Red Bull Media House Film Collection Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		5.0
Overall		4.5

Red Bull Media House Film Collection Blu-ray Movie Review

Red Bull Media House has released an impressively assembled boxed set that includes a dozen extreme sports films, ranging from bicycling to skiing and other sports as well. To the best of my understanding, eleven of the twelve films are exclusive to this boxed set. In addition to the films, the set ships with a magazine and a number of extra goodies related to the world of extreme sports. This review includes very brief film run-downs, video and audio reviews, and coverage of bonus content as well as a few words on the packaging and the physical items included.

• On Any Sunday: The Next Chapter: Please click here for full a full film review.
• Rad Company (49:07): This is a film dedicated to the sight of the ride. It's not a narrative-driven film but rather a collection of riders doing their thing through various environments and natural terrain (from woodland areas to deserts), set to music. It's a nice departure from the quasi-documentary style of other films, here focused entirely on capturing the action's speed but also, in many shots, its detail in perfectly planned and presented slow motion. I loved this film's focus on action, music, and photographic style. Score: 5.0/5.0.
• Bending Colours (37:21): Framed within the context of his younger days of surfing the waves, Bending Colours follows Jordy Smith's globetrotting adventures to find the perfect waves and ride them with a master's touch and a superman's confidence. The film primarily focuses on mesmerizing surf footage but also blends together a hearty personal narrative along the way. Score: 4.5/5.0.
• Where the Trail Ends (1:21:49): It was long believed that Utah offered the best terrain for extreme biking, and indeed its natural geography is a playground for 360 degrees of two-wheeled freedom. But after time, it started to feel "familiar." It was no longer unique. Is there anywhere else in the world that offers something similar, or even better? A team of high risk, high reward bike riders travel the world to find out. Score: 4.0/5.0.
• Strength in Numbers (52:53): This film with global reach showcases riders of all skill levels across a myriad of locations for satisfying and challenging looks into the world of adrenaline heavy and sometimes dangerous mountain biking. With compelling personal stories, incredible footage, and a hard-hitting soundtrack, it is in many ways the epitome of its genre. Score: 4.5/5.0.
• Congo: The Grand Inga Project (1:21:06): The action turns to the world of kayaking for a comprehensive look at the process of kayaking the Congo River. The film follows the preparations, training, and the highs and lows, including the dangers, of facing down the environmental challenges as well as the difficult of training for the unpredictable in a foreign land. It closely follows the various kayakers and looks at the history of the region and of those who blazed the trail before them. Score: 4.0/5.0.
• The Unrideables: Alaska Range (46:34): Alaska is home to some of the best, and most challenging, skiing terrain. But it is also home to some places and peaks once thought off limits: too impossible, too dangerous. Now, this film follows adventurers who seek to tame the untamable and ride the unrideable of Alaska's most notorious peaks. But it is not just downhill skiing: it is paragliding over and above them, too. Skiers touch down, at times, as the chute carries the skier downhill. A crack team from around the world converges to tame the wild Alaskan frontier. Score: 4.0/5.0.
• Days of My Youth (1:01:43): A tour-de-force of fresh powder skiing excellence, the film follows a handful of skiers across some of the best terrain in the world. The film is more concerned with their carefree attitude and approach, the fun on the slopes, and less on the sheer majesty of the world and their skill of the riders, both of which comes through clearly, though as a secondary rather than a primary focus. Score: 4.5/5.0.
• McConkey (1:49:48): This is a documentary centering on the late Shane McConkey who died doing what he loved most: skiing. The film features home video footage of his extreme sports doings and interviews with those who knew and loved him most. It also looks at his impact on the extreme sports world around him. Score: 4.0/5.0.
• Tracing Skylines (55:53): There is less a plot at work and more a sense of adventure as several in this film pros seek out fresh opportunities for high octane, deeply challenging skiing, from classic snowy peaks to abandoned Detroit locations. Score: 3.5/5.0.
• We: A Collection of Individuals (54:35): This film takes audiences on a journey with some of the most prolific skiers in the world as they seek the ultimate thrills on the ultimate slopes. Intense skiing action abounds as the world's finest athletes tackle the world's best slopes...and tackle some off-slopes mayhem as well. Score: 2.5/5.0
• The Art of Flight (1:20:37): This film follows a group of boundary-pushing snowboarders looking to not just conquer the sport but also evolve it to the next level. The film follows Travis Rice and friends as they seek new highs in adventure, which takes them to some of the steepest, trickiest, and dangerous slopes while also showing their more adventurous side in a number of extracurricular activities as well. Score: 4.0/5.0.

