.

Be sure to watch for: Chapter 4, in which we meet Tramp, is exceptionally evocative. Tramp is sleeping inside a turned-over barrel, and as he wakes, he yawns and stretches just like a real dog. It looks like it feels so darned satisfying that we can't help feeling good about it. Without a single word of dialogue, Tramp's good-natured, carefree character is established.

. . . Rad Bennett
radb@soundstagenetwork.com

January 2012

Redemption Through HD Robot Boxing

Touchstone Home Entertainment 109012
Format: Blu-ray and DVD

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I wandered into this movie quite by accident. Our power went off in an unusual October snowstorm, so to keep from going nuts I headed for the mall theaters in the next town. When I got there, the only movie that was about to start was Real Steel, so I bought a ticket. I didn't regret it. This film has received a lot of bad press -- some reviews have been downright vitriolic -- but it's actually a great little film in the Disney tradition. Perhaps other critics expected something else, but Real Steel is at its heart a film about redemption and a father bonding with a son he abandoned.

That father is Charlie Kenton (Hugh Jackman), a former middleweight boxing contender. Charlie's career peaked just when boxing was dying due to the rise of robot boxing, which could be more brutal and could better satisfy a crowd. Charlie has become a robot wrangler, trucking his rusted 'bot around to county fairs in the hope of winning a few bucks. At the beginning of the summer season, he finds that his ex-wife has passed away and the courts need to decide the custody of his son, Max (Dakota Goyo). Charlie agrees to turn the boy over to his aunt and her rich sugar-daddy husband, but he has to take care of the boy for the summer.

At first suspicious of each other, the two begin to bond when Max finds an old robot, polishes him up, and enters him in fights. They start to win, and before long they're looking at championship bouts. Jackman and Goyo have terrific chemistry, so the bonding seems entirely natural, maybe inevitable. Yes, the story is sweet, but I didn't find it saccharine and the dramatic robot fights certainly add spice. The filmmakers actually constructed animatronic robots, so much of what you see is puppet manipulation, not CGI. The technique is effective, and it makes the whole idea of robot boxing quite believable.

For the most part, the images are state of the art. Skin tones are accurate and colors are lively without being overdone, while the contrast is close to perfect and shadow detail is abundant. The metallic robot textures are well represented, as are the softer details like the texture of clothing. The soundtrack is both lively and immersive. The rear channels are going most of the time, and in the boxing scenes the crowd seems to be all around the viewer. The music has real heft, yet the overall mix remains transparent and clear.

Extras include a director's commentary from Shawn Levy and a feature called "Second Screen," which lets you synchronize your iPad, iPhone, or iPod Touch to the movie and receive extra information as you play it. I'm not a fan of the concept, as I find it confusing to have to look at two places. For my money, picture-in-picture is better on one screen, and the Blu-ray of the first Robert Downey Jr. Sherlock Holmes movie nails this method. In addition to "Second Screen," there are a couple of weak featurettes and an amusing short showing how Sugar Ray Leonard trained Jackman to look like a real boxer.

Despite what other critics may say, Real Steel is a great little movie. Discover it as I did, without expectation, and you're sure to have a good time.

Be sure to watch for: Chapter 6 takes place in Metal Valley, a junkyard that's home to thousands of spare parts. Shadow detail is very impressive as locations momentarily light up with flashes of lightning, and the storm sounds envelop you until the rain falls all around you. Overall, it's a demonstration-caliber scene.

. . . Rad Bennett
radb@soundstagenetwork.com

January 2012

Godzilla Still Rocks -- This Time on Blu-ray

The Criterion Collection 594
Format: Blu-ray

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Godzilla! Mention of the name instantly conjures a huge dinosaur-like monster with bumpy dorsal fins and an overweight yet powerful physique. He's become one of the most iconic figures in pop culture, synonymous with Japan and with size. Any time someone wants to breathe a vision of gigantic into their product or service, they can merely add "zilla," and the connotation is clear.

Godzilla starred in around 28 features for Toho Studios. He has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and he's available as a plush doll in any Japanese gift shop worth its salt. After several sequels as a bad guy, he became a Japanese hero the people would call upon when another monster threatened. Godzilla would protect and fight for Japanese citizens in an almost endless number of Godzilla vs. movies. In 1962 he was even pitted against King Kong, one of the inspirations for his creation in the first place.

This handsome and downright enjoyable Criterion edition showcases the first 1954 black-and-white Godzilla, as well as its reworking into the 1956 English-language version, Godzilla, King of the Monsters! The latter jettisoned original scenes and replaced them with sequences starring Raymond Burr, who -- hold on to your hats -- was dating Natalie Wood at the time. This is explained, along with almost everything else you'd want to know about Godzilla and its stars, in a breathlessly energetic commentary by film historian David Kalat, who has made Toho and Godzilla studies his specialty. Kalat's commentary accompanies both the Japanese and American versions.

The overall tone of Criterion's edition strives to thoroughly examine the movie as a metaphor for Japan's fear of nearby H-bomb tests at Bikini Atoll in the early 1950s, the first intense era of the Cold War. Having survived two disastrous atomic bombs during World War II, the Japanese were nervous about any further nuclear experiences, and Godzilla gave them a fictional escape in a monster created by atomic- and hydrogen-bomb experiments. The American and Japanese versions handle this concept very differently from one another, and the factually rich commentary fully explains the differences.

Criterion's transfer looks great some of the time, and when it doesn't the fault lies with the original film stock or the fact that some scenes were spliced-in documentary footage, thanks mostly to Japan's coast guard. But it certainly looks better than I've ever seen it. The original Japanese movie gets the best run and is more devoid of print noise than the American one. The sound is mono, of course, but it's been sufficiently cleaned up and it's quite impressive at times. Godzilla's roar, sounding something like an elephant on steroids, is clear, as is Akira Ifukube's pulsing score, which was a groundbreaking soundtrack at the time and is still highly regarded among film music cognoscenti. The extras include a fascinating interview with Ifukube (he originally worked for the Japanese forestry service!), as well as other stars involved with the famous monster, including Haruo Nakajima, who donned the 200-plus-pound Godzilla suit to play the radioactive beast. There are still more featurettes, including one on the ironically named Lucky Dragon Number 5, a fishing vessel that got too close to the Bikini Island experiments, causing its crew to contract radiation sickness and forming the basis for the opening Godzilla scenes.

Godzilla was a groundbreaking movie in its day, so revered that it was dubbed, at extra expense, in an American version that made more money than any foreign film before it. The special effects look a little cheesy in spots (the blown away helicopter is definitely a toy), but that was the point when I first saw it in junior high. We kids had seen George Pal's War of the Worlds and other like-kind genre films that had amazing special effects, and we knew that Toho was using miniatures. But being young and blissfully unaware of the more serious message of the H-bomb subtext, we simply thought it was so cool that a director would build and destroy an entire miniature Tokyo. That cool factor remains, and whether you watch it for its message or just for fun, Godzilla still rocks.

Be sure to watch for: Chapter 4 starts at a fishing village as its denizens wonder why the fishing has been so bad. The detail and especially spot-on contrast are of much higher quality than you might expect from a monster flick.

. . . Rad Bennett
radb@soundstagenetwork.com