Mika: Sinfonia Pop Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		3.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		1.5
Overall		3.5

Mika: Sinfonia Pop Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman May 27, 2016

Mika is an appealing young man who hasn’t made a huge inroad on the American charts (at least with regard to his singles, none of which has made the Top 40), but in his (more or less) native England, he’s a superstar, with at least one album and single that made it to the top of the charts in that country. Mika plies a middle of the road ambience that offers the requisite pop hooks and occasional arranging whimsy, all delivered in a charming if occasionally mannered vocal style. In a really ingratiating interview included on this Blu-ray as a supplement, he talks about his lifelong fascination with theater and how even coming into an empty performance venue is something of a religious experience for him. This particular concert finds Mika in the redolent environment of the Teatro Sociale in Como, Italy, supported by a symphony orchestra. The result is a bit more organic than some of these “symphony meets pop and/or rock” outings tend to be, and Mika proves himself to be a very winning presence even when some of his material can sound a bit derivative. And in fact it's probably the orchestral element that gives this concert most of its distinctive flavor, plus there's the added benefit of unexpected comedy like the facial expression of the player consigned to contributing handclaps on a Latin tinged number. You can almost hear him asking myself, "I got a Music Degree for this?"

The set list, many of which were huge hits overseas, includes:

1) Overture
2) Underwater
3) Boum Boum Boum
4) Rain
5) Last Party
6) Overrated
7) Any Other World
8) Love You When I’m Drunk
9) Ordinary Man
10) Heroes
11) Toy Boy
12) Grace Kelly
13) Over My Shoulder
14) Good Guys
15) Make You Happy
16) Happy Ending
17) Origin Of Love
18) Relax, Take It Easy
19) Elle Me Dit
20) Love Today
21) Stardust

Mika: Sinfonia Pop Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Mika: Sinfonia Pop is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Eagle Rock Entertainment with an AVC encoded 1080i transfer in 1.78:1. This is a generally pleasing video presentation, though it's not without a few problems. As can be seen in some of the screenshots accompanying this review, there's a light dusting of noise that accrues in some of the darker moments. There's also a tendency to flirt pretty aggressively with aliasing at times, something that tends to afflict wider shots that pick up things like the lighting array in the flies or some of the parallel lines of the ornate theater. Combing artifacts occasionally crop up in moments where, for example, string players are seen rapidly bowing their instruments. Otherwise, though, this offers a generally sharp and precise looking image, one that offers a natural looking palette presented with consistent contrast.

Mika: Sinfonia Pop Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Eagle Rock has authored this disc to default to the LPCM 2.0 track instead of the DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track, and some listeners may actually prefer the stereo iteration to the surround version since Mika's voice tends to get at least slightly subsumed by the orchestral forces in the 5.1 outing. Both options offer sterling fidelity and great deal of warmth in the orchestral colorations. There are no problematic dropouts, distortion or damage to report.

Mika: Sinfonia Pop Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Interviews

  Mika (1080i; 10:16)

  Simon Le Clerc (1080i; 4:31)

Mika: Sinfonia Pop Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Mika has a kind of sweet stage presence that will probably appeal to fans of crooners like Michael Bublé, even if Mika's stylistic proclivities are manifestly different. A largely unadorned stage show puts the emphasis squarely on the music, and the orchestral backings are rather nicely into Mika's pop ambience. Video has a few passing issues, but audio is fine. Recommended.