UFC: Rampage Greatest Hits Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		3.5
Audio		3.0
Extras		0.0
Overall		3.0

UFC: Rampage Greatest Hits Blu-ray Movie Review

Despite the absence of extras, this extended look at Quinton "Rampage" Jackson's 10 best fights will delight UFC fans.

Reviewed by Martin Liebman July 3, 2010

Rampage Jackson is one of the greatest entertainers in the history of mixed martial arts.

The Ultimate Fighting Championship has grown by leaps and bounds since its inception in 1993, and its ability to build fighters into superstars seemingly knows no end. UFC 1 was a showcase for names that would become synonymous with the sport, including the legendary fighters Royce Gracie and Ken Shamrock. The sport's proliferation through cable and satellite television, the Internet, and easy access to past events on DVD and Blu-ray brought about exponential growth while also creating a new generation of fight fans, that perfect storm translating into more fights and more fighters to grow from tough-guy hopefuls to household names and from household names to mixed martial arts legends. Fighters like Chuck Liddell, Georges St. Pierre, Brock Lesnar, Randy Couture, Forrest Griffin, and Anderson Silva have emerged as the sport's elite, but there may not be a personality bigger or a fighter tougher than Quinton "Rampage" Jackson, a would-be champion who rose to prominence in Japan's Pride circuit in the early years of the 21st century but who has since become one of UFCs most heralded fighters and strongest contenders.

Tough guy.

Rampage Jackson's professional fighting career didn't begin in the UFC. Instead, he got his start fighting in several smaller domestic organizations before joining Japan's Pride Fighting Championships as young man with something to prove and worldwide fame on the horizon. Jackson lost his innagural match to Pride sensation Kazushi Sakuraba, but defeated Yuki Ishikawa at Pride 17 to earn his first major professional victory. He would go on to fight in, and win most of, well over a dozen of Pride's major matches between 2001 and 2006, but his fortunates would only improve when he signed with the World Fighting Alliance in 2006, only to have his contract purchased by MMA's powerhouse organization, the Ultimate Fighting Championship, later that year. Jackson't first fight for his new parent organization came at UFC 67 and resulted in a victory over Marvin Eastman, that win leading to a classic bout with superstar Chuck Liddell at UFC 71, a fight which saw Jackson claim the Light Heavyweight title. Rampage would later unify UFC's dual titles by overpowering Dan Henderson at UFC 75. Though Jackson no longer holds the titles, he remains a UFC fixture and fan-favorite fighter; he most recently lost to Rashad Evans at UFC 114, but his career has seen him expand beyond the octagon. Jackson has most recently starred in the summer Action film The A-Team, taking on the role once portrayed by Mr. T.

UFC: Rampage Greatest Hits marks the fifth UFC-branded Blu-ray title to be released under the Starz/Anchor Bay banner; beginning with UFC: Ultimate Knockouts 7 and including the fantastic box set UFC: Ultimate 100 Greatest Fights, the sport's home video assets appear to be in good hands. The discs released by Starz have all been must-own packages for fans; they're well-produced and relevant, and UFC: Rampage Greatest Hits is no exception. The material might be old hat to hardcore fans, but for relative newcomers to mixed martial arts or those that just want to find out more about their favorite star, UFC: Rampage Greatest Hits isn't a bad place to start. The program, narrated by Jonathan Adams, isn't a full-out biography, but it does place each of the 10 fights in perspective through Jackson's rise to MMA stardom, beginning with his first victory over the aforementioned Yuki Ishikawa at Pride 17. At its core, UFC: Rampage Greatest Hits is little more than a compilation piece, but it's effective as such and will suit both hardcore UFC fans and semi-newcomers to Jackson's career equally well.

The following 10 fights are included on this disc:

1. Pride 17 -- Rampage Jackson vs. Yuki Ishikawa
2. Pride 22 -- Rampage Jackson vs. Igor Vovchanchyn
3. Pride 25 -- Rampage Jackson vs. Kevin Randleman
4. Pride Final Conflict 2003 -- Rampage Jackson vs. Chuck Liddell
5. Pride Critical Countdown 2004 -- Rampage Jackson vs. Ricardo Arona
6. UFC 67 -- Rampage Jackson vs. Marvin Eastman
7. UFC 71 -- Rampage Jackson vs. Chuck Liddell
8. UFC 75 -- Rampage Jackson vs. Dan Henderson
9. UFC 92 -- Rampage Jackson vs. Wanderlei Silva
10.UFC 96 -- Rampage Jackson vs. Keith Jardine

UFC: Rampage Greatest Hits Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

UFC: Rampage Greatest Hits arrives on Blu-ray with a quality 1080i transfer presented with both 1.78:1 and 1.33:1 material culled from original TV broadcasts. The older fights are presented in a 4:3 format which preserves their original broadcast presentation by placing vertical black bars on either side of the image. These lack the crispness and definition of the newer high definition material seen in later fights. They're plagued with various issues, including aliasing and cross-coloration, while they're also absent a more defined and detailed appearance. In these fights, the image quality is what it is; there's no improving on how they look at this time. It's not until the sixth fight on the disc -- Rampage's bout with Marvin Eastman at UFC 67 -- that UFC: Rampage Greatest Hits makes the transition to a superior 1.78:1-framed high definition image. It's easy to see the jump in quality; colors are more stable, details more intricate, and the image generally cleaner and far sharper. Objects that were more difficult to properly render in standard definition -- the chain link fence around the octagon, for instance -- are free of the aliasing and cross-coloration effects that plague such objects in the 4:3 material. Fans familiar with the previous UFC releases from Anchor Bay will know exactly what to expect here; disregarding the issues inherent to the 4:3 material, this set looks good across the board and delivers as-expected of a compilation piece derived from various television broadcast elements.

UFC: Rampage Greatest Hits Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

UFC: Rampage Greatest Hits features a nuts-and-bolts Dolby Digital 2.0 soundtrack. Comprised of original broadcast elements, there's nothing much here of note. The track's most prominent feature is its narration and the commentary of the fight announcers. Both are satisfactorily crisp and never present any technical problems. The dialogue is focused up the center, and while it's not as precise and natural as that found on high-quality lossless tracks built for high-dollar films, fans familiar with and used to over-the-air sports broadcast audio should be satisfied with this presentation. Some effects scatter off to the sides of the soundstage as well. Rampage's fight with Igor Vovchanchyn proves a fairly surreal experience; the auditorium is packed, but there's hardly any crowd noise throughout the fight. A few shouts from the crowd, scattered applause, and referee instruction pierce the quiet room behind the commentators' observations. These and the sounds of hard punching and kicking don't immerse the listener into the action, but each is discernible one from another. Additionally, there's little power to the punches and kicks; this isn't Undisputed III: Redemption, but the track is just fine for what it is and all it needs to be.

UFC: Rampage Greatest Hits Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

UFC: Rampage Greatest Hits features only a UFC compilation promotional piece (1080p, 1:35).

UFC: Rampage Greatest Hits Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Obviously, UFC: Rampage Greatest Hits isn't the best place to start for someone that's brand-new to UFC. That honor goes to the aforementioned UFC: Ultimate 100 Greatest Fights, but veteran fans of the sport and relative newcomers with at least a passing familiarity with who's who in the world of mixed martial arts will benefit most from this latest release from Starz/Anchor Bay. Sporting a technical presentation that's on par with the other Starz/Anchor Bay UFC Blu-ray releases but absent any supplements, UFC: Rampage Greatest Hits can only be recommended to UFC home video completists; MMA enthusiasts; and, of course, Rampage's biggest fans.