The action sequences are among the most intense and exhilarating you'll see in any film.
OK, the lapses in logic and science in "Face/Off" are monumental, yet Woo is able to get away with them by providing exactly what action fans want: namely, action, and lots of it in lithe, lively, propulsive fashion. Add to that the pleasure of watching Travolta and Cage play off one another, and you get a pretty decent thriller in spite of itself. Still, has any other actor alive been in more ridiculous action movies than Nicolas Cage? I think he's going for a record.
"Oh, well, plan B. Let's just kill each other."
Video:
When I reviewed the HD DVD of this release, I found the VC-1 video quality markedly superior to its SD DVD counterpart. Now, the Blu-ray edition virtually duplicates the HD DVD's high-definition picture in an MPEG4/AVC transfer, again retaining the film's original 2.35:1 aspect ratio and maintaining a realistic color balance--never too dark, never too bright. I'll admit that while the hues are still a trifle muted some of the time and the delineation is soft in spots, the overall effect looks remarkably realistic, especially in close-ups. An ultraclean screen, practically no edge enhancement, and mostly deep black levels help bring out the film's colors and contours. Switching back and forth between the Blu-ray's AVC and the HD DVD's VC-1 using a Panasonic BD30 and a Toshiba A35, I saw only minor differences between the two transfers, differences that are probably more attributable to the players themselves than to the video codecs used.
Audio:
As on the HD DVD, the Blu-ray disc provides high-bit-rate Dolby Digital (EX 5.1 this time, not DD+) and DTS 6.1 tracks. Just as I won't argue AVC vs. VC-1, I'll leave it to individual listeners to decide which audio format they like best, since each format will have its staunch adherents. I listened to both tracks, again changing back and forth throughout the movie, and found both of them quite good. I listened mostly to the DD track, though, as it seemed slightly fuller and more robust. Yet, for that matter, both tracks are hugely dynamic, with plenty of punch, bass, and surround activity. I would liked to have compared a Dolby TrueHD or DTS-HD Master Audio track as well, but the powers that be at Paramount appear determined to frustrate us in that department.
Extras:
While the extras on this Blu-ray disc are the same as they are on the HD DVD edition (and again in high def), there is one big exception. The thirty-gigabyte HD DVD required the studio to use two discs, whereas the fifty-gigabyte Blu-ray holds the movie and all the extras on one disc. This is a convenience factor rather than one of improved picture or sound, so I wouldn't make much more of it than that.
Things begin with audio commentaries by director John Woo and writers Mike Werb and Michael Colleary. I enjoyed the director's special insights. After that, there are seven deleted scenes, about eight minutes' worth, including an alternate ending, with optional commentary. The longest bonus item is the documentary "The Light and the Dark: Making Face/Off," about sixty-four minutes. It's divided into five chapters that one can play individually or all at once. It covers science fiction and human emotion, the cast and crew, John Woo and Hollywood, visual effects, and a wrap-up called "Future/Past." I enjoyed the opening segment best, in which the filmmakers explain that they began with a science-fiction plot and revised it to add the human emotions that bring it home. Following that is a documentary on the director, "John Woo: A Life in Pictures," twenty-five minutes, wherein Woo narrates his own biography with the help of plenty of film clips from his early Hong Kong pictures through such Hollywood fare as "Mission: Impossible II." It pleased me to see these items in high-definition, but I didn't find them particularly out of the ordinary.
Finally, we get a widescreen theatrical trailer; a generous forty scene selections but no chapter insert; English, French, and Spanish spoken languages; English, French, and Spanish subtitles; and English captions for the hearing impaired.
Parting Thoughts:
If you're an action-movie fan, it's hard to beat "Face/Off," significantly more so in high-definition picture and sound. I just wish director John Woo had shown a little more restraint in the mayhem department and spent a little more time in the editing room. But who am I to complain? The film did great box office, and it's probably destined to become an action classic, if it isn't already. Woo's world moves in mysterious ways.
"Oh, well, plan B. Let's just kill each other."
Video:
When I reviewed the HD DVD of this release, I found the VC-1 video quality markedly superior to its SD DVD counterpart. Now, the Blu-ray edition virtually duplicates the HD DVD's high-definition picture in an MPEG4/AVC transfer, again retaining the film's original 2.35:1 aspect ratio and maintaining a realistic color balance--never too dark, never too bright. I'll admit that while the hues are still a trifle muted some of the time and the delineation is soft in spots, the overall effect looks remarkably realistic, especially in close-ups. An ultraclean screen, practically no edge enhancement, and mostly deep black levels help bring out the film's colors and contours. Switching back and forth between the Blu-ray's AVC and the HD DVD's VC-1 using a Panasonic BD30 and a Toshiba A35, I saw only minor differences between the two transfers, differences that are probably more attributable to the players themselves than to the video codecs used.
Audio:
As on the HD DVD, the Blu-ray disc provides high-bit-rate Dolby Digital (EX 5.1 this time, not DD+) and DTS 6.1 tracks. Just as I won't argue AVC vs. VC-1, I'll leave it to individual listeners to decide which audio format they like best, since each format will have its staunch adherents. I listened to both tracks, again changing back and forth throughout the movie, and found both of them quite good. I listened mostly to the DD track, though, as it seemed slightly fuller and more robust. Yet, for that matter, both tracks are hugely dynamic, with plenty of punch, bass, and surround activity. I would liked to have compared a Dolby TrueHD or DTS-HD Master Audio track as well, but the powers that be at Paramount appear determined to frustrate us in that department.
Extras:
While the extras on this Blu-ray disc are the same as they are on the HD DVD edition (and again in high def), there is one big exception. The thirty-gigabyte HD DVD required the studio to use two discs, whereas the fifty-gigabyte Blu-ray holds the movie and all the extras on one disc. This is a convenience factor rather than one of improved picture or sound, so I wouldn't make much more of it than that.
Things begin with audio commentaries by director John Woo and writers Mike Werb and Michael Colleary. I enjoyed the director's special insights. After that, there are seven deleted scenes, about eight minutes' worth, including an alternate ending, with optional commentary. The longest bonus item is the documentary "The Light and the Dark: Making Face/Off," about sixty-four minutes. It's divided into five chapters that one can play individually or all at once. It covers science fiction and human emotion, the cast and crew, John Woo and Hollywood, visual effects, and a wrap-up called "Future/Past." I enjoyed the opening segment best, in which the filmmakers explain that they began with a science-fiction plot and revised it to add the human emotions that bring it home. Following that is a documentary on the director, "John Woo: A Life in Pictures," twenty-five minutes, wherein Woo narrates his own biography with the help of plenty of film clips from his early Hong Kong pictures through such Hollywood fare as "Mission: Impossible II." It pleased me to see these items in high-definition, but I didn't find them particularly out of the ordinary.
Finally, we get a widescreen theatrical trailer; a generous forty scene selections but no chapter insert; English, French, and Spanish spoken languages; English, French, and Spanish subtitles; and English captions for the hearing impaired.
Parting Thoughts:
If you're an action-movie fan, it's hard to beat "Face/Off," significantly more so in high-definition picture and sound. I just wish director John Woo had shown a little more restraint in the mayhem department and spent a little more time in the editing room. But who am I to complain? The film did great box office, and it's probably destined to become an action classic, if it isn't already. Woo's world moves in mysterious ways.
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[release]21500[/release]