Pans Labrynth out today

Picked up this at best buy today... quite suprising because the release date I've seen on the internet is 12/26.

PQ is excellent in this film 4.5/5. The flesh tones are a bit weird in this movie, as it has a very old look..this might be done on purpose. No visible grain.


AQ is good but not lossless it seems.


Web enabled extras.. but I haven't had a chance to mess with the yet.


Overall definate must buy for HD DVD collectors.

Also had the chance to pick up Eastern Promises and The Kingdom today. I will post up a separate review

PQ is excellent in this film 4.5/5. The flesh tones are a bit weird in this movie, as it has a very old look..this might be done on purpose. No visible grain.





Wasn't it supposed to have a bit of a grainy look to it? Freddy

http://www.ascmag.com/magazine_dynamic/January2007/PansLabyrinth/page1.php

Great article on the film!

Wasn't it supposed to have a bit of a grainy look to it? Freddy

No It's not grainy like 300 or Gladiator, but the director went for warm tones for a more fatasy world sort of look for the whole film.

Thats why the skin tones don't look totally natural.

I got my copy and watched it last night,

WOW!

I agree with much of what the OP stated except,

Picture quality 5/5 stars - it was incredible and the flesh tones I believe were as the director intended

Audio quality 4.5/5 stars - Fantastic sound and tonal quality, just like Transformers maybe it didn't need the lossless code to sound great.

Film story line itself 4.5/5 stars - I just wish the movie had gotten into the fantasy world a little more, but that would have made the movie perhaps too long.

Overall a great addition to your collection and real reference piece for High Definition to show off. ;)

I got my copy and watched it last night,

WOW!

I agree with much of what the OP stated except,

Picture quality 5/5 stars - it was incredible and the flesh tones I believe were as the director intended

Audio quality 4.5/5 stars - Fantastic sound and tonal quality, just like Transformers maybe it didn't need the lossless code to sound great.

Film story line itself 4.5/5 stars - I just wish the movie had gotten into the fantasy world a little more, but that would have made the movie perhaps too long.

Overall a great addition to your collection and real reference piece for High Definition to show off. ;)

You should watch it with the dts-HD Master Audio tracks.

I never heard such clarity in my surround speakers. Awesome film. Read the article I posted above if you haven't yet.
Cheers,
Marc

We watched this movie on boxing day, although not in HD. We enjoyed it very much. My daughter was amazed that I was not complaining about the subtitles. (i typically won't watch a subtitled movie).

I've always found that a very well made foreign film never gets diminished by subtitles. :)

I've always found that a very well made foreign film never gets diminished by subtitles. :)

I've had to talk a couple of people into watching because they thought it was a "fantasy" film, and they didn't want to do the subtitle thing. Well, needless to say, after they watched it, they came away with a different feeling about it.

I still can't resolve in my own mind if it's supposed to be about the girl going into her own fantasy world to get away from the horrible situation she was in, or if it was meant to be a "real" experience for her.

Freddy

...I still can't resolve in my own mind if it's supposed to be about the girl going into her own fantasy world to get away from the horrible situation she was in, or if it was meant to be a "real" experience for her... Both. :)

The Writer/Director Guillermo del Toro states in the commentary that it was absolutely real.

del Toro is referring to the girl's experience. There is a scene toward the end where clearly her step-father can't see Pan talking to her. One can conclude that Pan is capable of concealing himself to anyone or that Pan is part of the girl's "real" world. :)

del Toro has been purposely ambiguous on this point in various interviews.

PQ = 4.5 / 5

AQ = 4.0 / 5

This is a great movie. I thought that since it is in Spanish that subtext might detract from the film and the Spanish being spoken would also. I was wrong. I wanted to see this since the commercials I saw on TV. Wow was this a good buy. I recommend this to anyone.

You should watch it with the dts-HD Master Audio tracks.

I never heard such clarity in my surround speakers. Awesome film. Read the article I posted above if you haven't yet.
Cheers,
Marc

It comes with the DTS-HD Master Audio lossless track.

What are you referring to, that I didn't give it 5/5 star rating?

I thought it was spectacular sound wise, but I didn't give it the top rating because didn't have the bang some people expect from a 5/5, mostly because the style of film it has no huge chase scenes or rocket ships and people would have brought that up as reason to not have the perfect rating.

It comes with the DTS-HD Master Audio lossless track.

What are you referring to, that I didn't give it 5/5 star rating?

I thought it was spectacular sound wise, but I didn't give it the top rating because didn't have the bang some people expect from a 5/5, mostly because the style of film it has no huge chase scenes or rocket ships and people would have brought that up as reason to not have the perfect rating.

