Tutankhamun & The Golden Age Of The Pharaohs + Secret’s
Of Egypt’s Lost Queen (DVDs)
Picture:
C+ Sound: C/C+ Extras: C+/D Main Programs: B-
Ancient
Egypt is a hot topic for documentarians, art lovers and history buffs, so many
programs are produced. Recently, two TV
programs from National Geographic and The Discovery Channel (via Image
Entertainment here) have been issued on DVD:
Tutankhamun & The Golden Age
Of The Pharaohs and Secret’s Of
Egypt’s Lost Queen. One is about the
discovery and latest presentation of the great treasures of the once lost king,
while the other covers the legacy of a Queen who was abducted, lost and even
literally erased from the historical record.
The first
program is the latest chapter in how important the treasures found and have
been admired for decades now. In the
first tour since 1976, the treasures and experts who know (and love) them best
are in action for all to see and this program is very thorough in showing the new
generation of display and interest resulting.
The second is about Queen Hatshepsut who was more powerful than even
Cleopatra and what really happened to her and her place in
history. It is as exciting as the first
disc and together, they make a fun crash course on Egypt of the past.
Both have
an 1.78 X 1 aspect ratio, but Queen
is anamorphic, though both are soft in their own ways that hold back how good
they should look, making this critic want to see them both in HD soon. Both also have Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo, but Tutankhamun sounds far more compressed
for some reason, though it at least has some extras, which include behind the
scenes of the exhibition, a gallery walk through and a piece on the discovery
of the treasures in 1922.
- Nicholas Sheffo