Red Bull Media House Film Collection Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

• On Any Sunday: The Next Chapter: Please click here for full a full Blu-ray video review.
• Rad Company: The film is presented at 1080p. The picture is appreciably sharp with tight textures across a myriad of landscapes. Clothes and bikes are clear and well defined as well. Color output pleases, offering good, stable, and vivid color selections that burst with tonal flavor and diversity, from desert browns to natural greens and all variety of bike and clothing colors. Black levels are solid enough. Mild noise is present in lower light. This isn't a standout, but it looks rock-solid. Score: 4.0/5.0.
• Bending Colours: The 1080p image is stellar. While there are some examples of older footage intermixed with new and spiking noise/grain at lower light, the image largely looks brilliant with a very sure and satisfying filmic appearance. Interview footage is remarkably crisp and efficient, yielding some of the absolute best skin and hair detail ever seen at 1080p. Meanwhile, the surfing segments look beyond marvelous, especially in the slow-mo segments where audiences can practically identify every drop of water. Colors are bold and rich, whether blue waters and skies, artwork on surfboards, or colorful attire seen throughout. Score: 4.5/5.0.
• Where the Trail Ends: This is a quality 1080p presentation that offers exacting imagery of terrain around the world, with even large, expansive vistas offering remarkable definition to the finest pebbles and larger rock formations alike. Again, slow-motion is a delight to see kicked up dirt and amazing definition on bikes and tires, even at some distance. General close-ups offer nicely defined facial features as well. Colors are neutral, with some bold earthy colors the standout highlight across the various examples of terrain, but to be sure some bolder greens and clothing colors come into play we well, while everything from a Chinese market to a yellow helicopter deliver striking color accuracy and punch. There is some lower resolution "GoPro"-style and drone footage, but overall this looks very good. Score: 4.0/5.0.
• Strength in Numbers: The 1080p presentation is exceptional. Clarity to interviews snippets is beyond wonderful, showcasing every fine line and pore and hair on skin. Terrain is superbly complex as well, with every pebble and grain of dirt practically countable. The extreme slow-motion footage is incredibly clear and lifelike. There is a little bit of noise in a few spots, and the picture occasionally looks slightly soft, but this appears due more to a difference in cameras used and the conditions in which they are used. Colors are bold and stable, ranging form colorful attire and bikes to the earthy Utah terrain. Black levels are good. No encode issues are apparent. Score: 4.5/5.0
• Congo: The Grand Inga Project: The film is presented at 1080i and is clearly one of the weakest, if not the weakest, image in the set. It satisfies for basic clarity but it has a very video-y look with noise, aliasing, and other source issues degrading the image quality throughout. Basic details are solid enough, from faces to clothes and all variety of terrain on and around the water. Some of the lower resolution footage offers plenty of jagged edges, too. Footage on the water, shot with "Go Pro" style cameras, suffers from severe macroblocking. It looks OK, but it is a noticeable downgrade from the rest. Score: 2.5/5.0.
