HTF HD DVD REVIEW: Troy

Troy
HD DVD








Studio: Warner Brothers
Format: HD DVD/VC-1
Year: 2004
Rated: R
Film Length: 163 Minutes
Aspect Ratio: 2.40:1 Widescreen
Audio: Dolby TrueHD 5.1 - Dolby Digital+ 5.1
Color/B&W: Color
Languages: English, French & Spanish
Subtitles: English, French & Spanish
MSRP: $28.99
Package: Single disc/Red HD DVD keepcase





The Feature:
Over the last couple of years, Wolfgang Petersen’s Troy was one of a number of “sword and sandal” films to show up in movie theaters. What differentiates this film from the majority of others – is that the others were mostly worthy of your time. That’s not to say that Troy is bad film, but what could have been a great film, quite simply wasn’t. A film of epic scale, directed by the legendary Petersen with a fantastic budget and an “A” list of actors should have gone on to greatness, instead went on to fizzle out quickly.

The year is 1250 BC and the film is based – loosely based - on Homer's "The Iliad". Paris the Trojan prince (played by Orlando Bloom), runs off with Helen, Queen of Sparta (played by Diane Kruger), and leaves her husband Menelaus (played by Brendan Gleeson). The vengeful Menelaus recruits his brother Agamemnom (played by Brian Cox) to retrieve what he feels belongs to him and to serve retribution for the dishonorable act.

Eager for power, Agamemnon agrees which sets off a spirited assault led by an enormous navy and thousands of soldiers to attack the undefeated Trojans of Troy. The great warrior Achilles (played by Brad Pitt), is recruited but the conflict seems to be insurmountable when they confront Hector, Prince of Troy (played by Eric Bana), who’s determination to win seems too great for even Achilles and his loyal soldiers.

The Feature: 3/5




Video:
Presented in its OAR of 2.40:1 widescreen, the upgraded HD DVD version looks very good but falls short of looking excellent. Similar to the previous SD version, image definition was inconsistent. There were signs of terrific sharpness, and there were signs of softness (proportionate to the SD) not bad - but not really all that impressive either. The aforementioned trait seems to be something I find myself repeating on a regular basis. What seems to shine on SD, looks amazing in HD – what looks poor in HD didn’t look all that great in SD.

Dimensionality on the other hand, looks very impressive and textured. Colors were rendered well, looking vibrant and lush while skin tones looked real and natural. The print was as immaculate as we would expect given the age of the film and beyond what appeared to be some slight haloing, artifacts and compression seems to have been handled quite well.

The presentation looks very good however, is not among the best of HD titles to surface thus far.

Video: 7/10




Audio:
What Troy doesn’t deliver on the video side of things, delivers in spades on the audio side. Dolby TrueHD 5.1 and Dolby Digital 5.1 tracks have been included here. These audio tracks are downright aggressive and are guaranteed to give your audio components a decent workout. What stands out here is the finer detail and crispness of the track i.e. walking on gravel, clanging of swords, snapping of bows etc. Very impressive.

The track is absolutely clean and free of any hiss or other noisy distractions. Dialogue was always clear and intelligible – even during the frenzied battle sequences. The battle sequences are terrifically rendered showing off depth and vast dynamics – albeit from a mostly front end soundfield. Surrounds were employed quite actively delivering all kinds of ambient noises and effects – never sounding gimmicky or fake. There’s plenty of LFE here to keep any of you bass-heads pleased.

Audio: 9/10





Special Features:
With the HD DVD version of Troy, we get some supplemental material that was not included on the SD DVD – in addition to the extras that were ported over from the existing SD version.

• First up is In the Thick of Battle which appropriately looks at the epic-like battle scenes (the highlight of the film, really).
  
  
• From Ruins to Reality deals with the history behind the film's production design.
  
  
• Troy: An Effects Odyssey focuses on the film’s CGI effects
  
  
• Next up is a rather fluffy, albeit, informative piece entitled, Gallery of the Gods which is basically a guide offering up bios on various Greek mythological figures.
  
  
• The Theatrical Trailer is also included and as we would expect, is in perfect condition.
  
  
• Perhaps the most anticipated special feature here is the IME inclusion (In-Movie Experience) interactive feature. Similar to the previous IME HD DVD features (Constantine & The Dukes of Hazzard), the feature offers running video commentary containing production tidbits which appear in smaller frames over-lapping the feature. Included here is an introduction by director Wolfgang Petersen. A number of informative material and clips have been included, making this a worthwhile addition to the feature group – greatly improved over the meager group provided on the SD version.
  
  
• The other new addition is a group of Previsualizations which contain the following:
  
  - Greek Ship Towing a Waterskier
  - Greek Warriors
  - Two Greek Ships and 1,000 Rubber Duckies
  - Warriors Using Urinals
  
  These contain various storyboards all of which play on the lighter side of things.
  
  Certainly not the greatest lineup of special features ever to appear on a new release, however a considerable improvement over the previous SD version.
  
  Special Features: 3.5/5
  
  
  **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:
  In the case of Troy, when you hear someone say “they don’t make ‘em like they used to”….. believe ‘em. Don’t get me wrong, Troy isn’t a bad film, it just could have been so much better. Epic in scale – and in length, one can’t help but feel the casting of this group of “pretty-boys” was perhaps the greatest single reason leading to this surprising disappointment.
  
  And while I wouldn’t call this disc a disappointment, I wouldn’t call it an overwhelming success either. With a video presentation that is only average and special features that are run of the mill, truth be told, even if this was a reference disc, the strength of the film itself wouldn’t be enough to earn any sort of recommendation. A rental if you must.
  
  Overall Rating: 3/5 (not an average)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Release Date: September 12th, 2006