6.3 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 3.5 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
An infantryman recounts the final hours before he and his fellow soldiers return to Iraq.
Starring: Joe Alwyn, Garrett Hedlund, Arturo Castro, Mason Lee, Astro (III)War | 100% |
Drama | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.85:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
English, English SDH, Spanish
Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
UV digital copy
Slipcover in original pressing
Region free
Movie | 2.5 | |
Video | 5.0 | |
Audio | 4.0 | |
Extras | 2.5 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
Director Ang Lee's Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk tells a complex story of a young man first caught in the firestorm of war and subsequently caught in the firestorm of celebrity, all the while internally fighting to find his place in the world. It's more a statement than an exploration, less a detailed analysis and more a snapshot of emotional turmoil, but it by-and-large succeeds in delving deep into the psyche of a soldier who finds that war has changed him and that war has changed the perception of him beyond the comfortable confines of his brothers-in-arms. The film is notable for its technical execution as well, shooting at 120 frames per second (presented at a standard 24 for this Blu-ray release but 60FPS for the UHD release). Viewing the film at 24FPS yields an interesting perspective on the film, presenting less a hyper-real take and more a fairly bland, straightforward, almost stage-production-quality picture built on close-ups and perspective shots that call attention to the emotion of the moment and the underlying character analysis playing at its center.
Regardless of frame rate or resolution, there's no mistaking that Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk looks terrific on Blu-ray. The movie is packed with intimate, up-close, finely revealing facial features that show every pore, pimple, line, mark, scar, tear, hair, and everything else with incredibly precise definition. Sharp military uniforms are similarly complex. Stitching and fabric density are obvious while patches and medals are meticulously crisp. Environments are naturally gorgeous, whether around Lynn's slightly rough-around-the-edges home or various locales through the stadium, whether the owners' box or down in the seats. Colors are fantastic. One couldn't ask for more vibrancy on Blu-ray. Red stadium seats, the football team's blue colors, patches on uniforms, everything is very well saturated, very bright, and very natural without looking showy or gaudy. Black levels hold deep, flesh tones appear accurate, and the image shows no source or encode blemishes. The digital shoot is a touch glossy by nature, but the movie looks flawless for its Blu-ray release.
While Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk's UHD release features a Dolby Atmos soundtrack, the Blu-ray is left with a smaller-footprint DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 lossless soundtrack. It's very good, though it's a bit lacking even in its biggest moments. A shootout during one of the wartime sequences is the sonic highlight. Gunfire pops with impressive fidelity and accuracy. Bullets zip, impact hard, and shell casings audibly fall to the terrain. Heavier machine guns tear through with greater depth, and explosions pack a healthy wallop. The Destiny's Child halftime show enjoys a nice low end depth, stage width, and strong clarity within the "live performance" parameters. General background stadium ambience is often wanting, however. Rarely does the track find a sense of true depth. Crowd din sounds smaller than it should be, even lowered to favor dialogue. It's particularly noticeable during the game or in pregame. A scene featuring the men walking through a bustling concourse area is much richer and denser. Dialogue is generally fine, a touch shallow in a few places but it's always well prioritized and positioned in the center, save for a few occasions when off-screen dialogue emanates from the side.
Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk contains several supplements, including deleted scenes and featurettes. A UV digital copy code is included with
purchase.
Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk doesn't play poorly at 24 frames per second. At its core the drama remains and the character exploration is satisfactory, if not a bit stilted. But the visual impact is negated and the flat 24FPS version becomes a rather bland and generic point-and-shoot affair obsessed with close-ups and failing to find any real, visceral impact on its surface to compliment the complexities that play out within Lynn's psyche. It's not a disservice to the film to see it this way, but it's a far, far cry from Lee's intended presentation, which, unfortunately, current home technology cannot replicate in the sum of the frame rate, resolution, and 3D qualities. This Blu-ray does offer exceptional picture quality nevertheless. The 5.1 lossless soundtrack is neither disappointing nor in any way spectacular. The included supplements are fine, though a technical commentary track covering not only he film as-constructed but also as-presented for home consumption would have been most welcome. Worth a look.
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