6.5 | / 10 |
Users | 2.8 | |
Reviewer | 2.5 | |
Overall | 2.6 |
Living in an undisclosed time and location, a master samurai known as Grave is on the constant lookout for a battle worth his energy. He finds this fight in a quest for a coffin from the Tougan Temple, a journey that puts a young woman from the temple grounds on Grave's path.
Starring: Tak Sakaguchi, Takamasa Suga, Chuck Johnson, Shûya YoshimotoForeign | 100% |
Action | 78% |
Fantasy | 25% |
Adventure | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.94:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.85:1
Japanese: Dolby TrueHD 5.1
Japanese: Dolby Digital 2.0
English: Dolby TrueHD 5.1
English: Dolby Digital 2.0
English
25GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region A (B, C untested)
Movie | 2.0 | |
Video | 2.5 | |
Audio | 4.0 | |
Extras | 2.0 | |
Overall | 2.5 |
Death Trance is a difficult film to categorize, since it doesn’t fit comfortably within any specific genre. Most releases from the Tokyo Shock studio are unsettling gorefests with buckets of Kool Aid spraying from severed limbs, so I was halfway expecting this release to fall in the same vein. Much to my surprise, Death Trance doesn’t fit into that mold, but still retains its fair share of bloodletting from time to time. Considering the setting of the film, it would only be natural to compare it with the laundry list of lavish Chinese productions in recent years (such as House of Flying Daggers or Hero), but it lacks the beautiful visuals and graceful storytelling of those far superior cousins. In actuality, the film I’m sitting down to review today contains a wide range of elements, yet never demonstrates the ability to firmly grasp a single idea with success. As a long-time anime lover, I’m still waiting for Japanese filmmakers to break onto the live-action scene and show audiences what they’re capable of, but Death Trance feels like another step in the wrong direction.
The stolen coffin is a cumbersome object to drag across the countryside.
Presented in 1080p utilizing the AVC codec (at an average bitrate that hovers around a paltry 12Mbps), Death Trance offers a fairly disappointing visual experience. Given the stylistic visuals, and the creative use of coloring in the film, I'd hoped the transfer would offer a huge step up with the transition to Blu-ray. Unfortunately, the end result was anything but stellar, with detail that rarely surpasses the quality of an upconverted DVD. Making matters worse, there's a fine level of blocking in panning shots, which indicates the bitrate is insufficient to produce a smooth picture. Colors don't improve matters much, with drab, lifeless hues dominating the majority of scenes. Part of the problem rests in the heavily filtered source material that gives the film an intended monochromatic look, but even the bright crimson blood splatters rarely stand out against the blue backdrop. Adding insult to injury, contrast suffers in darker scenes, resulting in the appearance of black crush and an overall lack of visual pop. Lastly, those with an aversion to grain should be forewarned that the transfer takes on a noisy characteristic from time to time (especially in several action sequences), creating a loss of background detail and an overall picture quality that's best defined as a touch on the rough side.
Unlike the subpar video transfer, the audio presentation is exactly what I'd hoped for. I briefly sampled the English Dolby TrueHD 5.1 dub, but quickly learned the over-the-top voice acting leaves something to be desired. Settling in on the native language (Japanese) TrueHD track, I was pleasantly surprised with the crisp dialogue, creative audio effects and excellent spacial separation throughout the soundfield. Considering this isn't a big-budget release, I expected the battle effects to sound cheesy, with recycled noise conveying kicks and punches. Thankfully, my expectations were unwarranted, and I was able to easily differentiate between the various tones of each kick and punch. If your interested in the audio highlight of the film, watch for the fight sequence where Grave uses a unique gun to dispatch a mob of zombie-like creatures. Each shot zings through a different area of your home theater, creating an effect that clearly enhances the over-the-top nature of the visuals. This may not be the best Blu-ray has to offer, but the audio experience should surpass your expectations for a film in this genre.
Making of Death Trance (480p, Dolby Digital 2.0, 10:27 min): In order to sell the production studios on their idea for the film, the main crew completed a 5 minute conceptual film, which is the subject of this making-of featurette (though the title implies it covers the creation of the feature film).
Behind the Action Scenes (480p, Dolby Digital 2.0, 14:58 min): Multiple action segments from the film are discussed, along with video footage of the actors rehearsing the fight choreography in the gym prior to shooting the actual scenes.
Sakaguchi Goes Abroad (480p, Dolby Digital 2.0, 10:44 min): Lead actor Tak Sakaguchi visited Brussels, Berlin and San Diego (Comic-Con) for various screenings and PR opportunities.
Character Featurettes (480p, Dolby Digital 2.0, 13:07 min): Each of the main characters from the film are given a chance to discuss the intricacies of their role while we're shown behind-the-scenes footage from the set.
Rounding out the extras, we're given five trailers for other Tokyo Shock releases (presented in 480p with 2-channel audio) and a standard definition trailer for Death Trance.
Death Trance isn't a film I plan to revisit in the future and I can't say I enjoyed my first viewing enough to recommend it as a purchase. Even if you love Japanese cinema, I'd consider a rental instead of a purchase, since I doubt many of you will find enough entertainment value to warrant repeat viewings. The plot is sparse, the fight sequences are uninspired and special effects are just plain bad. Aside from the shortcomings in the film itself, I was equally disappointed in the visual quality of this Blu-ray release, which barely bests what we've grown to expect from DVD. The cover on the box implies this is a visual feast for the eyes, but that couldn't be further from the truth when you actually sit down to watch it. If you're new to the world of Blu-ray, please steer clear of this release until you've seen the best the format has to offer.
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