6.2 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 3.5 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
A young mermaid makes a deal with a sea witch, to trade her beautiful voice for human legs so she can discover the world above water and impress a prince.
Starring: Halle Bailey, Jonah Hauer-King, Melissa McCarthy, Javier Bardem, Noma DumezweniFamily | 100% |
Fantasy | 61% |
Musical | 41% |
Adventure | 40% |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.39:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 (48kHz, 24-bit)
French (Canada): Dolby Digital 5.1
Spanish: Dolby Digital 5.1
English SDH, French, Spanish
Blu-ray Disc
Two-disc set (1 BD, 1 DVD)
Digital copy
DVD copy
Slipcover in original pressing
Region free
Movie | 3.5 | |
Video | 5.0 | |
Audio | 5.0 | |
Extras | 2.5 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
Before getting into some specific reactions I personally had to this production, and after having received some messages from folks seeing I was assigned to this release, let me just cut to the chase in terms of some of the pretty heated controversy that Disney's so-called "color blind casting" for this live action remake has engendered: we're all entitled to our opinions, yea or nay, but unless we're the ones putting up the moolah for the film, does it ultimately matter? If I may be permitted to haphazardly combine idioms, that "horse (and/or elephant) of a different color in the room" may have attracted considerable debate, but kind of curiously seemingly no controversy has erupted about what I consider to be the salient point in the foregoing description: live action remake. I have a somewhat irreverent sense of humor about a lot of this, and in regard to some of the heated negative reaction to the supposedly "woke" elements of this production in particular, everyone seems to have missed the fact that Disney has long been involved in one of the most "liberal" activities of all time (and here's my irreverent humor part), namely recycling. Is there any other major studio which has so relentlessly rejiggered their properties for ensuing generations? Disney long championed the "every seven years (or so) re-release" strategy for decades, introducing their evergreens to countless new swarms of kids (and their parents, who may have forgotten their own childhood adventures with various properties). But Disney has also been rather ingenious in "revisiting" their legendary catalog to tweak various productions either for new media (as in various stage adaptations of some of their films), or as in this particular case, updating one of their iconic animated features. And as winning as some aspects of this film may be, or as provocative as other aspects of the film may be (at least to some), it's that whole "live action remake" thing that may be this Little Mermaid's most pressing problem, since it never seems to really be able to answer the central question: Why?.
The Little Mermaid is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Disney / Buena Vista with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.39:1. Arri Alexa cameras were utilized and a 4K DI provided the source for this often stunning looking transfer. Yes, in another example of cutting to the chase, let's just stipulate that some of the special effects can look kind of, well, cartoonish, but putting aside that niggling qualm (and I'd argue that given the general wonderment of the effects, it is niggling), this presentation explodes with surprising detail and an especially ravishing palette. While things are arguably improved in terms of both overall detail and the nuance and saturation of the palette in Disney's 4K UHD version, you're not going to go seriously wrong with this often incredibly beautiful 1080 rendition. Fine detail on all of the gorgeous costumes and even on some of CGI underwater creatures is frequently very appealing, and as mentioned the palette continually explodes with both bold primaries and some gorgeous interstitial tones. The 1080 version may suffer from just a tad of shadow detail deficiency in some of the darkest undersea material like some of the Ursula sequences, but I'd argue not by much. A very light dusting of digital grain, most apparent in the land locked sequences, is probably a bit more subliminal in this version than on the 4K UHD disc.
I can sometimes try to give myself a little "wiggle room" when comparing a 1080 presentation's 5.1 or especially 7.1 track to a 4K presentation's Dolby Atmos track, but I have to say the DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 track on this disc is certainly as enjoyable a listening experience as the 4K's Dolby Atmos track is. Yes, the Atmos speakers come into play relatively consistently, but I just don't think there's much cause for concern in terms of a markedly different listening experience between the two versions. Side and rear channels here are effectively engaged throughout the presentation, both with a wealth of ambient environmental sounds (including both overt and kind of more subliminal "watery" effects), as well as nicely clear directionality in dialogue and even sung moments as characters move through the frame. Dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly throughout. Optional English, French and Spanish subtitles are available.
- Wild Uncharted Waters (HD; 4:17)
- Under the Sea (HD; 5:18)
- Kiss the Girl (HD; 6:02)
- Poor Unfortunate Souls (HD; 6:41)
In my "other life" as a musician, I'm just getting ready to music direct a production of an early Alan Menken piece called Weird Romance, and it has a lot of the same melodic invention and rhythmic punch that so much of The Little Mermaid's score provides. Menken's music is an unabashed highlight here, though I'm not sure this live action reimagin(eer)ing really ever does provide a convincing answer to the simple question "why?", but putting that aside, the technical achievements here are in my estimation inarguable, and the film is often visually arresting and aurally sumptuous. This Blu-ray provides sterling technical merits and appealing supplements. Recommended.
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2023
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2023
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1971
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1986
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1977
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