|
|
|
Black
[Blu-ray]
Blu-ray B - United Kingdom - Anchor Bay Entertainment Review written by and copyright: Samuel Scott (19th September 2014). |
|
The Film
 ***This is a technical review only. For reviews on the movie from various critics, we recommend visiting HERE.*** From the producers of A Prophet. When his Parisian armoured car hold-up goes horribly awry, our protagonist “Black” needs to go on the lam. News from his cousin in Senegal about a stash of uncut diamonds in a poorly guarded bank in Dakar hatches the plan to go on a “working vacation” that involves a little sightseeing and a lot of mayhem. Genre fans know underground French MC Jean Gab'1 as a villain in District B-13, but with “Black”, he takes center stage and delivers a nouveau-blacksploitation adventure awash in, black magic, African mysticism, mutant arms dealers, gargantuan machete-wielding mercenary armies and a truckload of knuckle-sandwiches. It's an easy opportunity... or is it?
Video
Anchor Bay Entertainment have released French crime action-thriller "Black" on to Blu-ray, using the original aspect ratio of 2.35:1. The transfer is 1080p, and uses an AVC MPEG-4 encode. It's a good transfer, but not great. The most noticeable issue with the transfer here, is the moderate level of edge enhancement which litters the screen for long periods of time. It's mainly made obvious in scenes without too much action, where items are more stationary, but can also be spotted during high-octane scenes. There are also some light artefacts at various points, though these are barely noticeable. Other than this, there aren't too many problems here. Details are good, with long shots showing background items with reasonable clarity, and close-ups show goosebumps and blemishes on the cast members' skin. Colours are strong, especially blacks which remain deep for the majority, and rarely crush. Released on 35mm, there is a fine layer of natural film grain, and no obvious signs of over-zealous digital noise reduction. There are also no major issues with scratches or banding, and I noticed no compression problems. This is a decent enough presentation, but one that could be improved upon. The feature is uncut, and runs 110:35.
Audio
Note: Initial pressings featured a stereo track only. As far as we are aware, there is no easy way to tell the difference between first pressings and later pressings as both share the same cover art and EAN. This review is of a later pressing which includes a 5.1 option. There are two audio options available here: - French DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 - French LPCM 2.0 Stereo For my viewing, I opted for the French DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track, and it was standard fare for the genre and budget, with no noteworthy problems. There is a lot of punchy action through both the surrounds and LFE during the hijacking scenes and when guns are fired, with more subtle effects being slightly sidelined, but still noticeable. The score is rather formulaic, and makes itself known during the relevant moments. Dialogue is clear at all times, with no issues such as mumbling, showing a reasonable level of directionality and channel separation, even if focused towards the front. The track is problem free, with no drop outs or scratches, and no signs of background hiss. Technically efficient, but nothing new. Optional English subtitles have been included.
Extras
Just a short trailer (0:21).
Overall
|
|||||
|