6.7 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 3.0 | |
Overall | 3.0 |
In just a few short years, Notorious B.I.G. rose from the streets of Brooklyn to become one of the most influential hip hop artists of all time. B.I.G. was a gifted storyteller; his narratives about violent life on the streets were told with a gritty, objective realism that won him enormous respect and credibility. His stories were universal and gave a voice to his generation.
Starring: Angela Bassett, Derek Luke, Jamal Woolard, Anthony Mackie, Antonique SmithBiography | 100% |
Music | 73% |
Drama | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.40:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (48kHz, 24-bit)
English SDH, French, Spanish
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Two-disc set (1 BD, 1 DVD)
Digital copy (on disc)
Bonus View (PiP)
BD-Live
Slipcover in original pressing
Region B (locked)
Movie | 2.5 | |
Video | 4.0 | |
Audio | 4.5 | |
Extras | 4.5 | |
Overall | 3.0 |
Already released on Blu-ray in North America, George Tillman Jr.'s “Notorious” (2009) arrives in the United Kingdom courtesy of 20th Century Fox-UK. The disc contains the theatrical and extended versions of the film. All of the the supplemental features from the US release have been ported to the UK release. Region-B "locked".
In Brooklyn
Presented in its original aspect ratio of 2.40:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p
transfer, Notorious arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of 20th Century Fox-UK.
This is a good transfer that does the film justice. Contrast is consistently strong, detail pleasing and
clarity excellent. The color-scheme is also solid – blues, yellows, browns, reds, blacks and whites are
lush and well saturated. This being said, I noticed a bit of edge-enhancement popping up here and
there, particularly during the first half of the film. On the other hand, macro-blocking is not an issue
of concern. I did not spot any excessive digital noise either. Additionally, the actual transfer looks
notably healthy – there are absolutely no scratches, specks, dust, or debris that I was able to
detect. All in all, this is a pleasing transfer that should make British fans of the film quite happy. For
the record, the Blu-ray disc herein reviewed contains both the theatrical and extended cuts of the
film. (Note: This is a Region-B "locked" disc. Therefore, in order to access its content, you
must have a native Region-B or Region-Free player).
There is only one track on this Blu-ray disc: English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1. For the record, 20th
Century Fox have provided optional English HOH, French and Spanish subtitles. Please note that
when turned on, the subtitles appear inside the image frame.
The DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track is solid. The bass is full-bodied and rich, the high-frequencies
not overdone and the surround channels intelligently used. A lot of the supporting tracks – mainly
those from the club scenes – sound absolutely fantastic. Furthermore, the dialog is crisp, clear and
very easy to follow. This being said, I did not detect any pops, cracks, or hissings to report in this
review. On the contrary, my experience with the DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track was simply
fantastic. All in all, Notorious has received a solid audio treatment that will surely impress
many of you.
Commentary with director George Tillman Jr, co-screenwriter Reggie Rock
Bythewood, co-screenwriter Cheo Hodari Coker and editor Dirk Westervelt.
Commentary with producer/Biggie's Mom Violetta Wallace, producer/Biggie's
co-manager Wayne Barrow and producer/Biggie's co-manager Mark Pitts.
Life After Death: Making Notorious – a 1.1 Profile feature, playable only on
Bonusview players, that gives one access to footage from the shooting of the film, interviews with
the cast and crew, live performances etc. All of the extra footage is also available as one large file
via a "Play All" option. (1080p, 27 min).
Behind the Scenes: The Making of Notorious – a standard featurette where the
director and crew member share their thoughts on the film. Some casting footage is available as
well. (1080p, 28 min).
I Got a Story to Tell: The Lyrics of Biggie Smalls – a look at the lyrics of late
rapper. (1080i, 10 min).
Notorious Thugs: Casting the Film – the director talks about what were the
type of challenges his team faced while trying to select the type of actors that would most
accurately recreated the real men and women that were part of Biggie's life. (1080i, 9
min).
Biggie Boot Camp – a look at the specific training the cast underwent before
shooting of the film began. (1080p, 7 min).
Anatomy of a B.I.G. Performance – the director of the film talks about what
type of archival footage was studied in order to recreate the atmosphere from Biggie's live shows
as best as possible. (1080p, 5 min).
Party & Bulls**t – an archival footage from a performing of the famous song
(480p, 4 min).
The B.I.G. Three-Sixty – provides the viewer with a 360 degree interactive
experience of the Notorious B.I.G murder scene.
Deleted scenes – "Assassin Assembles His Gun" (29 secs), "Taking Care of
Business" (1 min), "Big of his Own" (23 secs), "Finding Inspiration" (1 min), "The Assassin
Watches" (33 secs), "In The Hotel Pool" (2 min), "East Coast in the House" (54 secs), "After the
Accident" (58 secs), "The Assassin Backs Up" (33 secs), "Extended Concert: Primo Street Rap" (2
mins). All of the deleted scenes are in 1080p.
Trivia Track – by activating this feature, trivia will appear during each
Notorious track. Viewers can create a playlist of their favorite songs and purchase them through
iTunes.
Notorious is an ambitious but, ultimately, very controversial film. It appears that a lot from the mystery surrounding the killings of Notorious B.I.G and Tupac Shakur has been intentionally left unaddressed by the creators of the film. This said, the UK-produced disc herein reviewed looks and sounds very good. It is also loaded with supplemental features. If you enjoyed Notorious, you will certainly appreciate what 20th Century Fox-UK have done with this Blu-ray disc.
Director's Cut | Also Includes Theatrical Version
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