Blu-ray Movie Reviews

<I>Voices of Rowan Atkinson, Matthew Broderick, Whoopi Goldberg, Robert Guillaume, Jeremy Irons, James Earl Jones, Nathan Lane, Ernie Sabella. Directed by Rob Minkoff and Roger Allers. Aspect ratio: 1.66:1 (anamorphic). Two discs. Dolby Digital 5.1 (English, French), 5.1 Disney Enhanced Home Theater Mix (English), THX. 88 minutes. 1994. Walt Disney Vista Home Entertainment 62971. G. $29.99.</I>

<I>Arnold Schwarzenegger, Linda Hamilton, Robert Patrick, Edward Furlong, Joe Morton. Directed by James Cameron. Aspect ratio: 2.35:1 (anamorphic). THX, Dolby Digital 5.1 EX, Dolby Headphone. Two discs. 152 minutes. 1991. Artisan Home Entertainment 14638. R. $29.98.</I>

<I>Ren&#233;e Zellweger, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Richard Gere, Queen Latifah, John C. Reilly. Directed by Rob Marshall. Aspect ratio: 1.85:1 (anamorphic). Dolby Digital 5.1, DTS 5.1 (English), Dolby Digital 5.1 (French). 113 minutes. 2002. Buena Vista Home Video. 45510. PG-13. $24.99</I>

Ah, crime and punishment. They go together like . . . Leopold and Loeb, Donny and Marie, Rimsky and Korsakov. Except, of course, in the movies or on TV, when folks sometimes get away with murder (think Body Heat or The Player).

<I>William L. Petersen, Marg Helgenberger, Gary Dourdan, George Eads, Jorja Fox, Eric Szmanda, Robert David Hall, Paul Guilfoyle. Various directors. Aspect ratio: 4:3 (full frame). Dolby Digital 2.0. Six discs. 999 minutes. 2000. Paramount/CBS Video 87165. NR. $89.99.</I>

<I>Jack Nicholson, Kathy Bates, Dermott Mulroney, Hope Davis, June Squibb, Len Cariou, Howard Hessman. Directed by Alexander Payne. Aspect ratio: 1.85:1 (anamorphic). Dolby Digital 5.1, DTS 5.1, Dolby Surround 2.0 (English). 125 minutes. 2002. Warner Home Video 39524. R. $27.98.</I>

The following reviews appeared as "Reference DVD" features in the Movies section of Sound & Vision. Out of the 22 discs chosen for their exceptional audio and video from September 2000 through July/August 2003, I consider these five the standouts. BLUE CRUSH Universal