Blu-ray Movie Reviews

The Book of Eli (Blu-ray)

David Vaughn  |  Jun 10, 2010

Eli (Denzel Washington) walks alone in post-apocalyptic America. He heads west on a mission he doesn't fully understand but knows he must complete. In his backpack is the last copy of a book that could become the wellspring of a revived society or in the wrong hands, the hammer of a despot.

I generally like Washington's films, but I couldn't connect with his character or the story. There's an overabundance of violence (a big turnoff), the screenplay has some inconsistencies, and the ending is very disappointing.

Video Highlights

  • VC-1/1080p encode on a BD-50 disc
  • Limited color range (intentionally) with a dominating brownish hue
  • Excellent detail
  • Deep blacks

Audio Highlights

  • DTS-HD MA 5.1 soundtrack
  • A plethora of seamless pans
  • Realistic sounding gunshots
  • Superb ambience
  • Reference-level dynamics and frequency response

The image is very crisp and has a stark and desolate look in order to show how ravaged the Earth has become. The audio track is amazingly detailed and is one of the best I've heard this year.

Bonus Materials

  • Maximum Movie Mode PIP
  • Focus Points (HD)
  • "A Lost Tale: Billy" (HD)
  • Behind the Story featurettes (HD)
  • The Book of Eli soundtrack featurette (HD)
  • BD-Live enabled
  • DVD & Digital Copy

The first act is a little boring and the action scenes are much too violent for my tastes. By the middle of the film I started to wonder about Eli's quest, but I couldn't connect with any of the characters and found the ending to be unsatisfying. Credit has to be given to the fabulous video encode and reference-quality audio track, but I would hesitate to purchase this without giving it a rental first.

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Release Date: June 15, 2010
Studio: Warner

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

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

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