6.1 | / 10 |
Users | 5.0 | |
Reviewer | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.2 |
An intimate all-access look at life on the road for the global music phenomenon. Weaved with stunning live concert footage, this inspiring feature film tells the remarkable story of Niall, Zayn, Liam, Harry and Louis' meteoric rise to fame, from their humble hometown beginnings and competing on the X-Factor, to conquering the world and performing at London's famed O2 Arena. Hear it from the boys themselves and see through their own eyes what it's really like to be One Direction.
Starring: One Direction, Niall Horan, Zayn Malik, Liam Payne, Harry StylesTeen | 100% |
Music | 80% |
Documentary | 38% |
Biography | 18% |
Video codec: MPEG-4 MVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.85:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
English, English SDH, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Cantonese, Indonesian, Korean, Malay, Mandarin (Simplified), Mandarin (Traditional), Thai
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Three-disc set (2 BDs, 1 DVD)
UV digital copy
DVD copy
Blu-ray 3D
Slipcover in original pressing
Region A (B, C untested)
Movie | 3.5 | |
Video | 4.5 | |
Audio | 5.0 | |
Extras | 2.5 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
The Liebman family's introduction to the boy band One Direction came courtesy of a rather good Pepsi commercial starting the band opposite NFL Quarterback Drew Brees. Ever notice how something can be so big yet so completely invisible to people who don't particularly stay on top of popular culture and, suddenly, there's a veritable avalanche of the thing or the person or people from which one cannot escape? That's what seemed to happen with One Direction. Suddenly, the band was everywhere -- not their music, just this presence -- and felt completely overwhelming in a manner similar to the sudden explosions of "twerking" and "tweeting" that took over the globe in the last few years. Friends and relatives talked the band up. It appeared all over the television. One Direction haunted dreams! (OK, not really). But they just wouldn't go away, and for a family that, frankly, doesn't listen to much modern popular music, it was just "ok, another overexposed boy band, here today and gone tomorrow, soon to be replaced by another foursome or quintet with even more hair gel and even higher voices." One Direction: This Is Us provided an opportunity to finally sit down with the group, to hear some of its music, to learn from whence it has come and where it is it's going, and why there's this huge, massive following for this unstoppable boy band force. Now that the movie's over, it's safe to say the Liebman family won't be lining up for tickets, redecorating the Christmas tree with 1D ornaments and photos of the band, or screaming for the boys at the airport, but the film does paint them in a positive, likable fashion, enough so that they've earned a good bit of respect from a family that's hard to please and, maybe, an iTunes download or two.
There is no fate but what Simon and the fans make.
One Direction: This Is Us looks fantastic in 3D. Sony's latest is one of the best Blu-ray 3D experiences on the market. It does everything very well, perhaps not always extraordinarily so, but this is a balanced, approachable, enjoyable presentation that rarely flubs and always visually excites. Image depth is fantastic. Concert scenes in particular offer a very wide-open feel, capturing the volume of the arena but also the depth of the crowd and even the spaces in between the packed audience. Individuals in the crowd look like, well, individuals rather than a mass of flat human shapes at a distance. Stage dynamics are incredible. It pushes backwards towards the screens behind the performers with a natural sensation. Movement back and forth is dynamic and lifelike, and hands and microphones regularly poke out from the screen's confines. More relaxed backstage and "in the life of" moments also sport solid depth, but the concert scenes are of reference 3D quality. The image also retains the excellent detailing, clarity, and color reproduction of its 2D-only counterpart. Blacks are still troublesome in a few spots, looking particularly pale when the band first enters the London arena early in the film. Nevertheless, this is a tremendous presentation that will delight 3D-enabled 1D fans.
One Direction: This Is Us explodes onto Blu-ray with the expectedly stellar DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 lossless soundtrack. The presentation delivers a startlingly intense and exciting listen during concerts, where crowd noise packs the stage and spreads through all of the speakers but is overpowered by deep, intense bass and wonderful instrumental and vocal placement, separation, and clarity. The concert footage is certainly of reference audio quality for its big, almost overpowering realism. The rest of the track is unsurprisingly straightforward. There's perhaps a slight shortage of enveloping ambient sound in places, particularly when the film follows the band backstage or out in the city (ambience, that is, beyond throngs of cheering fans, of course, which does provide a quality room-filling experience). Mostly, these moments are defined by straightforward dialogue, which plays evenly and crisply from the center. Fans, particularly fans with a higher end sound system, are going to fall in love with this track.
One Direction: This Is Us contains a hodgepodge of fluffy extras, included on both the 2D and 3D discs, but appearing in 2D on the 3D disc.
One Direction: This Is Us is a generically constructed but toe-tapping and emotionally satisfying good time. It's a basic concert/documentary hybrid, and its strength, then, is found in the souls of the stars, not the soulless digital hard drive on which the film was pieced together. It's good enough to please the open-minded newcomer and it'll certainly excite the dedicated 1D fanatic. Audiences who have their minds set on disparaging the film based solely on the faces on the poster likely won't be persuaded to enjoy it, and for them it might be smart to just move on to greener pastures rather than expose themselves to something they're predisposed to loathe. Sony's Blu-ray 3D release of One Direction: This Is Us features great 3D video, amazing audio, and several supplements. This family-friendly release is a must-own for diehard 1D fans and it comes recommended as at least a rental to audiences curious what all the hubbub is about.
Movie Fan Pack / Includes Bonus DVD Disc
2013
Ultimate Fan Edition | Theatrical & Extended Cut
2013
Ultimate Fan Edition | Original Theatrical Cut & Extended Cut
2013
Ultimate Fan Edition | Original Theatrical Cut & Extended Cut
2013
Limited Edition Gift Set | Ultimate Fan Edition | With Bonus Disc
2013
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