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    • BLU-RAY REVIEW

    Stardust

    Featured In Issue 128, February 2008

    Picture4.5
    SoundNR
    WSR Score4
    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):
    Paramount Home Entertainment
    (Catalog Number):
    13174
    (MPAA Rating):
    PG-13
    (Rating Reason):
    For fantasy violence and some risque humor
    (Retail Price):
    $39.99
    (Disc Type):
    Single Side, Dual Layer (HD-30)
    (Widescreen Edition):
    Yes
    (Full Screen Edition):
    No
    (Running Time In Minutes):
    127
    (Color Type):
    Color
    (Chaptered/Scene Access):
    Yes
    (Closed Captioned):
    No
    (Regional Coding):
    A, B & C
    (Theatrical Year):
    2007
    (Theatrical Release):
    Yes
    (Direct-To-Video Release):
    No
    (Disc Release Date):
    12/18/07
    (THX® Digitally Mastered):
    No
    (Director):
    Matthew Vaughn
    (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
    (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):

    In hopes of winning the heart of Victoria (Miller), the fairest girl in the village, Tristan (Cox) promises to retrieve for her a fallen star. The adventure begins when Tristan finds the Stardust he had been looking for is actually a celestial beauty named Yvaine (Danes), who was knocked down to Earth from the Heavens. Tristan vows to protect his new luminous friend from a wicked witch named Lamia (Pfeiffer), who wants to capture Yvaine to steal her youth and beauty. Based on the novel by Neil Gaiman and illustrated by Charles Vess. (Stacey Pendry)

    Special features include up-front previews, Good Omens: The Making Of Stardust (30 minutes), five deleted scenes, a five-minute blooper reel, the original theatrical trailer for this movie, and previews from five additional films.

    The anamorphically enhanced 2.40:1 DVD exhibits a bright picture, with whites that can bloom. Resolution is good, and the picture can be quite detailed at times. Other times, however, the image can be soft and unrefined. Black levels are adequately deep, and shadow delineation is nicely rendered. Colors are somewhat undersaturated, but fleshtones have a natural appearance. Spurious noise can be noticed from time to time, and edge enhancement is so minor that it rarely becomes noticeable. The H.264 AVC-encoded HD DVD has a harsh look with relatively poor definition. Whites can still reach blooming and flesh generally looks plugged up and pasty. Black levels are deep, and shadow delineation is good. (Danny Richelieu)

    The Dolby® Digital 5.1-channel soundtrack has a lively, energetic mix that incorporates each of the full-range channels with vigor. Even in the most quiet scenes, the corner channels are used well with atmospheric effects, creating a detailed soundfield. Dynamic range is good, but not quite at the level of the best releases. Music is mixed well around the room, and fidelity is generally quite good in this regard. Effects are similarly mixed nicely using each of the available channels, with good phantom imaging around the room. The soundtrack is not perfect, but it is very enjoyable. The HD DVD's Dolby Digital Plus encoding sounds nearly identical to the DVD's encoding, with only a very subtle increase in fidelity. (Danny Richelieu)

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    Mike Koubeck
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