6.8 | / 10 |
Users | 3.0 | |
Reviewer | 2.0 | |
Overall | 3.0 |
A circus acrobat who crippled himself performing the astonishing "triple" somersault, is pursuaded into helping a new young circus man learn to perform this dangerous stunt. Lola being part of the team complicates things more.
Starring: Burt Lancaster, Tony Curtis, Gina Lollobrigida, Katy Jurado, Thomas GomezDrama | 100% |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.35:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.35:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio Mono
German: DTS-HD Master Audio Mono
German
25GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region B (locked)
Movie | 4.0 | |
Video | 2.0 | |
Audio | 4.5 | |
Extras | 0.5 | |
Overall | 2.0 |
Carol Reed's "Trapeze" (1956) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of German distributors Concorde Video. The only bonus feature on the disc is an original theatrical trailer for the film. In English, with optional German subtitles for the main feature. Region-B "locked".
"You'll never throw a triple! You know why? 'Cause you drink too much..."
Presented in its original aspect ratio of 2.35:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Carol Reed's Trapeze arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of German distributors Concorde Video.
This release makes it painfully obvious why at the moment in the United States Trapeze is available only on DVD via MGM's on-demand program -- apparently, the studio does not have a proper master to produce a solid Blu-ray release.
Detail and clarity fluctuate a lot and there are rather big portions of the film where the visuals appear distractingly flat. Contrast levels are also problematic, though they actually appear slightly better balanced. Color saturation and stability are very disappointing. There are basic color tonalities that are simply missing and as a result different parts of the film can look notably weak (you can see an example of the severe discoloration in screencapture #7). Some grain is retained and there are no traces of recent sharpening adjustments, but the various issues mentioned above have essentially collapsed the organic qualities we expect to see when older films transition to Blu-ray. The only good news here is that overall image stability is actually quite good, but scratches, debris, and light damage marks are still easy to spot. To sum it all up, Trapeze can and should look a lot better on Blu-ray, but a new master is needed to produce a proper release. (Note: This is a Region-B "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-B or Region-Free PS3 or SA in order to access its content).
There are two standard audio tracks on this Blu-ray release: English DTS-HD Master Audio 1.0 and German DTS-HD Master Audio 1.0. For the record, Concorde Video have provided optional German subtitles for the main feature. When turned on, they split the image and the black bar below it.
The lossless track is actually very strong. Excluding some unevenness in the high frequencies that occasionally makes its presence felt, clarity and depth are consistently pleasing. The music is also well balanced with the dialog. More importantly, there is no distracting background hiss. Also, there are no pops, audio dropouts, or other major age-related imperfections to report in this review.
Currently, in the United States Carol Reed's Trapeze is available only on DVD via MGM's on-demand program. It is easy to see why -- apparently, there isn't a suitable master to produce a solid Blu-ray release. If you wish to own a copy of this film, my advice to you is to wait until a new master emerges. AVOID.
(Still not reliable for this title)
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