My take: Enemy at the Gates

HD Goofnut · 07-01-2009, 08:57 AM

Title: Enemy at the Gates
BD-50 Dual-Layer Disc
Video: 1080p/AVC MPEG-4
Audio: 5.1 Dolby TrueHD
Aspect Ratio: 1:85:1
Subtitles: English, Spanish, French, and Portuguese
Run time: 131 minutes
Studio: Paramount Home Entertainment
Rating: R
Player used for review: LG BH200

My take: (the breakdown)

Enemy at the Gates is one of those war films that it seems like it should indeed be purely factual, but that is not the case with this plot. The story focuses on Vasilli Zaitsev and his actions as a Soviet sniper in Stalingrad. The time is September-November 1942 and the Soviets have been giving ground to the Germans for several months during Operation Barbarossa. Zaitsev and fellow snipers are demoralizing the German ranks by knocking off their officers one at a time. This brings a showdown between Zaitsev and Koenig, a German major who supposedly was head of their sniper school in Germany. Now other than journals their is no actual proof that Koenig ever existed, but maybe one day historians will find something concrete to show that he existed. I say this is worth a rental for everyone and a purchase for fans.

I just recently sold the SD DVD version of this movie, but I had watched it many times. From the opening scenes it is quite apparent that the Blu-ray version has much better rendition of colors. The red Soviet flags are extremely bright and flesh tones are accurate as well. Blacks are resolved for the most part, but they do struggle in a few places. Fine detail is really where the film suffers. One scene may be sharp as a tack while the next is soft so I think that this title missed out on a needed remaster. Grain is also rather heavy, but it never spikes or gets out of control. This is a decent transfer, but I felt that Paramount could have done more to get it looking its best.

The audio is about the same animal as the video. Dialogue is clear and understandable, but there are some problems. The bass never really kicks in with there's a nearby explosion or gunshot. Also, the surrounds get a lot of clamoring and music, but they don't get much in the way of explosions or bullets flying by. This is by no means a terrible TrueHD track, but it certainly could have been better.

We get two average making of features totaling about 35 minutes. We also get nine deleted scenes totaling 10 minutes and the film's trailer in HD. All of these features other than the trailer are 480, which brings my score for supplements down a bit.

Movie: 7/10
VQ: 7/10
AQ: 7.5/10
Supplements: 2/10
Final word: Worth a rental

As always thanks for reading folks.

GymBrat98 · 07-01-2009, 07:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HD Goofnut

Title: Enemy at the Gates
BD-50 Dual-Layer Disc
Video: 1080p/AVC MPEG-4
Audio: 5.1 Dolby TrueHD
Aspect Ratio: 1:85:1
Subtitles: English, Spanish, French, and Portuguese
Run time: 131 minutes
Studio: Paramount Home Entertainment
Rating: R
Player used for review: LG BH200

My take: (the breakdown)

Enemy at the Gates is one of those war films that it seems like it should indeed be purely factual, but that is not the case with this plot. The story focuses on Vasilli Zaitsev and his actions as a Soviet sniper in Stalingrad. The time is September-November 1942 and the Soviets have been giving ground to the Germans for several months during Operation Barbarossa. Zaitsev and fellow snipers are demoralizing the German ranks by knocking off their officers one at a time. This brings a showdown between Zaitsev and Koenig, a German major who supposedly was head of their sniper school in Germany. Now other than journals their is no actual proof that Koenig ever existed, but maybe one day historians will find something concrete to show that he existed. I say this is worth a rental for everyone and a purchase for fans.

I just recently sold the SD DVD version of this movie, but I had watched it many times. From the opening scenes it is quite apparent that the Blu-ray version has much better rendition of colors. The red Soviet flags are extremely bright and flesh tones are accurate as well. Blacks are resolved for the most part, but they do struggle in a few places. Fine detail is really where the film suffers. One scene may be sharp as a tack while the next is soft so I think that this title missed out on a needed remaster. Grain is also rather heavy, but it never spikes or gets out of control. This is a decent transfer, but I felt that Paramount could have done more to get it looking its best.

The audio is about the same animal as the video. Dialogue is clear and understandable, but there are some problems. The bass never really kicks in with there's a nearby explosion or gunshot. Also, the surrounds get a lot of clamoring and music, but they don't get much in the way of explosions or bullets flying by. This is by no means a terrible TrueHD track, but it certainly could have been better.

We get two average making of features totaling about 35 minutes. We also get nine deleted scenes totaling 10 minutes and the film's trailer in HD. All of these features other than the trailer are 480, which brings my score for supplements down a bit.

Movie: 7/10
VQ: 7/10
AQ: 7.5/10
Supplements: 2/10
Final word: Worth a rental

As always thanks for reading folks.

Thanks Goof, I think we talked about this movie a while ago in my BD thread, yes?

mytime · 07-01-2009, 08:14 PM

Watched this last night. The only place I thought the audio really shined was the river crossing scene. Large improvement over the DVD.

