7.1 | / 10 |
Users | 4.0 | |
Reviewer | 3.0 | |
Overall | 3.7 |
In the last months of the disco era, a popular dance club becomes the center of nightlife for a group of young people who recently arrived in Manhattan.
Starring: Chloë Sevigny, Kate Beckinsale, Chris Eigeman, Mackenzie Astin, Matt KeeslarDrama | 100% |
Romance | 31% |
Music | 7% |
Period | 1% |
Comedy | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.85:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
English SDH
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region A (locked)
Movie | 3.5 | |
Video | 3.0 | |
Audio | 4.5 | |
Extras | 4.0 | |
Overall | 3.0 |
Whit Stillman's "The Last Days of Disco" (1998) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Criterion. The supplemental features on the disc include the film's original theatrical trailer; four deleted scenes with optional commentary by director Whit Stillman and actors Chris Eigeman and Chloe Sevigny; standard featurette with raw footage from the shooting of the film; production stills and behind-the-scenes photos; audio commentary by writer-director Whit Stillman and actors Chris Eigeman and Chloe Sevigny; and more. The disc also arrives with a leaflet featuring David Schickler's essay "Pop Paradise". In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-A "locked".
In the club
Presented in an aspect ratio of 1.78:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Whit Stillman's The Last Days of Disco arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Criterion.
The following text appears on the leaflet provided with this Blu-ray disc:
"Supervised by director Whit Stillman, this high-definition digital transfer was created on a Spirit Datacine from a 35mm interpositive. Thousands of instances of dirt, debris, scratches, splices, warps, jitter, and flicker were manually removed using MTI's DRS and Pixel Farm's PFClean, while Image Systems' DVNR was used for small dirt, grain, and noise reduction.
Telecine supervisors: Maria Palazzola, Whit Stillman.
Colorist: Doug Drake/Universal Studios, Hollywood."
This is one of the harshest looking high-definition transfers I've seen from Criterion. While during close-ups detail is mostly adequate, sharpness levels are often elevated quite a bit. Occasionally, contrast levels are also too strong. Unsurprisingly, light to moderate edge-enhancement is quite easy to spot (see screencaptures #5 and 17). There are traces of light filtering as well. As a result, some of the footage from inside the big disco club look rather soft (see screencapture #9). Generally speaking, colors are stable, but do not appear as lush and natural as they should. The reds and blues seem to suffer the most, especially where there is plenty of light. Finally, there are light artifacts that are occasionally noticeable as well. All in all, while viewing the film some of the issues mentioned above could be easy to ignore, but the larger your screen is, the more likely it is that you will be distracted by them. Naturally, my advice to you is to find a way to rent this disc before you add it to your collection. (Note: This is a Region-A "locked" Blu-ray disc. Therefore, you must have a native Region-A or Region-Free PS3 or SA in order to access its content).
There is only one audio track on this Blu-ray disc: English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1. For the record, Criterion have provided optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature.
The following text appears on the leaflet provided with this Blu-ray disc:
"The original 5.1 surround soundtrack was remastered at 24-bit from the original 35mm magnetic audio tracks. Clicks, thumps, hiss, and hum were manually removed using Pro Tools HD. Crackle was attenuated using AudioCube's integrated workstation."
The Last Days of Disco has a great retro soundtrack that benefits tremendously from the lossless track. The club sequences, in particular, sound great. Admittedly, the surrounds are not too active, but the sound has excellent depth and and good crispness that enhance the viewing experience quite well. The dialog is stable, clean, and easy to follow. Additionally, there are no distortions, pops, or cracks to report in this review.
Whit Stillman's The Last Days of Disco is a unique film which will resonate differently with different viewers. Those who were part of the disco craze from the early 1980s will probably like it a lot more than those who have only read about it. However, there is a side of it that is quite eccentric. I don't have a problem with it, but I think that it does not always blend well with the period atmosphere. I was not overly impressed with the film's technical presentation. Naturally, my advice to you is to find a way to rent this disc before you add it to your collection. RENT IT.
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