It’s cute. It’s fun. But it’s harmless.
Video:
"27 Dresses" is presented with a widescreen aspect ratio of 2.40:1 and mastered in AVC MPEG-4 at 34 megabits per second. Now that we have the techno mumbo jumbo out of the way, the question remains of how does the picture look? "27 Dresses" is a run-of-the-mill Blu-ray transfer that doesn´t do full justice to the colorful dresses of the film, but doesn´t fail in any particular area. The word ´average´ perfectly describes this transfer. Colors are very good and nicely showcase the many colors of the twenty-seven bridesmaid dresses and the overly colorful apartment and office space inhabited by the main character. There are some instances where the hues appear slightly muted. Detail is good, but fine details such as skin pores and individual hairs do not stand out as they do on other Blu-ray transfers. The source materials themselves are very clean and I couldn´t spot any flaws from either them or the digital transfer. The film is sufficient, but lacks the ´pop´ of the better Blu-ray transfers.
Audio:
English and French soundtracks are provided for "27 Dresses," as well as English, Cantonese, Korean, Mandarin and Spanish subtitles. The English language track is potent DTS HD 5.1 Master Lossless Audio mix, whilst the French are forced to make due with a slightly inferior Dolby Digital 5.1 mix. I can tell you now that the English mix is the superior of the two, although I did enjoy trying to follow along and understand the French language track for about ten minutes. I believe I wasted four years of French class, because I cannot understand much of anything they are saying. Oddly, the packaging lists a French surround mix of only 2.1 channels and lists only English and Spanish subtitles. Chalk those errors up to a minor packaging mistake. The film is a romantic comedy and dialogue is quite clear. Aside from that, there are a few minimal bits of sound in the rear channels and "27 Dresses" is another front-heavy comedy that is clean, but minimal in its sound design.
Extras:
While "27 Dresses" may not be feature-laden, the title does contain enough bits of value added content to please most consumers. The film, which is not an A-list title, contains four featurettes and some excised material. The disc does boot with a few previews, including one for "Juno." The first featurette, The Wedding Party (14:31) is an electronic press kit feature with James Marsden, Katherine Heigl and others talking about the film amongst a few making-of snippets and interviews where the cast and crew give their thoughts to the characters and story. You´ll Never Wear That Again (6:46) has director Anne Fletcher and Costume Designer Catherine Marie Thomas talking about the twenty-seven dresses shown in the film. Jane´s World (4:38) is Production Designer Shepherd Fankel´s turn to talk about creating the sets used in the film. The final featurette, The Running of the Brides (5:05) is about a one-day sale at Filene´s Basement where wedding gowns can be bought on the cheap. It looks like an interesting affair. Finally, three Deleted Scenes (3:58) complete the bonus offerings. The scenes are not shown in high definition, but are worth a quick peek.
Closing Comments:
Sitting down for 111 minutes to watch "27 Dresses" was nowhere near as painful as I feared it may have been. After watching Heigl in "Knocked Up," I was curious to see the actress´ follow up performance in this film, but "27 Dresses" contained a plot that screamed ´Chick Flick.´ While I feel that this is a movie best enjoyed by a female audience, it is a good little romantic comedy that moves along nicely and provides a few good laughs and heartfelt moments. The writing isn´t overly deep, but the performances more than make up for the film´s few shortcomings. Guys shouldn´t have too much problem watching this one with their significant (or potentially significant) others. It´s cute. It´s fun. But it´s harmless. The Blu-ray transfer is pedestrian, but this is typical of romantic comedies. The supplements run for just over half-an-hour and show that Fox put forth some effort in making this a better purchase for the hard earned dollar.
"27 Dresses" is presented with a widescreen aspect ratio of 2.40:1 and mastered in AVC MPEG-4 at 34 megabits per second. Now that we have the techno mumbo jumbo out of the way, the question remains of how does the picture look? "27 Dresses" is a run-of-the-mill Blu-ray transfer that doesn´t do full justice to the colorful dresses of the film, but doesn´t fail in any particular area. The word ´average´ perfectly describes this transfer. Colors are very good and nicely showcase the many colors of the twenty-seven bridesmaid dresses and the overly colorful apartment and office space inhabited by the main character. There are some instances where the hues appear slightly muted. Detail is good, but fine details such as skin pores and individual hairs do not stand out as they do on other Blu-ray transfers. The source materials themselves are very clean and I couldn´t spot any flaws from either them or the digital transfer. The film is sufficient, but lacks the ´pop´ of the better Blu-ray transfers.
Audio:
English and French soundtracks are provided for "27 Dresses," as well as English, Cantonese, Korean, Mandarin and Spanish subtitles. The English language track is potent DTS HD 5.1 Master Lossless Audio mix, whilst the French are forced to make due with a slightly inferior Dolby Digital 5.1 mix. I can tell you now that the English mix is the superior of the two, although I did enjoy trying to follow along and understand the French language track for about ten minutes. I believe I wasted four years of French class, because I cannot understand much of anything they are saying. Oddly, the packaging lists a French surround mix of only 2.1 channels and lists only English and Spanish subtitles. Chalk those errors up to a minor packaging mistake. The film is a romantic comedy and dialogue is quite clear. Aside from that, there are a few minimal bits of sound in the rear channels and "27 Dresses" is another front-heavy comedy that is clean, but minimal in its sound design.
Extras:
While "27 Dresses" may not be feature-laden, the title does contain enough bits of value added content to please most consumers. The film, which is not an A-list title, contains four featurettes and some excised material. The disc does boot with a few previews, including one for "Juno." The first featurette, The Wedding Party (14:31) is an electronic press kit feature with James Marsden, Katherine Heigl and others talking about the film amongst a few making-of snippets and interviews where the cast and crew give their thoughts to the characters and story. You´ll Never Wear That Again (6:46) has director Anne Fletcher and Costume Designer Catherine Marie Thomas talking about the twenty-seven dresses shown in the film. Jane´s World (4:38) is Production Designer Shepherd Fankel´s turn to talk about creating the sets used in the film. The final featurette, The Running of the Brides (5:05) is about a one-day sale at Filene´s Basement where wedding gowns can be bought on the cheap. It looks like an interesting affair. Finally, three Deleted Scenes (3:58) complete the bonus offerings. The scenes are not shown in high definition, but are worth a quick peek.
Closing Comments:
Sitting down for 111 minutes to watch "27 Dresses" was nowhere near as painful as I feared it may have been. After watching Heigl in "Knocked Up," I was curious to see the actress´ follow up performance in this film, but "27 Dresses" contained a plot that screamed ´Chick Flick.´ While I feel that this is a movie best enjoyed by a female audience, it is a good little romantic comedy that moves along nicely and provides a few good laughs and heartfelt moments. The writing isn´t overly deep, but the performances more than make up for the film´s few shortcomings. Guys shouldn´t have too much problem watching this one with their significant (or potentially significant) others. It´s cute. It´s fun. But it´s harmless. The Blu-ray transfer is pedestrian, but this is typical of romantic comedies. The supplements run for just over half-an-hour and show that Fox put forth some effort in making this a better purchase for the hard earned dollar.
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