8.3 | / 10 |
Users | 4.0 | |
Reviewer | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
A lone surveillance expert has a crisis of conscience when he suspects that the couple he is spying on will be murdered.
Starring: Gene Hackman, John Cazale, Allen Garfield, Frederic Forrest, Cindy WilliamsDrama | 100% |
Psychological thriller | 30% |
Mystery | 11% |
Thriller | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.85:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (48kHz, 24-bit)
English: LPCM 2.0 (48kHz, 16-bit)
English: LPCM Mono (48kHz, 16-bit)
German: LPCM 2.0
English SDH, German
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region B (locked)
Movie | 5.0 | |
Video | 4.0 | |
Audio | 4.5 | |
Extras | 4.5 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
Winner of the prestigious Palme d'Or Award and the Prize of the Ecumenical Jury at the Cannes Film Festival, Francis Ford Coppola's "The Conversation" (1974) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of British distributors Optimum Home Entertainment. The supplemental features on the disc include the film's original theatrical trailer; audio commentary by director Francis Ford Coppola; audio commentary by film editor Walter Murch; excerpts from Francis Ford Coppola dictating the the film script; interview with composer composer David Shire; screen tests with Harrison Ford and Cindy Williams; and more. In English, with optional English SDH and German subtitles for the main feature. Region-B "locked".
They know where I live...
Presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Francis Ford Coppola's The Conversation arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of British distributors Optimum Home Entertainment.
Generally speaking, the presentation is good. The softness and murkiness that plagued the old Paramount DVD release of The Conversation are completely gone, color reproduction is dramatically improved, and contrast levels stabilized. Furthermore, even during the surveillance sequences definition is very good. The thick edge-enhancement from the DVD release is also eliminated. This being said, the presentation is far from flawless. There is a fairly obvious layer of extremely light machine noise that covers the film grain. It is not as problematic as the thick machine noise present on Don't Look Now, but it is on the transfer and often times makes the grain look lumpy. Occasionally it also has a tendency to make the film look rather harsh (see screencapture #19). The good news, however, is that in motion detail and fluidity remain quite pleasing. When the film is projected, the colors also do not collapse.
I also tested the U.S. release of The Conversation, whose transfer appears to have been sourced from the same master Optimum Home Entertainment had access to. The U.S. transfer is slightly cropped to 1.78:1. My impression is that the machine noise mentioned above is also a tad more prominent on it. Therefore, if you are yet to add The Conversation to your collection, consider the Region-B release first. (Note: This is a Region-B "locked" Blu-ray disc. Therefore, you must have a native Region-B or Region-Free PS3 or SA in order to access its content. For the record, the disc's main menu could be set in English or German).
There are four audio tracks on this Blu-ray disc: English LPCM 1.0 (original), English LPCM 2.0, English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1, and German LPCM 2.0. For the record, Optimum Home Entertainment have provided optional English SDH and German subtitles for the main feature.
The English LPCM 1.0 track is excellent. In fact, as far as I am concerned it is a good enough reason to enthusiastically recommend this Blu-ray release of The Conversation. Its dynamic amplitude is fairly limited, as it should be, but there is a wonderful crispness that gives the unique audio effects in the film a tremendous boost. On the Paramount R1 DVD these audio effects sound quite flat and dull, more often than not even out of place. Now they blend well and enhance the tense atmosphere.
The English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 has a far better dynamic range, but I prefer the original mono track. The Conversation is a very unique film that has to be experienced in a certain way. The English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track opens up the film quite a lot and gives it a contemporary feel that I believe is inappropriate. Nevertheless, you should experiment with both and see which one you like better. For the record, I did not detect any problematic dropouts or sync issues to report in this review.
Francis Ford Coppola's The Conversation is without a doubt one of the great films of the 70s. Strangely enough, it does not feel dated at all. There are plenty of men like Harry Caul who get paid to deliver important secrets, or manufacture them, and the best probably work for different governments around the world.
The film looks good on Blu-ray, but it could have looked even better. Having tested the U.S. and UK releases, I lean towards the UK one. RECOMMENDED.
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1975
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