Damn! You guys are costing me $$$$!!!! I bought this on SD and now I feel that I MUST double dip on it... THANKS A LOT! :mad: :mad:

;)

Damn! You guys are costing me $$$$!!!! I bought this on SD and now I feel that I MUST double dip on it... THANKS A LOT! :mad: :mad:

;)

Oh this is worth double dipping, seeing and hearing this on HD is a treat to say the least :D


About the DTS-HD Master Audio I would like to know how someone can hear this track.. From my understanding There are no built in decoders for this specific encode and even if your reciever could decode the player would only pass on the Core DTS track at 1.5mbps.. If there is a trick to hearing let us in on the secret :)

Oh this is worth double dipping, seeing and hearing this on HD is a treat to say the least :D


About the DTS-HD Master Audio I would like to know how someone can hear this track.. From my understanding There are no built in decoders for this specific encode and even if your reciever could decode the player would only pass on the Core DTS track at 1.5mbps.. If there is a trick to hearing let us in on the secret :)

The unfortunate answer is BLU. I found out the hard way. $1200 for a Panasonic DMP-BD30K player and an Onkyo 805 receiver. I'm only using the Onkyo as a pre/pro until Lexicon comes up with a upgrade or new pre/pro. Or if the Panasonic DMP-BD50 works with my Lexicon MC-12 over analog inputs.

Don't double dip Stew, the HD DVD ver is terrible. The only version worth owning is the European BD release (they somehow managed to cock up the HD DVD ver with lip synch issues etc. :() But the US versions image has been messed with far too much and they've not only removed the grain, but also half the detail of the picture.

Darn it Mike now I have to double dip for the Blu Version!!!! When I originally watched this movie it was on SD DVD on a crappy 27" Tube tv so when I bought the HD version of it I thought it was leaps and bounds better..

I hope exploited cinema has it on blu and is not so expensive.. Weak us $ :banghead:

It comes with the DTS-HD Master Audio lossless track.

What are you referring to, that I didn't give it 5/5 star rating?

I thought it was spectacular sound wise, but I didn't give it the top rating because didn't have the bang some people expect from a 5/5, mostly because the style of film it has no huge chase scenes or rocket ships and people would have brought that up as reason to not have the perfect rating.

Sorry, didn't mean to quote you. But I agree with your review.

Interesting my HD DVD version looks absolutely awesome.

Darn it Mike now I have to double dip for the Blu Version!!!! When I originally watched this movie it was on SD DVD on a crappy 27" Tube tv so when I bought the HD version of it I thought it was leaps and bounds better..

I hope exploited cinema has it on blu and is not so expensive.. Weak us $ :banghead:

I'm not sure if the European edition is region free on Blu-ray. AVS actually have some comparison shots between the different versions and on them it is plain to see that the Blu-ray version is far better here in the UK/Europe than either HD DVD version or the US Blu-ray transfer.

Don't double dip Stew, the HD DVD ver is terrible. The only version worth owning is the European BD release (they somehow managed to cock up the HD DVD ver with lip synch issues etc. :() But the US versions image has been messed with far too much and they've not only removed the grain, but also half the detail of the picture.

Lest your warning scare off potential buyers, HDD gives the PQ 4.5 out of 5 stars and highly recommends the HD DVD (perhaps less than 5% of HD reviews get the 'highly recommended' conclusion). Here's the video portion of the review, copied from the site.

'Pan's Labyrinth' arrives on HD DVD with a 1080p/VC-1 transfer (identical to the Blu-ray) that dazzles the eye as effortlessly as the film haunts the imagination. Colors are rich, the palette is painterly, and bold reds leap off the screen. Even the bleak labyrinth scenes are bathed in gorgeous blue tones that offset the warmth of the intentionally oversaturated skintones. Del Toro's darkest shots creep up and overtake Ophelia, flooding the picture with well-delineated shadows that never obscure the detail of the cinematography. Despite a wide variety of lighting schemes, contrast is consistently perfect, black levels are intense, and there isn't a hint of source noise, artifacting, or meddlesome edge enhancement.

Detail is outstanding as well. I continually found myself pausing the film at random moments to inspect rocks, tree leaves, and clothing fibers. Take a look at the forest during daylit scenes, the stonework at the bottom of the faun's spiral staircase, and the lavish realm of the Pale Man. Character close-ups and wide long shots are nice and crisp -- tight shots of Captain Vidal reveal every crevice and developing wrinkle. Facial textures are a bit waxy at times, but it isn't distracting. Likewise, the film's CG creatures look more at home in this transfer than they ever have before. I thought the film's digital effects looked somewhat disjointed from practical elements in the film’s theatrical run and on DVD, but they look exceptionally naturalistic here.

