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    • BLU-RAY REVIEW

    Superman Returns

    Featured In Issue 116, January 2007

    Picture4
    Sound5
    WSR Score3
    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):
    Warner Bros
    (Catalog Number):
    81037
    (MPAA Rating):
    PG13
    (Rating Reason):
    For some intense action violence
    (Retail Price):
    $39.99
    (Disc Type):
    Dual Side/Dual Layer (HD DVD30/DVD9)
    (Widescreen Edition):
    Yes
    (Full Screen Edition):
    No
    (Running Time In Minutes):
    154
    (Color Type):
    Color
    (Chaptered/Scene Access):
    Yes
    (Closed Captioned):
    Yes
    (Regional Coding):
    Not Indicated
    (Theatrical Year):
    2006
    (Theatrical Release):
    Yes
    (Direct-To-Video Release):
    No
    (Disc Release Date):
    11/28/06
    (THX® Digitally Mastered):
    No
    (Director):
    Bryan Singer
    (Screenplay/Written By):
    (Story):
    (Music):
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    (Visual Effects):
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    (Supervising Sound Editors):
    (Re-Recording Mixers):
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    (Co-Producers):
    (Producers):
    (Academy Awards):
    (Principal Photography):
    (Theatrical Aspect Ratio):
    (Measured Disc Aspect Ratio):
    (Disc Soundtrack):
    Dolby TrueHD 5.1, Dolby Digital+ 5.1
    (Theatrical Sound):
    (Theatrical Re-Issue Soundtrack):
    (DTS Bit Rate):
    (Dolby Digital Bit Rate):
    (Additional Languages):
    (French Language):
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    (Cantonese Language):
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    "Superman (Routh) Returns" to earth, surprised to find that his old enemy Lex Luthor (Spacey) is out of jail and up to his old tricks. But the Man of Steel gets an even bigger shock when he discovers that not only has his true love, Lois Lane (Bosworth), moved on with her life, but she's got a little surprise of her own in store for him. Based on characters appearing in comic books published by DC Comics. (Tricia Spears)

    There are no supplements on Disc One of this two-disc DVD set. Special features on Disc Two of the DVD (and on the HD DVD) are super, however, and include the documentary Requiem For Krypton: Making Superman Returns, which is available to watch in individual chapters or in its 174-minute entirety; a four-minute reprisal of Marlon Brando's role in the film —Resurrecting Jor-El; 11 deleted scenes; the teaser trailer; the theatrical trailer; the Christopher Reeve Superman Collection trailer; two game trailers; and an up-front ad.

    While the HD DVD and Blu-ray Disc look very good, fine details are not as well resolved as on the best releases. Colors are vibrant, and visual effects match well with the live footage. Differences between the two high-definition formats are difficult to recognize, if there are any at all. (Danny Richelieu)

    The Dolby® Digital 5.1-channel soundtrack is predictably exciting and energetic, with well-placed phantom images around the room and very pleasing fidelity. The surround channels can be delivered at much lower levels, relative to the front channels, than I would like to hear, but in general they are incorporated nicely into the mix. Deep bass is infused into the room well by both the LFE channel and each of the full-range channels, often dropping below 25 Hz in these channels at high levels. This is a very well-crafted soundtrack, but not quite at the level of the greats. The Dolby Digital encoding included with the Blu-ray Disc release has slightly improved fidelity over the DVD release, but it is not as well refined as the Dolby Digital Plus encoding found on the HD DVD release. The lossless Dolby TrueHD encoding is an even greater improvement, with a more smooth, natural response. (Danny Richelieu)

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