My take: Outbreak (1995)

HD Goofnut · 11-23-2009, 09:46 PM

Title: Outbreak (1995)
BD-25 Single-Layer Disc
Video: 1080p/VC-1
Audio: 5.1 Dolby TrueHD
Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1
Original Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
Subtitles: English, French, Spanish, and German
Run time: 128 minutes
Studio: Warner Home Entertainment
Rating: R
Region Coding: Region Free
Player used for review: LG BH200

Cast/Crew Info:
Dustin Hoffman as Col. Sam Daniels
Rene Russo as Robby Keough
Morgan Freeman as Brig. Gen. Billy Ford
Kevin Spacey as Maj. Casey Schuler
Cuba Gooding Jr. as Maj. Salt
Donald Sutherland as Maj. Gen. Donald McClintock
Directed by Wolfgang Petersen

My take: (the breakdown)

It's a good to see a well made virus/epidemic film that actually seems to get many of the probable facts correct. The story follows that of Col. Sam Daniels (Hoffman) and his battle against a very dangerous organism known as the Motaba Virus. When an African monkey infects a man that is headed back to the states he ends up causing a chain reaction of infection. The worst part is that this virus kills people in a matter of hours. With almost no knowledge of the virus Daniels and his team must try to find the host monkey so that they can formulate an anti-serum. This is definitely worth a purchase for fans and a rental for everyone else. Due to profanity this title is not recommended for children.

Released last year Outbreak doesn't really dazzle for its debut onto Blu-ray. I owned the DVD for years and watched it a few times and colors are significantly improved with this Blu-ray version. Flesh tones seem to be more accurate than the DVD as they were rather reddish on that version. Grain is moderate but stays fairly consistent except during a few of the darker shots. Fine detail is really well done on closeups, but it suffers on just about every wide shots. There are many wide shots that don't hardly look any better than the original DVD release. To be honest this film needed a remaster for its Blu-ray release, but Warner chose to take the cheap way out.

This 5.1 Dolby TrueHD is slightly more impressive than the video quality. Dialogue is crisp, clear, and is prioritized nicely. Surrounds see a lot of use especially during the aerial helicopter sequences. The dramatic musical score also manages to find its way to the surround channels. Your sub will get a slight workout, but I honestly felt its role was rather subdued. For a 13 year old movie at the time of its Blu-ray release this Dolby TrueHD definitely gets the job done.

We get absolutely nothing in this supplemental package and I was hoping for at least a trailer.

Movie: 7/10
VQ: 7/10
AQ: 7.5/10
Supplements: 0/10
Final word: A Purchase For Fans

As always thanks for reading folks.

Note: Screen shots have a resolution of 1024x768

**PFC5** · 11-23-2009, 10:03 PM

I just watched this on cable. Great movie and I agree they do not make enough of these types of movies that are not horror flicks.

Thanks for the review. I guess I will just keep my SD DVD version of this one and don't have to double dip yet another title.

PrinceLH · 11-23-2009, 11:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PFC5

I just watched this on cable. Great movie and I agree they do not make enough of these types of movies that are not horror flicks.

Thanks for the review. I guess I will just keep my SD DVD version of this one and don't have to double dip yet another title.

I also saw it on AMC HD, on the weekend. It is a decent movie and would probably pick it up, once it gets to the $9.99 mark.

11-23-2009, 09:46 PM	#1
HD Goofnut The Official HDF Reviewer Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Mississippi, U.S.A. Your resident Dune, Star Wars, and war film expert Age: 27 Posts: 7,358	My take: Outbreak (1995) Title: Outbreak (1995) BD-25 Single-Layer Disc Video: 1080p/VC-1 Audio: 5.1 Dolby TrueHD Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1 Original Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 Subtitles: English, French, Spanish, and German Run time: 128 minutes Studio: Warner Home Entertainment Rating: R Region Coding: Region Free Player used for review: LG BH200 Cast/Crew Info: Dustin Hoffman as Col. Sam Daniels Rene Russo as Robby Keough Morgan Freeman as Brig. Gen. Billy Ford Kevin Spacey as Maj. Casey Schuler Cuba Gooding Jr. as Maj. Salt Donald Sutherland as Maj. Gen. Donald McClintock Directed by Wolfgang Petersen My take: (the breakdown) It's a good to see a well made virus/epidemic film that actually seems to get many of the probable facts correct. The story follows that of Col. Sam Daniels (Hoffman) and his battle against a very dangerous organism known as the Motaba Virus. When an African monkey infects a man that is headed back to the states he ends up causing a chain reaction of infection. The worst part is that this virus kills people in a matter of hours. With almost no knowledge of the virus Daniels and his team must try to find the host monkey so that they can formulate an anti-serum. This is definitely worth a purchase for fans and a rental for everyone else. Due to profanity this title is not recommended for children. Released last year Outbreak doesn't really dazzle for its debut onto Blu-ray. I owned the DVD for years and watched it a few times and colors are significantly improved with this Blu-ray version. Flesh tones seem to be more accurate than the DVD as they were rather reddish on that version. Grain is moderate but stays fairly consistent except during a few of the darker shots. Fine detail is really well done on closeups, but it suffers on just about every wide shots. There are many wide shots that don't hardly look any better than the original DVD release. To be honest this film needed a remaster for its Blu-ray release, but Warner chose to take the cheap way out. This 5.1 Dolby TrueHD is slightly more impressive than the video quality. Dialogue is crisp, clear, and is prioritized nicely. Surrounds see a lot of use especially during the aerial helicopter sequences. The dramatic musical score also manages to find its way to the surround channels. Your sub will get a slight workout, but I honestly felt its role was rather subdued. For a 13 year old movie at the time of its Blu-ray release this Dolby TrueHD definitely gets the job done. We get absolutely nothing in this supplemental package and I was hoping for at least a trailer. Movie: 7/10 VQ: 7/10 AQ: 7.5/10 Supplements: 0/10 Final word: A Purchase For Fans As always thanks for reading folks. Note: Screen shots have a resolution of 1024x768 __________________ Living Room Setup Sharp LC-46SB57UN 46" 120hz 1080p LCD (24fps) Onkyo TX-SR606 7.1 Receiver Onkyo SKS-HT540 7.1 System DirecTV HR21-100 HD DVR Sony 40 GB PS3 (Netflix Enabled) LG BH200 Super Blu Toshiba HD-A20 Nintendo Wii Bedroom Setup Sanyo DP46848 46" 60hz 1080p LCD DirecTV HR23-600 HD Magnavox NB500MG9 Toshiba HD-A2 My Movie Collection 309~157~DVD193 Latest Review: *Ferris Bueller's Day Off*

11-23-2009, 10:03 PM	#2
PFC5 Super Moderator Join Date: May 2005 Posts: 30,625	I just watched this on cable. Great movie and I agree they do not make enough of these types of movies that are not horror flicks. Thanks for the review. I guess I will just keep my SD DVD version of this one and don't have to double dip yet another title. __________________ Denon AVR-887 Klipsch RP-5 Pwred Towers (mains) (525 watts peak each 12"Subs) All Klipsch RC-25(ctr),(2)SS1(surr),(2)SS1(rearSurr) Toshiba (2)HD-A20,PS3,BD35 For SACD/DVD-A Samsung HD-841 Panny 50pz80u plasma SETTINGS RCA HD50LPW162 50"DLP w/HD2+ SA 3250HD 47" LCD+Yamaha5790+HD-A1(bedroom) Harmony 680 + (2) 670s (amazing remote/support) Game room with Onkyo receiver & B&W Speakers The_Cable_Game Take the high ground and be happier PSN: PFC5