6.6 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 1.5 | |
Overall | 1.5 |
The thirteen-episode story of Dr. Daniel Westin, invisible man. Inspired by the H.G. Wells novel.
Starring: David McCallum, Melinda O. Fee, Craig StevensSci-Fi | 100% |
Adventure | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.33:1
English: Dolby Digital 2.0 (192 kbps)
None
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region A, B (C untested)
Movie | 3.0 | |
Video | 1.0 | |
Audio | 1.5 | |
Extras | 0.0 | |
Overall | 1.5 |
Science fiction stuff, if you like.
"The Invisible Man" comes from the mind of H.G. Wells. Cool concept, great source material, alright 1970s TV show, awful Blu-ray. This
release is so
bad it makes bad Blu-ray discs look pretty decent by comparison (think, oh, that Mill Creek release or any of those Echo Bridge titles that cram four movies onto one disc and still
fare better than this atrocity). Aside from the stretched-out picture, this one looks little-to-no better than the show might have on household TV
sets back in
1975, what with the standard definition video source appearance to it, false colors, all sorts of shimmering, and on and on, but not to get ahead of
the review; all the juicy stuff is down below, but this release is so insulting that it would be wrong not to get a shot in at the shoddy video
quality right off the bat. After all, that defines the release. But the good news is that "The Invisible Man" is on Blu-ray (well, technically and
literally, but, well, yeah). Fans who don't care that the Blu-ray sometimes looks more like VHS (admittedly more so during the effects
shots) and sounds like a poor DVD will be happy to know that the whole eleven hour thing is on one disc and it may be watched in one
butt-numbing
marathon. The show is somewhat entertaining and fans of silly era Sci-Fi might find some goodness here and there, even if ideas are few and
clichés
are many. "The Invisible Man" isn't great television, but it's a fun diversion; too bad the studio didn't put some more effort into making this is a
good
set to show the positive potential of older television on Blu-ray rather than release a set that will certainly leave viewers wary of such future
ventures.
Whoa.
Has "The invisible Man" seen better days? Somewhere, probably, but what should be the best the series has ever looked for general home viewing is
probably the worst it has
ever looked, and that might be a first for a Blu-ray release. The entire series -- all of "The Invisible
Man" -- has been placed on a single 50 GB disc. That's right, all ten hours, fifty-two minutes, and forty-eight seconds worth, thirteen total
episodes that each run around forty-eight minutes apiece (and the pilot about twenty-five minutes longer). On one disc. What's
more, the image has been horizontally stretched from its original televised aspect ratio of 1.33:1 to fill 1.78:1 high definition displays. It would be
grounds for dismissal based solely on the incorrect aspect ratio, but "The Invisible Man" isn't done there. Oh no. Not even close.
No, the image appears
somewhere between a worn-down VHS and a mediocre DVD in terms of picture quality, the former defining the pilot and the latter subsequent
episodes.
Compression artifacts are many, of course; blocky backgrounds are
commonplace, but not quite as extensive as some viewers might expect given the circumstances. The image sees frozen grain that lends a
lifeless, manipulated, flat
appearance to the proceedings. Fine details are nonexistent, whether skin textures or the phony bulky lab equipment. Colors are dull, but
serviceable.
Shadow detail is poor, and black crush is frequent; even in brighter scenes, black jackets, for instance, show no definition at all. Effects shots go
incredibly blurry. Some serious false coloring frequently appears, where random splotches of reds, greens, and blues dance across parts of
the screen. Shimmering, jagged edges, ringing, and other maladies make frequent appearances. For those brave enough to give it a look-see, watch
the part of the pilot episode where Maggio treats Westin and supplies him with his lifelike mask; it features just about every problem there is to see.
The good news, if one may call it "good," is that episodes following the pilot lack evident stretching distortion and hold up a little better in terms of raw
stability, clarity, and detailing (the "mediocre DVD" part of the set). They're not abysmal, but the episodes deserve better than this set's best,
which is merely "watchable" and
nothing more.
Simply put, this is a train wreck of a Blu-ray transfer, a disaster of epic proportions. Stop keeping track now; "The Invisible Man" will be the
runaway
winner for worst Blu-ray picture quality of the year.
Considering just how much the series has been compromised to squeeze it all onto one disc, it should come as no surprise that "The Invisible Man" on Blu-ray features only a Dolby Digital 2.0 soundtrack and no subtitle options. In essence, the track delivers the basics, nothing more, and oftentimes much less. Still, even at its worst, the track fits the general needs of the show, conveying simple dialogue and crude sound effects with bottom-end acceptability. Dialogue is never really great in terms of clarity, placement, strength, or authenticity, but most every syllable is basically intelligible. Much the same may be said of music; it's cramped, largely undefined, but clear enough to the point that the basic rhythm is identifiable. Sound effects are clunky at best and absolutely indistinct at worst. Never does the track excel beyond borderline poor effects recreation. Background ambience sometimes drops out at random; characters may be chatting away at a restaurant with noticeable background elements and, suddenly, *poof*, they're gone. Add that some such atmospherics sound like crumpling paper, and most scenes would probably be better served were such elements simply deleted altogether. This track isn't quite as miserable as the video, but it's up there on the list of unfortunate Blu-ray audio presentations.
This Blu-ray release of "The Invisible Man" contains no extras. What, not enough room on the disc? The menu screen features only options for episode selection and a tab to play all episodes for that butt-numbing (and eye-gouging) marathon.
It's a sad story when a flawed but respectable and generally enjoyable 1970s television program isn't the highlight of its Blu-ray debut. The story out of this one is the terrible video transfer; it's so bad that the show is borderline unwatchable in places, the critical pilot episode in particular. Truly, this would have been an acceptable look for the show in 1975 for family viewing on the old console TV, but even then it would have been broadcast in its proper aspect ratio. There's just nothing good to say about "The Invisible Man" on Blu-ray. Even diehard fans might find this one tough to swallow. The transfer earns a point for tightening up after the atrocious presentation of the pilot episode, but subsequent shows look pretty bad, too. Here's hoping this is an outlier and not the beginning of a trend. Recommendation: send a message and refuse to even rent this one.
(Still not reliable for this title)
Collector's Edition
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