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S E A R C H    D V D B e a v e r

(aka 'No Ordinary Man" or "M. Night Shyamalan's Project')

directed by M. Night Shyamalan
USA 2000

 

The 4K UHD of M. Night Shyamalan's Unbreakable is reviewed HERE

 

Following The Sixth Sense was always going to be a nightmare for writer/director Shyamalan, even with Willis and Jackson on board. Yet this study of comic-book heroism and human destiny challenges rather than meets the audience's expectations. The miraculous sole survivor of a train crash, Philadelphia security guard David Dunn (Willis) is told by Elijah Price (Jackson) - a dealer in comic-book art with a fertile imagination and brittle bones - that he is 'unbreakable'. Like indestructible comic-book heroes, David has been put on Earth to vanquish evil. The movie then swerves into deeper, murkier territory, as the bewildered David ponders the cosmic consequences of this knowledge. Is this crazy, Biblical soothsayer right? If so, does he have a responsibility to develop and use his super-powers? Whereas The Sixth Sense left audiences surprised but surprisingly comfortable, this more mature and ambitious movie preserves its ambiguities and keeps everyone guessing. As David's wife Audrey, Wright Penn is mostly sidelined, although a brief exchange about their shaky marriage provides the film's most compelling emotional moment. If anything, the near somnambulant Willis is a little too restrained, as if to counter-balance Jackson's flamboyant, mesmerizing portrayal of the mysterious stranger Elijah.

Excerpt from TimeOut located HERE  

 

The pure joy of this film is just that: discovery. So often we see movies with not one original idea (Men of Honor, anyone?), but Unbreakable is a movie with originality to spare. It's a story about lost opportunities, tragic sacrifices, second chances and the power of fantasy. All that AND you simply never know where the next scene will take you. In a Hollywood system filled with predictable and ponderous screenplays, Unbreakable shines quite brightly indeed.

Most of the negative reviews I've read of this film invariably attempt comparisons between this film and
The Sixth Sense. Both are excellent films for extremely different reasons, but I think it's pretty unfair to rate a new film on in relation to one from last year. Each movie is its own entity and they deserve to be treated as such.

Even better, it's a movie that you'll probably like more the longer you think about it. I've had several conversations with friends about how this scene stood out so eloquently, while another scene was truly surprising. The package is wrapped up beautifully, in an ending that fits in perfectly with everything that came before.

Excerpt from eFilmCritic located HERE  

Posters

Theatrical Release: November 14th, 2000

Reviews                                                                    More Reviews                                                            DVD Reviews

Comparison:

Touchstone Video (2 disc) - Region 1 - NTSC vs. Touchstone - Region FREE - Blu-ray

1) Touchstone - Region 1 - NTSC - LEFT

2) Touchstone - Region FREE - Blu-ray - RIGHT

 

Box Covers

   

  

Distribution Touchstone Video - Region 1- NTSC Touchstone
Region FREE -
Blu-ray
Runtime 1:46:28  1:46:39.434 
Video 2.37:1 Original Aspect Ratio
Average Bitrate: 8.37 mb/s
NTSC 720x480 29.97 f/s

2.35:1 Disc Size: 32,218,058,657 bytes

Feature Size: 27,026,595,840 bytes

Total Bitrate: 23.96 Mbps

Dual-layered Blu-ray MPEG4 - AVC

NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes.

Bitrate:

Bitrate Blu-ray:

Audio English (Dolby Digital 5.1), English (DTS) , DUB: French (Dolby Digital 5.1) ,Spanish (Dolby Digital 5.1) 

LPCM Audio English 4608 kbps 5.1 / 48 kHz / 4608 kbps / 16-bit
Dolby Digital EX Audio English 640 kbps 5.1-EX / 48 kHz / 640 kbps
DUBs:

Dolby Digital EX Audio French 640 kbps 5.1-EX / 48 kHz / 640 kbps
Dolby Digital EX Audio Spanish 640 kbps 5.1-EX / 48 kHz / 640 kbps
Dolby Digital EX Audio Portuguese 640 kbps 5.1-EX / 48 kHz / 640 kbps
Dolby Digital EX Audio Thai 640 kbps 5.1-EX / 48 kHz / 640 kbps

Subtitles English (hearing impaired), None English, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Chinese, Thai, Indonesian, Malayalam, Korean, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Thai, None
Features

Release Information:
Studio: Touchstone Video

Aspect Ratio:
Original aspect Ratio 2.37:1

Edition Details:

• Behind the scenes of "Unbreakable" Featurette
• Seven Deleted Scenes with director's introduction
• Comic Book and Superheroes Documentary
• Train Station Sequence with Multi-Angle Feature & Sound Mix
• An Excerpt From a Childhood Film of M. Night Shyamalan
• Booklet

