Silverado Blu-ray - Kevin Kline

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

directed by Lawrence Kasdan
USA 1985

This spirited Western stars Kevin Kline, Scott Glenn, Kevin Costner, and Danny Glover as four unwitting heroes who cross paths on their journey to the sleepy town of Silverado. Little do they know the town where their family and friends reside has been taken over by a corrupt sheriff and a murderous posse. It's up to the sharp-shooting foursome to save the day, but first they have to break each other out of jail, and learn who their real friends are. Thanks to its authentic look and spectacular cast, which also includes Rosanna Arquette, John Cleese, Brian Dennehy, Jeff Goldblum, and Linda Hunt, this exciting Old West adventure created a whole new generation of Western fans and earned its "modern classic" status.

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Theatrical Release: July 10th, 1985

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Comparison:

Columbia Tri-Star (2-disc) - Region 1, 3, 4 - NTSC vs. Sony Pictures - Region FREE - Blu-ray

1) Columbia Tri-Star (2-disc) - Region 1, 3, 4 - NTSC LEFT
2) Sony Pictures - Region FREE - Blu-ray RIGHT

Box Covers
Distribution	Columbia Tri-Star Home Video - Region 1, 3, 4 - NTSC	Sony Pictures - Region FREE - Blu-ray
Runtime	2:12:28	2:12:36.949
Video	2.38:1 Original Aspect Ratio Average Bitrate: 6.44 mb/s NTSC 720x480 29.97 f/s	2.4:1 1080P / 23.976 fps Dual-layered Blu-ray Disc Size: 43,348,981,209 bytes Feature: 38,432,397,312 bytes Video Bitrate: 26.96 Mbps Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video
	NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes.
Bitrate: DVD
Bitrate: Blu-ray
Audio	English (DTS), English (Dolby Digital 5.1), DUB: French (Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround)	Dolby TrueHD Audio English 1508 kbps 5.1 / 48 kHz / 1508 kbps / 16-bit (AC3 Core: 5.1 / 48 kHz / 640 kbps) DUBs: Dolby TrueHD Audio French 1394 kbps 5.1 / 48 kHz / 1394 kbps / 16-bit (AC3 Core: 5.1 / 48 kHz / 640 kbps) Dolby TrueHD Audio Portuguese 1534 kbps 5.1 / 48 kHz / 1534 kbps / 16-bit (AC3 Core: 5.1 / 48 kHz / 640 kbps) Dolby Digital Audio Spanish 640 kbps 5.1 / 48 kHz / 640 kbps Commentary: Dolby Digital Audio English 192 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 192 kbps / Dolby Surround
Subtitles	English, Spanish, French, Korean, Portuguese, Thai, Chinese, None	English, Spanish, French, Portuguese, None
Features	Release Information: Studio: Columbia Tri-Star Home Video Aspect Ratio: Original aspect Ratio 2.38:1 Edition Details: • New featurette: A Return to Silverado with Kevin Costner • Along the Silverado Trail: A Western Historian's Commentary • The Making of Silverado: in-depth documentary • A History of Western Shootouts--narrated by John Cleese • Talent files • Bonus previews • Package includes a deck of Silverado playing cards • Special 20-page original movie scrapbook DVD Release Date: April 5th, 2005 Slim double Keep Case inside VHS sized box Chapters: 28	Release Information: Studio: Sony Pictures Homer Video 2.4:1 1080P / 23.976 fps Dual-layered Blu-ray Disc Size: 43,348,981,209 bytes Feature: 38,432,397,312 bytes Video Bitrate: 26.96 Mbps Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video Edition Details: • Featurette: A Return to Silverado with Kevin Costner (21:01) • Along the Silverado Trail: A Western Historian's Commentary with Frank Thompson, Paul Hutton, and Steve Aaron • The Making of Silverado: in-depth documentary (37:02) • "MovieIQ" Blu-ray feature Blu-ray Release Date: September 8th, 2009 DigiBook Blu-ray case Chapters: 16

Comments:

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

ADDITION: Sony - Region FREE Blu-ray - September 09: Despite the greenish hue - which I don't believe is intentional - the image on Sony's Silverado Blu-ray looks exceptionally strong at times. Detail tightens up significantly and grain is very visible. There is still some noise but the visuals, especially the western vistas of New Mexico in 2.4:1 AR, are dynamically ahead of the 2-disc DVD. Colors perk-up and the image is brighter and more detailed.

The TrueHD track has much more range and depth than the DVD audio rendering. I can't help feel it was somewhat restrained but it was a real pleasure to hear the film in lossless 5.1 and the upgrade to the score by Bruce Broughton (Hidalgo). There are optional DUBs and subtitles (strangely less choices than the DVD!) and my Momitsu has identified it as being a region FREE disc playable on Blu-ray machines worldwide.

Supplement-wise we get the same boisterous commentary from the three 'historians', the 1/2 hour Making of... documentary and the A Return to Silverado piece with Costner for 20-minutes. The Blu-ray give us Sony's "MovieIQ" feature - which gives up-to-date details while the film runs along in a PiP box. This can include cast and crew information and even soundtrack details. Pretty cool! We lose the deck of cards and scrapbook included with the 2-disc DVD edition BUT we do get the 'Digibook' package with the Blu-ray and about 26-pages of bios and color photos.

While I remain unconvinced that this is the absolute best Silverado can look - it's easy to see that it's a big leap beyond the last DVD. fans should definitely indulge in this retro-western. It's no cheapy - this is a well thought out adventure - more on it's own right as a western than an homage. We really need more of this. 3:10 to Yuma was another of the genre's modern gems - but let's hope we can have a revival! The Blu-ray is a giant leap from the DVD - we encourage indulging.

***

ON THE DVD: I wish we could compare to the original edition, but I expect this stellar new one would blow it away regardless. Good colors, very sharp, a little dark (as the film is meant to be) at times. Extras out the wazoo including a deck of cards ?!? Commentary too. I can't find too much fault in this DVD package (except the yellow subtitles). A fun ode to the real western genre that has long since passed. It's not Boetticher, Anthony Mann, Ford or Hawks, but its a solid post-modern foray. Good adventure to be had my all.

Gary W. Tooze

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