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Review added January 13, 2005.
Pitch Black
:: DVD Review |
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Studio:
Universal/Columbia TriStar |
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>> Review
Equipment |
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Video:
2.35:1 (Enhanced for 16:9) |
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Length:
104
Minutes |
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Audio:
Dolby Digital 5.1 (384kbps) Eng/De |
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Subtitles: Eng/De/Du |
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Video Format:
PAL |
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Disc Format:
RSDL DVD-9 |
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Layer Change:
56:38 |
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Disc Capacity Utilised:
X.XGB |
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Average Bit-Rate (A+V):
X.XMbps |
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Region Coding:
2/4 |
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:: The Film
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>> Skip to
Audio/Video Details
Pitch Black is a conventional
science fiction film, with a relatively small budget and a
cast of largely unknown actors, but was produced with enough
visual and directorial flair to make it one of the better
science fiction films of the past few years. The film's
premise is as straightforward as they come, which is no bad
thing.
Damaged by a meteor shower, an
interplanetary transport vessel crash lands on a desolate
desert planet baked by three suns. The survivors of the crash (pulled
straight out of Science Fiction Stereotypes 101) must learn
to adapt to the harsh environment of their inhospitable new
home, while looking for a way off the sun bleached planet.
After losing one of their number in a particularly grisly
fashion, the group realise that they are not the only
inhabitants of the planet which, as it turns out, is also
home to a species of vicious underground creatures with a
particular aversion to sunlight.
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Although the planet is normally bathed in
year round sunlight, unluckily for the crash survivors a
regular solar eclipse is fast approaching, threatening to
plunge the planet into darkness and allow the creatures to
freely roam the planet. The survivors must race to repair an
abandoned spacecraft left by a previous group unfortunate
enough to have encountered the creatures, but the clock is
ticking. Pitch Black doesn't offer anything particularly
original, but presents a familiar story (people versus the
monsters) in a slick and entertaining package.
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Video
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This 2.35:1 transfer is very good, as is to be expected
for such a recent film. The print used for this DVD's
video transfer was very clean, with only minor blemishes
and flecks to be seen. Colours are faithfully rendered,
reproducing the film's bleached blue and yellow exterior
desert sequences and deeply saturated interiors admirably.
The majority of this transfer is extremely sharp, although
there are a handful of slightly soft shots scattered
throughout, and the film's high contrast filming
techniques tend to result in a noticeable loss of fine
detail.
Minor edge enhancement raises its ugly head
during a handful of exterior shots, which is slightly
disappointing (its use apparently an attempt to compensate
for the loss of fine detail). Blacks are nicely portrayed,
deep and solid with no obvious blocking or digital noise,
and shadow detail is very good. Darker scenes tended to
highlight the ever present low-level film grain, which
appears to be a consequence of the film stock and
processing techniques chosen rather than the transfer
itself. This is a fine transfer of a visually stunning
film. Four and a half stars.
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| :: Audio
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Presented theatrically in Dolby Digital Surround EX, this
soundtrack adds to the small but growing number of Dolby
Digital 5.1 soundtracks on DVD to be encoded with a matrixed
centre-surround channel. For those equipped with conventional
5.1-channel audio systems, this soundtrack still offers an
excellent sonic presentation.
Dialogue is always clear and
legible, if occasionally metallic sounding. The film's overall
soundstage is front-hemisphere oriented, but occasionally
fully enveloping, with all channels utilised and numerous
directional cues emanating from both the front and rear
hemispheres. Bass content is substantial in the main front and
surround channels, extending to below 30Hz. The LFE channel is
used infrequently, but contains impressive bass content when
active. As the LFE channel isn't used to support the film's
score, its appearance is particularly dramatic.
The surround channels are often
silent, but extremely active when utilised, containing
full-range and full volume audio pans, directional cues and
ambient effects. Despite their aggressive use, the surround
channels blend particularly well with the front channels to
create a convincing three-dimensional acoustic environment.
This soundtrack should leave you in no doubt that all of your
speakers are functioning. Four and a half stars.
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