Thomas J. Norton

Until the introduction of the Mirage M-1 a decade or so ago, all audiophiles knew what dipolar radiation meant. It was an inherent characteristic of flat, planar, enclosure-free speakers in which the rear radiation was 180° out of phase with the front, producing a null at the sides. This null made the spacing from the sidewalls less critical. Beyond this, open-baffle dipole designs attracted a strong following for their unique spatial characteristics and a sound free of cabinet colorations.

<I>Johnny Depp, Orlando Bloom, Geoffrey Rush, Keira Knightley, Jonathan Pryce. Directed by Gore Verbinski. Aspect ratio: 2.35:1 (anamorphic). Two discs. 143 minutes. 2003. Dolby Digital 5.1 (English, French), DTS 5.1. Buena Vista Home Video 002543. PG-13. $29.99.</I>

<I>Elijah Wood, Sean Astin, Ian Mc-Kellen, Viggo Mortensen, Andy Serkis, Cate Blanchett, John Rys-Davies, Orlando Bloom, Billy Boyd, Liv Tyler, Bernard Hill, Christopher Lee, Dominic Monaghan, Hugo Weaving, Miranda Otto, David Wenham, Brad Dourif, Karl Urban. Directed by Peter Jackson. Aspect ratio: 2.35:1 (anamorphic). Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround EX (English), Stereo Surround (English). Two discs. 179 minutes. 2002. New Line Home Entertainment N6355. PG-13. $29.95.</I>

<I>Voices of Albert Brooks, Ellen DeGeneres, Alexander Gould, Willem Dafoe, Geoffrey Rush, Barry Humphries, Austin Pendleton, John Ratzenberger. Directed by Andrew Stanton. Aspect ratio: 1.78:1 (anamorphic), 4:3. Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround EX (English, French, Spanish), THX. Two discs. 100 minutes. 2003. Buena Vista Home Entertainment 3007803. G. $29.99.</I>