6.5 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 3.5 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
Based on the true story of a small town news reporter and a Greenpeace volunteer who are joined by rival world superpowers to save a family of majestic gray whales trapped by rapidly forming ice in the Arctic Circle. Local newsman Adam Carlson can't wait to escape the northern tip of Alaska for a bigger market. But just when the story of his career breaks, the world comes chasing it, too. With an oil...
Starring: Drew Barrymore, John Krasinski, Kristen Bell, Dermot Mulroney, Tim Blake NelsonRomance | 100% |
Drama | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.40:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
French: DTS 5.1
Spanish: DTS 5.1
English SDH, French, Spanish
Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD/DVD)
UV digital copy
DVD copy
Bonus View (PiP)
BD-Live
D-Box
Mobile features
Slipcover in original pressing
Region free
Movie | 2.5 | |
Video | 4.0 | |
Audio | 4.0 | |
Extras | 3.0 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
If you're looking for a perfect opportunity to introduce your kids to movie clichés that were conceived long before they were born and clichés that will still be around long after they have children of their own, then by all means bump Big Miracle to the top of your family viewing list. Watered down to the barest of elements, sacrificing any sense of real weight or depth for the sake of sentiment and tightly strung heart strings, and reducing the words "based on an incredible true story" to a punchline, director Ken Kwapis' beached whale of a family film is everything you'd expect, given its theatrical trailer, and everything it shouldn't be, given the true story that inspired it. Overly simplistic yet somehow overly convoluted as well. Neatly packaged yet unrefined. Shallow. Sickeningly sweet. Unsatisfying. Muddled in its message and all too clear in its intentions. The trapped whales that captured the world's attention in 1988 aren't even the focus of the story; just the catalyst to far less intriguing human romantic dramedies and the means to an emotionally manipulative end. Will families enjoy Big Miracle? Sure. Kids love whales, if that wasn't obvious enough already, and the Heartland Truly Moving Picture Award logo stamped on the front cover will be all some parents need. Even though it's a mediocre movie? You betcha.
We are the world, we are the children. We are the ones who make a brighter day so let's start giving!
Big Miracle's 1080p/AVC-encoded video transfer isn't quite miraculous, but it's at least more remarkable than the film itself. Colors and skintones, though a bit warm and toasty on occasion, are pleasing, suitably chilly and nicely saturated, primaries are bright and playful, and black levels are deep and natural. Detail is reasonably rewarding too, so long as a slightly soft, filmic disposition doesn't leave you grumbling. (Tip to the budding videophiles among you: it shouldn't.) Fine textures aren't speck-of-snow sharp but they are fittingly resolved and fairly exacting, edges are clean and well-defined (without any serious ringing), delineation is revealing, and grain is intact. And while some minor artifacting and banding appears here and there, none of it is cause for any concern. Significant macroblocking, aliasing, crush and other ailments don't cut off the film from its source, freeing Big Miracle to swim in open high definition waters unimpeded.
Universal's DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 surround track provides a surprisingly robust experience. The ice sheets sound impassable as they should, the machinery and tools as throaty yet inadequate as they could, and each new day's ice-cutting, crunching and crushing as difficult and hard-fought as it would be. Even the quieter, man-made mini-dramas -- the struggling relationships, fledgling romances, and strained alliances alike -- feature clean, clear dialogue spoken in environments and local hotspots complete with engaging outdoor ambience and convincing indoor acoustics. None of it will cause whiplash or heat palpitations. The rear speakers aren't nearly that aggressive, directionality isn't that absorbing, and LFE output isn't that ferocious. Each channel simply holds up its end of the bargain and delivers at every impasse and breakthrough. Cliff Eidelman's score binds it all together, giving disparate elements a home and the whole of the soundfield a comfortable hearthside warmth and coziness that makes it a cut above the usual family film lossless fare.
Big Miracle tries to get by on semi-wholesome family content alone, but it isn't enough to make the film as inspiring or timely as it wants to be. It offers an environmental drumbeat more than a human drama heartbeat, and gets lost in a wave of characters, conflicts and all-too-neatly resolved relationships, be they personal, cultural and international. It's Rocky IV with whales. Universal's Blu-ray release is more sincere thanks to a strong video transfer, an impressive DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 surround track, and a decent selection of extras. None of it quite explains why so many changes were made to the original people involved or the stories that developed beyond the media frenzy -- both of which were primed for a family friendly film -- but those who enjoy Big Miracle will come away without many complaints. Ultimately, a rental will spare you more sighs than a purchase, so I'd recommend proceeding accordingly.
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