7.1 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 3.5 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
Hard-bitten Flying Squad officer Jack Regan gets embroiled in a deadly political plot when an old friend asks him to investigate the death of his girlfriend. Framed on a drunk-drive charge and suspended from the force, with his partner and best mate George Carter unable to help, Jack must rely on his wits to evade deadly government hitmen and expose the real villain of the piece.
Starring: John Thaw, Dennis Waterman, Barry Foster, Ian Bannen, Colin WellandDrama | 100% |
Thriller | Insignificant |
Crime | Insignificant |
Action | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.75:1
English: LPCM 2.0
English SDH
Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region B (locked)
Movie | 4.0 | |
Video | 4.0 | |
Audio | 5.0 | |
Extras | 2.0 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
David Wickes' "Sweeney!" (1977) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Network Releasing. The supplemental features on the disc include an original trailer for the film and other vintage promotional materials; and more. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-B "locked".
Regan's crew
Presented in an aspect ratio of 1.78:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, David Wickes' Sweeney! arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Network Releasing.
The release is sourced from a brand new 2K remaster of the film. However, it is yet another remaster from Network that shows traces of light degraining corrections that were completely unnecessary. Indeed, while the end result is still quite nice, it is very frustrating to see these traces because they have essentially downgraded what was undoubtedly a flawless remaster. The current presentation still boasts good depth and clarity, but there are sporadic noticeable anomalies that are a byproduct of the digital work that was done, which is unfortunate. It is mostly surface degraining that has eliminated some nuances and introduced black crush, but in certain areas it has impacted fluidity as well. You can see the undesired effects from the digital adjustments in screencaptures #18 and 19. The rest looks great. The primary colors are stable and there are good nuances. Image stability is excellent. My score is 3.75/5.00. (Note: This is a Region-B "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-B or Region-Free player in order to access its content).
There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: English LPCM 2.0. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature.
The lossless audio track is excellent. The audio has been fully remastered and clarity, depth, and stability as good as they can be. Dynamic intensity is also very good, at times perhaps even surprisingly so because there is plenty of organic footage where the recording equipment was likely not always positioned in the best spots.
David Wickes' film is as good as the original TV series that inspired it, though I don't think that this was ever a shocking surprise because the same great cast that did the series was hired to do it. (Diane Keen is the only notable excellent new addition). Network's release of Sweeney! is sourced from a new 2K remaster, which I believe initially was quite the stunner but now shows some minor traces of unnecessary digital work. Still, I think that the release is very much worth picking up, especially by folks that enjoy John Thaw's work. RECOMMENDED.
1976
1941
1974
Indicator Series
1948
Indicator Series | Standard Edition
1949
Interpol / Arrow Academy
1957
1965
1982
Masters of Cinema
1947
Eureka Classics
1973
Vintage Classics
1950
2002
1977
Region Free Edition
1953
1971
Limited Edition
1950
Remastered | Special Edition
1980
Warner Archive Collection
1978
I Became a Criminal / Indicator Series
1947
2015