5.9 | / 10 |
Users | 3.4 | |
Reviewer | 2.0 | |
Overall | 2.7 |
A volcano erupts in downtown L.A., threatening to destroy the city.
Starring: Tommy Lee Jones, Anne Heche, Gaby Hoffmann, Don Cheadle, Jacqueline KimAction | 100% |
Thriller | 82% |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.85:1
English: Dolby TrueHD 5.1 (48kHz, 24-bit)
English SDH
25GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region A (locked)
Movie | 3.5 | |
Video | 2.5 | |
Audio | 3.0 | |
Extras | 0.0 | |
Overall | 2.0 |
Like other "partner" films -- Deep Impact and Armageddon, Red Planet and Mission to Mars, even Olympus Has Fallen and White House Down -- there's always a "better" and a "lesser" and Volcano is the unfortunate second fiddler to the superior Dante's Peak. Both are "volcano disaster" movies and both released within months of one another way back in 1997. In Dante, a volcano threatens a small mountain town. In Volcano, the lava-spewer threatens to melt away huge portions of Los Angeles. But the one with the smaller scope is the better, bigger film. But Volcano is no slouch. It's a bit hokey, sure; the special effects are merely decent; and the movie feels a bit scattered; but all in all it delivers a fast-paced, mostly exciting, and occasionally emotional Disaster movie experience that enjoys a fairly high re-watchability quotient and a good performance from lead Tommy Lee Jones and several recognizable co-stars.
Hot lava!
Volcano spews forth a pedestrian, DVD-quality transfer. The film fares worst over the title sequence. Dirt appears static and definition remarkably poor. Things clear up for the rest of the movie, however, though the image never offers the sort of stable, accurate, film-quality appearance Blu-ray fans rightly demand. There's a flatness and pastiness to the image, a smoothed-over appearance that shows some well defined general details but always lacks that crispness of a stronger transfer. Colors can be fairly bold but lack nuance, whether green grasses, lava reds and oranges, or firefighter yellow. The palette never impresses but does deliver a fairly even appearance, even though much of the film takes place at night and under the influence of a gray, ashy overlay. Blockiness and banding aren't major issues. Black levels are decent, but flesh tones capture that flat, monochromatic pasty appearance. Minor wear-and-tear and dirt are occasional problems. Fans hoping for Volcano to be looking spiffy in high definition will be greatly disappointed.
Volcano erupts onto Blu-ray with an effective, but not great, Dolby TrueHD 5.1 lossless soundtrack. While it regularly cranks out some hefty sound effects, there's not much real clarity and precision placement. Chaotic scenes without the rumble of the quakes and the flow of the lava sound nearly empty; a brief emergency room scene near the beginning sounds disturbingly vacant beyond character voices. However, a solid rumble follows but it, nor any like it, never really digs deep to find that real precise, chest-rattling, deep-down bass. Music is light and airy, nicely spaced and fairly clear, but it, too, lacks that pinpoint clarity offered by better tracks. The surround speakers do carry a nice load throughout, though oftentimes the track feels more like a barrage of moderately defined sounds rather than a full-on immersive sound field. Dialogue, generally, does comes through neatly and evenly from the center. Overall, this isn't a bad track -- it's loud and aggressive when need be -- but it certainly comes up well short of its potential.
Volcano contains no extras, and no menu is included. The film begins playback immediately after disc insertion. Optional English SDH subtitles must be switched on or off in-film with the remote control.
Volcano won't be remembered as one of the great Disaster movies. If anything, it will be remembered as the lesser film to Dante's Peak. That's unfortunate, because there's a solid little entertainer here that's favorable, focused, and enjoys a rock-solid performance from Tommy Lee Jones and features several other familiar faces in key roles. Volcano isn't perfect, but it's a fun and re-watchable little slice of escapism that should please genre fans. Anchor Bay's featureless Blu-ray offers disappointing video and adequate audio. Recommended for purchase only at a rock-bottom price and to fans who don't already own the widescreen DVD.
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