Review added January 13, 2005.
Speed
:: DVD Review |
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Studio:
20th Century Fox |
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>> Review
Equipment |
Video:
2.35:1 (Enhanced for 16:9) |
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Length:
111
Minutes |
Audio:
Dolby Digital 5.1 (384kbps) En |
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Subtitles: En/Por/Heb/Cz/Ice/Sv/No |
Video Format:
PAL |
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Fin/Dan/Pol/Hu |
Layer Change:
76:17 |
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Disc Format:
RSDL
DVD-9 |
Average Bit-Rate (A+V):
X.XXMbps |
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Disc Capacity Utilised:
X.XXGB |
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Region Coding:
4 |
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:: The Film
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>> Skip to
Audio/Video Details
Speed is an unusual film, being
one of the few action films I can think of that received
almost unanimously positive reviews from both viewers and
critics. I have to admit I felt physically exhausted by the
time Speed's end credits started to roll; to say the
film's action was intense would be an understatement. Jan de Bont, Speed's director, certainly knows
how to put the viewer in the heart of the action, something
he confirmed with the action-packed but plot-shy blockbuster
Twister.
Keanu Reeves stars as Jack Draven,
an officer with the LAPD and SWAT team member specialising
in bomb disposal. Draven and his partner (played by Jeff
Daniels) open the film with a dramatic rescue from a
booby-trapped elevator. The man responsible for the rigged
elevator is one Howard Payne (played by Dennis Hopper
repeating his tried-and-true psychopath role).
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As it turns out, Payne is a former bomb-squad member forced
to retire after losing a thumb defusing a bomb. Fobbed off
with a cheap imitation gold watch, Payne feels the city owes
him much more and plans to extort the city using
the skills he acquired on the job. Understandably, he isn't
exactly happy with Draven's elevator intervention, forcing
him to move to 'Plan B': a bomb on a bus set to detonate
should the vehicle slow below 50MPH.
Keanu Reeves has never been my idea of an
action hero, but he's perfectly acceptable in his role here,
while Dennis Hopper chews at the scenery admirably. As a
side note, this is also the film that introduced the world
to Sandra Bullock, after failing to make a splash in
'Demolition Man'. If you haven't seen Speed yet, I can
heartily recommend it. It's one hell of a ride!
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::
Video
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20th Century Fox have brought us another fine disc. This
anamorphically-enhanced 2.35:1 transfer is very nice
indeed, with a sharp picture and deeply saturated colours.
Colours on the THX-certified LaserDisc of Speed were
notoriously oversaturated, but the DVD seems to have
rectified this problem, with colours often approaching but
never actually reaching the point of oversaturation. Skin
tones are well rendered, and aliasing is kept to a
minimum, appearing mainly in the first 20 minutes.
I didn't detect any use of edge enhancement
or any digital compression artefacts, and the transfer was
admirably free from film artefacts (apart from a few
speckles, and some inexplicable flaws around the 103
minute mark, in which the top of some frames seem
damaged). While this transfer isn't quite as sharp as the
best I've seen, I have a feeling that this is more a
matter of filming style than a problem with the transfer.
Unfortunately, things were not all positive;
a few scenes looked a little soft, and grain occasionally
made its presence known. Fine detail was also lost in some
darker scenes, and I felt the transfer's contrast was
sometimes a little high. However, none of these flaws were
significant and the end result is still a very pleasant
image, earning it four stars.
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:: Audio
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Speed's Dolby Digital 5.0 soundtrack is impressive, putting
many newer films to shame. Although encoded on the disc as a
5.1-channel soundtrack, there is no information recorded in
the LFE channel. This omission of LFE information is
deliberate, much like Waterworld and Tarzan, and not a
mastering flaw.
Despite the lack of an LFE channel,
there is no shortage of bass, with both front channels
containing deep bass to well below 30Hz. Only occasionally is
the LFE channel's 10dB of additional headroom missed, most
notably toward the end of the film during a spectacular scene
involving a parked plane. The surround channels are used
effectively throughout, containing numerous dramatic discrete
split-surround effects, and fully immersing the listener.
Dialogue remains clear and distinct at all times. This is a
very nice soundtrack, with impressive dynamic range and
overall fidelity, earning it four and a half stars.
Recommended.
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