Mr. & Mrs. Smith (2005/Blu-ray)
Picture:
A- Sound: A- Extras: B- Film: C-
This is
the third and likely final time we will review Doug Liman’s Mr. & Mrs. Smith as after two
different fine performers on DVD-Video, Fox has done a great job of presenting
the film in the high definition Blu-ray format.
Even if you are not a fan of the film, and we are not, Fox has issued
the film in fine playback editions every time out. First, the links to our look at the previous
editions:
Regular DVD
http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/3097/Mr.+&+Mrs.+Smith+(2005/Wide
Unrated DVD Set
http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/3773/Mr.+&+Mrs.+Smith+-+Unrated
Of
course, the frenzy for co-stars Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie has gone far and
beyond anything anyone could have imagined at the time of the film’s hit
theatrical release or any of the DVD versions.
As of this posting, they are still together and this will continue to be
a curio for gossip fans. However, the
silly tale of two married spies who don’t know each other’s real names
continues to be a high profile software success for the studio. The success of the Jason Bourne films only
pushes this further.
Despite
some minor issues, including imperfections and datedness in some of the digital
work, the 1080p AVC @ 24 MBPS 2.35 X 1 image seems to come from the same great
master the DVDs did, but is a transfer that was always top rate to begin
with. Both DVDs had regular DTS, but
this more expansive DTS HD MA (Master Audio) lossless 5.1 mix is even better,
even if you cannot decode it all the way.
Sound design is one of the things that made this film a hit and it is a
gem of mixing and sonics. Translation, a
dull film that is technically solid to playback, made additionally better by
featuring D-BOX playback for those lucky enough to have that bass sound
feature.
Since
this is a 50GB Blu-ray, all the extras from the previous DVDs are here and all
of that makes this a model for a hit film on Blu-ray.
- Nicholas Sheffo
