Review added January 13, 2005.
Unbreakable
:: DVD Review |
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Studio:
Touchstone Home Video |
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>> Review
Equipment |
Video:
2.35:1 (Enhanced for 16:9) |
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Length:
102
Minutes |
Audio:
Dolby Digital 5.1 (384kbps) En/It |
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Subtitles: En/It |
Video Format:
PAL |
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Disc Format:
RSDL DVD-9 |
Layer Change:
63:17 |
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Disc Capacity Utilised:
X.XXGB |
Average Bit-Rate (A+V):
X.XXMbps |
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Region Coding:
2/4 |
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:: The Film
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Audio/Video Details
Unbreakable, M. Night Shyamalan's
follow-up to the staggeringly successful The Sixth Sense,
could easily be mistaken for the latter at first glance.
Both films share the same director, lead, visual style and
'eerie' atmosphere. Like The Sixth Sense, Unbreakable is a
low-key film that slowly builds to its climax, requiring the
audience's full attention, and providing subtle clues along
the way to the nature of this conclusion.
Unfortunately, Unbreakable's
ending falls flat, lacking the sheer impact of The Sixth
Sense, undermining the effort put into its extended buildup.
David Dunn (Bruce Willis) is the sole survivor of a major
train accident. Not only does he survive the crash, he walks
away without so much as a scratch. Dunn's miraculous
survival attracts the attention of Elijah Price (Samuel L.
Jackson), the owner of a high-end comic book store who
suffers from a rare condition called osteogenesis imperfecta.
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This condition has left Price with
extremely low bone density, making him unusually susceptible
to injury. Price suggests to Dunn that, just as he is
unusually fragile, Dunn may be unusually resistant to injury
(hence the film's title). Dunn is sceptical at first, but as
he looks closer into his own past he becomes less sure what
to believe, while Price's motivation and ultimate goal
remain shrouded in mystery. Thanks to Shyamalan's meticulous
directorial style, an intriguing premise and excellent
performances from the entire cast, Unbreakable is an
entertaining and puzzling journey, but its lack of a truly
satisfying ending leaves a somewhat bitter aftertaste.
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::
Video
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Unbreakable has been given a great 2.35:1 anamorphically-enhanced
transfer. The source print used is very clean, with only
the occasional speck or nick visible. Grain is never a
problem and colours and skin-tones are very natural and
accurate to the film's theatrical presentation. Contrast
levels are also faithful to the film's theatrical
presentation, being somewhat high with a fairly dark
overall picture. The transfer is nicely detailed, with
only a few mildly soft scenes, which appear to be a
directorial choice and not a transfer flaw.
Shadow detail is good, as is the transfer's
black level, although this did waver on the gray side of
black during several scenes. Edge enhancement can be seen
on and off throughout, and mild pixellation is visible in
a few scenes, but there are no obvious compression
artefacts. Aliasing isn't a major problem here, being mild
when present, which isn't often; fine detail did suffer
from occasional shimmer, however.
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:: Audio
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This disc has been endowed with an absolutely fantastic Dolby
Digital 5.1 soundtrack. The film was released theatrically in
Dolby Digital Surround EX, and this centre-surround
information is quite dramatic, especially during the film's
opening scenes, and a dramatic underwater sequence. The
surround channels are very active, reproducing a wide range of
directional, ambient and musical effects, ranging from the
dramatic to the subdued.
The rear soundstage is wide and
detailed, with effects placed with pinpoint accuracy behind
the listener, and used to create some stunningly authentic
acoustic environments. Much of the film is very quiet, and the
front soundstage contains some impressively subtle effects,
from birds chirping and ticking clocks to the barely
perceptible sound of Dunn breathing. This is some seriously
impressive stuff. The front channels are equally impressive
during more dramatic sequences such as Dunn's premonitions,
train station visit and subsequent encounter with a
home-invader. During these scenes the soundtrack's dynamic
range can be quite startling.
Both audio effects and the film's
score are very cleanly recorded, with little in the way of
distortion, and clean easily intelligible dialogue throughout.
Bass in the main channels is deep and controlled, and the LFE
channel is used most effectively, containing deep, very loud,
but never overbearing bass.
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