DVD Release Date: February 3rd, 2004

4 fold-out digi-pak in slipcase
Chapters: 28

Release Information:
Studio:
Touchstone

 

2.35:1 Disc Size: 32,218,058,657 bytes

Feature Size: 27,026,595,840 bytes

Total Bitrate: 23.96 Mbps

Dual-layered Blu-ray MPEG4 - AVC

 

Edition Details:
• Behind the scenes of "Unbreakable" Featurette (14:17)
• Seven Deleted Scenes with director's introduction (28:29)
• Comic Book and Superheroes Documentary (19:22)
• Train Station Sequence with Multi-Angle Feature & Sound Mix (4:11)
• An Excerpt From a Childhood Film of M. Night Shyamalan
(2:27 )
 

Blu-ray Release Date:  April 1st, 2008
Standard Blu-ray case

Chapters 29

 

 

Comments:

The 4K UHD of M. Night Shyamalan's Unbreakable is reviewed HERE

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

ADDITION: Touchstone - Region FREE - Blu-ray July 17': As I continue to watch Unbreakable, through the years, my enthusiasm for it only grows. The 1080P tightens in advance on the SD - and depth becomes more apparent. There is no significant variation in the 2.35:1 frame but colors do tighten. There are complaints of DNR and a softness over the image This is on a dual-layered disc with a middling bitrate. The film's visuals are strong but essentially, imperfect, in this HD transfer but improving upon the DVD. I think it's time for a new transfer.

Touchstone, unusually, use an extremely robust linear PCM, 5.1 surround, but only 16-bit. Effects are well-supported with impressive depth with a few notable separations. There is also a potent Dolby Digital EX 5.1 track option.  The original music is by, the iconic, James Newton Howard (8 Million Ways to Die, 2005's King Kong, Batman Begins, The Bourne Legacy, I Am Legend, The Lookout etc.) and the score is brilliant - one of his best. It steadily rises - establishing a noble bass-line when the hero achieves in his calling. It adds significant value to the film's darker moods and sounds excellent via the uncompressed. There are optional, yellow, subtitles (see sample below), and foreign language DUBs, offered and my Oppo has identified it as being a region FREE - playable world-wide.

Extras duplicate the 2004 DVD with a 1/4 hour of Behind the scenes with Willis describing his initiation into the project and Shyamalan details areas of production, his drafts of the story etc. There are seven, interesting, deleted scenes with director's introduction - running just shy of 1/2 hour in total. There is a, 20-minutes, Comic Book and Superheroes documentary, the Train Station Sequence with multi-angle feature & sound mix plus a brief excerpt from a childhood film of M. Night Shyamalan.

This is one of my most-watched films - I adore the Eduardo Serra cinematography with many 'upside' down shots that slowly right themselves plus the many 'long distance shots' of two characters conversing as well as sequences wavering between chairs (in the train) or in the bench-press scene. Willis is at his strong-silent best. Robin Wright is always amazingly realistic and she can't seem to give a poor performance, Spencer Treat Clark is also great - and Samuel L. Jackson's propensity for loud flamboyancy is perfectly suited Elijah Price's 'Mr. Glass' characterization. Perfect casting. The James Newton Howard score is subtle and rhythmic wonderfully building the film's sub-surface moods. I tire of defending Shyamalan and the irrelevant criticisms that surface - he is a brilliant storyteller and filmmaker - this is a great film. Period. This, older, Blu-ray needs a upgrade with a stronger, new, transfer. How about a steelbook?        

Gary W. Tooze

 

 


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Disc 2

Touchstone - Region FREE - Blu-ray

 


CLICK EACH BLU-RAY CAPTURE TO SEE ALL IMAGES IN FULL 1920X1080 RESOLUTION

 

Subtitle Sample - Touchstone - Region FREE - Blu-ray

 

 


 

Screen Captures

 

1) Touchstone - Region 1 - NTSC - TOP

2) Touchstone - Region FREE - Blu-ray - BOTTOM

 


1) Touchstone - Region 1 - NTSC - TOP

2) Touchstone - Region FREE - Blu-ray - BOTTOM

 


1) Touchstone - Region 1 - NTSC - TOP

2) Touchstone - Region FREE - Blu-ray - BOTTOM

 


1) Touchstone - Region 1 - NTSC - TOP

2) Touchstone - Region FREE - Blu-ray - BOTTOM

 


1) Touchstone - Region 1 - NTSC - TOP

2) Touchstone - Region FREE - Blu-ray - BOTTOM

 


1) Touchstone - Region 1 - NTSC - TOP

2) Touchstone - Region FREE - Blu-ray - BOTTOM

 

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Box Covers

   

  

Distribution Touchstone Video - Region 1- NTSC Touchstone
Region FREE -
Blu-ray

 



 

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