7.6 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 3.5 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
London advertising executive Dennis Bagley seems to have it all: a big house, a lovely wife and a flourishing career. But when he hits a dry spell and can't come up with a campaign for a new pimple cream, a very unusual boil appears on his shoulder. One day, the boil begins to talk -- but Bagley's the only one who can hear it.
Starring: Richard E. Grant, Rachel Ward (I), Richard Wilson (II), Jacqueline Tong, John ShrapnelComedy | Insignificant |
Fantasy | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.85:1
English: LPCM 2.0 (48kHz, 24-bit)
English SDH
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Two-disc set (1 BD, 1 DVD)
DVD copy
Region B (A, C untested)
Movie | 3.5 | |
Video | 4.5 | |
Audio | 5.0 | |
Extras | 1.5 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
Bruce Robinson's "How to Get Ahead in Advertising" (1989) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of British distributors Arrow Video. The supplemental features on the disc include an original trailer for the film as well as an exclusive new video interview with production designer Michael Pickwoad. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-B "locked".
"Everything I do is rational..."
Presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Bruce Robinson's How to Get Ahead in Advertising arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of British distributors Arrow Video.
The film has a very healthy organic appearance. While there are select areas where light contrast fluctuations are visible -- and it has to be said that they are clearly part of the original cinematography -- detail and clarity are consistently very pleasing. Colors are stable and natural, never appearing even remotely boosted. There are no traces of problematic degraining corrections. Rather predictably, grain is visible and typically well resolved. Some light fluctuations can be spotted, but they are not a byproduct of poor digital work; rather, they are inherited from the original elements that have been used to produce the new transfer (screencaptures #11 and 19 reveal what type of fluctuations are present). There are no large debris, cuts, damage marks, or stains, but a few tiny specks remain (see screencapture #3). Finally, there are no stability issues. To sum it all up, this is a wonderful organic presentation of How to Get Ahead in Advertising and there is absolutely no doubt in my mind that its fans will be very happy with the way it looks in high-definition. (Note: This is a Region-B "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-B or Region-Free PS3 or SA in order to access its content).
There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: English LPCM 2.0. For the record, Arrow Video have provided optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature.
Depth and clarity are very good and there are no balance issues to report in this review. The music has primarily a supportive role, but there are a few sequences where the lush strings enhance the tense atmosphere very well. The dialog is crisp, stable, and easy to follow. Also, there are no audio dropouts, pops, cracks, or digital distortions.
Bruce Robinson's sophomore effort, How to Get Ahead in Advertising, was initially included in Arrow Video's Limited Edition of Withnail and I. It is now also included in the British distributors' Special Edition of Withnail and I. The Limited Edition set is already sold out, but the Special Edition (two-disc set) was released earlier this week. RECOMMENDED.
(Still not reliable for this title)
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