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A view on Blu-ray by Gary W. Tooze

Star Trek - Into Darkness [Blu-ray]

 

(J.J. Abrams, 2013)

 

  

  

 

Also available in 3D Blu-ray versions:

  

  

 

Review by Gary Tooze

 

Production:

Theatrical: Bad Robot / Paramount Pictures

Video: Paramount

 

Disc:

Region: FREE! (as verified by the Oppo Blu-ray player)

Runtime: 2:12:05.959

Disc Size: 45,381,287,535 bytes

Feature Size: 36,668,841,984 bytes

Video Bitrate: 26.26 Mbps

Chapters: 16

Case: Standard Blu-ray case inside cardboard slipcase

Release date: September 10th, 2013

 

Video:

Aspect ratio: 2.4:1

Resolution: 1080p / 23.976 fps

Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video

 

Audio:

Dolby TrueHD Audio English 4342 kbps 7.1 / 48 kHz / 4342 kbps / 24-bit (AC3 Embedded: 5.1 / 48 kHz / 640 kbps / DN -4dB)
Dolby Digital Audio French 640 kbps 5.1 / 48 kHz / 640 kbps / DN -4dB
Dolby Digital Audio Spanish 640 kbps 5.1 / 48 kHz / 640 kbps / DN -4dB
Dolby Digital Audio Portuguese 640 kbps 5.1 / 48 kHz / 640 kbps / DN -4dB
Dolby Digital Audio English 640 kbps 5.1 / 48 kHz / 640 kbps / DN -4dB

 

Subtitles:

English, English (SDH), French, Portuguese, Spanish, none

 

Extras:

Featurettes (42:13 in total):

Creating the Red Planet
Attack on Starfleet
The Klingon Home World
The Enemy of My Enemy
Ship to Ship
Brawl by the Bay

Continuing the Mission

The Mission Continues
(1:29)

DVD of the Feature and code for digital copy

 

Bitrate:

 

 

Description: When the crew of the Enterprise is called back home, they find an unstoppable force of terror from within their own organization has detonated the fleet and everything it stands for, leaving our world in a state of crisis. With a personal score to settle, Captain Kirk leads a manhunt to a war-zone world to capture a one man weapon of mass destruction. As our heroes are propelled into an epic chess game of life and death, love will be challenged, friendships will be torn apart, and sacrifices must be made for the only family Kirk has left: his crew.

 

 

The Film:

The Star Trek franchise continues with this follow-up to 2009's J.J. Abrams-directed reboot. Abrams returns to direct from a script by Damon Lindelof and the writing team of Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman. The crew of the Enterprise engages in an epic battle of good versus evil after being summoned home, only to discover Starfleet in ruins, and they venture into a war zone to find the powerful villain (Sherlock's Benedict Cumberbatch) responsible for the devastation.

Excerpt from MRQE located HERE

 

There's plenty of screentime. Into Darkness weighs in at over two hours, and it doesn't mess about. We're into a ridiculous action set-piece from the get-go, in a scene that effortlessly captures the personality of the original series. Fan-pleasing references are littered throughout, from minor character names to major plot points to the aforementioned tribble, with some interesting role reversals and another cameo from Leonard Nimoy. It's impossible to say much more without spoiling the plot, but rest assured the film bounces along for the full two hours, holding attention principally through the strength of the key performances.

Cumberbatch carries on the grand tradition of British Hollywood villains, with flashes of both Hans Gruber and Dr Hannibal Lecktor evident in his portrayal of a charming sociopath. Lesser actors would struggle to keep up; it's a testament to Chris Pine and Zachary Quinto that they manage to hold their own. Another unexpected treat is Peter Weller, a criminally underrated actor who'll hopefully pick up some more high-profile roles off the back of this one.

As with the 2009 offering, the visuals are stunning, the cinematography dynamic and engaging, the vfx superb. At times it feels rather like watching someone else playing a videogame, but these scenes are few and thankfully brief. We may be going where we've already gone before, but we're plenty bold about it.

Excerpt from Stuart Crawford at Eye for Film located HERE

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

Star Trek Into Darkness arrives on Blu-ray from Paramount to a much-anticipated army of Star Trek fans.  The image quality isn't quite as robust (lower bitrate) as the first film but looks quite impressive nonetheless.  This is dual-layered for the 2 1/4 hour film. Contrast exhibits healthy, rich black levels but there is a slight softness yet it does export depth. Effects are brilliant - as is the art direction. Close-ups exhibit pleasing detail. It is in the 2.4:1 aspect ratio. Colors, especially in the opening Red Planet sequence, are brilliant. Predictably, this Blu-ray has no flaws and provides a beautiful, rich presentation with so much effort going into the visuals of the film as evidenced by the extra featurette supplements. The battle sequences are riveting and even open space its hard not to stare at the glory of the visuals.

 

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

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Audio :

Like the earlier Star Trek film we get a robust TrueHD but now bumped to 7.1 track at a monstrous 4342 kbps. It duplicated the first movie with aggressive bass and a crisp, sensitive high end. I think it is even more notable in terms of the overall presentation. Effect noises are abundant and coming at you from all angles with subtle and aggressive touches. Michael Giacchino (The Incredibles (2004), Ratatouille (2007), and Speed Racer - 2008) repeats his infectious score sounding noble and classic as the Enterprise comes into our view. The lossless rendering is, like the image, quite perfect. Mixed in is Alexander Courage and Gene Roddenberry's original theme from Star Trek. There are optional foreign language DUBs and subtitles. My Oppo Blu-ray player has identified it as being a region FREE disc playable on Blu-ray machines worldwide.

Extras :

Extras include 7 production featurettes (running 42-minutes in total) about such details as all the work put into the opening on the Red Planet sequence, the Attack on Starfleet, the Klingon Home World and others with the cast and crew (Producers, actors, technicians etc.) giving input. It's very informative and worth the watch to those keen enough. There is also an oddly placed 1.5 minute advert for the military entitled The Mission Continues and the package includes a DVD of the Feature and code for digital copy.

 

 

BOTTOM LINE:
Well just like Abrams 2009 film, Star Trek, my two sons and I can't get enough and have watched it three times now in two days. It may be a notch below it's predecessor but it is still a fabulous action/sci-fi with continued homage around every corner. For Trekkies this is pure entertainment and non-Trekkies might get a lot out of it too if they want to have some fun. The Blu-ray provides an amazing presentation and I think this is well worth owning - great stuff - we strongly recommend! 

Gary Tooze

August 31st, 2013

 

  

  

 

Also available in 3D Blu-ray versions:

  

  

 

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 5000 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.

Although I never wanted to become one of those guys who focused 'too much' on image and sound quality - I find HD is swiftly pushing me in that direction.

Gary's Home Theatre:

60-Inch Class (59.58” Diagonal) 1080p Pioneer KURO Plasma Flat Panel HDTV PDP6020-FD

Oppo Digital BDP-83 Universal Region FREE Blu-ray/SACD Player
Momitsu - BDP-899 Region FREE Blu-ray player
Marantz SA8001 Super Audio CD Player
Marantz SR7002 THX Select2 Surround Receiver
Tannoy DC6-T (fronts) + Energy (centre, rear, subwoofer) speakers (5.1)

APC AV 1.5 kVA H Type Power Conditioner 120V

Gary W. Tooze

 

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