OCgamer · 07-02-2009, 05:57 PM

Goof there was indeed a major konig. I have a VHS tape called german sniper and it shows wartime footage of konig training snipers in what to look for etc. This documentary is restricted because of the training information it gives. It is intended for SWAT and military use only but you can find it at gun shows. It shows everything about camo, target selection, counter sniper techniques etc. Shows some really good 40's era movie special effects showing good animation and post production. I enjoyed it as a hunter helped me find game and stay hidden from animals.

The movie is kinda crappy, way too much politics I have to fast forward through the crap to watch 30 minutes of combat. I also hate seeing any kind of love story in my war movies. I know I know they have to include some kind of love in every war movie to get females to sit through it but common just didnt fit into the movie. They could have substituted how good the russian females were at sniping in fact most of their snipers were women and quite good. But thats the problem when your writer didnt serve one minute in the military. Two stars only. Only true war movie is "black hawk down" because no women no serious buildup to the war scenes that takes more than 30 minutes and no political messages just pure killing! this is the mold to which all war films must beat!

07-01-2009, 08:57 AM	#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: 6,850	My take: Enemy at the Gates Title: Enemy at the Gates BD-50 Dual-Layer Disc Video: 1080p/AVC MPEG-4 Audio: 5.1 Dolby TrueHD Aspect Ratio: 1:85:1 Subtitles: English, Spanish, French, and Portuguese Run time: 131 minutes Studio: Paramount Home Entertainment Rating: R Player used for review: LG BH200 My take: (the breakdown) Enemy at the Gates is one of those war films that it seems like it should indeed be purely factual, but that is not the case with this plot. The story focuses on Vasilli Zaitsev and his actions as a Soviet sniper in Stalingrad. The time is September-November 1942 and the Soviets have been giving ground to the Germans for several months during Operation Barbarossa. Zaitsev and fellow snipers are demoralizing the German ranks by knocking off their officers one at a time. This brings a showdown between Zaitsev and Koenig, a German major who supposedly was head of their sniper school in Germany. Now other than journals their is no actual proof that Koenig ever existed, but maybe one day historians will find something concrete to show that he existed. I say this is worth a rental for everyone and a purchase for fans. I just recently sold the SD DVD version of this movie, but I had watched it many times. From the opening scenes it is quite apparent that the Blu-ray version has much better rendition of colors. The red Soviet flags are extremely bright and flesh tones are accurate as well. Blacks are resolved for the most part, but they do struggle in a few places. Fine detail is really where the film suffers. One scene may be sharp as a tack while the next is soft so I think that this title missed out on a needed remaster. Grain is also rather heavy, but it never spikes or gets out of control. This is a decent transfer, but I felt that Paramount could have done more to get it looking its best. The audio is about the same animal as the video. Dialogue is clear and understandable, but there are some problems. The bass never really kicks in with there's a nearby explosion or gunshot. Also, the surrounds get a lot of clamoring and music, but they don't get much in the way of explosions or bullets flying by. This is by no means a terrible TrueHD track, but it certainly could have been better. We get two average making of features totaling about 35 minutes. We also get nine deleted scenes totaling 10 minutes and the film's trailer in HD. All of these features other than the trailer are 480, which brings my score for supplements down a bit. Movie: 7/10 VQ: 7/10 AQ: 7.5/10 Supplements: 2/10 Final word: Worth a rental As always thanks for reading folks. __________________ My Review Setup Sanyo DP46848 46" 1080p LCD Onkyo TX-SR606 7.1 DirecTV HR21-100 HD DVR Onkyo SKS-HT540 7.1 System LG BH200 Super Blu Toshiba HD-A20 Sony 40 GB PS3 (Now with Netflix streaming!) 156~206~My Movie Collection Latest Review: *Men in Black* Be sure to check out the Blu-ray Review Request Thread

07-01-2009, 08:14 PM	#3
mytime Nanerpuss Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Jackson, Missouri Posts: 5,062	Watched this last night. The only place I thought the audio really shined was the river crossing scene. Large improvement over the DVD. __________________ Gargle hag gag gargle

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07-02-2009, 05:57 PM	#4
OCgamer High Definition is the definition of life. Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: central pennsylvania Posts: 65	Goof there was indeed a major konig. I have a VHS tape called german sniper and it shows wartime footage of konig training snipers in what to look for etc. This documentary is restricted because of the training information it gives. It is intended for SWAT and military use only but you can find it at gun shows. It shows everything about camo, target selection, counter sniper techniques etc. Shows some really good 40's era movie special effects showing good animation and post production. I enjoyed it as a hunter helped me find game and stay hidden from animals. The movie is kinda crappy, way too much politics I have to fast forward through the crap to watch 30 minutes of combat. I also hate seeing any kind of love story in my war movies. I know I know they have to include some kind of love in every war movie to get females to sit through it but common just didnt fit into the movie. They could have substituted how good the russian females were at sniping in fact most of their snipers were women and quite good. But thats the problem when your writer didnt serve one minute in the military. Two stars only. Only true war movie is "black hawk down" because no women no serious buildup to the war scenes that takes more than 30 minutes and no political messages just pure killing! this is the mold to which all war films must beat!