From our The 7th Voyage of Sinbad comparison: via Lawrence French's excellent article in Cinefantastique (interview with Ray Harryhausen HERE) we know that Harryhausen never really wanted his movies to be projected in any of the then new “widescreen” formats. He accepted the 1.85 aspect ratio under protest from the studio, but he hated working in the extreme widescreen formats, especially when he had to make First Men in the Moon in Panavision. The original Columbia DVD of Jason and the Argonauts had an anamorphic widescreen version on one side of the disc (at approximately 1.75:1) with a full frame version on the opposite side. As with Sinbad there appears to be a compromise and we get Jason on Blu-ray in precisely 1.66:1 which opens up the frame, on all 4 edges, when compared to the widescreen DVD.

Colors can show some notable differences from the DVD transfer to the Blu-ray. Overall the 1080P rendering is brighter and blues tend to be calmer with lighter greens becoming more prominent. This actually seems less noticeable in the screen captures than on my system - perhaps because I have watched the original DVD so many times. I was too young to have seen Jason in its initial theatrical run (although when I was a bit older I believe my father took me to re-issue at the cinema) - so I'll rely on others to pass on their recollections of the color scheme. The less vibrant hues may not be favorable to some - but the improved clarity and detail is an extremely welcome factor. As for the bolstered green it tends to work with the 'Bronze Man' for the patina look he had on much of his structure (but he is, certainly, no longer 'bronze')... and the Hydra seems more correct as richer blue as opposed to drab, flat, gray.

I'm unsure what 'ocean' water we are seeing as I understand much of this was filmed in land-locked Campania, Italy, but if it was the Adriatic then the water might be more accurate now (actually, in the commentary it is described as 'Southern Italy'). In other sequences the reds of Medea's (Nancy Kovack) robes are far richer than the SD-DVD could produce. Skin tones appear less orange and more natural and the textured grain is a very desirable attribute. As is the improved contrast. So, without going too picky with the colors - I'll say that Jason on Blu-ray looks absolutely magnificent - but, at times, quite different from the DVD.  

The DTS-HD Master 5.1 at 3820 kbps sounds even better than I expected. Bernard Herrmann's score is such a treat to hear in a lossless rendering and for this film the audio is a huge part of the viewing experience - loud drums and crashing symbols heightening the adventure and impact of the many confrontations. Depth and separation exist but it is definitely the music that would be considered 'aggressive'. The old DVD had English, Spanish and French, gaudy yellow, subtitles and the new hi-def disc only offers English (and SDH), in white, and no foreign language DUBs - although, as a side note, I seem to recall that the voices of both Todd Armstrong (Jason) and Nancy Kovack (Medea) were DUB'ed - a fact they only became aware of at the time of the film's Premiere! My Momitsu has identified it as being a region FREE disc playable on Blu-ray machines world-wide.

The Blu-ray is stacked with extras - not one, but two commentary tracks with Ray Harryhausen and film historian Tim Dalton on the first and director Peter Jackson and visuals effects artists William Randall Cook on the second. In the first they discuss how the film was so inspirational to directors' like Spielberg, Lucas and Mr. Jackson and how it developed into a bit of a cult over the years. Other topics broached are Herrmann's amazing score, where the miniature sequences were added at Shepperton Studios in Surrey and other production details. Peter Jackson and visuals effects artists William Randall Cook impress with how many details of the film that they are aware of especially as Jackson was only 2-years old upon it's release. Seeing the original Skeleton Fight Storyboards was pretty cool and we also get video pieces found on other Harryhausen works transferred tom digital including the 25-minute The Harryhausen Legacy, the hour-long The Harryhausen Chronicles narrated by Leonard Nimoy and, also found on the original Jason DVD - John Landis interviews Harryhausen for about a dozen minutes.

The Sony Blu-ray has a strong recommendation. It has great value especially for the price offered. I'm obviously biased about the film and it's impact it had on me as a child growing up but I consider Jason and the Argonauts an absolute MUST-OWN- but I expect many surfing to the comparison might already feel that way.

Gary W. Tooze