Earthquake Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		2.5
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		5.0
Overall		3.0

Earthquake Blu-ray Movie Review

Our reviewer emeritus Michael Reuben covered Universal Studios' high-def release of Mark Robson's Earthquake (1974) in 2013. To read Michael's synopsis, biographical sketches of the characters, and his take on Universal's BD, please click here.

Getting a jog in before the big quake.

Earthquake Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

UPDATE 6/6/19: I've been informed through one of our community members that Shout has created a replacement program for the first disc. I will update this review again once I have received the corrected disc. Here is the statement from Shout:

During the authoring process of Earthquake [Collector's Edition], an error in outputting the master changed the aspect ratio of the theatrical version of the film (disc 1 only). It was not caught in QC, we apologize for the error and are making a replacement disc available correcting it.

Please go the website below and follow the instructions there to receive a replacement disc. Note: You will need to upload a copy of your receipt.

https://www.discshipment.com

If you have any questions about the status of your replacement disc shipment, please reach out to the following email address directly: info@discshipment.com.

The corrected disc can be identified by a "R1," which appears around the ring of disc 1.

Customer Service
Shout! Factory
2034 Armacost Ave., 1st Floor
Los Angeles, CA 90025
info@shoutfactory.com

UPDATE 6/2/19: It appears that the framing on Disc One actually measures 2.20:1 instead of the native 2.39:1. I will post more updates as I get them from Shout.

To commemorate the 45th anniversary of Earthquake's release, Shout Select has released a two-disc Collector's Edition (with a slipcover) that houses the Theatrical Cut and rare TV version on individual discs. On the TC, Shout has made a 2K scan of the interpositive. Appearing in its original theatrical exhibition ratio of 2.39:1, the restored Earthquake looks very solid on Blu-ray. Primary colors stand out pretty well and there's no bleeding. There is a thick layer of grain that stays in the frame for the feature's duration. No major image stability issues occur. Skin tones appear natural and the HD presentation brings out the perspiration on actors' faces in sunlight and around fire. I didn't notice the electronically induced sharpness that Michael noted on the Universal. The BD-50 uses the MPEG-4 AVC encode (unlike Universal's VC-1) and boasts an average video bitrate of 36000 kbps while the entire disc comes in at a total bitrate of 45.30 Mbps. My video score for TC is 4.25.

The two-and-half-hour TV cut has been reconstructed from a 2K Scan and features over twenty minutes of made-for-broadcast footage that's presented in 1.33:1. The elements are not in as good a shape as the TC with white dots and other artifacts present. Colors look above average for the most part and there's a good smattering of grain. The mean video bitrate is also 36 Mbps, although the total bitrate clocks in lower at 39.58 Mbps. My video score for TV version is 3.25.

The TC sports twelve scene selections as does the TV version.

Earthquake Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Shout has supplied three sound tracks on the Theatrical Cut: a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 Surround re-mix (3118 kbps, 24-bit), a DTS-HD Master Audio English 2.1 mix with Sensurround (1923 kbps, 24-bit), and a DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Stereo (1573 kbps, 24-bit). I started with the 5.1 track and was very impressed with directionality of f/x, specifically quake sounds, explosions, and other ambiance which seemed to bounce off my walls when turned up relatively high. I also could hear the "rumbles" well although it can't quite recreate the "feel" of the original theatrical experience. I concur with Michael that the dialogue has been mixed too low on the 5.1. I had trouble discerning certain words and had to turn it up louder. Spoken words just aren't focalized to the center speaker well enough to make them audible for the trained ear. I also recommend listening to the 2.1 mix for optimal delivery of dialogue. Earthquake is one of the shorter John Williams scores as presented in the film (forty-two minutes, including source music he wrote) and on the out-of-print Varèse Sarabande CD (half hour). Williams composed a jaunty main theme, a sweet love theme for Heston and Bujold's characters, and some darker passages for when the characters are in peril.

On the TV cut, Shout provides a DTS-HD Master Audio Dual Mono (1597 kbps, 24-bit). The master is in good condition with only one scene in this version that I detected audible hiss.

Optional English SDH are available for both cuts.

