HTF HD DVD REVIEW: Firewall

Herb Kane · 06-03-2006, 06:32 AM

FIREWALL

Studio: Warner Brothers
Format: HD DVD
Year: 2006
Rated: PG-13
Film Length: 105 Minutes
Aspect Ratio: 2.40:1 Enhanced Widescreen
Audio: DD+ / DD 5.1
Color/B&W: Color
Languages: English, French & Spanish
Subtitles: English, French & Spanish
Genre: Crime/Drama/Thriller
MSRP: $39.99
Package: Single disc/HD DVD Keepcase

The Feature:
We’ve seen this many times before. There's nothing particularly original about Richard Loncraine's film, but it maintains a consistent level of tension throughout the film. Firewall incorportates several common elements including the protagonist being forced to commit a bank robbery to save his family.

Jack Stanfield (played by Harrison Ford), who is the head of security for a bank that's about to merge with another. Jack is dedicated but sees things differently than his new boss (played by Robert Patrick). Bill Cox (played by Paul Bettany), a businessman who has a meeting with Jack then abducts him putting the plan in motion. Bill transforms Jack's mansion into a home base for Jack and his kidknapped family; his wife, Beth (played by Virginia Madsen), daughter Sarah (played by Carly Schroeder), and son Andrew (played by Jimmy Bennett). Jack has to trunsfer funds electronically in the amount of $100 million from his bank to an off-shore account. He relies on his close friend (played by Robert Forster) and his loyal secretary, Janet (played by Mary Lynn Rajskub).

The film threatens to go beyond where the average viewer can suspend disbelief. Director Richard Loncraine directs with a steady hand and he creates enough suspense to keep viewers involved. Firewall is flawed, but that didn't prevent this reviewer from enjoying it for what it is, nor will that prevent me from recommending it to those who enjoy a thriller with enough of the right ingredients to provide a couple hours of mindless escapism.

The Feature: 3/5

Video:
As Murphy’s Law would have it, the day after I screened and posted my review for the standard definition disc, the HD DVD showed up at my door. Oh well, if nothing else, a direct comparison for both versions will be that much easier. Similar to my previous experiences with HD DVD, the three biggest factors which seem to shine are: colors, sharpness and dimensionality – and all of those are again, improved upon with the HD version. Presented in it's original aspect ratio of 2.40:1, this transfer, looks excellent. Colors are extremely bright and vivid and the level of saturation is perfect. Blacks were deep while whites were contrasted nicely always showing clean and stark. Image detail is exceptional – facial and fine detail. Similar to the SD, some wider and longer shots aren't quite as sharp.

As was the case with the SD version, film grain was all but non-existent however, there is a gorgeous level of dimensionality and texture present here clearly exceeding the SD version. The film is immaculate and basically free of any dirt or other annoying blemishes - no surprise there considering this was a recent release. Authoring seems to have been handled very well as compression errors were virtually non-existent. Although I noticed a hint of edge enhancement with the SD version, it was even less noticeable here and it never became intrusive or bothersome.

Video: 8/10

Audio:
The disc comes with a DD+ and DD 5.1 audio encoded soundtrack and similar to the SD version, approaches the slightly aggressive side of things. I would also say that while there seems to be a little more heft and punch with these newer HD DVD discs, the audio differences (improvements) have been much more subtle (although I just finished screening The Perfect Storm HD DVD and noticed a significant improvement – look for the HTF Review soon) than the video improvements. Most importantly, dialogue was always bold and intelligible. There is a little bit of heft and punch to the track as we hear automatic gunfire and a rather interesting car explosion. The soundstage is satisfactorily wide.

While the surrounds are limited to only a couple of scenes which add ambiance (like some rain scenes), LFE kicks in occasionally and is a slight improvement over the SD version – on both fronts. The track is clean and free of any hiss or other noisy distractions and the overall fidelity of the track is natural.

You’ll find this disclaimer on my HD DVD reviews for some time to come, but at this stage of the game, it’s far too early to be assigning a numeric score with any level of certainty. So my advice would be to read the text descriptions and take the numeric score with a grain of salt.

Audio: 8/10

Special Features:
Virtually identical to the SD release, the disc is a little light on special features, starting with (presented in 480p standard definition):

Firewall Decoded: A Conversation with Harrison Ford and Richard Loncraine is a short featurette which explains the thought behind the plot outline and the discussions in obtaining the right balance of technology and audience understanding. They also discuss how each approaches their craft. Duration: 15:26 minutes.

Next up is Firewall: Writing A Thriller which is a brief - very brief discussion with Joe Forte on how he approached the writing of this movie and his thought process behind it. Duration: 03:15 minutes.

And finally, the Theatrical Trailer is included and is in perfect shape. Duration: 02:15 minutes.

Special Features: 2.5/5

**Special Features rated for the quality of supplements, not the quantity. Video and Audio portions will be rated from 0-10. The remainder of the review will continue being rated from 0-5 (similar to SD DVD reviews). Since the ratings are not averaged, the final Overall Rating will be from 0-5.**

Final Thoughts:
Although this is an entertaining enough movie, one can't help but feel that it is simply a rehash of the film Swordfish minus Halle Berry as the femme fatale. The movie pretty much follows the same basic plot lines and is highly predictable. If you're looking to kill a couple hours you could do worse but don't expect to be kept on the edge of your seat. The disc is afforded a fine A/V – particularly with the spruced up HD presentation, however, the special features are somewhat lacking.

