Blu-ray Movie Reviews

The Breakfast Club (Blu-ray)

David Vaughn  |  Aug 3, 2010

What happens when you take a jock (Emilio Estevez), a stoner (Judd Nelson), a geek (Anthony Michael hall), a prom queen (Molly Righwald), and a psychotic teenage girl (Ally Sheedy) and place them in detention for nine hours on a Saturday? Inquiring minds want to know.

John Hughes capture the teen mind, dialog, and spirit unlike any other writer/director in my lifetime. As a product of the 1980s, I can watch any of his films from the era and it's like reliving my youth. This film delves into the philosophical realm of existentialism and although each kid is part of a different clique, they each face the same struggles in school, at home, and in life and after a long day of detention end up becoming friends.

Video Highlights

  • VC-1/1080p encode on a BD-50 disc
  • Mundane visuals
  • Inconsistent detail
  • Decent color saturation

Audio Highlights

  • DTS-HD MA 5.1 soundtrack
  • Dialog-intensive soundtrack
  • Front-heavy presentation
  • Poor dynamics
  • Occasionally muddy dialog

Much like the HD DVD presentation, there isn't much to praise here. The video encode is rough around the edges and the audio track is rather pedestrian.

Bonus Materials

  • Sincerely Yours – 12-part documentary
  • The Most Convenient Definitions: The Origins of the Brat Pack
  • Feature Commentary with Judd Nelson and Anthony Michael Hall

It's hard to believe it's been 25 years since I first watched this film, but it holds up surprisingly well. As a product of the 1980s the film hits close to home and I can think of at least one person from my past that fits each of the stereotypes shown. Despite the average presentation I have no reservations adding this film to my collection because the story is outstanding.

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Release Date: August 3, 2010
Studio: Universal

Movie: 9/10
Picture: 6/10
Sound: 6/10

Review System

Source
Oppo BDP-83 Blu-ray player

Display
JVC DLA-RS1 projector
Stewart FireHawk screen (76.5" wide, 16:9)

Electronics
Onkyo Pro PR-SC885 pre/pro
Anthem PVA-7 power amplifier
Panamax M5400PM power conditioner

Speakers
M&K S-150s (L, C, R)
M&K SS-150s (LS, RS, SBL, SBR)
SVS PC-Ultra subwoofer

Cables
Monoprice HDMI cables (source to pre/pro)
Best Deal analog-audio cables
PureLink HDC Fiber Optic HDMI Cable System (15 meters) from pre/pro to projector

Acoustical treatments from GIK Acoustics

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