...another fine high definition offering for Harry Potter fans.
Technical Review and Closing Comments by Dean Winkelspecht
Video:
"Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban" showed a little visual improvement over the second film, but its 2.40:1 widescreen transfer is about on par with the second and fourth films in the series when it comes to how good its VC-1/1080p transfer looks. The first two films were a little lighter in tone than this third film and the improvements in coloring and detail is somewhat negated by the darker tone of the film. As John J. Puccio pointed out in his review of the HD-DVD title, the film contains a number of scenes that are stylistically altered to present and almost black and white look to the film. The film is still quite solid in its coloring when the filmmakers decided not to manipulate the palette too strongly. Detail is quite strong and the amount of detail is quite stunning at 1080p resolution. "Prisoner of Azkaban" is quite an improvement over the DVD release and I wonder how I survived this long at lower resolutions. Black levels are quite good and shadow detail is strong. Source materials are pristine and I didn´t find any flaws in the digital mastering of the title.
Sound:
Warner Bros. once again goes Hogwart´s wild when it comes to soundtracks offered for the release. This disc contains a very strong English Uncompressed PCM 5.1 mix and the following additional tracks: English Dolby Digital 5.1; Danish Dolby Digital 5.1; Dutch Dolby Digital 5.1; Flemish Dolby Digital 5.1; French Dolby Digital 5.1; French (Quebec Dubbed) Dolby Digital 5.1; Italian Dolby Digital 5.1; German Dolby Digital 5.1; Japanese Dolby Digital 5.1; Spanish Dolby Digital 5.1; Swedish Dolby Digital 5.1. I´m simply amazed that the WB can squeeze this many soundtracks alongside a nearly two and a half hour film and still include some supplements. With the sheer number of vocal tracks, it is not surprising that there are even more subtitle options available.
The sound of the PCM mix is aggressive and entertaining. It is superior to the standard Dolby Digital 5.1 mix and featured a stronger bass presence as well as imaging across all channels. This is a slight improvement over the second film, but not quite the leap as the second film was when compared to the original movie. Rear surrounds are used consistently and effectively throughout the film. Ambient and environmental effects come through the rear surrounds and build an impressive wall of sound throughout the entire film. The various sounds heard in the film pan nicely between speakers and sound natural. Dialogue is also strong and the musical score is again nicely handled by the six channel mix. I was quite satisfied with how "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban" sounded.
Extras:
One wonders if the new Blu-ray releases were not geared more towards parents than children as the third film also finds its interactive elements removed from the Blu-ray port. The "Self-Guided Tours of Honeydukes and Professor Lupin´s Classrooms" are missing, as well as the "3 Great Challenges" contained on the original DVD release. The DVD-ROM PC features for the "Hogwarts Timeline" and the "Magical Trading Cards" are also amiss. A preview for the game based upon the film is another short feature that didn´t make the journey to the next generation format. At least the menu for this third disc was nowhere near as horrendous to read as the second disc and for that I am thankful.
The "Behind the Story" elements are the most plentiful for the third film. Crafting the Vision (11:45) finds J.K. Rowling talking with the film´s director, Alfonso Cuaron and screenplay writer Steve Kloves talking about how they worked with Jo Rowling and brought the third novel of Harry Potter to the big screen by working directly with the author. The Head to Shrunken Head (43:04) interviews find the various characters of the film and the actors that portray them discussing their adventures on the third entry in the Harry Potter saga. An Introduction (:43) finds interviewer Johnny Vaughn and the Jamaican shrunken head debating on how to interview the actors. The interviews can then be viewed collectively or as seven separate short features. I enjoyed these interviews and felt they mixed humor nicely with actual making-of information on the film. Choir Practice (1:41) is a short video featuring a sing-a-long song from the film with clips from the movie. The Care of Magical Creatures (4:46) looked at the animal actors featured in the film and how they were used in the making of the film. This was a nice little bit. Conjuring a Scene (15:37) is an EPK-styled feature that looks at how Hollywood magic is used to create scenes from the film. Everything from Gary Oldman´s makeup to Hagrid´s Hypogriff is looked at in this nice featurette.
The "Additional Footage" and "Trailers" sections move away from the making of aspects of "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban." Trelawney´s Crystal Ball (4:48) contained five unfinished scenes from the film. Each can be played individually and contains a short synopsis on what the scene is about. These very short scenes are lacking many of the special effects and blue screen elements necessary to complete them. They are rough and brief, but fun to check out none-the-less. The poor little songbird that got killed by the old tree had a rougher flight than you know. The additional footage featured for the third film is nowhere near as nice as what was provided for the first two movies. Trailers are provided for this film and the first two Harry Potter films.
Closing Comments:
Daniel Radcliffe is getting older, but thankfully, the Harry Potter series is getting better with age. The films are darker in tone and far more ´adult´ in nature than the earlier two films. With Voldemort threatening to return, the overall story arc is getting more and more serious. The actors have mastered their characters and with Gary Oldman and others joining the cast, it is becoming a bigger and happier family of cast members. "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban" builds on the strong foundation provided by the first film and is a sequel that leaves us eagerly anticipating the next chapter in Harry Potter´s saga. The Blu-ray release features a marginally improved transfer over the second film, but this is entirely due to being a slightly younger film. It is a tremendous leap over the DVD release and showcases strong video and sound. The picture is a little sharper, but with a more subdued palette. Sound is more aggressive, but not a large improvement over "Chamber of Secrets." The supplemental materials are given the same treatment as the past two films in the series on Blu-ray. Overall, this is another fine high definition offering for Harry Potter fans.
