Blu-ray Movie Reviews

After being killed by a suicide bomber in an overseas nightclub, Matt (Tahmoh Penikett) awakes on a mysterious planet populated by other resurrected Earthlings from across history. Determined to find the woman he loves (Laura Vandervoort), he joins forces with a 13th century female warrior (Jeananne Goossen) and riverboat captain Mark Twain (Mark Deklin) as they travel the mysterious waterways of the planet in search of lost love and some answers about the peculiar planet.

Based on a series of novels written by Phillip Jose Farmer, Riverworld had the potential to be a very entertaining sci-fi show. Sadly the excellent first act is wasted with a meandering story that drags through its nearly three-hour runtime. By the final hour I was bored with the characters and couldn't wait for the predictable ending to finally arrive.

Video Highlights

• VC-1/1080p encode on a BD-50 disc
• Occasional banding
• Decent black levels
• Poor special effects
• Above-average detail

Audio Highlights

• DTS-HD MA 5.1 soundtrack
• Front-loaded presentation
• Intelligible dialog
• Inadequate LFE

I'm usually more critical of a movie I didn't like and that's the case here. The video presentation is serviceable for a cable TV production but the audio pales in comparison to a show like Lost and Battlestar Galactica with tepid dynamics and lack of surround envelopment.

Bonus Materials

• Behind the Scenes with Alan Cumming
• Riverworld trailer

I've been longing for a great sci-fi experience to come along and this looked very promising. Unfortunately it couldn't deliver much entertainment because of its drawn-out subpar screenplay. Skip it.

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Release Date: June 22, 2010
Studio: Universal / Vivendi

Movie: 3/10
Picture: 8/10
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