Band of Brothers (Series, The) (Blu-ray)

Connect to Facebook/Twitter, recommend via email and much more.

---

I´m very enthusiastic about the miniseries, but I do have a complaint about "Band of Brothers"--I don´t like the title for Part 9, which is "Why We Fight". That particular episode deals with the discovery of concentration camps by Allied infantry. While the Allies knew about the existence of death camps, they weren´t exactly fighting the Axis Powers to free Jews, gypsies, and other victims of the Nazis´ annihilatory policies. Therefore, for me, the phrase "Why We Fight" rings propagandistically false.

The "Chicago Sun-Times" declared "Band of Brothers" to be "the best miniseries in the history of television". It is also the most profound war film ever made, surpassing even Spielberg´s own "Saving Private Ryan". Not too long ago, I wrote that "Grave of the Fireflies" convinced me that war should be avoided at all costs. "Band of Brothers" reminded me that sometimes, the good war must be fought, plain and simple.

VIDEO:
"Band of Brothers" is presented in its original 1.78:1 aspect ratio. Much has been made online about the intentionally washed out, grainy look to all ten episodes, specifically regarding the fear Warner Brothers applied DNR to "clean up" the miniseries. Here's what I can report: grain is largely intact throughout each and every disc. Now, about that grain. The first time I really noticed it was gone happened to be in Episode 8, "The Last Patrol." Everything on screen looks too clean considering what comes before and after. Am I saying DNR was absolutely applied here? No. Just that there is a different look to the action. Take that are you will.

Chances are most audiences aren't going to notice and the use of DNR is so minuscule the score will reflect it. There is one other issue I wanted to mention. In the same episode, the slats on a wooden fence appear to jump as the camera moves into a forest. At no other time does this jumping become a problem, leading me to believe this is an isolated incident.

The desaturated and blown out look of "Brothers" is well rendered in high def, with the transfer doing a bang up job from beginning to end. There are no problems in dark scenes with details or blockiness while snow covered locations remain crisp. By design, there are no colors to "pop" on the screen, leading to a naturalistic, dirty presentation just as was originally intended.

AUDIO:
HBO provides one heck of a DTS-Master Audio 5.1 English soundtrack to compliment the video specs. Just about the only thing I can against it is the extras are not presented in the same format. From the very first episode to the closing credits of the last, "Band of Brothers" is clear reference quality material. Dialogue, as expected, is clear and distortion free while any number of sound effects compliment the action. It seems like cliché to mention listening to any given episode makes the audience feel like we were on the set during filming, but that's exactly what the track manages to do. Of particular note is the entire "Bastogne" segment, with any number of military boots trampling over snow from all directions.

Directional effects seemingly come out of nowhere as voices shoot across the sound field and various vehicles come to a stop on either the right or left side of the screen. Voices tend to sound a bit lower than they should; however, it's a symptom of Michael Kamen's score and the ambient noises being that much more up front. I'll even admit I jumped once or twice when an unexpected mortar round flew in from the side speakers. French and Spanish 2.0 tracks are also included, as well as English, French, Spanish, Brazilian and Portuguese subtitles.

EXTRAS:
HBO has either ported over or repurposed just about every extra from the 2002 DVD set all the way down to the metal packaging and cardboard fold out disc holder. Each disc contains two episodes (the sixth disc holds most of the extras).

For every episode, HBO provides a short summary along with the trailers for the entire series as standalone options or under a play all. Additionally, the "Field Guide" feature has been broken down into "In the Field with the Men of Easy Company." Once enabled, a timeline shows up on the bottom of the screen with various markers giving specific information about the scene. It can range from archival footage to information on the men and an explanation of the terms used by the characters. Keep a finger on the remote since this information doesn't pop up automatically; you need to press enter on the remote as each marker is illuminated. It is possible to manually move from marker to marker using the right arrow key.

Also attached to each episode is a picture in picture commentary track. Again, HBO appears to have used the existing eleven-minute soldier video guide to populate this feature. I have no qualms with it. In fact, it's something of a small thrill to see the members of the real Easy Company talking about their experiences as the film runs. Both of these features are BD exclusives. "In the Words of Easy Company" requires Bonus View capability (aka Profile 1.1).

"We Stand Alone Together: The Men of Easy Company" is the premiere feature on the final disc. Running 77 minutes, it retreads the same territory covered by the miniseries, only in a much abbreviated fashion. Interview snippets are intercut with archival footage to form the narrative. The "Making of Band of Brothers" 30-minute featurette follows, providing more insight into the creation and filming of all ten episodes than we normally find in anything labeled a "featurette." A very short segment on the premiere in Normandy rounds out the special features.

PARTING THOUGHTS:
"Band of Brothers" subplanted "Roots" or "North and South" as the miniseries to end all miniseries. With scope, a literal cast of thousands, dynamic production values and its heart in the right place, this set needs to be on every high def shelf.

---

Connect to Facebook/Twitter, recommend via email and much more.

---