BLU-RAY REVIEW

Stargate Continuum

Featured In Issue 134, September 2008

Picture3
Sound4
WSR Score3.5
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):
MGM Home Entertainment
(Catalog Number):
2253899
(MPAA Rating):
Not Rated
(Rating Reason):
(Retail Price):
$39.98
(Disc Type):
Single Side, Single Layer (BD-25)
(Widescreen Edition):
Yes
(Full Screen Edition):
No
(Running Time In Minutes):
99
(Color Type):
Color
(Chaptered/Scene Access):
Yes
(Closed Captioned):
Yes
(Regional Coding):
A
(Theatrical Year):
2008
(Theatrical Release):
No
(Direct-To-Video Release):
Yes
(Disc Release Date):
07/29/08
(THX® Digitally Mastered):
No
(Director):
Martin Wood
(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):
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):

In Stargate Continuum, the crew of SG-1 attends the execution of Ba'al (Simon), the last of the Goa'uld System Lords, when Teal'c (Judge) and Vala (Black) inexplicably disappear into thin air. An elite military unit consisting of Carter (Tapping), Jackson (Shanks), and Mitchell (Browder) race back to Earth only to find that history has been changed, and the Stargate Program has never existed. Now it is up to the earthbound members of SG-1 to find an answer to the mystery of who altered the Earth's timeline and why they did it. (Stacey Pendry)

Special features include a feature commentary track by Writer Brad Wright and Director Martin Wood; the following featurettes: The Making Of Stargate Continuum (23 minutes), Stargate Goes To The Arctic (22 minutes), and The Layman's Guide To Travel (nine minutes); and additional previews.

The anamorphically enhanced 1.78:1 DVD shows fair resolution, but the images do look rather soft. Fleshtones appear to be sunburnt, but different hues are distinct. Colors are saturated well. Black levels are elevated slightly and near-black shadows are crushed. Heavy grain is noticeable throughout, but in darker scenes it is very heavy. Occasional source element artifacts are recognizable as well. Edge enhancement can be recognized, but it is only a distraction on high-contrast transitions. The H.264 AVC-encoded Blu-ray Disc appears slightly soft, and shadows appear more crushed than in the DVD. Noise is visible in the darker scenes as well. (Danny Richelieu)

The DVD's Dolby® Digital 5.1-channel soundtrack features a good mix, using each of the available channels, but there are too many times when the surrounds are completely ignored. The LFE channel is used frequently, dropping down below 40 Hz with authority. While the bass is fairly tight and well controlled, it is somewhat slow, missing the pace of the music and action. Phantom imaging is impressive across the front but limited elsewhere. Dialogue generally sounds natural, but it can be lost in the louder scenes. Shuffling distortion is audible throughout, and the noise floor is relatively high. The Blu-ray Disc's lossless DTS-HD Master Audio™ encoding improves upon the fidelity, with better articulation and quicker bass. Distortions are still audible, but dynamic range is also improved. (Danny Richelieu)