Cape Fear Blu-ray Gregory Peck

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S E A R C H D V D B e a v e r

directed by J. Lee Thompson
U.S. 1962

An irredeemable criminal exacts his revenge on the family of a lawyer who put him away. This supremely nasty thriller - originally severely cut by the British censor - boasts great credentials: a source in John D MacDonald's novel The Executioners, Mitchum as the sadistic villain (a bare-chested variant on his Night of the Hunter role), Peck as the epitome of threatened righteousness, seedy locations in the Southern bayous, and whooping music by Bernard Herrmann. If director Thompson isn't quite skilful enough to give the film its final touch of class (many of the shocks are just too planned), the relentlessness of the story and Mitchum's tangibly sordid presence guarantee the viewer's quivering attention.

Excerpt from TimeOut Film Guide located HERE

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Comparison:

Universal - Region 1 - NTSC vs. Columbia Tri-Star - Region 2/4 - PAL vs. Universal - Region FREE- Blu-ray

Big thanks to Ole of DVDBasen for the PAL Screen Caps!

1) Universal - R1 - NTSC - LEFT

2) Columbia Tri-Star - R2/4 - PAL - MIDDLE

3) Universal - Region FREE - Blu-ray - RIGHT

Box Covers			Available with the Scorsese version - also on Blu-ray - from Germany:
Distribution	Universal Region 1 - NTSC	Columbia Tristar Region 2/4 - PAL	Universal Region FREE - Blu-ray
Runtime	1:45:44	1:41:34 (4% PAL Speedup)	1:45:54.348
Video	1.85:1 Original Aspect Ratio 16X9 enhanced Average Bitrate: 7.81 mb/s NTSC 704x480 29.97 f/s	1.85:1 Original Aspect Ratio 16X9 enhanced Average Bitrate: 8.37 PAL 720x576 25.00 f/s	1080P Dual-layered Blu-ray Disc Size: 32,864,595,424 bytes Feature: 32,091,211,776 bytes Codec: VC-1 Video Video Total Video Bitrate: 29.21 Mbps
	NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes.
Bitrate: Universal
Bitrate: Columbia Tri-Star
Bitrate: Blu-ray
Audio	English (Dolby Digital 2.0)	English (Dolby Digital 2.0), DUBS: German Dolby Digital 1.0 , French Dolby Digital 1.0 , Italian Dolby Digital 1.0 , Spanish Dolby Digital 1.0	DTS-HD Master Audio English 1975 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 1975 kbps / 24-bit (DTS Core: 2.0 / 48 kHz / 1509 kbps / 24-bit) DTS Audio French 768 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 768 kbps / 24-bit DTS Audio German 768 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 768 kbps / 24-bit DTS Audio Italian 768 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 768 kbps / 24-bit DTS Audio Japanese 768 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 768 kbps / 24-bit DTS Audio Portuguese 768 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 768 kbps / 24-bit DTS Audio Russian 768 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 768 kbps / 24-bit DTS Audio Spanish 768 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 768 kbps / 24-bit DTS Audio Spanish 768 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 768 kbps / 24-bit
Subtitles	English, Spanish, French and none	(White) English, French, Portuguese, Danish, Finnish, Swedish, Norwegian, Greek, German, Dutch, Czech, Polish, Turkish, Hungarian and Bulgarian and none	English, Chinese, French, Portuguese, Danish, Finnish, Swedish, Norwegian, Greek, German, Dutch, Czech, Polish, Turkish, Hungarian, Italian, Japanese, Russian, Swedish, Thai and none
Features	Release Information: Studio: Universal Studios Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 Widescreen letterbox anamorphic Edition Details: • Color, Widescreen, Black & White • Production notes • Making of Cape Fear (28:10) • Production Stills with Score by Bernard Hermann • Poster Gallery • DVD-Rom Features. • Full frame Theatrical Trailer(2:05) DVD Release Date: September 18, 2001 Keep Case Chapters 18	Release Information: Studio: Columbia Tristar UK R2/4 Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 Widescreen letterbox anamorphic Edition Details: Making of Cape Fear (28:00) Production Photographs (4:48) Full frame Theatrical Trailer(2:07) Production Notes Biographies DVD-Rom Features. DVD Release Date: ? Transparent Amaray Case Chapters 18	Release Information: Studio: Universal Studios 1080P Dual-layered Blu-ray Disc Size: 32,864,595,424 bytes Feature: 32,091,211,776 bytes Codec: VC-1 Video Video Total Video Bitrate: 29.21 Mbps Edition Details: • none Blu-ray Release Date: October 10th, 2011 Standard UK (thicker) Blu-ray Case Chapters 18

Comments:

NOTE: The below Blu-ray captures were taken directly from the Blu-ray disc.

ADDITION: Universal - Region FREE - Blu-ray - (October 2011) -Yes - it looks better than SD but there has been some DNR that has removed grain and made some of the faces waxy, and visuals glossy and flatter than they could have been rendered. I've seen it more liberally applied but I think the application was unnecessary. Textured grain would have benefited this appearance. It has more detail than the DVDs and some depth but I think the later may have been improved without manipulations. Otherwise, the less discerning viewer will probably be quite happy. The good thing is that the DNR is not blanketed and there is plenty of movie without the impediment.

Audio though is solid with the Herrmann score via a DTS-HD Master 2.0 channel at 1975 kbps - and a host of foreign language DUBs. This is a surprising track at times - giving the perception of depth. I was impressed - well, more so than the image. There are also a long list of subtitle options on the region FREE Blu-ray disc with simple images for the menu usage -which works fine as there is not a single extra to be found.

I would be more forthcoming with the decent price if the image wasn't tampered with but still you are getting a decent, if imperfect, presentation - audio kudos - for the intense classic.

***

ON THE DVDs: Pretty much no difference in these editions. Same cover art, same menus. Both have a decent relatively un-noticeable layer change. The Columbia R2/4 edition does have substantial audio Dubs and subtitles if they are required. I think the R1 may also be slightly sharper, but the difference is negligible. Pick the cheapest!

- Gary W. Tooze

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(Universal - R1 - NTSC - Left vs. Columbia Tri-Star - R2/4 - PAL - Right)