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    • BLU-RAY REVIEW

    Appleseed: Ex Machina

    Featured In Issue 130, April 2008

    Picture4
    SoundNR
    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 Home Video
    (Catalog Number):
    1000027471
    (MPAA Rating):
    PG-13
    (Rating Reason):
    Action/violence and brief strong language
    (Retail Price):
    $34.99
    (Disc Type):
    Single Side, Single Layer (BD-25)
    (Widescreen Edition):
    Yes
    (Full Screen Edition):
    No
    (Running Time In Minutes):
    104
    (Color Type):
    Color
    (Chaptered/Scene Access):
    Yes
    (Closed Captioned):
    Yes
    (Regional Coding):
    Not Indicated
    (Theatrical Year):
    2007
    (Theatrical Release):
    Yes
    (Direct-To-Video Release):
    No
    (Disc Release Date):
    03/11/08
    (THX® Digitally Mastered):
    No
    (Director):
    Shinji Aramaki
    (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):

    "Ex Machina" is the second installment in the "Appleseed" animé series. Deunan (Christian) and her cyborg partner and boyfriend Briareos (Matranga) are members of the elite force, ESWAT, serving and protecting the citizens of Olympus. Deunan and Braireos find their partnership tested in a new way when Tereus (Guardiola) arrives, bearing an uncanny resemblance to Briareos before his wartime injuries, which led to him becoming a Cyborg. Based on the Seishinsha comic book by Shirow Masamune. (Stacey Pendry)

    Special features include the 20-minute The Appleseed Chronicles, 19-minute East Meets West, 16-minute Team Up: John Woo and Shinji Aramaki, and 19-minute Revolution: Animating Ex Machina featurettes; a feature commentary track;and previews.

    The anamorphically enhanced 1.78:1 DVD shows a believable sense of depth, with very nicely crafted animation that, while not completely realistic in its color scheme, looks believable. Black levels are not as deep as they could be, which can give the image a somewhat hazy appearance, but shadow delineation is nicely rendered. Resolution is generally impressive, and compression artifacts are not problematic. Moiré patterns can be recognized from time to time, and while edge enhancement is noticeable, it isn't overly distracting. The VC-1-encoded Blu-ray Disc shows better resolution, as expected, but black levels are still limited, which is the major issue of this release. But, resolution still is not as impressive as the best live-action films transferred to high-definition. (Danny Richelieu)

    The English and Japanese language Dolby® Digital 5.1-channel soundtracks feature a very lively mix, with each of the channels incorporated nicely. Pans between each channel pair are crafted well, helping create a believable soundstage. Subtle atmospheric effects are delivered well, creating an expansive sense of atmosphere in even the most quiescent scenes. Deep bass is delivered well with the LFE channel at times, but it is rarely present in the full-range channels with much bravado. Voices are recorded well, but the entire soundtrack can have a somewhat bright timbre. The Blu-ray Disc includes the same encodings as the DVD, sounding somewhat bright but with the same engaging mix. It would have been preferred to hear one of the lossless codecs used. (Danny Richelieu)

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