On that note, a word of warning for purists -- grain has been artificially reduced using a minor application of Digital Noise Reduction (DNR). Because this decision by New Line has sparked some controversy, I spent quite a bit of time comparing this HD DVD release to the previously released high-def import edition, hunting for blurry patches of skin and smeared textures. My takeaway: fans with screens larger than 100" may see a loss of clarity when directly comparing still shots from this domestic version to the same shots on the import, but the vast majority of viewers will never notice or care (especially considering how insignificant the visible difference actually is when the film is in motion). While I'm not a personal fan of New Line's unnecessary adjustment of the original print, I feel it's crucial to note how judiciously the technique has been applied in this case.

All things considered, 'Pan's Labyrinth' is a great looking addition to your HD DVD library that puts the standard DVD editions to shame. The transfer may not be as natural as the very best top-tier high-def releases, but it comes incredibly close. Fans aren’t likely to be disappointed.

Interesting my HD DVD version looks absolutely awesome.

So does mine.

My HD DVD version is one of the best I have, the picture quality is incredible. :D

My HD-DVD copy looked great as well.

the hd dvd comes with Master Audio 7.1 correct?

If so will this type of audio still play thru my 5.1 setup?

the hd dvd comes with Master Audio 7.1 correct?

If so will this type of audio still play thru my 5.1 setup?

I believe you will get the dts digital surround core only.

Lossy 3.2.1 dts

This release sent me to a Purple awakening.

Unless I'm completely wrong.

I believe you will get the dts digital surround core only.

Lossy 3.2.1 dts

This release sent me to a Purple awakening.

Unless I'm completely wrong.

Actually you can get the same audio package if you have the right equipment on HD DVD, plus if you get the HD DVD your guarantee picking up a collectors disc since this is the only title ever released by New Line Cinema on the HD DVD format. To play it to true potential you will need the A35 or XA-2 running in bitstream mode (using updates 2.7 on both players) plus a HDMI 1.3 certified receiver that decodes the new lossless formats. I just watched it today and it is reference Audio/Video. Video matches King Kong IMHO and Audio is breathtaking with surrounds active in every scene. This is the first DTS MA track I hear at full bandwidth and I'm glad it was done so well.

Honestly I know this sounds silly and is technically wrong(in some cases) but DTS tracks always sound better then anything to my ears even when listening to the core of the tracks. Bass sounds so much crisper then those on DD and PCM tracks. Anyone have any explanation to why this is the case?

Edit: I just realized you were talking about the surround speakers and in that case you are absolutely correct but with if you have a 7.1 set up with the equipment I mentioned above then you should get exactly what you get on the BD.

Actually you can get the same audio package if you have the right equipment on HD DVD, plus if you get the HD DVD your guarantee picking up a collectors disc since this is the only title ever released by New Line Cinema on the HD DVD format. To play it to true potential you will need the A35 or XA-2 running in bitstream mode (using updates 2.7 on both players) plus a HDMI 1.3 certified receiver that decodes the new lossless formats. I just watched it today and it is reference Audio/Video. Video matches King Kong IMHO and Audio is breathtaking with surrounds active in every scene. This is the first DTS MA track I hear at full bandwidth and I'm glad it was done so well.

You must have a HD-XA2 if you are running firmware 2.7. I think 2.8 has been released as well. The A35 being a third generation player is at firmware 1.3 released last November that does not include the dts-HD Master Audio.

When I started the HD-DVD of Pan's Labyrinth I couldn't believe that dts-HD MA was the only audio track. It was
prepared for the Blu world and pressed on HD-DVD.

If you have info on upgrading the HD-A35 please pass it along!!

Cheers

Yeah I do have the XA-2 and yes 2.8 was released. Regarding the A35 can do the same with one of the updates not sure which exactly hope one of our member/owners will step in here and let you know.

Honestly I know this sounds silly and is technically wrong(in some cases) but DTS tracks always sound better then anything to my ears even when listening to the core of the tracks. Bass sounds so much crisper then those on DD and PCM tracks. Anyone have any explanation to why this is the case?


I feel the same way and have even gotten into some debates regarding this very topic.. I do enjoy PCM tracks as well as a solid DD+ (transformers) but DTS is music to my ears :dj :D

Yeah I do have the XA-2 and yes 2.8 was released. Regarding the A35 can do the same with one of the updates not sure which exactly hope one of our member/owners will step in here and let you know.

Oh??? 2.8 is out?

Oh??? 2.8 is out?

Yeah it came out 2 weeks ago, we have a dedicated thread in the HD DVD player section.

Now that we're done with the firmware update sidebar, that was some movie huh? :)

I did not like it much the first time through was too focused on the subtitles and audio. Yesterday I watched it again with IME and man what a difference for one I took in the scenery and better understood the movie and have to say pure genius.

Best of 2007 for me hands down from what I remember.