• The Unrideables: Alaska Range: The 1080p picture is spectacular. Expansive Alaskan vistas are covered in dazzlingly white snow with very well defined rocky formation peeking out here and there underneath. Clarity to faces and gear in close-up is excellent as well. Colors are bold and brilliant, offering very impressive pop to ski attire, parachutes, and the like, and there are many vivid tones throughout the film. This one is a looker! Score: 4.5/5.0.
• Days of My Youth: Red Bull Media House presents this film at the 1080p resolution. It is another superb image, presenting exquisite detail throughout, first and perhaps most notably on the myriad of establishing shots of odds and ends as seen during the opening title montage. Overall detail is superb, especially powder and natural formations, skin textures, and ski attire. Colors are brilliant with bright bold red, blue, and green ski apparel leaping off the screen, especially in contrast to the brilliant white snow. There is minimal noise and no compression issues. Score: 5.0/5.0.
• McConkey: This 1080p presentation is reliable. Of course, much of it is comprised of old home footage which is fine for what it is and does not factor into the score. The new interview clips are the main visual driver, and they satisfy the basics for clarity and detail, offering fine, if not sometimes slightly smooth, definition to pores, lines, and hairs. Clothing is sharp, too. Color saturation is good, offering vivid output to various clothes. Skin tones are pleasing and black levels satisfy. There are some examples of aliasing. Look at the 23:26 mark, for example. Score: 3.5/5.0.
• Tracing Skylines This is another wonderful 1080p transfer from Red Bull Media. The picture is ultra crisp, highly detailed, and ridiculously clear. The opening shots on the beach see perfectly defined sand, excellent clarity to surfboard wax, and skin details, which are not seen in the skiing segments, which comprise the bulk of the image. While expert sharpness to various rock faces and ski attire remains, the real highlight here is the color output, offering bold clothes to the aforementioned ski high visibility clothes. However, the real winner here is simply the white snow. It's as crisp and bright as SDR colors can offer, and it's just a joy to behold There is only a hint of noise and compression issues, both of which seem to appear only in the most severe of shots captured, it seems, with lower grade cameras. Score: 4.5/5.0.
• We: A Collection of Individuals: The 1080p imagery is solid. Snow is crisp and white and ski attire is bold and well saturated, but the colors don't really leap off the screen as they do in some of the other productions in this collection. The imagery is not as crisply defined as some other films, and in fact can bogged down in macroblocking, banding, and aliasing, at times, rarely to a place of severity but enough to notice. Source noise is often visible as well. Score: 3.0/5.0.
• The Art of Flight: The 1080p transfer is very good. There is a lot of aerial footage that has a certain video-y look to it, lacking at times the razor precision that the finest digital captures can offer, but there is certainly no questioning the overall clarity and sharpness, even at distance, to mountainous formations and packed snow. Some of the off-the-slopes element look good, yielding tangible depth and definition to faces and clothes. Yet even these such scenes hold a fair bit of noise and can't quite strike the top level of excellence that digital can provide. Snow is white and brilliant and there are some fun colors throughout the film, including some big orange fireballs, natural greenery, and some abundantly colorful clothes. Score: 4.0/5.0.

