Soundtrack Central The best classic game music and more

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Angela Feb 28, 2010 (edited Feb 28, 2010)

Boco wrote:

You can check out my stash here:

Welcome to the community!  I recently went ahead and updated my own "Ordered" profile listing.  The month of March is packed to the gills with awesome new releases.

Speaking of Speed Racer, I had the privilege of watching it again on a 65" Viera, the largest home television screen I myself had ever bore witness to -- and it is glorious.  The video transfer holds up incredibly well, even under the scrutiny of a hugely blown up image.

Boco Mar 25, 2010

Well... I seem to have slipped into "collector" mode. My Blu-ray collection has spiraled out of control! ^.^; I am starting to warm up to the format though. I had a little trouble with my setup, but after a few firmware updates and some playing around with settings, things look and sound pretty fantastic. I'm up to about 40 movies on Blu-ray (many are films / series that I upgraded from DVD to Blu-ray) and there's still 20 titles that I really want to pick up. I love movies. big_smile

And with that said, I just finished watching Evangelion 1.11 You Are (Not) Alone on Blu-ray. It was everything that I hoped for. Obviously, the story was fast paced and abridged (compared to the TV series), but the essential elements were all there and it flowed pretty well. And I don't say that lightly. I've seen the entire TV series almost half a dozen times and I thought for sure that the film's pacing would be off or that it would feel shallow. While I do miss the more leisurely pace of the series, the film offers an alternate take that's exciting, fresh and remarkably true to the original.

Love or hate the story, there's really nothing bad that can be said about the animation. It's some of the best I've seen ever. Anywhere. The only films that match or exceed it are the recent films by Studio Ghibli. Everything in this film has been redone from scratch based on the original storyboards and key animation. The hand-drawn sections are lovely and detailed; the CGI is high quality and well integrated. There were a couple of CGI effects that stood out, but they were the exception and didn't detract from the overall experience. I was especially enamored with the fine detail of the backgrounds, the new character designs, and the universally fluid movement throughout the film. Color is also used to great affect and looks incredibly sharp and saturated on Blu-ray.

The direction is superb as well (just as it was in the TV series). Clichéd shots are avoided and many scenes feature challenging angles and dynamic cuts. I was a huge fan of Anno's work on the TV series as well as its direction and visual presentation in general. I was very glad to see the same quality and approach present here. There are several key scenes in the film that really jump out at you and stay in your mind: the opening confrontation with the 4th angel, Tokyo-3 growing at sunset, converting the city to combat mode, and the final battle with the 6th angel. The final battle in particular has some shots that are just really cool. One in particular really impressed me with its clever use of CGI and contrasting art styles.

I was treated to TrueHD 6.1 for both the English and Japanese tracks and they sound great. Voices and effects were well mixed and made pretty solid use of all the speakers. I could even understand all the English dialog with cranking the volume to deafening levels. Truly a rare treat for modern films. My only complaint (and a minor one) was that the music seems to be mixed a little on the quiet side. This could be my fault as I'm a big fan of Sagisu's score and really wanted to hear it booming from the speakers during the more dramatic moments. It was audible, just not as prominent as I hoped.

Anyway, I was impressed! Fans of Evangelion or even just animation in general should really check this out. Not only is it a good film, but it's probably the best animated feature on Blu-ray at the moment (the only other one that comes to mind is Ponyo). It simply looks and sounds amazing!

Angela Mar 25, 2010 (edited Mar 25, 2010)

Boco wrote:

I'm up to about 40 movies on Blu-ray (many are films / series that I upgraded from DVD to Blu-ray) and there's still 20 titles that I really want to pick up. I love movies.

Wow, impressive turnaround!  Yeah, with Cloudy Meatballs, The Hurt Locker and 2010's March releases, I've got my own total bumped up to 28 - definitely the singularly biggest growth spurt my collection has seen in such a short period of time.

As said, this has been a terrific month for animation enthusiasts.  The Princess And The Frog and Ponyo, though culturally distinct from one another, share at least one thing in common: they look and sound fantastic on BR.  And speaking of, the same goes for Fantastic Mr. Fox, a film I've grown a real affinity toward, strange looking old-school 12 frames per second stop-motion style and all.  (Blu-ray.com's got their review up now, by the by.)

But it's the two Toy Story releases that really impress.  The visual differences between BR and every previous DVD release of the films is staggering; no easy feat, since, again, even DVD presentations of CG-developed movies usually manage to look good.  But, well, just look at these still comparison shots featured at DVD Beaver:

http://www.dvdbeaver.com/film/DVDReview … review.htm
http://www.dvdbeaver.com/film/DVDReview … review.htm

Boco, I see you've got The Prestige on your Wish List, a film I've definitely been meaning to check out myself. (Chris Nolan, Bale, Jackman, and literal magic?  Color me intrigued.)

Boco Mar 25, 2010

Yeah, I honestly wasn't planning on buying so many Blu-rays right off the bat. I don't regret it though! I got some good deals (including Disney's upgrade2blu) and movies are something that I semi-collect along with music. I just need to remember to leave some money for food and stuff. XD

I had forgotten about The Princess and the Frog. That one was really lovely too (although I haven't picked up the Blu-ray yet). It's actually neat to compare all three films (Ponyo, Evangelion, Princess and the Frog) as the production standards are all very high, but they also have very distinctive styles and goals.

As for The Prestige, it's a must have in my opinion. I saw it in the theater and was very impressed. In this case I'm looking to upgrade my DVD as not only is it a good film, but it has some lovely video and sound work as well. I suspect it looks pretty good on Blu-ray. If you get a chance to pick it up, then go for it! I think you'd enjoy it and it comes highly recommended. :3

Idolores Jun 1, 2010

Boco, I agree with you wholly on Eva 1.0. I just watched 2.0, and while I definitely prefer the TV series, the recent Rebuilds are really good. I really wonder what they're going to do for Eva 3.0, which is due this summer, apparently.

Boco Jun 1, 2010

Idolores wrote:

Boco, I agree with you wholly on Eva 1.0. I just watched 2.0, and while I definitely prefer the TV series, the recent Rebuilds are really good. I really wonder what they're going to do for Eva 3.0, which is due this summer, apparently.

Cool! Glad you enjoyed it too. I haven't seen 2.0 yet, but I'm really looking forward to it. The first film followed the TV series pretty closely so I'm guessing things start to diverge in 2.0. I'm so tired of waiting that I'm thinking of just importing the Blu-ray from Japan. I won't be able to understand it, but at least I'll be able to watch it. XD

As for 3.0, I haven't heard anything about it for quite a while. The lack of news makes me wonder if it's been delayed. sad There hasn't even been any advertisements, singles, or soundtrack announcements.

Idolores Jun 1, 2010

Boco wrote:

I'm so tired of waiting that I'm thinking of just importing the Blu-ray from Japan. I won't be able to understand it, but at least I'll be able to watch it. XD

I don't know if you were watching this show when it was being commercially released in America on VHS, but let me tell you, the months-long waits in between VHS volumes (humorously termed "Genesises") was hellish! The two year gap bewteen Rebuild 1 and 2 was similarly taxing.

If I were you, I'd just download the Blu-ray rip so you can watch it, and then buy it and add it to your collection once it sees release over here.

Can't wait for the TV series to be released on Blu-Ray, even though it'll be, like, my fourth time buying the f---ing series.

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