Dreamgirls [2 Disc Special Collectors Edition]

Sound:
I have to first admit that I am disappointed that Paramount did not include a more potent and modern soundtrack to accompany the wonderful sounding film and its striking visuals. "Dreamgirls" is supported in its native tongue with only an English Dolby Digital 5.1 multi-channel surround mix. Both French and Spanish languages are supported with matching Dolby Digital 5.1 mixes and all three languages are bolstered with subtitle support. While I would have preferred to see either a DTS HD Master Audio soundtrack, Dolby TrueHD or Uncompressed PCM, "Dreamgirls" is still a very good sounding film that is among the better sounding Blu-ray releases to date and perhaps the best sounding Paramount title yet released. It does not feature any aggressive sound effects such as "Mission Impossible III" or "Sahara," but it is a sonically powerful mix that fully utilizes the technology it has access to.

Sound is incredibly detailed. The gentle and persistent tapping of percussion instruments such as cymbals comes across very precisely. Horns sound as if they are coming from within the room. The cast sings their way through the films wonderful performances and a few numbers that allow "Dreamgirls" to be a part-time musical. The timbre and individual inflections of each actor/singer´s voice is easily discernable and sounds incredible. The front speakers are effectively used to recreate the soundstage of a concert performance and rear surrounds are used throughout the film to bring to life the ambient sounds of crowds or crowded night clubs. Bass is effectively used and the .1 LFE channel booms when necessary to drive home the Jazzy and funky beats that accompany the film´s vocals. Comparing the HD-DVD release to the Blu-ray release, the soundtrack exhibits no significant differences. While not being an aggressive sounding film, "Dreamgirls" knows exactly what it needs to do with each speaker and delivers a finely tuned sounding performance.

Extras:
Billed as the "2-Disc Showstopper Edition," "Dreamgirls" is a very nice 2-disc set that continues the trend of releasing higher profiled titles on multiple platters. This worked with "Mission Impossible III" and the forthcoming "Flags of Our Fathers" is to also populate two discs. Blu-ray is capable of greater storage, but the competing format finds these films on two platters as well. While taking up two complete platters, with bonus materials spread across both discs, there exist no supplements to accompany the running length of the feature presentation. There are no audio commentaries, no video commentaries and no trivia fact tracks. While the supplements that are provided are very nicely done, this felt slightly odd; as I would assume the general public has my same sensibilities and looks forward to a good commentary track.

The features contained on the first disc are geared more towards the musical performances contained in the film. The first selections on the first disc are the Extended and Alternate Scenes (36:05). These twelve scenes may be played individually or collectively with the "Play All" menu selection. Most of these segments are longer musical numbers from the film. Thankfully, these wonderful additions are featured in full HD splendor with a MPEG-2/1080p codec and full Dolby Digital Plus 5.1 sounds. I personally would not have minded having a longer cut of the film with these numbers mixed back into the film. Part of the reason I enjoyed "Dreamgirls" as much as I did was for the music. I love music and this is thirty more minutes of it. One of the scenes is billed as a Jennifer Hudson Performance Not Seen In Theaters, "One Night Only." Another musical number, "I´m Somebody" featured the Dreams without Hudson´s character and was a quick reminder of the 1970s. The first disc also contained a Music Video "Listen" By Beyoncé Knowles (3:49) and a Dreamgirls Soundtrack Promo (1:01) and some Previews for other Paramount releases.

The second disc of the 2-disc set features materials pertaining to the making of "Dreamgirls." Some of these supplements are presented in full high-definition, while others are 4:3 standard definition. The largest and most notable supplement is the Full Length Documentary "Building the Dream (1:54:53), which is one of the HD presented supplements. This is a very long and very detailed documentary that makes up for the fact that no commentary track was provided. Running for a longer amount of time than many full-length features, the documentary details the music history portrayed by the film, information relating to the Broadway play and features the various actors and talent that worked together to bring the film to the big screen. "Building the Dream" is broken up into nine chapters, but can be played as one complete documentary. The picture and sound quality of the HD supplement is solid and I highly recommend this documentary for any fans of the film or old Motown music and may be one of the best documentaries ever produced for a home video release.

Aside from the very good documentary, there are a number of other supplements. Dream Logic: Film Editing (4:08) spends time with Virginia Katz, the editor for "Dreamgirls" and director Bill Condon. They discusses the editing process and challenges involved with editing the lengthy musical. Dressing the Dreams: Costume Design (8:21) is a look at the work done by Sharen Davis on the film. The outfits are quite colorful and nicely represents the various looks of the 1960s and 1970s. Center Stage: Theatrical Lighting (8:44) takes a look at the lighting used for the stage performances contained in the film. Time is spent with Jules Fisher and Peggy Eisenhauer, who are the film´s theatrical lighting designers. Lighting was an important aspect of "Dreamgirls" and helped define the potent period look of the film. These three featurettes were all provided in full HD. Three Auditions and Screen Tests are included. One is for a fully costumed Beyoncé Knowles (2:24), another is for Anika Noni Rose (2:09) and the final audition is for Fatima Robinson (6:19). These are presented in various compressions and are not full high definition supplements. Finally, seven Previsualization Sequences complete the lengthy collection of extras. These run for nearly thirty seven minutes and combine storyboards and rehearsal footage of various scenes from the film.

Closing Thoughts:
Jamie Foxx seems to single-handedly be trying to chronicle R&B music from the 1960s. He brought Ray Charles to life in the highly entertaining "Ray" and has now helped in bringing to life a fictional story of a girl group that closely mirrors that of Diana Ross and the Supremes. Joining Foxx are Beyoncé Knowles, Eddie Murphy, Danny Glover and Jennifer Hudson. "Dreamgirls" is not as powerful a film as "Ray," but includes more music and performances and recreates the Motown sound of the 1960s and early 1970s. The female actresses who bring the Dreams to life have wonderful voices and this film would not have succeeded without them. However, veteran entertainer Eddie Murphy stands out in his role as Jimmy Early and I feel the actor deserved the Best Actor Oscar. With incredible visuals and sound to bring the film´s concert performances to life, "Dreamgirls" is showcase material for Blu-ray. This two disc set features hours of bonus materials and one of the best making-of documentaries you will ever find. The full length of the supplements falls near the four hour mark, although it was a bit surprising to not find any commentary tracks on a 2-disc set. This is one of the finest Blu-ray releases currently available and if you love music, as I do, then there is absolutely no reason to not rush out and buy a copy of "Dreamgirls."

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