5.9 | / 10 |
Users | 4.0 | |
Reviewer | 3.5 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
When aliens misinterpret video feeds of classic arcade games as a declaration of war against them, they attack the Earth, using the games as models for their various assaults. President Will Cooper has to call on his childhood best friend, '80s video game champion Sam Brenner, now a home theater installer, to lead a team of old-school arcaders to defeat the aliens and save the planet.
Starring: Adam Sandler, Kevin James, Michelle Monaghan, Peter Dinklage, Josh GadAction | 100% |
Comedy | 94% |
Animation | 73% |
Sci-Fi | 71% |
Video codec: MPEG-4 MVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.39:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1
English: Dolby Atmos
English: Dolby TrueHD 7.1 (48kHz, 24-bit)
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (48kHz, 16-bit)
French (Canada): Dolby Digital 5.1
Portuguese: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
Spanish: Dolby Digital 5.1
Thai: Dolby Digital 5.1
Atmos/TrueHD 2D only
English, English SDH, French, Portuguese, Spanish, Indonesian, Korean, Mandarin (Traditional), Thai
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Two-disc set (2 BDs)
UV digital copy
Blu-ray 3D
Slipcover in original pressing
Region free
Movie | 3.0 | |
Video | 4.0 | |
Audio | 4.0 | |
Extras | 2.5 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
Does the old 80s argument of "but the game will improve my hand-eye coordination!" still hold any water? Do today's parents -- those who grew up on the NES and Genesis consoles -- still buy that line from their own kids who, instead of jumping with Mario and sprinting as Sonic, are scaling impossible obstacles in Uncharted on the PlayStation 4 or blasting aliens in Xbox One's Halo 5? Heres hoping the answer is "yes," even if today's games are a bit more, uh, "mature" than stomping on cute little Goombas or making a mad-dash to the next set of rings. Besides, who knows if there will ever come a day when Greek Gods need slaying or the Locust pop up from out of the ground. It'll be gamers on the front line (and, in truth, they already are) with all that hand-eye coordination leading the charge to victory. Director Chris Columbus' (Home Alone) Pixels plays on that idea and takes it to its most literal yet illogical extreme when gamers must play the game in real life in order to defeat an invading alien force in what is sort of like a real-world take on The Last Starfighter and Tron. The movie is cute and fun. It works well enough and looks amazing -- really, the pixelated destruction and massive scale are spectacular -- but it always feels like greatness is within arm's reach rather than firmly grasped from the get-go.
He ain't afraid of no ghost.
Pixels is a mixed back 3D experience. On the one hand, the 3D effect is pretty cool. On the other, the image basics lag behind the stellar
quality of the 2D-only release, which is included in this set. As for the 3D experience, basic
depth is generally strong, less so during static dialogue scenes, with some notable exceptions such as the expansive backdrop appearing behind Peter
Dinklage's character the first time the audience meets his adult version. The 3D effects excite in action, though, where there's a tremendous sense of
general space but, more important, volume and scale. The pixel enemies look remarkably full, with every little bit fully formed in 3D. There's no
shortage of flinch-worthy effects as bad guys and debris hurtle towards the viewer, seemingly out of the screen. A few effects even appear to extend
beyond the confines of the "black bars" for an added jolt and sense of pop. The review equipment did reveal a fairly regular barrage of crosstalk.
Unfortunately, the image suffers elsewhere. Viewers will note two main differences between this and the 2D version, namely significantly warmer
colors -- which are most readily obvious on orange-pushing flesh tones -- and darker blacks that delve into crush. Darker backdrops are often
devoured,
but the good news is that brightly colored alien invaders nicely stand apart during nighttime and low-light battles. But even bright daytime shots suffer
from a slight drop in
vibrancy and color nuance. Natural greens aren't quite as precise and Brenner's orange work shirt isn't quite as vivid as seen in 2D. The plus side is
that
there's not a noticeable drop-off in detailing. Faces remain complex, clothes sharp, and the graphics stunning. The film is worth watching in 3D, but
those looking for the purest picture quality won't find it with the added dimension in play.
Note that screenshots in this review have been sourced from the 2D-only disc and are not reflective of the 3D picture quality experience.
Pixels' 2D presentation features a Dolby Atmos soundtrack, but the 3D version contains only a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 lossless soundtrack. While there's a minor difference in terms of fullness (compared to the core Dolby TrueHD 7.1 lossless soundtrack) both are fairly evenly matched. Clarity is excellent here, unsurprisingly, with rich and room filling music in play throughout. Action scenes are dynamic, with big, sweeping movements enveloping the stage and thunderous heft supporting the film's most prominent sound effects. Light ambience in several key areas remains impressively immersive. Dialogue is rich and center focused with perhaps a hair more in the way natural reverberation where the other track lacked it.
Pixels contains a handful of featurettes, a music video, and a photo gallery, all in 2D and appearing on the included 2D-only disc. The 3D
disc does contain 3D previews for The Walk, Hotel Transylvania 2, and Goosebumps but no additional
bonus content. A UV digital copy
code is included with purchase.
Pixels is a movie that should be goofy fun, and it is, for the most part, but one -- gamers, particularly -- cannot watch and think of all the missed opportunities to make it something special. Even with the limited pool of classic video game characters, the film feels a little limited and, frankly, aimed more at the thirty something crowd that grew up on them rather than the younger crowd that grew up in the open worlds of Grand Theft Auto and the like. Still, Pixels offers up healthy fun. It errs on the side of mass appeal goofy, and it's so vapid that anyone who's seen the trailer has practically seen the entire movie. There are no real secrets or surprises, just a run-of-the-mill Comedy-Disaster-Alien Invasion movie that replaces generic bad guys with the arcade favorites of the actors' youths. For mindless fun, Pixels satisfies, but there's a lot of room for improvement and growth if the franchise continues, and here's hoping it does, because the core idea is terrific and there are plenty more video game characters to employ. Sony's Blu-ray 3D release is enjoyable, though with some caveats. The 3D effect works well, but color pushes darker. Sound has been downgraded from Dolby Atmos to DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 for the 3D presentation. No bonus content beyond 3D trailers is added from the 2D-only release. 3D-equipped fans should ensure this finds its way into the collection, and since it comes with the visually and aurally superior 2D release, a purchase is a win-win.
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