DVD Review HTF REVIEW: Sin City - RECOMMENDED (1 Viewer)

[Haggai]

Michael, that might be the only time Dogville and Sin City ever get mentioned in the same sentence.

 

[Tim Glover]

The image on this dvd was breathtaking. Not just the style of it all, but the quality of the image was a big WOW. Maybe one of the most detailed and cleanest looking dvd I own.

The audio was also top notch. I also agree with DaVid regarding the Dolby Digital track. Impressive. The dialogue is the best I've heard on my system. Ever.

The film...well...weird. I wasn't sure what to expect. Still not sure. Need to see it again. But definately not your average, "honey, what do u want to watch tonight film". Very different.

 

[DaViD Boulet]

Tim,

what's your AV system like? I'm glad that your experience comports with my own.

 

[Ron-P]

David, I'm surprised that you did not notice the EE especially since you said (in the other thread) you were looking for it. I know it is not very noticeable and I was sitting at about a distance of 1.10 from my screen of 85" (I like being close) so maybe that played a part as well. But even from my back row which is 1.65 I still noticed it.

That was about the only grip I had otherwise the picture quality is about the best I've seen. The dts track as well, very clean. Most impressive.

 

[DaViD Boulet]

Ron,

very interesting. Tell us more about your video system (DVD player and projector). I'm assuming that other DVD titles come thru EE-free so that you're confident it's in the DVD encoding?

I know that some titles that look like they have "EE" on my projector look almost 100% EE-free on my friend's 1080P JCV PJ (driven by the top-end Pioneer HDMI DVD player) and given that the titles look *more detailed* on his system than on mine...I can only assume that his is more accurate...though it's still confusing since there are titles that have no EE at all on my system. All of this is saying that I'm totally comfortable that the same disc can look different in different systems without always a clear indication of which image is more faithful to the actual disc-encoding...sometimes it's a head-scratcher!

 

[Dave Mack]

Hey Dave, Ron, all... just to chime in, I saw a teeny bit of EE on my system which is an OPPO. upscaling DVD player with the latest firmware which allows the previous "sharpness" setting to be set in the OFF position, and an optoma h57 DLP FP.
I have a few titles with NO EE visible, even when zoomed so my equipment is pretty decent when it comes to that.



I only watched random bits last nite but I noticed EE in the opening scene and definitley in the credits. But it not bad at all and the overall pic. IS pretty stunning.

and to be honest, from previous posts, I will admit that I am very EE sensitive and find some discs like "Gangs of NY" virtually unwatchable so do take that into consideration.

 

[Inspector Hammer!]

Ron,
very odd that your seeing EE.

My modest system consists of an Infocus X1 projector connected to a Sony progressive scan dvd player through a set of VGA cables and projected onto a 96" DIY screen, and I saw no EE at all, just a crisp, clean image that blew me away.

I was sitting about 12' back from the screen BTW. I guess this is a case where the lesser systems aren't really revealing the flaws as badly as the better one's? But that still doesn't explain why David didn't see it, because his system is probably top notch.

 

[Ron-P]

Like John above my video rig is quite modest. I am certain though that it's in the encoding. I have a Panasonic PT-L200u LCD projector and an 85" screen. I am running a 1.5 year old JVC progressive player.

Like Dave stated above, it is a "teeny" amount and like Dave I am also very sensitive to it. By all means is it no where near being distracting I just picked up on it right away. For most of the movie though I did not see it.

My audio system is a Timber matched Polk set up of 7 speakers and 6 Adcom amps with an Outlaw 950 pre/pro and ICBM and boy does this soundtrack shine. It's so clean and crisp with such great depth it's almost as if the actors were standing in front of me talking.

 

[jez]

Got my R3 today which imo has nicer packaging.

Just wondered if anyone knew if the transfer is the same to the R1?

Anyone do a bitrate for both?

Or perhaps a scene to check out the quality

 

[ChrisKe]

Jez, got a picture of the R3 cover or a URL?

 

[Tim Glover]

DaVid,

I have a Panasonic PT-L300U LCD projector. I'm using a matte white Draper 106 inch screen. I think the gain is .8 if that's even possible.

I saw no EE. I wasn't looking for it either but the image was incredibly rich. I can only imagine how better the blacks were on your DLP proj though. A couple of years ago the 300u was highly regarded but has since been replaced. Certainly no big $$ spent on it but it looked like I spent $10K for it when watching Sin City.

Audio consists of 3 NHT Evolution M6's for LCR. Currently my sub is out. NHT SB1 for surrounds (on loan). Pioneer THX-Ultra reciever and Panasonic Xp-30 dvd player.

Not sure if you wanted all that info but there it is. :b

As others have said, it felt like the actors were in my room. I only wish that were true of some of them.

 

[Travis W.]

I actually noticed this problem at the cinema as well. Curiously enough I noticed it on one of the two prints we received, the first one I saw did not have this problem.

 

[Jonny P]

It is a neat movie. I can safely say that I've not seen anything like it before.

Interesting eye candy. It is a visual treat.

The plot/story isn't that great, but Jessica Alba is sure fun to look at.

I will definitely double-dip when the special edition version comes out.

 

[StephenP]

I also saw mild EE on my 106" screen, but only briefly and it went away. The scene I noticed it in was when Bruce Willis first meets his partner before he goes to save the girl. While they are talking you can see ringing around Bruce's face. It isn't nearly as bad as kill bill or something, but it is definately there. Sadly I had to stop watching during the Marv - Elijah Woods scenes ( family life got in the way LOL ) but I am dying to see the rest!

 

[DaViD Boulet]

It's a good day at HTF when my fellow members are telling me about EE that *they* are seeing that I'm not noticing in my own Home theater...

 

[nickGreenwood]

Frank and Robert are currently working on Sin City, I've heard rumors of a January start, considering Robert and how quick he moves, that filming start date would be dependant on Frank Miller himself and how quickly he adapts three more stories.

I think the Hartigan/Nancy story is by far my favorite, even though I didn't like it the theaters, I liked the Marv story, mainly because it was Batman-esque, with tons more violence. But the heart and story of Hartigan and his love for Nancy and her love for him is just cool. Plus Jessica Alba is the cutest girl in the whole flick.

Now if Frank, Robert and maybe Quentin can adapt "The Dark Knight Returns" then we may have one of the best films of all time.

I agree with the comments on the DVD, it looks perfect. I don't mind double-dipping for this one, much like I didn't mind for Kill Bill. I only did it for the talent behind the films and knowing that they will hold me over until the SE's come out. It didn't hurt that I really liked Kill Bill and Sin City. But heck I'm still waiting for a special edition of Spy Kids 1 and Desperado.

 

[Inspector Hammer!]

Yeah, "cute" is one word to describe her alright. Flaming, ultra, super-nova, asteroid burning up in the atmosphere HOT is another.

 

[ClaytonMG]

Travis,

Did you use DTS on both prints or just Dolby? I hear the static ony both formats on my DVD. When I saw it in theaters it was a THX screen (at the Mall of America) so I don't know which format they used for the audio. Right now I am using the Yamaha 2500 reciever which is THX certified, monster cables (which is also THX certified) for the speaker wire and Klipsch's synergy series speakers which are matched. It is only the out door scenes with Josh Hartnett, and then the ones with Bruce Willis. It's not the narations either.

Clayton

 

[Tim Glover]

Ditto. :b

 

[George_W_K]

I wish I could agree, but Carla Gugino is the one I'd be after.