Red Bull Media House Film Collection Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

• On Any Sunday: The Next Chapter: Please click here for full a full Blu-ray audio review.
• Rad Company: The DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 lossless soundtrack offers quality engagement to music out to the sides, along with fine clarity and definition. Discrete sound effects are commonplace, beginning with the various sounds of record equipment and glowing neon lights in the opening title sequence. Some booming thunder nicely engages at the 2-minute mark with prominent depth and detail. Music sounds great across a wide selection of songs and styles, offering precision instrumental clarity and tight lyrics. Score: 4.5/5.0
• Bending Colours: The Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack delivers a nicely immersive listen, with music soaring through the fronts and rears with expert clarity. Ocean waves roll with authoritative placement and seamless integration through the listening area. Dialogue is clear and proficient from its natural front-center location. Score: 4.0/5.0.
• Where the Trail Ends: The included Dolby TrueHD 7.1 lossless soundtrack is impressively clear, big, and exhilarating. It's a track with the size to match the scope and scale of the story and visuals. Musical definition is wonderful with absolute full stage engagement and seamless traversal, as well as obvious, and regular, precision to discrete effects as well. Enviornmental cues are awesome across the vast Chinese landscape, and dialogue, both in-film and overlaid narration, is faultless. Score: 5.0/5.0.
• Strength in Numbers: The LPCM 2.0 uncompressed soundtrack gets the job done. It's nicely detailed, but music doesn't spread extremely far from the center area. It's not very aggressive in volume, either. Dialogue is clear and does image very well to the center. There's not much to this one. Score: 3.5/5.0.
• Congo: The Grand Inga Project: Included is a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 lossless soundtrack. It is very proficient, though certainly not much of a standout in any way. Musical clarity pleases, and the sense of spacing is fine, offering wide front-end stretch and mild musical surround extension as well. Atmospheric effects nicely draw the listener into the region, such as buzzing insects and chirping birds, chatty and working people in the background, and of course more dominant sound elements like the rushing rapids that sometimes can seem to spill into the listening area, accompanied by sold depth and power. Dialogue is centered and clear for the duration. Score: 3.5/5.0.
• The Unrideables: Alaska Range: This film is presented in the Dolby TrueHD 5.1 lossless audio configuration. The presentation is not overly aggressive, but music is well spaced if not a bit subdued or lacking supreme punch at refence volume. Still, clarity is solid overall. There are not a lot of ambient effects, but the net impact is solid enough. Dialogue is clear and centered for the duration. Score: 3.5/5.0.
• Days of My Youth: For this film, Red Bull Media House supplies a Dolby TrueHD 5.1 lossless soundtrack, and it is superb. The overall musical clarity is striking. It's big, perfectly presented at reference volume, widely spaced and expertly positioned, and supported by a well-balanced low end. Music is the obvious highlight, but the track offers finely defined support effects, including everything from busy city traffic to a whistling tea kettle. Dialogue is clear and centered, and even an old-style radio broadcast narration is nicely defined within its natural parameters. Score: 5.0/5.0.
• McConkey McConkey features a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 lossless soundtrack. The track is fairly simple in its needs, built primarily on music and dialogue. The former is fine, offering good basic definition and detail with nicely wide front stage expansion. There is not an abundance of surround activity. Dialogue is centered, well detailed, and nicely prioritized throughout. Score: 4.0/5.0.
• Tracing Skylines: The included DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 lossless soundtrack plays as big as it possibly can. Spacing is excellent with terrific stretch and excellent dynamics at work, including distinct effects in each speaker and a seamless flow all along the front stage. There is a hearty depth to music as well, even without the benefit of a dedicated subwoofer channel. Music's lyrics are crisp and well defined, too, and while not perfectly centered, push in a little closer to the middle area. Dialogue is, on the other hand, well imaged to the center with authoritative clarity. It doesn't get much better than this with a two-channel configuration; the stage is as full as can be under these limitations. Score: 5.0/5.0.
• We: A Collection of Individuals: As with the previous listing, this film includes a DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 lossless soundtrack. And as with the previous listing, it is full, powerful, and in charge from beginning to end. The various styles of music that accompany almost every sequence blast through with impressive volume at reference level while maintaining clarity to instrumentals and lyrics alike. Spacing is excellent and there is a quality supportive weight to music, even without a subwoofer channel at work. Dialogue is centered and clear for the duration. Score: 4.5/5.0.
• The Art of Flight: The Dolby TrueHD 7.1 lossless soundtrack really hammers home its excellence with a Dolby advertisement at film's start, which continues on with the film's score and sound effects, both effortlessly filling the stage with gargantuan power and seamless surround integration. The listener is immersed by all content, which is presented at prominent volume at reference level while holding supreme clarity and engagement. For as wide, immersive, and big as it all may be, dialogue and narration are grounded in the center and present with excellent clarity. Score: 5.0/5.0.

Red Bull Media House Film Collection Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

I will not belabor a lengthy review of the packaging but offer only a few short words. The outer box measures approximately 12" long by 8" high and 2.75" deep. The box opens to the left to reveal, on the flap, a packaging collage atop an image of a surfer. On the right is the content, beginning with a magazine that explores the various Red Bull films included in the set. Below that is a collection of various items, including keychains, lanyards, a flashlight, a USB drive, and a carabiner. Below is a tray that pulls out to house two DigiPacks that hold the twelve films, six in each, all staggered-stacked two per section. Each contains a small booklet that offers more about the included films. See pictures for more.

