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'Super 8' still holds the top spot as my favorite movie of the year. It reminded me of movies like 'Goonies' and 'Stand By Me,' with strong kid characters who can drive a movie just as well as any adults out there. As was expected, 'Super 8' comes to Blu-ray with a great looking video presentation, and an audio presentation that's simply out of this world. The full-bodied 7.1 mix is sure to rumble your home's foundation. 'Super 8' is highly recommended.
The Video: Sizing Up the Picture
If you were happy with the look of J.J. Abrams' 'Star Trek,' on Blu-ray then you'll warm right up to 'Super 8's 1080p presentation. Even though the movie takes place in the late 70s, Abrams' photography (with the help of cinematographer Larry Fong) doesn't really reflect the time period. Besides the sparse representations of grainy 8mm footage here and there, the rest of the movie looks as slick and polished as 'Star Trek' did, lens flares and all.
The film has a very distinct clarity to it. Fine detail is optimal on faces, structures, and special effects. You can see individual threads in the shag carpets, and the woven texture of the furniture of that time period. The texture of shirts and denim also stick out. The movie is predominantly set during nighttime sequences. All the big set pieces take place during night, and therefore the presentation of the movie's blacks was extremely important. I'm happy to report that the blacks are infinitely deep and shadows are wonderfully delineated. Even though it's dark in those tunnels under the city, you're still able to clearly see the claw marks in the dirt made by the creature. Colors do pop, however. You'll noticed the bright oranges and reds of the fiery explosions from the train wreck, which cut through the blackness perfectly. I didn't notice any sort of banding at all. Aliasing or any other nuisances are nowhere to be seen.
Yes, Abrams is back in full force with his lens flares. Hate them or love them, they're there. I'm somewhat ambivalent towards them, but they do tend to become distractions as the movie progresses (like they did in 'Star Trek').
The Audio: Rating the Sound
The Dolby TrueHD 7.1 mix provided by Paramount, to quote Charles Kaznyk, "Is mint!" This is one of the best sounding Blu-rays you'll buy all year, but to be honest, are you really surprised by that?
The train wreck (surprise, surprise) is the first place you really find out what you're in for with this engulfing audio mix. As the train becomes derailed and metal starts crunching and clanging against each other all seven channels come to life with all sorts of distressing sounds. Explosions pop off in the rear and side channels. The front channels are filled with the terror-tinged screams of the kids as they run for cover as huge pieces of metal flies all around them. LFE is in a constant state of activity, adding power and oomph to each explosion. The bass lends hard-hitting rumbling as train cars come crashing to earth. When the train depot finally goes up in a fireball you may want to have secured your pictures to the wall, because they'll literally rattle off their hooks. This is a loud, jarring, altogether amazing audio experience. It's a scene that you'll pull out again and again over the years to show to your friends and family exactly how HD 7.1 sound can sound when done right.
It isn't all action and mayhem though. The center channel picks up clean and clear dialogue, which is passed around to the front and side speakers depending on directionality of voices. Panning effects like helicopters circling overhead make smooth transitions throughout the sound stage, from one channel to another, seamlessly. Ambient sound keeps the rear and side channels lively throughout the movie, even if there is no alien action going on. When the kids are boarding the bus out of town, or during the town hall meeting, townsfolk can be heard chattering away giving the mix a very genuine feel. 'Super 8,' rises to the expectations that it set in the theaters, and provides us with a demo worthy audio performance.
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