Rating summary

Movie		2.0
Video		2.5
Audio		2.5
Extras		0.0
Overall		2.0

Hardbodies Blu-ray Movie Review

Mill Creek has released 'Hardbodies' to Blu-ray now for the fourth time, and the first in individual packaging. The film is amongst the first wave of titles to feature "Retro VHS" slipcovers which mimic the look of classic 1980s rental copies (which often had vastly superior artwork compared to today's Photoshopped messes, though Mill Creek used the vintage artwork for the Blu-ray case included with this release). See the 'Special Features and Extras' section below for more on the slipcover. As this is the first time the film has released on its own disc and does include, for sure, a new audio encode, fresh A/V reviews are also included below.

Hardbodies Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Hardbodies makes its individual disc Blu-ray debut with a problematic, but perfectly watchable, 1080p transfer. A healthy bitrate that remains in the low to mid 30s helps create a fairly stable and attractive image that does appear to be the victim of some digital processing while also featuring some light but steady macroblocking and speckling. Such do not entirely destroy the image, however, which boasts some good, reliable textures and defines sand, faces, clothes, and various manmade environments with fairly impressive definition and accessibility. Colors are pleasing to the eye with good punch and depth. These are of course not on the level as one would find in a new production but the palette is stable and sturdy. Skin tones appear accurate to the environment.

Hardbodies Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Hardbodies features a DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 loses soundtrack for this release. It's undoubtedly a bit superior to the previous releases with Dolby Digital 2.0 soundtracks, at least offering greater stability and improved clarity. The two-channel constraints have not changed, however. The track does what it can with the two speakers at its disposal, offering some good width to music and various sound effects, such as some jet skis heard in chapter eight. Beach and boardwalk din is fairly well defined, a little on the muddy side but getting the point across effectively and with enough clarity to define any given little corner of the film's environment. Musical fidelity is good, whether pop songs or score, and stretch to the edges isn't limitless but does extend beyond the front-center confines. Dialogue images nicely to the center and clarity and prioritization are fine.

Hardbodies Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Finally, a purpose for slipcovers! So often the collectible outer shell features the exact same artwork, front, back, and side as the Blu-ray case inside, making them largely ornamental at best. Occasionally embossing/debossing work adds a little variety but this reviewer has always pitched them in the trash, partly for that reason and partly because doing so saves precious (albeit finite) shelf space, critical when one's collection is in the thousands. Mill Creek has taken a step to make slipcovers a little more meaningful with this line of "Retro VHS" slipcovers that offer a shrunken-down approximation of a vintage rental store copy and also feature a portion of a VHS tape extending from the side of the case, even if most VHS covers were open at the bottom.

For Hardbodies, the cover features a red border, reminiscent of classic Columbia/TriStar VHS releases. A bit of fake wear (creases, edge frays), a partially torn rating sticker, and a warning sticker stating that the VHS tape will melt if left in the sun or a (presumably) hot car appear on the box. The VHS tape features the film's title mostly visible as it's partially pulled out from the side of the box. The sticker shows some handling wear, too, and additional stickers appear on the tape, one of which is a "be kind, rewind" smiley. The other is too well hidden to decipher it (it appears to be a warning of some sort). Of course these are not real stickers but rather part of the print, and there's no texture to the cassette, either. Still, it's pretty nifty overall. In this instance the Blu-ray case underneath shares the same artwork, minus the little VHS touches. The rear slipcover side is a little less neat, keeping up with the vintage look at the top but showing a few necessary tech details on the bottom that correspond to the Blu-ray. The bottom side of the VHS tape is also visible. Humorously, a handful of Blu-ray disc logos appear on the front, rear, and spine to break the illusion (though not entirely); the one on the front, situated at the top, in large print, and in red coloring, is the worst offender.

What would be really cool would be if the entire box art mimicked the VHS cover and the Blu-ray artwork underneath entirely mimicked the VHS tape, which could have easily been accomplished. That would offer more of a seamless illusion of actually pulling a VHS tape out of the package rather than it simply appear printed on part of the slipcover.

As far as on-disc extras, there are none. No DVD or digital codes are included, either.

Hardbodies Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Hardbodies does have a plot, but that's not really the point, is it? Skin, sex, sun, and sand are this movie's defining, and only important, characteristics. The film's first individual Blu-ray release is nothing special, but it's cheap and comes with a cool Slipcover for those concerned with such things. Worth a look.