Below is a list of the included supplements on each disc:

• On Any Sunday: The Next Chapter: Please click here for full supplemental content coverage.
• Rad Company (Score: 3.0/5.0):
  
  
  • Life Behind Bars Season 2 (1080p, DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0): A series of shorts further centered on the world of extreme biking. Included are "Season Premiere" (7:07), "Yard Games" (6:17), "First Chair at Whistler" (7:13), "Junkyard Slopestyle" (10:01), "Rough Riding at X Games" (12:30), "Seeking MTB Zones in UT" (10:21), "Big Scars and Exotic Cars" (9:47), "High Speed MTB in Kamploos" (9:15), "Downhill MTB in Pemberton" (7:18), and "Magic MTB Zones" (9:47).
  • Brandon's Bike Breakdown (1080p, 2:21): Brandon shows off his Trek bike collection and why each is well suited for various rides.
  • Trailer (1080p, 2:44).
• Bending Colours:
  
  
  • Teaser (1080p, 0:49).
  • Trailer (1080p, 1:02).
  • Behind the Scenes: Reunion Island (1080p, 7:34): Looking at the film's title, collaborations, photography, surfing, story, and more.
• Where the Trail Ends:
  
  
  • Action Highlights (1080p, 44:02): A lengthy compilation of extreme biking footage, set to music.
  • Director's Commentary (1080p, 9:00): This title is a misnomer. It is not an audio commentary but rather a nine-minute making-of featuring Director Jeremy Grant and others discussing the film.
• Strength in Numbers:
  
  
  • Making of Nepal (1080p, 12:30): Behind-the-scenes of the Nepal segment.
  • Making of Utah (1080p, 7:07): Behind-the-scenes of the Utah segment.
  • Sterling Lorence Slideshow (1080p, 4:41): Awesome photos set to music. Photos auto-advance.
  • Sterling Lorence Nepal Slideshow (1080p, 5:09): Additional photos from Nepal, also set to music.
  • Phantom Highlights (1080p): A collection of incredible slow-motion video footage clips. Included are Brandon Semenuk (0:55), Chris Kovarik (2:50), Ian Morrison (2:19), Alex Reveles (1:35), Ryan Howard (1:45), and Steve Smith (0:53).
  • Action Reel (1080p, 4:52): High intensity moments of biking action, set to music.
  • POV Reel (1080p, 3:55): First-person action footage, set to music, with some crashes mixed in.
  • Videos (1080p): Trailers for various other biking adventure films.
  • Download (1080p): Info on downloading a digital copy of the film.
• Congo: The Grand Inga Project: The only supplement on this disc is Halo Effect (1080i, 47:56), a film about the world of extreme kayaking.
• The Unrideables: Alaska Range: The film disc contains no supplemental content.
• Days of My Youth:
  
  
  • Oakley (1080p, 1:22): An add for Oakley ski goggles.
  • Swatch (1080p, 2:09): An add for Swatch's Permin.
  • Extended Trailer (1080i, 4:17).
• McConkey:
  
  
  • Shane's Super Part (1080p, 8:13): A collage of dangerous stunts.
  • 30 Days to Live Essay (1080p, 1:15): Reading an essay about what it would look like to live it up in the last days of life.
  • Scott Gaffney: Making Pictures and Memories with Shane (1080p, 3:19): Gaffney looks back at his relationship with Shane as his photographer, videographer, and friend.
  • JT Holmes: Shane's Protege to Partner in Crime (1080p, 3:19): Holmes briefly recalls his relationship with Shane, who eventually became his "best friend."
  • Sherry McConkey: The Woman Who Stole Shane's Heart (1080p, 4:16): Shane's widow remembers her late husband.
  • Portrait of Saucerboy (1080p, 4:33): Looking at "Saucerboy," McConkey's "evil" and "awesome" and "drunk" twin.
  • Shane Innovating Ski Design (1080p, 8:27): Looking at how McConkey revolutionized ski design.
  • Trailer (1080p, 2:02).
• Tracing Skylines
  
