Bolt 3D

Bolt (Travolta) is the star of the biggest show in Hollywood. The only problem is, he thinks the whole thing is real. When the super dog is accidentally shipped to New York City and separated from Penny (Cyrus), his beloved co-star and owner, Bolt, springs into action to find his way home. Together with his hilarious new sidekicks Rhino (Walton)—Bolt's #1 Fan—and a street-smart cat named Mittens (Essman), Bolt sets off on an amazing journey where he discovers he doesn't need super powers to be a hero. (Gary Reber)

Special features include a bonus short: Super Rhino (HD 04:27); two deleted scenes with introduction by Directors Chris Williams and Byron Howard (HD 06:37); "In Session: John Travolta and Miley Cyrus" (HD 0:59); their "I Thought I Lost You" music video (HD 01:47); "Bolt's Be-Awesome Mission" (HD), which is an interactive game; A New Breed Of Directors: The Filmmakers' Journey (HD 04:34); Act, Speak! The Voices Of Bolt (HD 09:48); Creating The World Of Bolt (HD 06:45); art galleries, showcasing the art and animation technique; D-BOX® Motion Code™, sneak peeks, and up-front ads. The four-disc set includes a Blu-ray™ 3D, a Blu-ray Disc™, a DVD, and a digital copy.

As with the initial 2-D Blu-ray Disc release reviewed in Issue 140, the 3-D 1.84:1 1080p MVC picture is a wonderfully warm, colorful, animated rendering that exhibits a painted appearance within which the animated characters are seen. The resolution is so incredible that you can actually see the CG brush strokes in the background textures. Contrast is well balanced, with excellent natural lighting effects and shadow delineation. The animated articulation differentiates Bolt's television world and the real world he finds himself in. While the animation appeared very dimensional in the 2-D version, the 3-D version excels and is the preferred experience. This is an exceptionally fine animated rendering, with superb color fidelity that appears natural, yet exhibits vibrant hues and deep blacks. Shadow delineation is terrific, revealing fine texture details. Resolution is excellent, revealing every hair on Bolt's coat and fine details in the animated characters and textures. This is a fascinating picture, with exceptional resolution and color fidelity. As for the 3-D qualities, depth dimensionality is excellent. The negative parallax and positive parallax perspectives are effectively rendered to enhance the sense of dimension. All sorts of action leaps from the screen into your lap, yet depth perspective is convincingly realistic in both the foreground and background. Virtually no crosstalk or ghosting is evident, for an essentially artifact-free presentation. Bolt looks terrific in 3D and is sure to mesmerize every family member. (Gary Reber)

While the soundtrack reviewed in Issue 140 was credited as a DTS-HD Master Audio™ 5.1-channel production, it actually was presented in 6.1-channel lossless. The 3-D release is encoded in the lossless DTS® 5.1-channel format. The sound is exceptionally dynamic, with a solid bass foundation that often extends to below 25 Hz, with powerful intensity. The soundfield is very often holosonically® enveloping, with aggressive directionalized surrounds and pans. The music score is beautifully recorded, with a very wide and deep soundstage and perfectly clear differentiation of instrumental timbre. Low-level sound effects, atmospheric effects, and Foley are nicely produced and create a wonderful sonic experience, with plenty of transient impact. The dialogue, while well recorded and perfectly intelligible, is ADR produced and wanting in spatial integration. Dialogue generally sounds forward and disconnected from the visuals. Unfortunately, the D-BOX Motion Code is not present on the 3-D version but retained on the 2-D version. When engaged it dramatically enhances the visceral effect with motion during pans and zooms. This is an outstanding and exciting soundtrack that delivers effective sound effects and powerful dynamics, along with an expansive music score that delivers a real sonic thrill ride. (Gary Reber)