5.7 | / 10 |
Users | 3.5 | |
Reviewer | 3.0 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
In order to bring his true love back to life, a clever mortal thief teams up with a powerful and vengeful god in order to stop the merciless god of darkness who hopes to destroy both this life and the Afterlife.
Starring: Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Brenton Thwaites, Chadwick Boseman, Elodie Yung, Courtney EatonAction | 100% |
Adventure | 87% |
Fantasy | 66% |
Supernatural | 7% |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.40:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1
English: DTS:X
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 (48kHz, 24-bit)
Spanish: DTS 5.1
English: DTS 2.0
English, English SDH, Spanish
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
UV digital copy
Slipcover in original pressing
Region A (locked)
Movie | 2.5 | |
Video | 4.5 | |
Audio | 5.0 | |
Extras | 2.0 | |
Overall | 3.0 |
If you’re a parent, there has probably come a time in your life when you’ve attended a school performance, recital or somesuch event featuring one of your kids where you know going in the quality of things is probably not going to be first rate, but you still feel like you really ought to behave and pretend to appreciate what’s being offered. Something along those same lines may occur to some viewers of Gods of Egypt, an undeniably hammy throwback to sword and sandal epics of yore. The film features a patently ridiculous screenplay and some equally ludicrous performance choices, but it is so filled to the brim with eye popping splendor that it begs some charitable viewer to think, if only for a moment, “Wow—someone really spent a lot of time making that happen.” Egyptian mythology is certainly a ripe field to be harvested for cinematic treatment, but part of what ails Gods of Egypt is that it eschews Thomas Bulfinch in favor of Syd Field, if I may be permitted to mix authors if not metaphors. Instead of detailing the fascinating world of Egyptian deities (and let’s face it, there are a lot of them) as that world has been handed down via tales told for umpteen generations, Gods of Egypt “reinvents” things, offering iconic gods and goddesses as cohabitators of a sort of “alternate universe” where humans and those they pray to live side by side. In a way, that in and of itself is a throwback to wonderful films like Jason and the Argonauts, but despite the obvious time and talent thrown at this picture in veritable spades, Gods of Egypt seems decidedly less magical than the “low tech” blandishments of Ray Harryhausen.
Gods of Egypt is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Lionsgate Films with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.40:1. The IMDb lists this as having been digitally shot with Red Epic Dragon cameras at 6K, with a 2K DI (which seems a little churlish, given the resolution of the original capture). A lot of this film was "green screened" (though the bonus featurettes indicate this particular film was actually "blue screened"), and as a result a lot of the CGI backgrounds have the slightly misty, soft look that seems to be part and parcel of this technique. Some of the non-background VFX are also a bit on the soft side, including the flames that regularly subsume Ra. That said, some of the more prominent "artificial" elements, like the huge Dune-like sand snakes, offer excellent textures and precise details. Several scenes are bathed in an interesting (and at least relatively unusual) ruddy brown-red color, while a couple of sequences in the underworld are suffused with a more traditional blue grading, neither of which depletes detail levels to any great degree. There are also some interesting textural details provided in elements like the wings that some gods and goddesses "grow" when they morph into their totemic (frequently animal headed) selves. In terms of "real" elements like the cast and practical props like sets and costumes, detail levels are often exceptional, offering crisp accountings of everything from fabrics to facial pores. The palette is very healthy looking, with a wide range of tones offering a kaleidoscope of visual information in some of the busiest wide shots. Contrast is solid and consistent and black levels convincingly deep. There were a couple of very minor issues that almost resembled aliasing at the very edges of some of the CGI wings on the gods, but these might have been actual rendering issues and they're minimal in any case.
Gods of Egypt features a rowdy DTS:X (DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 core) track that provides all of the bombast (and maybe then some) that
audiophiles have come to expect from these special effects blockbusters. There is a ton of surround information from virtually the get go
here, with huge, cascading effects tumbling through the surrounds in several of the huge set pieces that crop up every few minutes. Overhead
activity is strong when, for example, Set goes "flying" in his rather improbable "plane". LFE is regularly exploited, with clear front to rear pans in
scenes where, for example, Ra bursts into flame. Dialogue is generally cleanly and clearly presented, but I do have one minor quibbling
qualm with the mix, which I assume was also a "problem" in the original theatrical presentation. The sound designers have sought to increase
the feeling of magnitude in the already oversized gods and goddesses by frequently having their voices awash with really heavy reverb. This
makes their voices tend to spill rather appealingly into the surround channels, but it also tends to dilute their impact at times, making them just
slightly hard to hear in some of the noisier moments. Fidelity is excellent and dynamic range extremely wide on this problem free track.
Note: The disc audio menu touts DTS-HD Master Audio tracks for both the Spanish and English stereo tracks, but they are in fact DTS
tracks, as reflected above in our specs.
At a recent dinner party, I managed to spill some very greasy food on a chair and I turned to the hostess and said, "I'm sorry, you can hate me for being a slob." She jokingly responded (at least I'm hoping it was a joke), "Oh, Jeff, there are so many reasons to hate you, being a slob is way down the list." Similarly, there was a bit of umbrage when a lot of pretty "white" folks were hired to play Egyptians in this film, but given the overall lumbering qualities of Gods of Egypt, that may actually be one of the less contentious issues many audience members will have with it. The sword and sandal epics of yore were typically not cinematic masterpieces (there were exceptions, of course), so maybe a bit of slack cutting is warranted with regard to Gods of Egypt as well. The story may be patently ridiculous, and the performances questionable, but the film is definitely a sight to behold (director Alex Proyas, whatever his perceived or real faults, can typically be relied upon to provide a visual feast). I can't outright recommend the film, but will state for those willing to ignore its (many) faults, there's a ton of incredible visuals to enjoy, as well as a typically "epic" soundtrack. In any event, technical merits are generally very strong for those considering a purchase.
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