7.2 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 2.5 | |
Overall | 2.5 |
Follows the exploits of Canadian soldiers leading up to one of the key battles of World War I that was fought over nearly four months in 1917.
Starring: Paul Gross, Caroline Dhavernas, Joe Dinicol, Michael Greyeyes, Adam J. HarringtonWar | 100% |
History | 93% |
Drama | 87% |
Romance | 21% |
Video codec: MPEG-2
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1
English: Dolby Digital 5.1 (640 kbps)
English: Dolby Digital 2.0 (192 kbps)
None
25GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region B (locked)
Movie | 2.5 | |
Video | 3.0 | |
Audio | 3.0 | |
Extras | 2.0 | |
Overall | 2.5 |
Screened at the Toronto International Film Festival and winner of the Golden Reel Award for Canada's top-grossing film of 2008, Paul Gross' "Passchendaele" (2008) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of British distributors High Fliers Films. The only supplemental feature on the disc is the documentary "The Road to Passchendaele". In English, without optional subtitles for the main feature. Region-B "locked".
At Passchendaele
Presented in an aspect ratio of 1.78:1, encoded with MPEG-2 and granted a 1080p transfer, Paul Gross' Passchendaele arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of British distributors High Fliers Films.
This is a problematic high-definition transfer. First, the film has been severely cropped from its original aspect ratio of 2.39:1 to 1.78:1. As a result, a number of scenes in it look terribly chaotic. Second, while fine object detail is acceptable, clarity levels are inconsistent. During the darker battle scenes, and with the heavy rain falling, at times it is almost impossible to figure out exactly what is happening on the screen. Furthermore, I noticed mild digital noise creeping in, some of it in addition to macroblocking and aliasing. Mild edge-enhancement is also present during many of the outdoor scenes. On a positive side, the film's color-scheme appears to be mostly intact - the grays, blues, greens, brown and blacks look convincing. Also, there are no serious stability issues to report in this review. However, I did notice a few flecks popping up here, which some of you may find annoying. All in all, it is fairly obvious that the severe image cropping is a serious issue with this release, which is why I recommend that you opt for the Canadian Blu-ray release, should you wish to add a copy of Passchendaele to your library. (Note This is a Region-B "locked" Blu-ray disc. Therefore, you need to have a native Region-B or Region-Free player in order to access its content).
There are two audio tracks on this Blu-ray disc: English Dolby Digital 5.1 and English Dolby Digital 2.0. For the record, High Fliers Films have not provided optional English subtitles for the main feature.
The audio treatment isn't overly convincing either. The English Dolby Digital 5.1 track is notably flat, with seriously disappointing surround activity. The bass is also weak, though the high-frequencies are unproblematic. This being said, the battle scenes are far from impressive.
The dialog, however, is clean, stable and easy to follow. Still, I have to voice my displeasure that optional English subtitles are not provided. Finally, I did not detect any disturbing pops, cracks or hiss to report in this review. (Note: The Canadian Blu-ray release of Passchendaele arrives with two lossless audio tracks - English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and French DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1. It also has optional English SDH and French SDH subtitles for the main feature).
The Road to Passchendaele - a standard featurette with raw footage from the shooting of the film, comments from the cast and crew, some documentary footage from the real Battle of Passchendaele, footage from the final version of the film, etc. In English, not subtitled. (44 min, 480/60i).
I have mixed feelings about Paul Gross' Passchendaele. Technically, it gets a lot of things right. Artistically, however, it is clearly a disappointment. I don't think that it is in any way disrespectful to its subject matter, but clearly it isn't the realistic war drama many Canadians expected and wanted it to be. The Blu-ray disc herein reviewed, courtesy of British distributors High Fliers Films, is problematic. If you wish to add Passchendaele to your library, I suggest that you opt for the Canadian release, which preserves the film's original aspect ratio, it boasts two lossless audio tracks, and arrives with optional English SDH and French SDH subtitles for the main feature.
2017
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