Zodiac

The late 60s and early 70s found the residents of San Francisco and neighboring communities gripped by the cold and calculating mind of a serial killer—a killer who calls himself Zodiac—who is so confident and brazen that he begins sending ciphers to local newspapers, including the San Francisco Chronicle. And there he gets the attention of Robert Graysmith (Gyllenhaal), a puzzle-solving cartoonist. With Boy Scout determination, he enlists the help of Paul Avery (Downey Jr.), a reporter hoping for the big scoop, and they seek to free a city locked in fear. Based on the book by Robert Graysmith. (Jack Kelley)

Special features on Disc One include audio commentary by Director David Fincher and audio commentary by Jake Gyllenhaal, Robert Downey Jr., Brad Fischer, James Vanderbilt, and James Ellroy. Disc Two special features include Zodiac Deciphered—an exhaustive behind-the-scenes documentary on the making of Zodiac (HD 54:15 ); The Visual Effects Of Zodiac (HD 15:18 ); Previsualization—split-screen comparisons between animated and finished film for the three murder sequences (HD 06:30); This Is The Zodiac Speaking—a feature-length documentary covering every aspect of the investigation, including interviews with the original investigators and surviving victims (HD 102:18); and His Name Was Arthur Leigh Allen—the truth about the prime suspect in the Zodiac case from people who knew him and the police who investigated him (HD 42:35); and the
theatrical trailer.

The 2.40:1 1080p AVC picture is far superior to the previously reviewed anamorphically enhanced DVD picture, which generally lacked detail and often had a glowing look with smeared, plugged-up colors. Shadow delineation is well rendered and black levels are deep. The color scheme is stylized to attempt to better match the time period, thus colors are slightly subdued at times. Resolution is generally good throughout with, at times, excellent contrast and well-photographed exterior scenes. Overall, the imagery establishes a period look that is convincing and well suited to the subject matter. (Danny Richelieu/Gary Reber)

The Dolby® TrueHD 5.1-channel soundtrack is an improvement over the DVD's Dolby Digital soundtrack, with finer resolution of low-level sounds. The front soundstage is wide and directionalized with sound effects and the music score. The surround channels are mostly subtle but, at times, used well to build atmosphere. There are many times when the surround channels seem to have been an afterthought in the mix. The LFE channel is not used very frequently, but bass is tight and articulate when presented. While dialogue is conventionally produced, at times, the dialogue is well integrated spatially in the scenes. (Danny Richelieu/Gary Reber)