Blu-ray Movie Reviews

As Holly Kennedy (Hilary Swank) celebrates her 30th birthday, she receives a most unusual gift from her husband, Gerry (Gerard Butler). It's a cake and a recorded message preparing her for the letters she will be receiving over the next few months from him. The kicker is that Gerry recently died from an illness at the tender age of 35, and his passing has ripped Holly's heart apart. With the help of her mother (Kathy Bates) and her two best friends (Lisa Kudrow and Gina Gerson), Holly learns to live without her soul mate.

This film is marketed as a romantic comedy, but it certainly isn't like any other example of the genre I have ever seen. There are scenes that can move you to tears, and the love-story component is well done. My biggest gripe is the long runtime, which clocks in at a bit over two hours.

The VC-1 encode is nothing to get excited about. Colors are inconsistent throughout—some scenes have jaw-dropping visuals and others look lackluster and flat. The best landscapes are the scenes in Ireland, with the lush green countryside coming to life, but the shots in New York's Central Park pale in comparison to similar locations in Disney's Enchanted. Detail is very good in close-ups, but the medium and long shots vary from razor sharp to very soft.

Unlike many Warner Blu-ray titles, which have only a Dolby Digital soundtrack, the studio included a Dolby TrueHD 5.1-channel soundtrack on this one. Unfortunately, the mix itself is typical of the genre—that is, very front-loaded. The surround channels are underutilized, even in some of the bar scenes with lots of crowd noise and live musical acts. Dynamic range in the front channels is good, especially with the musical numbers.

The sparse bonus features include an interview with Cecelia Ahern, who wrote the book on which the movie is based, and a featurette about a silly game played in the movie (both in HD). There are also 12 minutes of deleted scenes and a music video from James Blunt ("Same Mistake"), which are in standard definition.

Although the film drags a bit in the second act, both my wife and I enjoyed it. Holly's experience hits a little close to home, since two of our close friends have lost spouses to cancer, so maybe we were a bit more emotional than the average viewer. Sadly, the presentation leaves a bit to be desired, and it isn't one of the best Blu-ray presentations I've seen, but it is worth a rental.

Release Date: May 6, 2008

Film: 7 out of 10
Picture: 6 out of 10
Sound: 6 out of 10

Review System

Source
Panasonic DMP-BD30

Display
JVC DLA-RS1 projector
Stewart FireHawk screen (76.5" wide, 16:9)

Electronics
Yamaha RX-Z11 AVR
Belkin PF60 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