Sam, thanks for the review. After reading all of the posts slamming this release and getting a chance to view this title this weekend, I can only surmise that the people slamming 'The Meaning of Life' had not actually watched it. I found this release to be a very fine upgrade from my SD edition, and while certainly not eye-popping (I am not sure why some think that eye candy visuals is what make a good HD release), still does alot with the source material.
I agree with you on the AQ also, not much to get overy excited about, but very good for this film. I am not certain how the sound could be made much better.
I didn't really have any qualms about the AQ. However, I had an odd situation occur while watching this disc. My Toshiba HD-XA2 was recently upgrade to firmware 2.0, and during the second to last chapter "Christmas in Heaven" there was a high pitch squeal coming from my speakers. I stopped the movie, but the squeal continued. I switched inputs on my receiver, and it stopped until I went back to the input with the HD-XA2. Eventually, I turned off the unit, which ended the noise. Fortunately, once I rebooted the machine I was able to finish the film without the incident occurring again.
I haven't watched any HD DVDs since to see if the problem reoccurs, but it definitely appeared like the player was sending undecoded bitstream all of a sudden. I wondered, but doubt seriously, if it was a problem with the disc, so I thought I'd ask here if anyone's run into that?
I actually cancelled my pre-order based on all the hanky reviews. This was a borderline title for me, had this been Holy Grail or Life of Brian I'd have picked it up anyway.
I was mildly disappointed in this title. I wasn't expecting miracles but I feel the print needs some restoration work. Sure it looks better than the DVD's but it's no quantum leap. 4 is an awfully high score for the video IMO. I'd score it more like 3.
Thomas, this seems to happen quite a bit. People slamming Universal & HD DVD without checking these statements firsthand. It's the, "a friend of my sisters' friend's Dad read something about this being a bad transfer online from someone who also heard it wasn't a good disc." .
Isn't that the truth. I have not been able to spot most of the problems so many are so quick to point out. While I do not have prefect sight, I am beginning to believe most of the problems bitched about are just rehashes of something they read, not what they actually viewed first hand.
While not perfect equipment, I think my Panny PTAE-1000U projector and a 106" screen certainly produce a pretty good image, and at that size, I should be seeing many of these problems, but I don't. Maybe it is because am I too envolved watching the movie rather than finding ways to pick it apart.
A lot of this stuff is VERY subjective and VERY gear variable. I totally get where Rachael is coming from, but I made a judgement call and I stand by it. Again I dont seek out others reviews on films I intend to score but I did see a lot of negativity about this transfer and it really didnt bear out to that extreme for me. I do agree that people need to relax a little bit and enjoy the films, but on the other hand if stuff is distracting its very hard to talk yourself out of it and let it go.
Couldn't agree more with you, Sam. Just keep up the good work with your reviews. You guys (all of the HT reviewers) help me out when I am undecided about a release. Your reviews can push m one way or the other.