8 | / 10 |
Users | 4.4 | |
Reviewer | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.4 |
Set in 1930s Paris, an orphan who lives in the walls of a train station is wrapped up in a mystery involving his late father and an automaton.
Starring: Ben Kingsley, Sacha Baron Cohen, Asa Butterfield, Chloë Grace Moretz, Ray WinstoneAdventure | 100% |
Family | 93% |
Period | 47% |
Mystery | 9% |
Drama | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 MVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.85:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 (48kHz, 24-bit)
French: Dolby Digital 5.1
Portuguese: Dolby Digital 5.1
Spanish: Dolby Digital 5.1
English, English SDH, French, Portuguese, Spanish
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Three-disc set (2 BDs, 1 DVD)
UV digital copy
DVD copy
Blu-ray 3D
Slipcover in original pressing
Region free
Movie | 5.0 | |
Video | 5.0 | |
Audio | 5.0 | |
Extras | 2.5 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
Come and dream with me.
Hugo is a film about secrets and discoveries, forgotten pasts and hopeful futures. Those qualities reflect both the characters and the world
of
filmmaking itself. Director Martin Scorsese's Hugo lovingly embraces the medium of film in a way that's largely been lost through the years.
His film plays as if a tribute to the history of and the possibilities inherent to the medium, the former, it sometimes seems, largely forgotten and the
latter often sacrificed in
the name of a quick buck in the world of today's cinema-as-big-business. Hugo celebrates the artistic visions of cinema's greatest craftsmen
and the wide-eyed wonder at the spectacle not just of the science behind moving images, but the sense of awe they engender when a film is crafted
with a passion for storytelling, a love for the medium, and an appreciation for the audience. Hugo serves to remind viewers what a beautiful
medium film can be, of the power it holds, of the magic it wields. Scorsese's film, based on Brian Selznick's acclaimed book "The Invention of Hugo
Cabret," is a rare gem capable of restoring one's lost love for film, a beacon of hope in a darkening cinematic landscape where vision
and
passion often seem, at best, lost under dictated formula; budgets; time constraints; and a cold, heartless detachment -- by both the filmmakers and
the audience -- from the true power of film. Hugo represents the embodiment of what cinema can, was, and should be. The picture is
magnificently honest,
faultlessly assembled, incessantly fun, unendingly touching, and purely magical. It's a film for the ages, for all ages, an altogether brilliant and
spellbinding attraction made with the same sort of love and care it depicts through its captivating tale of discovery and wonder.
Is my future inside of you?
While Hugo's 1080p Blu-ray 3D transfer is generally brilliant, it falls well short of perfection. It should be noted that the film's 2D Blu-ray
presentation is marvelous. All of those same qualities are carried over to this 3D transfer. Fine
detail remains absolutely astonishing, with this 3D transfer capturing and subsequently allowing the viewer to absorb with much wonder the amazing
textures on clothes, the precision detailing on faces, the scuffed metal body of the automaton, and all of the fabulous little intricacies of gears, walls,
floors, and all of the objects around the train station. Likewise, the 3D transfer retains the same quality color palette that's somewhat naturally
subbed
in favor of shades of bronze and gray while brighter splashes of color are presented with a natural precision. Blacks never wash out, flesh tones never
fluctuate, and digital or compression anomalies are absent, save for a trace of banding. Certainly, these elements which appear in both presentations
remain constant, which is often the first key to a Blu-ray 3D transfer's ultimate success or failure.
With that in mind, an examination of the 3D elements reveal incredible plusses and a single but constant and hugely problematic minus. To be sure,
there are many things to love about this Blu-ray 3D presentation. Film's open sees snowflakes appear to drift out from the screen. Every scene
where
anything shatters or floats about proves special, with the screen all but disappearing in favor of the effect. Even the light emanating from a movie
projector seen head-on seems to spill straight out of the 3D display. Depth is natural and a great asset to the presentation; the opening long shot
down
the platform is wondrously realistic in scope and size. The inner world of the station, too, springs to life with gears and other objects occupying real
space
and made of a tangible volume, no matter how large or small they may be, how open or cramped their environment. The transfer displays the
automaton with much care; the frame which serves as an outer shell is always nicely contrasted with the gears and other objects within, giving it a
very
tangible, realistic shape and size. For all its goodness -- and the 3D visuals consistently help better shape and define the movie -- this transfer
stumbles
throughout. Crosstalk is not only present, but severe. It's constant and distracting, heavy and disappointing. It greatly interferes with the film and,
for
all the good the remainder of the 3D visuals do, at this time the standard 2D version proves to be the best option for pure visual perfection.
Hugo's DTS-HD MA 7.1 lossless soundtrack is up to the challenge of matching the video quality throughout. Indeed, Paramount's soundtrack makes full use of the entire stage -- the extra two surround channels included -- to create a seamless sound field that creates with great clarity and attention to detail the Paris train station, the mechanical objects, and other niceties scattered throughout the picture. Listeners will receive a quick sample of the track's prowess in the opening moments; a train maneuvers its way into the soundstage, followed by the precise clicking and grinding of working gears that float about the entire area. The track excels with similar ambient effects; its ability to paint such a remarkably vivid sonic picture of the station knows no limits. Each scene is an experience of precise sound engineering where footfalls, chatter, and the general din of the busy area are such that the listener is transported into the middle of the movie. Few tracks feature as many precisely-placed effects as Hugo; most may not be of the loud or excessive variety, but the track is always scene-specific and recreates with the utmost care and attention to detail every last little element. Heavier effects -- a large crash sequence in chapter thirteen -- are equally precise even with the added energy and chaos. Music delivery is perfectly spaced and immersive, playing with superb clarity as each note floats effortlessly into the listening area. Dialogue is steady and accurate as it plays from the center channel, with a few playful moments of expert reverberation capturing the size and scope of the station. This is a wonderful track that's every bit as good as the accompanying video.
Hugo contains no 3D-exclusive extras. All supplements appear on the included 2D-only disc.
Hugo is a special movie that's a tribute to the medium and perhaps the greatest accomplishment of one of the most accomplished filmmakers to ever step behind a camera. Martin Scorsese's Hugo mesmerizes from beginning to end with its scope, authenticity, completeness, warmth, sincerity, and attention to detail. The movie has been faultlessly crafted, seamlessly realized, and amazingly acted. The story never disappoints, the themes are true, and the picture's heart is constant. It's the embodiment of pure, wondrous cinema, cinema as it was and should be, a true labor of love that's not to be missed and made to be experienced. Here's hoping Hugo is awarded the Best Picture Oscar; after all, how could a movie about the beauty of movies, a picture that so lovingly celebrates the medium, be denied? Paramount's Blu-ray 3D release of Hugo features a strong 3D transfer that's marred by constant and excessive crosstalk. Otherwise, this set treats audiences to the same fantastic 7.1 lossless soundtrack found on the standalone 2D-only release, as well as the same grouping of extras. Buyers with a few extra dollars to spare may as well pick this one up; Hugo is worth watching in 3D, even with the crosstalk issue, but chances are many will turn to the 2D version for future engagements.
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Limited Edition
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40th Anniversary Edition
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Free Willy 4
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30th Anniversary Edition | US Version
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