While this is the second installment of Warner’s hybrid dual-format discs, one still has to question the motivation behind it. Personally, the addition of the standard definition version is most welcome, and would do wonders for those wanting to future proof their purchases with HD in mind – even if it is a dual sided disc. However, the substantial increase in price virtually eliminates any chance of those buying on a whim – even if the purchase is to be considered a practical one. The inclusion of a second disc makes the most sense however, from a business standpoint (and concern), it’s easy to see why the studio wouldn’t be receptive to that idea. If the studio is genuinely interested in this format succeeding (and lasting), perhaps it might be in their best interest to include both versions and forgo the premium for these hybrid discs.

Overall Rating: 3.5/5 (not an average)

Release Date: June 6th, 2006

Ronald Epstein · 06-03-2006, 07:46 AM

Herb,

As I went searching for the cover art to post within this review,
I thought to myself, "What a great idea of releasing a hybrid
dual-format disc." If other studios would simply follow what
Warner Brothers has done here, I think that they would sell a
hell of a lot more of these discs to those of us who aren't
planning to jump on the HD bandwagon this year.

Let's face it -- there are still too many of us who don't plan
to invest in the HD formats anytime soon. Nobody wants to get
burned on these klunky, overpriced first-generation players.
Next year the prices on these players will drop drastically to
the point where you can easily buy hardware for BOTH formats.
We also know from experience that these second generation
players will be more streamlined and far less buggy than these
initial offerings....

...But that doesn't mean we can't buy HD movies right now.

Why can't all studios follow this beautifully implemented plan that
Warner has put forth? Sell us BOTH a standard DVD and Hi-Def
DVD so that we can enjoy one now and not have to double-dip
in a year or two.

Tell you what....

Though I won't be jumping into the HD formats anytime soon,
I certainly will purchase discs from Warner Brothers and any studio
that continues to offer these hybrid dual releases.

BrandonJF · 06-03-2006, 08:47 AM

Quote:

If other studios would simply follow what
Warner Brothers has done here, I think that they would sell a
hell of a lot more of these discs to those of us who aren't
planning to jump on the HD bandwagon this year.

But, you wouldn't be getting this HD version for free. If you want to get a hybrid disc, you'll be paying $10-$22 more for the HD version (depending on where it's purchased). I'm sure Firewall will be on sale at some stores for $14.99-$17.99 on Tuesday. This hybrid will be between $27.99 (Amazon) and $37.99 (Best Buy, based on the current price for Rumor Has It..). If Firewall is $16.99 as listed today, that is a $21 difference for you to pick up the hybrid release at Best Buy.

Personally, I don't quite get why anyone who is waiting would want to start buying discs now since their patience affords them the ability to see how the format war shakes out - last thing you want is to have these hybrid discs and find out that the other format is looking to be the victor.

For early adopters, hybrids simply force us to pay a premium for something I think most of us don't want - the DVD side (one argument I hear is that we can take the disc around and play it in other non-HD locations - I'm having enough trouble watching DVDs after seeing what HD-DVD looks like to willingly watch something I own in HD on DVD. I'll transport the player first) . Plus, WB is being kinda lazy by forcing us to actually flip the disc if we want to check out the supplements (which I thought Firewall continued that tradition... maybe Herb can confirm). Forcing the disc to be flipped to check out the sparse extras on a format where one of the big advantages is the increased disc space is silly.

For people on the fence, comparing the price of the DVD to the HD-DVD may be enough to say "not now".

If WB thinks hybrids are the way to go, great - I just wish they'd either give us the option of buying a version without the DVD side or not charge a premium to get that DVD side.

Sean Bryan · 06-03-2006, 11:15 AM

I agree with Brandon.

The current implementation of hybrids is not friendly to people who are only interested in HD. I am not interested in hybrids. I'm buying Hi Def discs to get movies in Hi Def.

I wouldn't have much of an issue with them, however, if they cost exactly the same as an HD DVD only title. Or if they released a DVD, HD DVD, and a hybrid separately (then there is no issue at all).

As it is, the current use of hybrids for "new releases" is forcing people who bought HD players and are only interested in purchasing the HD version into paying a few dollars more for a standard definition version they don't want. I have a problem with that. I would like to think that HTF would see the problem with that as well.

As a concept, I'm sure that hybrids will appeal to some people and there may be some place for it in the grand scheme in years to come. But the current practice of not giving a choice to those who are only interested in the Hi Def content and don't want to spend an extra $5 for each "new movie" purchase stinks.

I'm glad that this is not going to be done with BD.

I was looking forward to buying V for Vendetta on HD DVD next month. But if it is going to be a hybrid, then I think I'll wait for the BD release.

Tim Glover · 06-03-2006, 11:32 AM

Nice review Herb.

**HTF Ads**

Rob_Walton · 06-03-2006, 11:53 AM

Herb, is this a 15Gb/9Gb flipper, or a 30Gb/9Gb version? In other words: is the HD on a single layer?

Nils Luehrmann · 06-03-2006, 04:56 PM

For those interested in learning more about HD Hybrid discs and/or discussing your opinions about them, you may want to check out this thread:

What's the point of HD-DVD / DVD dual-discs?

Rob, I believe like the Hybrid release of "Rumor has it.", the HD DVD side is a single-layer 15GB disc - at least that's what I read on another site.

If so, this may be a good reason to wait for a 30GB rerelease.

LarryH · 06-03-2006, 07:46 PM

Firewall is one of the few movies I saw in the theater (I had a free ticket). I found it disappointingly unimaginative and predictable (and I haven't seen Swordfish). Since I just don't see the point of the hybrid, I am glad I am not tempted to purchase this.

Dave Scarpa · 06-04-2006, 12:56 AM

Yeah way ..way..way overpriced even if this was a 4 star film. It's just making the HD-DVD buys spend more money. For right now the format is a nich and users are paying for it. I just picked up Blazing Saddles 30th Anniversary Edition for $5.50 at Walmart. The HD -DVD Version is $30 !