Blu-ray Movie Reviews

Aspiring record company exec Aaron Green (Jonah Hill) has the brilliant idea of rejuvenating the career of fading British rock star Aldous Snow (Russell Brand) with a comeback concert at the world-renowned Greek Theater in Los Angeles. Dispatched by his boss (Sean Combs) to transport the notoriously dissolute Snow from London to L.A., Aaron has just 72 hours to get the out-of-control rocker across the Atlantic.

Here we go again, another popular Judd Apatow production that I didn't find the least bit funny. Brand's character is annoying as hell and I was checking my watch after the first fifteen minutes—never a good sign. I did find Combs' role amusing, but maybe I'm getting too old to appreciate this brand of comedy.

Video Highlights

• AVC/1080p encode on a BD-50 disc
• Excellent fine detail
• Slightly crushed blacks
• Accurate color saturation

Audio Highlights

• DTS-HD MA 5.1 soundtrack
• Engaging surround track
• Well-placed discrete effects
• Very low noise floor
• Ample bass, especially during the musical sequences

The video presentation is mostly solid with the exception of the crushed blacks and challenged shadow detail. The audio is surprisingly good given the genre of the film and it features a very engaging surround track.

Bonus Materials

• Feature Commentary
• Rated and Unrated versions of the film
• Three making-of featurettes
• 5 music videos
• BD-Live access including Pocket Blu, Mobile-To-Go, Social Blu, and instant access to stream 3 bonus movies (Uncle Buck, Dazed and Confused, or and Life)
• Second DVD including Digital Copy & more bonus features

If you're a fan of Apatow's other films, you'll probably enjoy this more than I did. I found the Brand's character much too obnoxious for my taste and if it wasn't for the superlative DTS-HD MA soundtrack I doubt I could have made it all the way through the nearly two hour runtime.

Release Date: September 28, 2010
Studio: Universal

Movie: 4/10
Picture: 8/10
Sound: 9/10

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