Earthquake Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

DISC ONE: THEATRICAL VERSION (2:02:38, 1080p)

• Audio Interview with Charlton Heston (3:48) - sound bites of Heston talking about working with director & cast and the important role special effects artists perform in film. In English, not subtitled.

• Audio Interview with Lorne Greene (5:08) - Greene goes into several philanthropic endeavors and charities he was involved in at the time of Earthquake's release. In English, not subtitled.

• Audio Interview with Richard Roundtree (4:02) - Roundtree discusses acting in the theater and gives his thoughts on where he was in his movie career circa 1974. In English, not subtitled.

• Production and Publicity Gallery (9:14, 1080p) - close to 100 images consisting of press kits photos and lobby cards in black-and-white and color.

• Behind-the-Scenes Gallery (3:14, 1080p) - about thirty-six images featuring different wardrobe outfits donned by the actors, makeup designers, and several of director Mark Robson with the cast.

• Matte Paintings and Miniatures Gallery (3:19, 1080p) - nearly thirty-five stills of matte paintings, miniatures, and art department personnel working on sets.

• Deleted Scenes Gallery – (0:42, 1080p) - a half-dozen photos taken on the set.

• Posters & Lobby Cards Gallery – (9:31, 1080p) - over 100 distinct images comprised of theatrical posters from many different countries and foreign markets, lobby cards, ad slicks, magazine and vinyl covers.

• Theatrical Trailer(2:52, upscaled to 1080i) - a horizontally stretched 2.35:1 non-anamorphic trailer of Earthquake. It hasn't been restored and there's film artifacts and aliasing.

• TV Spot (0:57) - a TV commercial for Earthquake that has lots of pixelation/blockiness and tramlines.

• Radio Spots (4:06) - around seven radio spots that are very repetitive.

• NEW Scoring Disaster: The Music of EARTHQUAKE (16:42, 1080p) - Seated on his couch, film music historian Jon Burlingame looks back at composer John Williams's years as a studio musician, his time at Universal, spotting Earthquake, and the themes he came up for the film. Unfortunately, maestro Williams is not interviewed. In English, not subtitled.

• NEW Painting Disaster: The Matte Art of Albert Whitlock (10:36, 1080p) - this is a tribute and appreciation to Albert Whitlock, a renowned matte painter at Universal, by cinematographer and VFX supervisor Bill Taylor (Lawless). Taylor looks back at Whitlock's career at Universal, his collaborations with Hitchcock and The Master's associates, and dissects the matte paintings Whitlock created for Earthquake. Several graphical comparisons are shown of how filmed shots looked with and without matte paintings inserted. In English, not subtitled.

• NEW Sounds of Disaster: Ben Burtt Talks about SENSURROUND (11:19, 1080p) - Legendary sound designer Burtt gives an historical reappraisal of Sensurround focusing on the equipment and sound technologies that were installed in commercial cinemas. He pinpoints several canonical moments that Sensurround was used in Earthquake. In English, not subtitled.

• TV Scenes (23:43, 1080p) - a compilation of all the scenes that were filmed for the network broadcast of Earthquake but weren't included in the theatrical version.

• Additional TV Scene #1 (7:14, 1080p) - this scene was originally part of the TV cut that Shout found but the quality wasn't up to par with the rest of the elements so it's presented here separately.

• Additional TV Scene #2 (1:40, 1080p) - an omitted scene that appears to have been slated to go at the end of Part I of the TV version.

Earthquake Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Earthquake contains some wonderful special effects and stellar production values but it's hampered by inconsistent writing and uninspired direction, particularly in the first half. The writers (including the esteemed Mario Puzo) try to conceive diverse sets of characters and interweave them but I didn't find myself invested or involved in their relationships. It takes nearly fifty minutes to establish the characters before a natural disaster infuses this plodding narrative. Despite my partiality to John Williams-scored pictures, Earthquake is just one-half of a good disaster film that I wouldn't put in the upper echelon of genre titles during the '70s. However, fans will be thrilled that Shout Select has included both the theatrical version and the longer TV cut that originally aired on NBC as a two-night event telecast. Shout has also improved the transfer over Universal's and added bountiful extras in form of vintage sound bites of the cast, new interviews, photo galleries, and additional scenes that were found. RECOMMENDED FOR DISASTER FILM FANS ONLY.