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Attack the Block [Blu-ray]
(Joe Cornish, 2011)
Review by Gary Tooze
Production: Theatrical: Sony Video: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
Disc: Region: 'A' (as verified by the Momitsu region FREE Blu-ray player) Runtime: 1:28:10.285 Disc Size: 39,852,391,347 bytes Feature Size: 23,081,127,936 bytes Video Bitrate: 25.12 Mbps Chapters: 16 Case: Standard Blu-ray case Release date: October 25th, 2011
Video: Aspect ratio: 2.40:1 Resolution: 1080p / 23.976 fps Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video
Audio: DTS-HD Master Audio English 3931 kbps 5.1 / 48 kHz / 3931 kbps / 24-bit (DTS Core: 5.1 / 48 kHz / 1509 kbps / 24-bit) DTS-HD Master Audio French 3089 kbps 5.1 / 48 kHz / 3089 kbps / 24-bit (DTS Core: 5.1 / 48 kHz / 1509 kbps / 24-bit) Commentaries:
Dolby Digital Audio English 192 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 192 kbps
Subtitles: English (SDH), English, French, none
Extras: • 3 Commentary Tracks ('Junior', 'Senior', + 'Exec. Producer')
•
Behind The Block (1:01:24 - in 1080P) • That's A Rap (2:24 in 1080P)
Bitrate:
Description: From the producers of Shaun of the Dead, Attack the Block is a fast, funny, frightening action adventure movie that pits a teen street gang against an invasion of savage alien monsters. It turns a London housing project into a sci-fi battleground, the low-income apartment complex into a fortress under siege. And it turns a crazy mix of tough street kids into a team of kick ass heroes. It’s inner city versus outer space and it’s going to explode. *** A fast, funny, frightening action adventure movie that pits a teen gang against an invasion of savage alien monsters.... It turns a London housing estate into a sci-fi playground. A tower block into a fortress under siege. And teenage street kids into heroes. It's inner city versus outer space.
The Film:
Attack the Block's monsters from outer space are a hulking hybrid
of gorilla and wolf, with long, pointy, iridescent teeth and a high,
piercing shriek.
All of which elevates ‘Attack the Block’ from fun creature-feature
throwback to this year’s unmissable British movie, and Cornish from just
another geek-turned-filmmaker to a major talent: if he can strike a
similar balance between sympathy, insight and crowd-pleasing thrills in
future projects, his status is assured. Image : NOTE: The below Blu-ray captures were taken directly from the Blu-ray disc. Attack the Block looks decent on Blu-ray from Sony. I had concerns that some of the faces were exported with a waxy appearance but have concluded that this is more a result of the film production than any digital manipulation. This is dual-layered with a decent bitrate. Detail is acceptable but not a hallmark. Contrast in the darker sequences (and there are a lot) remains adept with no intrusive noise. Colors seem true and tight. I wouldn't say the image is dynamically impressive but it is serviceable and provides a consistent, worthwhile, presentation. By modern standards this may not be stellar but elevates well above SD. I suspect that the image is at the mercy of its production roots and I find no fault with the Blu-ray transfer. It's clean with a shade of depth in the 2.40:1 aspect ratio.
CLICK EACH BLU-RAY CAPTURE TO SEE ALL IMAGES IN FULL 1920X1080 RESOLUTION
Audio :Sony provide an excellent track in the form of a DTS-HD Master 5.1 at 3931 kbps. There are some punchy separations and seething depth. There is an original score by Steven Price that compliments the film well - supporting the aggressive moments with intensity. It also has nice balance without eclipsing the visuals. Really very well done. There are optional subtitles (required for much if the slang dialogue) and m y Momitsu has identified it as being a region 'A'-locked although there is a UK, region 'B', edition available.
Extras : Attack the Block excels in the supplements department as well with three Commentary Tracks divided into the categories of 'Junior' with director Joe Cornish plus stars Simon Howard, John Boyega, Alex Esmail, Franz Drameh and Leon Jones. There is a "Senior" commentary with Cornish again plus Nick Frost, Jodie Whittaker and Luke Treadaway. The "Executive Producer" option has only Cornish and exec. producer Edgar Wright. I sampled about 45 minutes of each and they were all good with fun and recollections of details. After that the hour-long Behind The Block which covered casting and production details in the evolution of the filmmaking process. Creature Feature runs 20-minutes and discusses the effects regarding the film's 'monsters' - after that are three short featurettes, basically, on the cast. Pretty stacked with a lot for fans to indulge in.
BOTTOM LINE: Gary Tooze October 18th, 2011
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About the Reviewer: Hello, fellow Beavers! I have been interested in film since I viewed a Chaplin festival on PBS when I was around 9 years old. I credit DVD with expanding my horizons to fill an almost ravenous desire to seek out new film experiences. I currently own approximately 9500 DVDs and have reviewed over 3500 myself. I appreciate my discussion Listserv for furthering my film education and inspiring me to continue running DVDBeaver. Plus a healthy thanks to those who donate and use our Amazon links.
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find HD is swiftly pushing me in that direction. 60-Inch Class (59.58” Diagonal) 1080p Pioneer KURO Plasma Flat Panel HDTV PDP6020-FD
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