7 | / 10 |
Users | 2.0 | |
Reviewer | 3.5 | |
Overall | 3.2 |
To protect a magic talisman from being used for evil, a boy is given the power to become an adult superhero with a single magic word.
Starring: Tom Tyler (I), Frank Coghlan Jr., William Benedict, Louise Currie, Robert StrangeComic book | 100% |
Adventure | Insignificant |
Action | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.37:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.37:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0
None
Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region A (locked)
Movie | 3.5 | |
Video | 4.0 | |
Audio | 3.5 | |
Extras | 4.0 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
These days, it’s impossible to go a season without the release of a comic book movie. They’re big business these days, perhaps the one sure thing in Hollywood right now, and the industry shows no signs of slowing down the productions, endeavoring to dazzle fans with big-budgeted, snugly costumed fury, often scripted with plans to generate entire “universes” to fully milk source materials for everything they’ve got. In this day and age of three “Spider-Man” franchises created and released in 15 years, it’s hard to consider a time when moguls had no idea what to do with the heroic antics of ink and paint titans. 1941’s “Adventures of Captain Marvel” is largely credited as the first big screen attempt to do something significant with a comic book creation, using the serial format (12 chapters in total) to detail feats of strength, survival, and sleuthing, with emphasis on broad fantasy to supply proper weekly escapism and trigger ongoing interest in the fate of a beefy superhero in a tiny cape.
Listed as "Newly Re-mastered from a 4K Scan from Paramount Pictures Archives," the AVC encoded image (1.37:1 aspect ratio) presentation doesn't immediately back this claim up, with a lower-res source used for part of the main titles. Clarity soon emerges in full, offering some intriguingly crisp imagery, which becomes valuable for special effects sequences, opening them up for study, including flying stunts, where cables are easily spotted. Facial particulars are also defined to satisfaction, along with set construction, with activity in the Valley of the Tombs the most textured and cinematic section of the serial. Delineation is comfortable, while whites are stable. Grain is filmic. Minor compression issues creep into view throughout, with banding the most prominent. Source hasn't been subjected to an exhaustive restoration, showing considerable wear and tear with scratches, speckling, rough reel changes, and chemical damage.
The 2.0 DTS-HD MA sound mix delivers a basic listening experience for the 1941 serial, largely capturing comic book tone with excitable dialogue exchanges. Performance choices are easy to follow, and while there's obvious age, intelligibility isn't a major issue. There are mild fluctuations in volume throughout the serial, but the most concentrated area of concern is found in chapter 12, around the 8:00 mark, where damage is most prevalent for a few minutes of screen time. Scoring is inherently dull but not lost, supporting the action with adequate instrumentation. Sound effects enjoy more exciting clarity, including gun shots.
Keeping up with serial standards, "Adventures of Captain Marvel" arranges all sorts of cliffhangers to keep audiences interested in the seemingly doomed fates of the characters. There's a bridge explosion, a mined car, melted rockslides, a volcano, and, my personal favorite, a special electrified hallway that stuns the victim before rolling them underneath a large guillotine. The fun factor of the serial is learning just how Captain Marvel is going to survive disaster or prevent others from perishing, often doing so with last-minute ferocity. 12 chapters is a long time to spend with "Adventures of Captain Marvel," at least from a narrative perspective, as there's not much dramatic meat on these bones. However, as an example of early comic book-inspired imagination and adaptation, there's plenty to enjoy about the production, which finds interesting ways to translate impossible feats of power and flight, creating a cinematic space where exaggerated heroism is allowed to come alive for fans and newcomers.
1975
2020
1982
1983
Limited Edition | includes The Uninvited Guest of the Star Ferry
1985
1976
1976
1989
1983
1981
1981
1988
Limited Edition to 3000 | SOLD OUT
1973
1957
[Slipcover Edition Exclusive on Retailer]
1990
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1958
1973
Retro VHS Collection
1984