|
|
|
Wadjda (Blu-ray)
[Blu-ray]
Blu-ray B - United Kingdom - Soda Pictures Review written by and copyright: Samuel Scott (31st January 2014). |
|
The Film
 ***This is an A/V and extras review only. For reviews on the movie from various critics, we recommend visiting HERE.*** Wadjda is a 10-year-old girl living in a suburb of Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia. Although she lives in a conservative world, Wadjda is fun loving, entrepreneurial and always pushing the boundaries of what she can get away with. Wadjda sees a beautiful green bicycle for sale that she wants desperately so she can race her friend, Abdullah. But Wadjda’s mother won’t allow it, fearing repercussions from a society that sees bicycles as dangerous to a girl’s virtue. So Wadjda decides to try and raise the money herself. At first, Wadjda’s mother is too preoccupied with convincing her husband not to take a second wife to realize what’s going on. And soon enough Wadjda’s plans are thwarted when she is caught running various schemes at school. Just as she is losing hope of raising enough money, she hears of a cash prize for a Koran recitation competition at her school. She devotes herself to the memorisation and recitation of Koranic verses, and her teachers begin to see Wadjda as a model pious girl. The competition isn‘t going to be easy, especially for a troublemaker like Wadjda, but she refuses to give in. She is determined to continue fighting for her dreams...
Video
Independent British distributor have forgone their often annoying stance of releasing on DVD only, and decided to treat the United Kingdom locality to a Blu-ray of "Wadjda" at an aspect ratio of 1.78:1. The transfer is 1080p and uses an AVC MPEG-4 codec. To put it bluntly, it's stunning. The first thing that strikes the viewer with this transfer, is just how incredibly detailed it is. Dust and sand look fantastic, and background items look exceptional with regards to sandy and dusty remains due to the local environments, especially the taxi at the start, and the rear bus window at the end of the feature. The sandy colours also look superb, with the different shades looking natural. Skin tones look perfect, whether we are inside or outside, and blacks are deep without any sign of crush. So, if the transfer is so good, then why not an A+ you ask? Well, unfortunately, there was some very minor aliasing, and although this was barely noticeable 99.5% of the time, the scene in which the teacher informs the student of the Koran reading competition and the increased value of first prize, shows some obvious aliasing around the teachers clothing. There are no signs of damage to the print at all - I didn't notice a single blemish - but I did see one instance of compression artefacts, though nothing to worry about. All in all, this is a shade away from reference quality. An excellent transfer. The feature runs 96:54.
Audio
There are two audio tracks available here: - Arabic DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 - Arabic LPCM 2.0 Stereo For my viewing, I opted for the Arabic DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track, which is subtle, but technically great. Wadjda is very much a dialogue orientated feature, and all dialogue is perfectly clear with crystal clarity. The score makes good use of the surrounds, especially during the scenes which are clear of dialogue and shows Wadjda's intense focus on reaching her ultimate goal of buying a bicycle. Surrounds are also used well for subtle environmental effects such as footsteps and light chatter, but the more robust effects of vehicles are also well produced. Channel separation and directionality is very good, and there are no signs of any sort of damage to the track such as scratches or dropouts. I also noticed no background hiss. Subtitles are available in English and English HoH, and are optional.
Extras
We start off the extras with a "Making of Wadjda" documentary which runs 33:24 and is 1080p. What can I say? This is an excellent documentary that covers the majority of aspects involved, including making a film in a country with a lot of customs and traditions using an international crew. The documentary is largely made up of cast and crew interviews, but they delve into the technical side of things in enough depth to keep the filmmaker crowd happy, whilst keeping it simple enough for mere peons like myself. There is also some interesting behind-the-scenes footage. The documentary is in a mix of both English and Arabic, with Arabic dialogue including optional English subtitles. The second of the main extras is a short film entitled "Women Without Shadows" which runs 41:44 and is in standard definition. Directed by Haifaa Al-Mansour, it is an interesting look at various perceptions of the role of Saudi Arabian women in today's society. Al-Mansour has done well to make sure that she asks the opinions of people on both sides of the fence, and is respectful of all the interviewees. Unfortunately, it doesn't really have any sort of conclusion, or the greatest of structure, but it is certainly worthy viewing. The quality of the short is poor, but watchable. The rest of the extras are self-explanatory. Start-up Trailers (SD): - "Monsieur Lazhar" (2:09) - "Renoir" (1:55) - "Museum Hours" (2:07) Theatrical Trailer (1:52, 1080p)
Overall
"Wadjda" is the first ever feature film shot entirely in Saudi Arabia, and was their first entry into the Oscars. Soda Pictures Blu-ray is of excellent quality, and is their best Blu-ray release to date!
|
|||||
|