Baraka
(1992/MPI Blu-ray)
Picture:
A Sound: B+ Extras: B- Film: A-
Ron
Fricke’s 70mm masterwork Baraka
(1992) gains more and more fans, the more people who see it and now, it is one
of the early independent productions released on Blu-ray and it is easily one
of the most impressive releases in home video history in this great high
definition release of the film. We first
looked at the film on DVD in its first anamorphically enhanced release as
replacement for an older letterboxed-only edition, which you can read more
about at this link:
http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/534/Baraka+(Anamorphic+DVD-Video+Sp
However,
this is not the first impressive Fricke film to hit Blu-ray, as his shorter,
earlier, also impressive Chronos arrived
on Blu-ray earlier in the format’s launch and remains a great Blu-ray release,
which you can read more about here:
http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/5400/Chronos+(1985/IMAX/Blu-ray)
Before
things became so darker in the world, Baraka
took a hard look at it in a way Godfrey Reggio’s Koyaanisqatsi (1983) and its two sequels simply could not, shot in
24 countries and looking deeply into how technology and civilization’s speak in
wreckless ways slowly but surely wears away at a world that is much more
fragile than certain interests might want to admit. Sixteen years later, its ideas, images and
points are truer than ever, have only increased as a vital record of world life
and in a vivid format like Todd-AO 70mm a masterwork like no other. With no dialogue, it uses images to speak
about many things and instead of the random, badly edited images we get all the
time, adds up to the profound and priceless.
That is
why expectations were high for the film when it was announced it would be
coming to Blu-ray. One of the most
effective large-frame format films ever made, its potential to be incredible
with the kind of playback its visuals offered and the audio was always unique
in its great music score by Michael Stearns (who also edits, designs and
masters the sound) combine to create the kind of pure cinema we do not see as
much as we should and that has been to the detriment of us all.
As it
turns out, the 1080p VC-1 @ 35 MBPS 2.20 X 1 digital High Definition transfer
more than lives up to expectations and as the first-ever 8K (8,000-lines of
progressive scan digital High Definition mastering) in home video history, the
results are one of the three most stunning transfers we have ever seen. Except for minor motion blur and slight
detail issues in small spots, it is not just like watching HD in the home at
its best, but like watching a film print that is often like looking out the
window at the world at large. Color is
remarkable, depth is amazing and you will get amazing shots here that on the
best systems, will reproduce light and image in a way no other title ever
released in any format ever has, no joke.
It is no
surprise to us that it has one thing in common with the only other titles we
ever covered to rate as high visually:
all are shot in 65mm negative.
Fricke did his own cinematography with Todd-AO 70mm and there are so
many demonstration-quality shots that you cannot stop watching. The other films that are as stunning are
these two 70mm classics, with their review links included:
2001: A Space Odyssey Blu-ray + HD-DVD
http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/6684/Stanley+Kubrick+Warner+HD-DVD
Grand Prix HD-DVD (soon to be issued in
Blu-ray)
http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/4394/Grand+Prix+(1966/HD-DVD)
Of
course, those films are 24 and 26 years older respectively, but large frame
formats are always more stunning than regular 35mm shoots for the most part and
over and over, it seems they work particularly well with Blu-ray. There are shots her even the Blu-ray of The Dark Knight will have problems
competing with. Baraka is a film to own this way just on a visual level, but DTS HD
Master Audio lossless 96/24 5.1 soundmix is also very impressive for its age,
aging well with fine articulation throughout.
The only things holding it back are some compression in patches and a
slight sonic ceiling in other parts, but it is one of the best DTS lossless
mixes on the market just the same. Extras
include a look into the restoration of the film and making of featurette Baraka
– A Closer Look.
All that
easily makes this one of the best Blu-ray releases for 2008 and one of the best
films in the format to date, a title it will retain for many years to
come. The Blu-ray is getting raves from
everyone who covers it and for a change, it lives up to all the hype. Any serious film, home theater and Blu-ray
fan needs to consider this a must-own disc and no serious collection should be
without it.
Fricke
and the team who made Baraka and Chronos are working on another film for
2009 and we expect it to be one of the year’s biggest events. Samsara
is the follow-up to Baraka and will
also be shot in 65mm negative for 70mm presentation as large frame formats make
a slow comeback and the reputation of Baraka
gets stronger and stronger.
With Baraka, MPI sets a new high standard
for Blu-ray hi-def the majors are going to find a challenge to follow and
match. Don’t miss it!
- Nicholas Sheffo
