The Sweet Hereafter Blu-ray

(aka "De beaux lendemains" )

directed by Atom Egoyan
Canada 1997

Atom Egoyan's haunting adaptation of the Russell Banks novel The Sweet Hereafter was the Canadian filmmaker's most successful film to date, taking home a Special Grand Jury Prize at the 1997 Cannes Film Festival and scoring a pair of Academy Award nominations, including Best Director. Restructured to fit Egoyan's signature mosaic narrative style, the story concerns the cultural aftershocks which tear apart a small British Columbia town in the wake of a school-bus accident which leaves a number of local children dead. Ian Holm stars as Mitchell Stephens, a big-city lawyer who arrives in the interest of uniting the survivors to initiate a lawsuit; his maneuvering only drives the community further apart, reopening old wounds and jeopardizing any hopes of emotional recovery. Like so many of Egoyan's features, The Sweet Hereafter is a serious and painfully honest exploration of family grief; no character is immune from the sense of utter devastation which grips the film, not even the attorney, whose interests are in part motivated by his own remorse over the fate of his daughter, an HIV-positive drug addict..

Posters

Theatrical Release: November 21st, 1997

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Comparison

New Line (Platinum Series) - Region 1 - NTSC vs. Artificial Eye - Region 'B' - Blu-ray vs. Alliance - Region 'A' - Blu-ray

1) New Line - Region 1 - NTSC - LEFT

2) Artificial Eye - Region 'B' - Blu-ray - MIDDLE

3) Alliance - Region 'A' - Blu-ray - RIGHT

Box Covers

Distribution	New Line Region 1 - NTSC	Artificial Eye Region 'B' - Blu-ray	Alliance Region 'A' - Blu-ray
Runtime	1:52:08	1:52:05.760	1:52:09.264
Video	2.35:1 Original Aspect Ratio 16X9 enhanced Average Bitrate: 5.61 mb/s NTSC 720x480 29.97 f/s	1080P Single-layered Blu-ray Disc Size: 24,920,088,684 bytes Feature: 22,972,692,480 bytes Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video Total Average Bitrate: 22.00 Mbps	1080P Dual-layered Blu-ray Disc Size: 32,239,965,204 bytes Feature: 29,220,366,336 bytes Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video Total Average Bitrate: 24.00 Mbps
	NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes.
Bitrate
Bitrate AE Blu-ray
Bitrate Aliance Blu-ray
Audio	English, French (Dolby Digital 5.1)	DTS-HD Master Audio English 2122 kbps 5.1 / 48 kHz / 2122 kbps / 16-bit (DTS Core: 5.1 / 48 kHz / 1509 kbps / 16-bit) LPCM Audio English 1536 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 1536 kbps / 16-bit	DTS-HD Master Audio English 4254 kbps 5.1 / 48 kHz / 4254 kbps / 24-bit (DTS Core: 5.1 / 48 kHz / 1509 kbps / 24-bit) DUB: DTS-HD Master Audio French 3538 kbps 5.0 / 48 kHz / 3538 kbps / 24-bit (DTS Core: 5.0 / 48 kHz / 1509 kbps / 24-bit) Commentaries: Dolby Digital Audio English 192 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 192 kbps / DN -4dB Dolby Digital Audio English 192 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 192 kbps / DN -4dB Isolated Score: Dolby Digital Audio English 384 kbps 5.1 / 48 kHz / 384 kbps / DN -4dB
Subtitles	English, French, Spanish, None	None	English, French, None
Features	Release Information: Studio: New Line Aspect Ratio: Widescreen anamorphic - 2.35:1 Edition Details: • Feature length commentary with Atom Egoyan and Russell Banks • Video discussion with Banks and Egoyan on the book and the film • Q & A interviews with members of the cast • The Charlie Rose Show interview with Atom Egoyan • Robert Browning's poem The Piep Piper of Hamelin with illustrations by Kate Greenaway • Isolated score by composer Mychael Danna • U.S. and Canadian theatrical trailers • Biographies and filmographies DVD Release Date: May 27th, 1998 Snapper Chapters 17	Release Information: Studio: Artificial Eye 1080P Single-layered Blu-ray Disc Size: 24,920,088,684 bytes Feature: 22,972,692,480 bytes Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video Total Average Bitrate: 22.00 Mbps Edition Details: • Open House (1982 - 25:48) Blu-ray Release Date: September 9th 2013 Standard Blu-ray Case Chapters 12	Release Information: Studio: Alliance 1080P Dual-layered Blu-ray Disc Size: 32,239,965,204 bytes Feature: 29,220,366,336 bytes Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video Total Average Bitrate: 24.00 Mbps Edition Details: • Original audio commentary with Atom Egoyan and Russell Banks • Sweet Hereafter Revisited commentary by Atom Egoyan • "Before and After" Video discussion with Banks and Egoyan on the book and the film (34:33) • The Charlie Rose Show interview with Atom Egoyan (24:37) • Canadian Trailer (1:56) • US Theatrical trailer ( 2:32) • Isolated score by composer Mychael Danna Blu-ray Release Date: June 19th, 20128 Standard Blu-ray Case Chapters 16

