Blu-ray Movie Reviews

Chronicling the extraordinary life of Christopher "The Notorious B.I.G." Wallace, "Notorious" follows the young rapper from the tough streets of Brooklyn to the heights of superstardom as he juggles the increasing demands of fatherhood, marriage and a music career. Amid chaos and controversy, Biggie's remarkable talent and fierce determination help to solidify his legacy as one of hip-hop's greatest MCs.

With the success of 8 Mile I figured it was only a matter of time before we started seeing films about the legends of hip hop and the rap scene. Christopher Wallace is one of the tragic tales of the rap community as he was gunned down just before the release of his second album. There was a lot of drama surrounding the circumstances since at the time there was a war raging between the West and East Coast superstars with the spotlights shining on Biggie Smalls and Tupac, who died shortly after from the same type of thing. This film does a surprisingly good job of bringing Wallace’s story to the big screen and the casting of Biggie was incredible. Anyone even remotely interested in the hip hop community or Wallace’s career should give this one a look.

Fox delivers an outstanding HD transfer for this one. Detail is razor sharp and the image has an impressive display of depth and dimension. I loved the rich contrast of the image and the punch colors on display. Rich fine detail is everywhere and the source material looks to be in impeccable shape. An HD gem!

The 5.1 DTS-HD mix is exactly what you think it would be given the story. Lots of hip hop tunes fill the room on this one and the bottom end has plenty of thump. Some of the dialogue sounds a bit muffled but I didn’t find it too distracting. The soundstage really comes alive in the club sequences and the sense of realism on display at times is impressive.

Lots of extras on this release including a digital copy of the film for portable devices. You get a collection of audio commentaries from cast and crew along with friends and family. There are retrospectives on the rapper and his affect on the community and even some footage of the real Biggie Smalls live. Fox includes a BD-Live track playlist option that allows you to create your own playlist and purchase your favorite tracks from the legend. Some deleted scenes and previews are also included.

A far more interesting look into the late rapper’s life than I was expecting, Notorious ends up being a moving look at a rough life. Fox delivers a solid Blu-ray package for this one making it an easy recommendation for fans of the young rapper.