7.1 | / 10 |
Users | 4.0 | |
Reviewer | 3.5 | |
Overall | 3.6 |
Severely shaken after a near-fatal encounter with a serial killer, a television newswoman is sent to a remote mountain resort whose residents may not be what they seem.
Starring: Dee Wallace, Patrick Macnee, Dennis Dugan, Christopher Stone (I), Belinda BalaskiHorror | 100% |
Mystery | 10% |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.86:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.85:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0
Spanish: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0
German: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0
French: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0
French, German, Spanish, Dutch
25GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region B (locked)
Movie | 3.5 | |
Video | 3.5 | |
Audio | 4.0 | |
Extras | 2.5 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
Joe Dante's "The Howling" (1981) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of French distributors Studio Canal. The supplemental features on the disc include the excellent documentary feature "The Werewolf Effect", a teaser, and the film's original theatrical trailer. In English, with optional French, Spanish, German, and Dutch subtitles. Region-B "locked".
Spooky
Presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Joe Dante's The Howling arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of French distributors Studio Canal.
The high-definition transfer for The Howling appears to have been struck from a dated source, but despite some minor sharpening that is occasionally easy to spot on it, it actually looks quite good. Fine object detail, for example, is mostly pleasing. Clarity varies, particularly during the nighttime footage, but contrast levels are stable. Though mixed with noise, film grain is present. Some extremely mild edge-enhancement is easy to spot during a few outdoor scenes. However, I did not see any traces of heavy banding, macroblocking, or aliasing. Blown through a digital projector, The Howling remains stable. Generally speaking, the film's color-scheme is subdued, with blues, greens, browns and blacks looking soft and warm. For the record, I did not detect any large cuts, marks, stains, or scratches to report in this review. All in all, despite some of the limitations mentioned above, fans of this cult horror film should consider an upgrade if the price is right. (Note: This is a Region-B "locked" Blu-ray disc. Therefore, you must have native Region-B or Region-Free PS3 or SA in order to access its content).
There are four audio tracks on this Blu-ray disc: English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0, German: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0, Spanish DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0, and French DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0. For the record, Studio Canal have provided optional French, Spanish, Dutch, and German subtitles for the main feature.
I was pleasantly surprised with the English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 track. It has a wonderful dynamic amplitude and it truly gives The Howling a tremendous boost. Many of the random noises that could be heard throughout the film sound better than ever (shots, grows, etc). Additionally, the dialog is exceptionally crisp, clean and very easy to follow.
I quickly tested a couple of scenes with the French DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 track, and while the dubbing is predictably inferior, the dynamic amplitude of the DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 track appears to be as good as that of the English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track.
The Werewolf Effect - a very good documentary focusing on the special effects and production history of The Howling. Joe Dante's comments on the history of werewolf films are particularly interesting. In English. (27 min, PAL).
Trailer - the original English-language theatrical trailer for the film. (2 min, PAL).
Teaser - a short teaser for the film (1 min, PAL).
Despite some minor issues with the transfer, Joe Dante's The Howling looks good on Blu-ray. Fans of the film should definitely consider an upgrade. Keep in mind that Studio Canal's disc is Region-B "locked". RECOMMENDED.
(Still not reliable for this title)
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