7.3 | / 10 |
Users | 4.3 | |
Reviewer | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.3 |
Set in a fantastical, colorful world, The Book of Life is the story of a young man who must face his greatest fears and follow his heart in order to rewrite his destiny. Filled with love, laughter, music and suspense, this big adventure for the whole family will warm the hearts of audiences as it reminds everyone of the importance of honoring the past while embracing the future.
Starring: Diego Luna, Zoe Saldaña, Channing Tatum, Ron Perlman, Christina ApplegateFamily | 100% |
Animation | 89% |
Adventure | 74% |
Fantasy | 68% |
Comedy | 61% |
Musical | 28% |
Romance | 5% |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.39:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 (48kHz, 24-bit)
Spanish: Dolby Digital 5.1 (448 kbps)
French (Canada): Dolby Digital 5.1
French: DTS 5.1
Portuguese: Dolby Digital 5.1
Spanish = Latin & Neutral
English SDH, French, Portuguese, Spanish, Arabic, Bulgarian, Croatian, Czech, Greek, Hindi, Romanian, Serbian, Slovak, Slovenian
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Two-disc set (1 BD, 1 DVD)
UV digital copy
DVD copy
Slipcover in original pressing
Region A, B (C untested)
Movie | 4.0 | |
Video | 4.5 | |
Audio | 5.0 | |
Extras | 3.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
If anyone needs further proof that we’re living in a new Golden Age of animation, look no further than The Book of Life. This deliriously designed film provides a viewing experience that is like walking into a quasi-hallucinatory pop up picture book that is taking place within a kind of carnival like atmosphere where Gods and humans coexist together, albeit not always all that peacefully. In any other year, The Book of Life would probably have been the “must see” animated adventure sure to delight kids and adults alike, but 2014 was awash in other fantastic animated adventures, and with a slew of properties like Big Hero 6, The LEGO Movie, How to Train Your Dragon 2 , The Boxtrolls 3D and Mr. Peabody & Sherman, The Book of Life, while more or less unanimously praised by critics, only did so so at the box office and now looks to its home video release to really find an appreciative audience. Though its tale of a wager of sorts between two competing divinities isn’t especially innovative, and the film’s use of a hero journeying to the underworld to reclaim his lost love of course harkens back to Greek myth and films like Black Orpheus, the film’s design aesthetic is a riot of invention, with crazy quilt characters exploding onto (and in its 3D iteration, out of) the screen in an often dazzling array of ingenuity. Filtered through a decidedly (if pretty cheeky) South of the Border ambience that may or may not have anything to do with real Mexican folklore, The Book of Life actually centers both in its “meta story” (more about that in a moment) as well as its actual main plotline around The Day of the Dead, Mexico’s dia de Muertos which is crafted (now, anyway) around the Catholic holidays of All Hallow’s Eve, Hallowmas and All Souls’ Day. The Day of the Dead is a sacred moment to remember loved ones who have passed, and in fact the film makes a point out of detailing two different afterworlds, a happy, festive society where the deceased are remembered, and a forlorn, sullen affair that houses those time (and descendants) have forgotten. The "meta story" involves a bunch of bratty schoolkids who are shown a secret room in a museum devoted to Mexican folklore and history by a perky tourguide (Christina Applegate). The "main story" involves La Muerte (Kate de Castillo), ruler of the Land of the Remembered and saucy wife of Xibalba (Ron Perlman), the scheming ruler of The Land of the Forgotten who wants to trade domains with his spouse, if only for a day (in a plot point that is somewhat reminiscent of The Nightmare Before Christmas.) These two divine beings enter into a bet which, if Xibalba prevails, would allow him to lord it over the Land of the Remembered.
The Book of Life is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.39:1. It's virtually impossible to adequately describe the inventive animation in this film, and so at least a cursory glance at the screenshots accompanying this review is highly recommended. As mentioned above in the main body of the review, the basic design aesthetic, once the film moves into its main story anyway, is like a pop up book, albeit one that has many of its pop up elements carved out of wood. Close-ups of human characters can therefore show "rings" or other aspects of being wooden, with textures looking great throughout the presentation. That wooden aspect is contrasted with a more fluid, almost fluorescent, approach toward the two main gods, La Muerte and Xibalba, both of whom feature various flaming elements that pop very evocatively. The backgrounds are simply an incredible mixture of vivid hues suffusing a wonderland of weirdly squat or misshapen creatures, especially once Manolo gets to the Land of the Remembered. The animation is itself very fluid, with a couple of brief exceptions (one early scene with the young Manolo and his Dad by a gate has a slight stuttering quality). Colors throughout this film are just over the top beautiful, with an emphasis on deep teals and purples that is at once very distinctive and memorable. Contrast is excellent and black levels, which assume paramount importance in several key sequences, are also solid and deep. Clarity and sharpness are top notch, and aside from just one or two very minor instances of banding (oddly tending to afflict less colorful moments), this is an artifact free presentation.
The Book of Life may not be quite as aurally stuffed as it is visually, but it often comes close, and the lossless DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 track provides ample support for a soundtrack that is often stuffed to overflowing with music, dialogue and sound effects unfolding simultaneously. Accents can occasionally be a bit on the heavy side (optional subtitles can help in that regard), but dialogue is presented cleanly and clearly and is generally very well prioritized. The film's charming score, which includes several songs, also fills the surrounds in a very supple manner. Fidelity is top notch and dynamic range is extremely wide on this problem free track.
Note: Timings are for the Auto Advance option.- Meet the Cast (1080p; 1:03)
- Visual Development - Production Art (1080p; 2:38)
- Visual Development - Color Keys (1080p; 3:28)
- Background Poster Paintings (1080p; 1:23)
- The Final Look (1080p; 2:13)
The Book of Life might be just slightly too ambitious for its own good, and there are a few hackneyed elements in its story of fate and love, but any niggling qualms are simply brushed aside by this film's overwhelming artistry. The visual delights here are so splendid that even occasional narrative hiccups are easily forgiven, though given the trials of Xibalba, maybe it's best not to completely forget them. Voice work is top notch, the film's music is inventive and very enjoyable, and The Book of Life comes Highly recommended.
2014
Family Icons
2014
Family Icons / Ferdinand-Themed Origami Booklet
2014
2014
2014
Ultimate Collector's Edition
2013
Ultimate Collector's Edition
2010
2011
Ultimate Collector's Edition
2016
The Signature Collection | Ultimate Collector's Edition
1992
30th Anniversary Edition
1992
25th Anniversary Edition | The Signature Collection
1991
2010
Anniversary Edition | The Signature Collection
1959
Anniversary Edition | The Signature Collection
1989
2014
2000
50th Anniversary Edition | DVD Packaging
1963
1997
2016
2013
2013
2012
20th Anniversary Edition
2001
Collector's Edition
2012