Video:
"Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban" showed a little visual improvement over the second film, but its 2.40:1 widescreen transfer is about on par with the second and fourth films in the series when it comes to how good its VC-1/1080p transfer looks. The first two films were a little lighter in tone than this third film and the improvements in coloring and detail is somewhat negated by the darker tone of the film. As John J. Puccio pointed out in his review of the HD-DVD title, the film contains a number of scenes that are stylistically altered to present and almost black and white look to the film. The film is still quite solid in its coloring when the filmmakers decided not to manipulate the palette too strongly. Detail is quite strong and the amount of detail is quite stunning at 1080p resolution. "Prisoner of Azkaban" is quite an improvement over the DVD release and I wonder how I survived this long at lower resolutions. Black levels are quite good and shadow detail is strong. Source materials are pristine and I didn´t find any flaws in the digital mastering of the title.
Sound:
Warner Bros. once again goes Hogwart´s wild when it comes to soundtracks offered for the release. This disc contains a very strong English Uncompressed PCM 5.1 mix and the following additional tracks: English Dolby Digital 5.1; Danish Dolby Digital 5.1; Dutch Dolby Digital 5.1; Flemish Dolby Digital 5.1; French Dolby Digital 5.1; French (Quebec Dubbed) Dolby Digital 5.1; Italian Dolby Digital 5.1; German Dolby Digital 5.1; Japanese Dolby Digital 5.1; Spanish Dolby Digital 5.1; Swedish Dolby Digital 5.1. I´m simply amazed that the WB can squeeze this many soundtracks alongside a nearly two and a half hour film and still include some supplements. With the sheer number of vocal tracks, it is not surprising that there are even more subtitle options available.
The sound of the PCM mix is aggressive and entertaining. It is superior to the standard Dolby Digital 5.1 mix and featured a stronger bass presence as well as imaging across all channels. This is a slight improvement over the second film, but not quite the leap as the second film was when compared to the original movie. Rear surrounds are used consistently and effectively throughout the film. Ambient and environmental effects come through the rear surrounds and build an impressive wall of sound throughout the entire film. The various sounds heard in the film pan nicely between speakers and sound natural. Dialogue is also strong and the musical score is again nicely handled by the six channel mix. I was quite satisfied with how "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban" sounded.
Extras:
One wonders if the new Blu-ray releases were not geared more towards parents than children as the third film also finds its interactive elements removed from the Blu-ray port. The "Self-Guided Tours of Honeydukes and Professor Lupin´s Classrooms" are missing, as well as the "3 Great Challenges" contained on the original DVD release. The DVD-ROM PC features for the "Hogwarts Timeline" and the "Magical Trading Cards" are also amiss. A preview for the game based upon the film is another short feature that didn´t make the journey to the next generation format. At least the menu for this third disc was nowhere near as horrendous to read as the second disc and for that I am thankful.
The "Behind the Story" elements are the most plentiful for the third film. Crafting the Vision (11:45) finds J.K. Rowling talking with the film´s director, Alfonso Cuaron and screenplay writer Steve Kloves talking about how they worked with Jo Rowling and brought the third novel of Harry Potter to the big screen by working directly with the author. The Head to Shrunken Head (43:04) interviews find the various characters of the film and the actors that portray them discussing their adventures on the third entry in the Harry Potter saga. An Introduction (:43) finds interviewer Johnny Vaughn and the Jamaican shrunken head debating on how to interview the actors. The interviews can then be viewed collectively or as seven separate short features. I enjoyed these interviews and felt they mixed humor nicely with actual making-of information on the film. Choir Practice (1:41) is a short video featuring a sing-a-long song from the film with clips from the movie. The Care of Magical Creatures (4:46) looked at the animal actors featured in the film and how they were used in the making of the film. This was a nice little bit. Conjuring a Scene (15:37) is an EPK-styled feature that looks at how Hollywood magic is used to create scenes from the film. Everything from Gary Oldman´s makeup to Hagrid´s Hypogriff is looked at in this nice featurette.
The "Additional Footage" and "Trailers" sections move away from the making of aspects of "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban." Trelawney´s Crystal Ball (4:48) contained five unfinished scenes from the film. Each can be played individually and contains a short synopsis on what the scene is about. These very short scenes are lacking many of the special effects and blue screen elements necessary to complete them. They are rough and brief, but fun to check out none-the-less. The poor little songbird that got killed by the old tree had a rougher flight than you know. The additional footage featured for the third film is nowhere near as nice as what was provided for the first two movies. Trailers are provided for this film and the first two Harry Potter films.
Closing Comments:
Daniel Radcliffe is getting older, but thankfully, the Harry Potter series is getting better with age. The films are darker in tone and far more ´adult´ in nature than the earlier two films. With Voldemort threatening to return, the overall story arc is getting more and more serious. The actors have mastered their characters and with Gary Oldman and others joining the cast, it is becoming a bigger and happier family of cast members. "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban" builds on the strong foundation provided by the first film and is a sequel that leaves us eagerly anticipating the next chapter in Harry Potter´s saga. The Blu-ray release features a marginally improved transfer over the second film, but this is entirely due to being a slightly younger film. It is a tremendous leap over the DVD release and showcases strong video and sound. The picture is a little sharper, but with a more subdued palette. Sound is more aggressive, but not a large improvement over "Chamber of Secrets." The supplemental materials are given the same treatment as the past two films in the series on Blu-ray. Overall, this is another fine high definition offering for Harry Potter fans.
Average user rating (1-5):
[release]22548[/release]