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Rarely referenced audio gem (1 Viewer)

RISUG

Stunt Coordinator
Joined
May 3, 2003
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179
Real Name
Reese
There are thousands of phenomenal dolby digital 5.1 tracks,
but I wanted to give a special nod to the quality on Blood : The last vampire.

It's not a sonic tour-de-force per se, however it delivers
a level of crispness and impact that I find aurally delicious. There is no colon cleaning levels of bass, but
it is definitely "gorilla-punch in the chest" calibur.

The soundstage has a squeaky clean openess to it, in fact I would've assumed in a heartbeat that it was a DTS track if I were to have walked into a room without any prior knowledge of the disc.

I'm just so impressed with the sense of environment that the track conveys even without heavy use of the surround stage. It's like an aural version of a vertical lawn sprinkler - it seems to wash over you without leaving you soaked. Truly a full and efflorescent presentation.

Often times when something is sonically "felt" in a track it is in reference to bass, in Blood there are scenes where the higher frequencies inflict their own physical affects; for example the scene where the heroin swings with
her sword to strike the creature, the creature attempts to
use a medicine cabinet as a shield, the blow from the sword
violently slices/ricochets off the metal cabinet and strikes the creature in the arm - everytime I witness this
scene my skin gets goose bumps; the blade tearing across metal and then flesh makes me think : "damn that must have
cut to the white meat". It makes me wince just thinking about it. Granted nothing extravagant on a whole, but sometimes it's the seemingly passe elements that prove the
most effective.

The intriguing story and short running time make Blood the home theater version of a "sampler" booth for foods or sauces that can be found in malls and supermarkets - small
portions that taste great and leave you wanting more.

Again, it doesn't have bass that will bend time and space,
but it's enough to impress, and as I've already alluded, the crux of the disc's oh-so-sweet sonic nature can be credited to the skillfull mastering of the higher frequencies.

So you want to sonically impress a friend while also providing an engaging story? - with something he more than likely has never seen or even heard of? - but have less than two hours to do it in? - then allow me to nominate Blood : The last vampire as a candidate for consideration.

As any current or ex-ICOC'er knows:
"keep it brief and powerful"

P.S. - Does anyone feel the same way about the audio quality of this anime/cgi flick?. Or is it just me?.
 

Dan Rudolph

Senior HTF Member
Joined
Dec 30, 2002
Messages
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I agree. Some of the best audio mixing I've heard. I wouldn't go so far as to say it has an engaging story, though.
 

RISUG

Stunt Coordinator
Joined
May 3, 2003
Messages
179
Real Name
Reese
Dan Rudolph,

I found it engaging for the fact that there was
very little information provided about the events in progress and why the heroin was who she was and what were
the specifics of her supernatural abilities. Naturally a basic story is outlined, and one can determine that the heroin is something akin to Blade, but I found that the ambiguity of the "story" and the surreal atmosphere to be
highly intriguing.

Of course I may be the only one that felt as such, and if so - amen!.
 

Dan Rudolph

Senior HTF Member
Joined
Dec 30, 2002
Messages
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I found the ambiguity irritating. We see some peopel do some stuff stuff, but who they are and why they're doing it is never explained. It's like you're already supposed to know.
 

RISUG

Stunt Coordinator
Joined
May 3, 2003
Messages
179
Real Name
Reese
Dan Rudolph,

Bingo! -Which is exactly what I found to be appealing.

It seems that in this case one man's garbage is another man's treasure, ay?. :)
 

Chad Ferguson

Supporting Actor
Joined
Oct 31, 2000
Messages
923
Perhaps a little off topic, was this film supposed to be part of a trilogy or something to that effect? I too was impressed with the sound and the quality mix of CGI and anime, but I just found the show short and not hugely interesting.
Thank you
 

RISUG

Stunt Coordinator
Joined
May 3, 2003
Messages
179
Real Name
Reese
Chad Ferguson,

I've wondered the same thing, and have been unable to locate any information that would suggest a story
line existed before the movie; the same goes for any post movie story continuation.
 

DeanWalsh

Second Unit
Joined
Apr 17, 1999
Messages
390
If I remember correctly (I watched this a couple of years ago so my recollections are a little patchy) the featurette (I watched the r4, don't know if the specs are the same on the r1) on the dvd explained that the film was a continuation of a manga that was released in Japan.
I too found the ambiguity intriguing... I hate being spoon-fed storylines like I'm a 10 year old and enjoy using my imagination to fill in the blanks.
Great soundtrack and stunning animation btw.
 

Dan Rudolph

Senior HTF Member
Joined
Dec 30, 2002
Messages
4,042
There's a difference between not-spoonfeedign someone a storyline and giving them no info at all by which to figure it out. The Manga aren't available in English. THey shoudl have at least added a title card explaining some basic background.
 

Lewis Besze

Senior HTF Member
Joined
Jul 28, 1999
Messages
3,134
Oh Ok, I've seen this.I've rented this,and yes the sound was above average.It was too short though.
 
Joined
Jan 18, 2003
Messages
35
One of the best dolby mixes I've ever heard, crystal clear without being harsh. The dvd release tied in with other projects at the time, graphic novel and video game among them, though I don't remember if these were released outside Japan. Some of this information is covered in the dvd featurette. The success of the various projects were supposed to dictate the possible production of another film. I did manage to snag the limited edition 3-disc japanese box set before it went out of print. Love this one.
 

Ed Speir IV

Stunt Coordinator
Joined
Jan 10, 2001
Messages
71
Hi. I happen to have both the R1 (US) and R2 (Japanese) releases of this film. As good as the R1 Dolby Digital track is, the R2 DTS track is even better. One standout scene is on the runway when one of the planes (I believe it is an F-4 Phantom)is reving up its engines to take off. Absolutely unbelievable. If you are a fan of this film, you may want to track the R2 release down.
 

RISUG

Stunt Coordinator
Joined
May 3, 2003
Messages
179
Real Name
Reese
EdSpeirIV:

Hi. I happen to have both the R1 (US) and R2 (Japanese) releases of this film. As good as the R1 Dolby Digital track is, the R2 DTS track is even better. One standout scene is on the runway when one of the planes (I believe it is an F-4 Phantom)is reving up its engines to take off. Absolutely unbelievable. If you are a fan of this film, you may want to track the R2 release down
Holy shiznits! There's a DTS track?. Geez, I can't imagine it sounding any better.... unfortunately I don't have a multi-region player, but if I did I'd be all over it like....a Siberian white tiger. Thanks for the info.:emoji_thumbsup:
 

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