kal
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Location: Ottawa, Canada
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| Posted: Wed Sep 19, 2012 2:25 am Post subject: Quadrophenia (The Criterion Collection) [Blu-ray] |
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Another reference disc!
Quadrophenia (The Criterion Collection) [Blu-ray] (1979)
(Hover over link for price, click to purchase and support our forum at no extra cost to you)
| Quote: | Of course, it's highly recommended for Who fans because of the new audio, but I'd even recommend this to others who aren't into the band or rock 'n' roll. The film does a very good job capturing a moment in time while telling a universal story that isn't limited to teenagers, as anyone let down by people and institutions around them can identify with it. I wish Townshend or Daltrey could have participated in new features, but that's my only gripe.
If there's anything you take away from the review, make sure it's "play it loud."
The Video: Sizing Up the Picture
The video has been given a 1080p/AVC-MPEG-4 encoded transfer displayed at 1.85:1. The liner notes reveal, "This new digital transfer was created in 2K resolution on a Spirit 4K film scanner from a 35mm interpositive. It was then color graded on a Baselight 8 digital grading system, under the supervision of director of photography Brian Tufano. Thousands of instances of dirt, debris, scratches, splices, warps, jitter, and flicker were manually removed using MTI's DRS and Pixel Farm's PFClean, while Image Systems' Phoenix was used for small dirt, grain, and noise reduction."
The colors look good, with reds like Dave's sweater standing out among his fellow Mods who are usually in a drab green jacket. Whites are clean and solid as seen in the Dover cliffs. Blacks aren't as strong, some times getting swallowed up into each other. There's strong shadow delineation, as seen by how well the spectators in the first music club can be seen in the back of the room.
There's a good amount of grain that increases when the light decreases. Details are solid, from the sharp lines seen in the patterns in the suits of a few Mods to architectural textures like the walls of Jimmy's parents' apartment. When Roddam and cinematographer Brian Tufano chose lens to deliver wide depth of field, it comes across in the sharp focus seen in the image.
The Audio: Rating the Sound
The audio is available in English LPCM 2.0 and DTS-HD Master Audio. The extensive liner notes reveal, "The film was originally released with a 2.0 stereo soundtrack, which is presented as the default track on this disc. It was restored and remastered at 24-bit from the 1979 Dolby magnetic master. Artifacts such as dropouts, azimuth errors, hums, and thumps were manually mitigated using the Pro Tools HD platform. "Pete Townsend originally envisioned the 1973 album Quadrophenia as a quadraphonic, or four-channel surround, recording. In 2011, Townsend and the Who's sound engineer, Bob Pridden, went back to the record's original source tapes to create a deluxe, remastered box set of the album, entitled Quadrophenia: The Director's Cut, for which they also created new 5.1 surround versions of certain songs. Knowing that this work had been done, Criterion contacted the band and asked them to work with us on making 5.1 versions of the Who songs in the movie. "For this release of 'Quadrophenia', we created an all-new, remixed 5.1 surround soundtrack, produced at 24-bit using a variety of sound elements from the original album and the 1979 movie. All the Who music was taken from first-generation sources - 4 track 1/2-inch, 8 track 1-inch, and 16-track and 24-track 2-inch analogue tapes - found in the band's archives. In some cases, the songs were reconstructed from scratch from these original multitrack recordings. The film's dialogue and effects were taken from the original 35mm dialogue/music/effects magnetic audio stems. The availability of these separate dialogue and effects stems enabled us to render a detailed and engaging 5.1 audio image. Under the supervision of the band and the film's editor, Sean Barton, a brand-new mix was created at Deluxe 142, in London, by mixer Alan Sallabank, and approved by director Franc Roddam. The staggering result is an immersive experience, and we suggest you play it loud."
I would echo that suggestion because the 5.1 mix sounds amazing, so I am not going to side with the purists this time. The music has outstanding fidelity. The vocals, which are primarily Roger Daltrey's, are clear and don't get buried in the mix. John Entwistle's superb work is on display right from "The Real Me" in the opening credits. Heavy yet nimble bass lines get the subwoofer thumping as does Keith Moon's controlled, chaotic drumming. The warm brassy tone of the horns rings out during "5.15". Townshend's masterful guitar work has rarely sounded better.
When songs are from sources within a scene, like "Be My Baby" playing at Sandra's party, the room tone ambiance softens the clarity and power of the music. Overall ambiance is good. For example, down in Brighton, the large group of kids milling and the chaos that ensues can be heard in the surrounds. The dialogue is clear and quiet moments are free of hiss or defect. The track has an extremely wide dynamic range, from the loudness of The Who rocking to quiet sounds like faint footsteps running across wet pavement. |
Kal
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