Blu-ray Movie Reviews

Newly elected President Mandela (Morgan Freeman) believes he can bring his racially and economically divided people together by rallying behind the country's rugby team. He partners with the captain (Matt Damon) of the underdog team as they make an unlikely run in the 1995 World Cup.

Clint Eastwood is one of my favorite directors in the past 20 years but sadly Invictus isn't one of his better efforts. Freeman and Damon are very good and deserved their Academy Award nominations, but the screenplay lacks any emotion or tension and the rugby scenes are so poorly shot they are almost unwatchable—thank God for the fast-forward button.

Video Highlights

• AVC/1080p encode on a BD-50 disc
• Excellent contrast
• Warm color palette
• Lifelike flesh tones
• Exquisite detail

Audio Highlights

• DTS-HD MA 5.1 soundtrack
• Dialog-heavy production
• Occasional panning effects
• Rugby matches encompass the room
• Crisp dynamics and adequate LFE

This is a gorgeous film-like presentation of an otherwise boring film. The audio track is serviceable and delivers the message with little fanfare.

Bonus Materials

• PIP Track
• Mandela Meets Morgan (HD)
• The Eastwood Factor (SD)
• Invictus Music Trailer
• BD Live Enabled

Normally I'm a sucker for inspirational sports stories, but I didn't connect with Eastwood's latest effort despite the fine performances by the two leads. The editing is very clunky and the slow pacing is quite annoying, especially the Rugby matches. On the plus side the video encode is outstanding and is worth a rental to experience firsthand.

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Release Date: May 18, 2010
Studio: Warner

Movie: 5/10
Picture: 9/10
Sound: 8/10

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