7.5 | / 10 |
Users | 4.5 | |
Reviewer | 3.0 | |
Overall | 3.0 |
In a world where thought and faith are controlled, one man fights to set knowledge free. The secret history of Leonardo Da Vinci's tantalizing life reveals a portrait of a young man tortured by a gift of superhuman genius. He is a heretic intent on exposing the lies of religion. An insurgent seeking to subvert an elitist society. He finds himself in the midst of a storm that has been brewing for centuries. A conflict between truth and lies, religion and reason, past and future. His aspirations are used against him by the opposing forces of the time—luring him into a game of seduction where those who despise his intellect need him most.
Starring: Tom Riley, Laura Haddock, Elliot Cowan, Tom Bateman (III), Allan CordunerHistory | 100% |
Period | 64% |
Drama | Insignificant |
Adventure | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.78:1
English: Dolby TrueHD 7.1
Spanish: Dolby Digital Mono
English SDH, Spanish
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Three-disc set (3 BDs)
Slipcover in original pressing
Region A (B, C untested)
Movie | 3.0 | |
Video | 4.5 | |
Audio | 4.5 | |
Extras | 0.0 | |
Overall | 3.0 |
Perhaps I am unwilling to put all my faith and future in some tinkerer.
Imagination is both plentiful and provided in scant amounts in Da Vinci's Demons, Creator David S. Goyer's Starz original series that goes
back to famed inventor and artist Leonardo Da Vinci's drawing boards for a story that explores the title character's creative genius but frequently
just covers the same
tired ground that's been well tread by many more of today's hottest TV properties. Starz has found a fair bit of success with television shows that
trace the steps of some of history's, and historical literature's, most famous individuals -- Spartacus, Marco Polo, characters inspired from Robert Louis Stevenson's Treasure Island -- but like Da Vinci's Demons, each courses
with common themes of complexly woven and often overly flamboyant drama, intricate and oftentimes nasty or salacious character relationships,
graphic sex, bloody violence, and course language. None of those are particularly problematic, but in large quantities and spread over multiple
shows
that do little more than rearrange the furniture, it starts to wear a little thin. Season three, and the final go-round for Leo and co., stays the course
with plenty of outlandish, but somehow nevertheless interesting and, even occasionally, captivating, forays into the fire as it sprints to the finish
line,
trying
to maintain its momentum, and gain some more, right on through to the end.
There's no better test subject...
Da Vinci's Demons: The Complete Third Season features another razor-sharp, digitally sourced 1080p TV transfer from Anchor Bay. For absolute definition and attention to intricate detail, this release is about on par with Black Sails, one of the best in the business. There's nothing left to the imagination. Every pore, bit of beard and stubble, and accumulated grime on faces are breathtakingly detailed. Stone textures, iron bars, grasses, dirt, ornate decorations, precision military uniforms, frayed peasant garb, practically everything in each frame springs to life with tactile texturing. Colors are lively and bright. The palette pushes slightly warm but finds a constant barrage of popping hues, whether earthy supports or dazzling primaries. Noise, banding, aliasing, macroblocking, and other maladies are essentially no-shows. The only real fault here comes by way of blacks that are so dark and dense that they're prone to crush. Otherwise, this is a real looker from Anchor Bay.
Da Vinci's Demons: The Complete Third Season features an impressively wide-open and accurate Dolby TrueHD 7.1 lossless soundtrack. Few sonic details are left to the imagination. Bear McCreary's Emmy-winning theme music presents richly and robustly, conveying every note with all of the critical details and intimate instrumental nuances while positioned around a wide, enveloping stage that benefits from the added back channels. Battle effects -- hefty cannon fire, explosions, chaotic throngs of soldiers -- maneuver effortlessly about the stage and envelop the listener with appropriate weight and detail alike. Ambient effects are effortlessly enveloping, naturally positioned, and realistic. Whether more aggressive ringing bells or raging fires or finer details like flickering flames, buzzing insects, or just a sense of either wide-open terrain or hushed intimate close quarters, the track never wants for a more realistic representation of its environment. Dialogue presents with effortless clarity and prioritization with natural center placement. This is yet another terrific TV show listen from Anchor Bay.
Da Vinci's Demons: The Complete Third Season contains no supplemental content.
Da Vinci's Demons always feels on the precipice of something significant. Beyond its impressive superficialities -- Bear McCreary's terrific score, an amazing opening title sequence that's worthy of a frame-by-frame examination, soaring production values, and a fascinating lead character actively shaping the world around him in a time of historical high drama -- there's never any substantial depth to it. Season three doesn't really try, either, going all-in on the mayhem and Johnny-come-lately approach to drama. It's a fun watch, no doubt about it, and season three is particularly robust, but it's not the kind of show most audiences will be returning to all that often, at least not to satisfy a want for more impacting and meaningful storytelling. Anchor Bay's Blu-ray release of Da Vinci's Demons: The Complete Third Season yields, like its seasons one and two predecessors, terrific video and audio. Unlike those seasons, however, there's not a supplement to be found: no commentaries, no featurettes, no deleted scenes, nothing. Fans itching to round out the series collection will find tech specs worthy of a purchase.
2013
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