Comments

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

ADDITION: Alliance - Region 'A' Blu-ray - September 2013': My friend, Friso Pas, noted to me that Alliance (In Canada) had a Blu-ray of The Sweet Hereafter and he described it as having more extras - so we are comparing. It is slightly more robust than the Artificial Eye - with a high bitrate but the image looks very close with a slight edge in contrast to the Alliance. It can appear brighter although I suspect this would be inconsequential to most viewers although the AE may be horizontally stretched a bit. Audio also advances with a strong lossless (DTS-HD master) in 5.1 showcasing more depth and crispness (plus an optional French DUB). It also has optional English and French subtitles but the biggest improvement is in the commentaries (the 'original' from Egoyan and a NEW 'revisited commentary), the video discussion, Charlie Rose interview and trailer plus an isolated score (standard Dolby). I guess we added this to verify that Alliance had not screwed-up in regards to the 1080P transfer. It looks as good, and possibly slightly superior (depending on your system) to the UK Blu-ray. It seems to be the definitive for this masterwork and we can now endorse. Thanks Friso!

***

ADDITION: Artificial Eye - Region 'B' Blu-ray - August 2013': Firstly, what a marvelous film The Sweet Hereafter continues to be in my eyes. Easily the best, so far, from this talented director and it impacts heavily each time you see it. Artificial Eye have transferred it to 1080P and it shows some definite improvement over the, very old, SD treatment from New Line, Skin tones cool, detail rises (in most scenes) and contrast improves. It still looks thick and heavy - this is a film that will never be crisp and glossy. This HD image seems to export a solid film-like representation with the occasional close-up looking impressive.

We get the option of two lossless scores - a DTS-HD Master 5.1 surround at 2122 kbps or a linear PCM stereo track at 1536 kbps. There are a few notable separations - small town silence is really the lead here in the sound with another excellent score by Mychael Danna (who has composed for other films I love, like - The Ice Storm, Life of Pi, and Chloe.) There are no subtitles offered on the region 'B'-locked Blu-ray.

Unfortunately we don't get the supplements of the DVD (commentary, Q+A, isolated score etc.) but AE have included Open House is a 25-minute short from Egoyan - made back in 1982 about an odd young real estate agent who shows a couple an older house that has seen better days. I liked it but didn't love it.

I'm glad to have this masterpiece in 1080P - a painfully honest, sterile expression that I'd easily put in my Top 100 films.

Gary W. Tooze

***

ON THE DVD: Wow! That's all that I can say after watching New Line's release of The Sweet Hereafter. Although the now defunct New Line released this film as part of their Platinum Series in the earliest days of DVD, this edition holds up as well as most releases a decade later. The film itself is a masterpiece, but I won't waste time here simply repeating what most critics have already said about it. Instead, let's talk about the considerable attributes of the disc. Image wise the release sports an anamorphic transfer that preserves the theatrical look quite well, maintaining the color palette that Egoyan used for the dark indoor and bright, vibrant outdoor shots.

Like the image, the audio is also borderline flawless. Sporting a 5.1 Dolby mix, if there were any distortions or manipulations, then I missed them. The extras too are as extensive as they are informative. Instead of delving into each individually, I'll simply sum them up by saying that the commentary, the writer/director discussion on the adaptation and the Charley Rose interview all manage to reveal something different about the film and the book from which it was adapted. In sum, this is a wonderful release made all the more impressive by the fact that it came out at the dawn of the DVD age. I consider this to be an essential purchase and recommend to all.

Menus

Artificial Eye - Region 'B' - Blu-ray

Alliance - Region 'A' - Blu-ray

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

Screen Captures Subtitle Sample (AE has no subs)

1) New Line - Region 1 - NTSC - TOP

2) Artificial Eye - Region 'B' - Blu-ray - MIDDLE

3) Alliance - Region 'A' - Blu-ray - BOTTOM

1) New Line - Region 1 - NTSC - TOP

2) Artificial Eye - Region 'B' - Blu-ray - MIDDLE

3) Alliance - Region 'A' - Blu-ray - BOTTOM

1) New Line - Region 1 - NTSC - TOP

2) Artificial Eye - Region 'B' - Blu-ray - MIDDLE

3) Alliance - Region 'A' - Blu-ray - BOTTOM

1) New Line - Region 1 - NTSC - TOP

2) Artificial Eye - Region 'B' - Blu-ray - MIDDLE

3) Alliance - Region 'A' - Blu-ray - BOTTOM

1) New Line - Region 1 - NTSC - TOP

2) Artificial Eye - Region 'B' - Blu-ray - MIDDLE

3) Alliance - Region 'A' - Blu-ray - BOTTOM

1) New Line - Region 1 - NTSC - TOP

2) Artificial Eye - Region 'B' - Blu-ray - MIDDLE

3) Alliance - Region 'A' - Blu-ray - BOTTOM

More Blu-ray Captures

1) Artificial Eye - Region 'B' - Blu-ray - TOP