BLU-RAY REVIEW

My Way

Featured In Issue 169, September 2012

Picture4.5
Sound5
WSR Score5
Basic Information on new release titles is posted as soon as titles are announced. Once reviewed, additional data is added to the database.
(Studio/Distributor):
Well Go USA
(Catalog Number):
WGU01282B
(MPAA Rating):
R
(Rating Reason):
Intense realistically graphic scenes of war and violence
(Retail Price):
$29.98
(Disc Type):
Single Side, Dual Layer (BD-50)
(Widescreen Edition):
Yes
(Full Screen Edition):
No
(Running Time In Minutes):
143
(Color Type):
Color
(Chaptered/Scene Access):
Yes
(Closed Captioned):
Yes
(Regional Coding):
A
(Theatrical Year):
2011
(Theatrical Release):
Yes
(Direct-To-Video Release):
No
(Disc Release Date):
07/24/12
(THX® Digitally Mastered):
No
(Director):
Kang Je-Kyu
(Screenplay/Written By):
(Story):
(Music):
(Director Of Photography):
(Production Designer):
(Visual Effects):
(Costume Designer):
(Editor):
(Supervising Sound Editors):
(Re-Recording Mixers):
(Executive Producers):
(Co-Producers):
(Producers):
(Academy Awards):
(Principal Photography):
(Theatrical Aspect Ratio):
(Measured Disc Aspect Ratio):
(Disc Soundtrack):
Dolby Digital 5.1, DTS HD Lossless 5.1
(Theatrical Sound):
(Theatrical Re-Issue Soundtrack):
(DTS Bit Rate):
(Dolby Digital Bit Rate):
(Additional Languages):
(French Language):
(Spanish Language):
(Chinese Language):
(Subtitles):
(Cantonese Language):
(Mandarin Language):
(Japanese Language):
(Italian Language):
(German Language):
(Portuguese Language):

My Way is a story of war. After emerging as bitter rivals and enemies as young marathon Olympic runners, Korean native Kim Jun-shik (Dong-Gun) and Japanese aristocrat Tatsuo Hasegawa (Odagiri) both find themselves in the Japanese army, fighting the Chinese and Soviets in a bloody battle. Jun-shik is there under duress, while Tatsuo is a powerful colonel. After both are taken prisoner by the Soviets, their mutual hatred and mistrust boils over into a violence that is only stooped by the continuing horror of the war. Forced to fight for the Soviets, the two eventually rely on each other for survival, making it to Germany, where they are in turn separated and forced to fight for the Nazis. They meet again at Normandy Beach, both unlikely survivors, bonded together by history as they struggle to survive one more terrible battle as the Allies arrive on D-Day. (Gary Reber)

Special features include a making-of featurette (HD 09:03), an interview with Jang Dong-Gun and Director Kang Je-Kyu (HD 05:52), the theatrical trailer, a home video trailer, an international trailer, and up-front previews.

The 2.35:1 1080p AVC picture is sweeping in its epic scope, but contrast is in some scenes pushed with blown-out whites and grayish blacks. But other scenes are nicely balanced with deep blacks and shadow delineation. Colors are never exaggerated, with natural-appearing hues. Fleshtones tend to be naturally hued as well. Resolution is excellent, especially during close-ups of facial features, hair, clothing, and object texture. While scene-to-scene inconsistencies are the rule, the overall epic style of the picture is engaging. (Gary Reber)

The DTS-HD Master Audio™ 5.1-channel soundtrack is dynamic sounding throughout, with the Korean language version preferred, though, it does require the ability to read subtitles fast, which tends to take you out of the story. The English language version is acceptable but dialogue, as expected, is ADR and lacking in spatial delineation. Impressive is the extent of atmospherics, sound effects, and Foley. These elements are divergent, depending on the scene, from reserved, subtle quiet scenes to intense battle scenes and as such contributes to the aggressively spatial envelopment, which dominates the surrounds. The battle scenes are particularly aggressively directional and intense. The holosonic® effect is emotionally charged. Deep bass .1 LFE energy is effective in enhancing the war scenes. The orchestral/choral music score provides emotional support throughout. The music is recorded with a wide and deep soundstage presence that extends to the surrounds. This is a sweeping soundtrack experience that effectively heightens the epic storytelling. (Gary Reber)