7.2 | / 10 |
Users | 4.2 | |
Reviewer | 3.5 | |
Overall | 3.7 |
Follow the history of the CIA from the Cold War to the demise of the Soviet Union in this director's cut of the TNT miniseries! The Company is an intense thriller that traces the activities of the CIA's underground flight with the KGB, spanning the globe from Moscow to Berlin, Budapest to London, and Washington to Cuba. Smart, idealistic Yale grad Jack McAuliffe is recruited into the CIA by his athletics coach. Taken under "The Sorcerer's" wing, Jack and his mentor, the counterintelligence chief, are imprisoned in double lives, fighting an amoral, elusive, but formidable enemy - in an unrelenting and deadly battle within the CIA itself.
Starring: Chris O'Donnell, Michael Keaton, Alfred Molina, Rory Cochrane, Alessandro NivolaHistory | 100% |
Drama | 90% |
Thriller | 27% |
Psychological thriller | 15% |
Mystery | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.78:1
English: LPCM 5.1 (48kHz, 16-bit)
English: Dolby Digital 5.1
English, English SDH, French
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Two-disc set (2 BDs)
Region A (locked)
Movie | 4.0 | |
Video | 3.5 | |
Audio | 4.0 | |
Extras | 1.5 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
They say there are seven thousand spies in Berlin, all ready to put down cold cash for
secrets.
Indeed, secrets abound in this nearly five hour miniseries that spans the entirety of the Cold War, a
war fought not on battlefields but rather in offices, not with bullets but rather with deception, and
not with generals but rather with spies. The Company attempts to bring us this story,
condensing more than 30 years worth of history into the search for one "mole" who has infiltrated
the West and is feeding information in secret to the East. What we get with The Company
is the Cold War in a nutshell, one of the most dangerous and world-shaping events in human
history told through the eyes of several men trying to make sense of the convoluted world of
espionage and counter-espionage, a world where friends can become enemies in a heartbeat and
where nobody can be trusted.
Filming this series really took a toll on Chris O'Donnell
The Company, presented in 1080p in a 1.78:1 frame, proved to be a challenge to assess visually. Filmed in a drab, nearly sepia tone, the image certainly doesn't jump off the screen and it never looks especially great, but the fine detail throughout is what sells this transfer as a solid, dependable high definition image. Close-ups fared very well. Every pore, hair, blemish, and scar on each individual's face is clearly visible resulting in a very lifelike image. Flesh tones never stray from natural. There were several minor issues throughout that distract. Black levels are very inconsistent. At times they are solid and at times they are too bright and gray resulting in an overly bright, washed out image. I also noticed some edge enhancement in places. Haloing was an issue in several shots as well. Much of the time The Company fares very well. The image is generally sharp with amazing detail and clarity. Issues do arise, however, leaving this transfer wanting as an overall presentation.
The Company is presented with both a lossless PCM 5.1 track as well as a Dolby Digital 5.1 audio track. The overall experience here was solid but not extraordinary. Much of The Company is dialogue driven and it sounds just fine. The sound field is not quite as immersive as I would have hoped for, even during action sequences. There is never a lot of opportunity for natural ambience as much of the show takes places in drab offices, interrogation rooms, and covert operations centers. The second episode is where the track shines, as it features both the Hungarian uprising against the Soviet Union and the Bay of Pigs invasion. Gunfire scenes thump with authority and put you in the middle of the action. Explosions are bass heavy with the appropriate thump, and surrounds are active with action. This is a very solid audio track that is the perfect compliment to The Company.
This set of supplements is rather skimpy and lacking the depth one
would expect for such an ambitious and well-done series.
Declassified: The Origins of 'The Company' (480p, 15:46) features cast and crew discussing
the story of The Company, the history behind the original book and script, breaking a long
story down for the miniseries, and the uniqueness of each part.
The Hidden Hand: The Making of 'The Company' (480p, 23:30) is an overview of the
making of the series. It's a basic piece that delves into the typical information generally
presented in such a feature. Perhaps the most interesting aspect deals with the selection of the
director for the series, the hardship of one director working on a six hour project, and Ridley Scott's
level of involvement in the series.
A 1080p trailer for Spider-Man 3 and a 1080p Blu-ray promotional montage piece round
out this set of supplements.
The Company is fine entertainment. It's solid all around, at times riveting, but at times dragging. Though a made for television series, it boasts first-rate production values, fine acting, and good entertainment. This Blu-ray presentation of The Company is sure to please fans. Both audio and video quality are representative of what we have come to expect from a better than average Blu-ray release. Neither will knock your socks off, but The Company is more of a thinking man's series and not a mindless shoot-em-up, oftentimes the type of movie ideally suited to superior audio and video production. The included supplements are severely lacking. A series this ambitious is certainly more deserving of more in-depth extras, but then again, nothing is perfect. I'm recommending this series to those interested in more intellectual entertainment.
Collector's Edition
2002
2015
2006
2000
2019
2014-2015
2008
Operation Chromite / In-cheon sang-ryuk jak-jeon
2016
1961
30th Anniversary Edition
1983
2011
2005
Fox Studio Classics
1962
1995
1962
Limited Edition to 3000 - SOLD OUT
1964
2011
2010
Unsere Mütter, unsere Väter
2013
2018