6.9 | / 10 |
Users | 4.0 | |
Reviewer | 3.0 | |
Overall | 3.0 |
When terrorists seize control of a boarding school, a group of troublemaking boys decide to resist them.
Starring: Sean Astin, Wil Wheaton, Louis Gossett Jr., Keith Coogan, Andrew DivoffTeen | 100% |
Drama | Insignificant |
Adventure | Insignificant |
Action | 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 2.0
English SDH
Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region free
Movie | 4.0 | |
Video | 4.0 | |
Audio | 3.5 | |
Extras | 0.5 | |
Overall | 3.0 |
Toy Soldiers is pure fantasy and many a young man's dream: the opportunity to be a hero against the odds, to beat bad guys at their own game, to save the day and the lives of countless friends and acquaintances. Daniel Petrie Jr., who is probably best known for writing the 80s quasi-classic Beverly Hills Cop, directs a script he wrote in conjunction with David Koepp (who has written a number of high-grossing hits like Jurassic Park and Mission: Impossible) and crafts a surprisingly enjoyable and well-rounded picture that is not strictly an Action film. Though externally straightforward and simpleminded, there are carefully layered components that build a story around believable heroes assembled from a scrap heap of rebellious rich kids who have a penchant for skipping class and making trouble but are absolutely the kind of guys anyone would welcome into their proverbial foxholes. The film may lack surprise in its final destination, but the journey is quite the fun ride as the story builds from the inside out, finding the heart and soul of its lead characters before placing them in harm's way.
Toy Soldiers looks very good on Blu-ray. With precious few exceptions, Sony has been on a roll with its new line of pressed MOD (Manufactured on Demand) discs. The presentation is filmic, maintaining a healthy grain structure that some may find slightly dense, particularly in lower light, but brighter exteriors are generally gorgeously firm and grain appears finely complimentary. Details are fairly sharp and clear, with Regis exteriors coming alive with wonderful definition apparent on the school's handsome brick buildings and the vegetation that grows around campus. Warm wood doors in the dorms, odds and ends in densely decorated rooms, and core character clothing and facial features are also highlights, particularly in close-up but also stable in large-scale shots, such as overviews within the dining hall or the school's quad area. Colors are fairly good, with a beautiful, deep red on a helicopter contrasting very nicely against a bright blue sky in the film's opening sequence in Colombia. The pastels in the parade of 90s fashions are spirited and diverse. Natural greens are stable. Contrast could stand to be increased a bit on the whole, but colors fair rather well in total. Black levels are appropriately deep and flesh tones are fine. No significant encode artifacts are visible, and only the very occasional print flaws are apparent. Fans waiting a long time for this Blu-ray (including this reviewer) will not be disappointed.
Toy Soldiers offers only a two-channel DTS-HD Master Audio lossless soundtrack. The lack of additional channels -- surround and subwoofer -- leave the film wanting for a little more fullness and fulfillment from the film's music and action scenes. The track is certainly capable as configured, with music a highlight that plays with good, wide spacing and perfectly good instrumental clarity. Gunfire lacks absolute depth but is more than serviceable, particularly the heavy belt-fed machine gun that blasts away at a police car in the early minutes of the takeover. The subsequent explosion is likewise missing depth but not effort. The track dabbles in a few effects beyond gunfire, such as a buzzing remote controlled drone the boys use as a distraction. The sound maneuvers through the front soundstage area with an effortless smoothness and commendable clarity. There are several other good one-off sounds like a beeping smoke detector midway through the film (yet another distraction) or rowdy prison din in chapter nine. Dialogue is clear, well prioritized, and images naturally to the center, so effectively it's a surprise that there is no dedicated center channel handling it.
This Blu-ray release of Toy Soldiers contains only the film's theatrical trailer (1080p, 1:55). No DVD or digital copies are included. The release does not ship with a slipcover.
Toy Soldiers is one of the more unsung Action films from the 1990s and an example of how the genre can work without an incessant barrage of bullets its defining attribute. It's fun, fairly smart, and surprisingly well made. It's pure fantasy yet grounded in a bit more realism than most. It's also one of this reviewer's all-time favorite guilty pleasures. Sony's Blu-ray release of Toy Soldiers disappointingly lacks substantive supplemental content, but the 1080p video is very good and the two-channel lossless audio satisfies. Highly recommended.
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Limited Edition to 3000
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