  
  • Tracing Skylines: Rider's Cut (1080p, 44:43): An alternate cut with plenty of tremendous skiing action.
  • Behind the Scenes (1080p, 2:53): A brief look at life in the offices where the film was edited and on location where it was shot.
  • K2 Commercial (1080p, 0:33): A commercial for K2 ski gear.
  • Oakley Commercial (1080p, 0:33): An ad for Oakley ski gear
  • Salomon Commercial (1080p, 0:32): An ad for Salomon ski gear.
  • Icelantic Commercial (1080p, 0:33): An ad for Icelantic ski gear
  • Epic Pass (1080p, 1:14): An ad for Epic Pass' ski resorts.
  • Tour Version (1080p, 1:14): Another ad just like the one above.
• We: A Collection of Individuals
  
  
  • Tour Version (1080p, 1:00): An ad for Epic Pass.
  • Vail Resorts Epic Pass (1080p, 1:00): An ad like the one above.
  • Crash Reel (1080p, 1:31): A highlight collection of crash lowlights.
  • Under Armour Team Riders Sean Jordan and Bobby Brown (1080p, 2:19): A couple more minutes of on-the-slopes action.
  • Salamon Team Rider Dane Tudor (1080p, 3:59): Tudor discusses his training regimen and looks at how his hard work paid off.
  • ON3P Team Rider Karl Fostvedt (1080p, 3:18): Fostvedt skis at Skibowl.
  • Oakley Team Rider Pep Fujas (1080p, 2:05): Fujas performs in Alaska and pitches Oakley product.
  • K2 Team Riders Sean Jordan and Clayton Vila (1080p, 2:21): Jordan and Clayton share some of their skiing trials and accomplishments.
  • Icelantic Team Rider Josh Stack (1080p, 3:57): Stack talks up his skiing, and puts his money where his mouth is on the slopes.
  • A Day with Gus and Tom (1080p, 3:26): Gus and Tom take a long trip for some sick skiing.
  • Contour from Poor Boyz (1080p, 2:44): Some POV skiing action.
  • Seth Morrison Beyond Reason (1080p, 2:34): Morrison talks about the cost, and the joy, that is life on the slopes and transitions to pitching quality ski gear.
• The Art of Flight
  
  
  • Behind the Scenes (1080p, 19:43): A look at the making of the film, the idea and building the concept, striving to make a film that all audiences -- not just snowboarders -- would enjoy, shooting, editing, and more.
  • Whisker Biscuits (1080p, 14:55): A compilation of humorous moments from the shoot.
  • Go Bigger (1080p, 2:00): Bonus snowmobile footage.
  • Raw (1080p, 6:47): An action footage compilation.
  • Birdseye (1080p, 5:20): Aerial footage compilation.
  • Avalanche Awareness (1080p, 5:38): A look at avalanche prevention and safety on the shoot.
  • Trice POV (1080p, 1:29): POV action from Trice.
  • J Jones POV (1080p, 1:06): Jones POV action
  • John J POV (1080p, 0:53): Additional POV action.
  • El Colorado (1080p, 1:54): Bonus action, and humor, on the slopes.
  • Gone Fishin' (1080p, 1:17): The guys fish on a down day.
  • The Album Leaf Music Video (1080p, 5:50): A music video.
  • Carnage (1080p, 2:54): Falls and spills compilation footage.
  • The Black Angels Music Video (1080p, 2:24): The second music video of this collection.

Red Bull Media House Film Collection Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

What a collection! With twelve films (most with very good, and even great, video and audio presentations), a magazine, and a number of fun and useful physical items to sweetn an already sweet pot, it's a must-buy, especially of late when the price has dropped as low as $6.99. Even now, at time of writing, at a little more than that, this is a no-brainer for anyone with even an inkling of love for any of the sports represented in the set. It's big, but if this is not presently the very best value on Blu-ray, I don't know what is. Very, VERY highly recommended!