• Login

    • BLU-RAY REVIEW

    What Just Happened

    Featured In Issue 139, March/April 2009

    Picture4
    Sound4
    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):
    Magnolia Home Entertainment
    (Catalog Number):
    10172
    (MPAA Rating):
    R
    (Rating Reason):
    Language, some violent images, sexual content and some drug material
    (Retail Price):
    $34.98
    (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):
    2008
    (Theatrical Release):
    Yes
    (Direct-To-Video Release):
    No
    (Disc Release Date):
    02/24/09
    (THX® Digitally Mastered):
    No
    (Director):
    Barry Levinson
    (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, 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):

    Based on the book What Just Happened? Bitter Hollywood Tales From The Front Line by veteran Hollywood Producer Art Linson, this film version of What Just Happened follows Ben (De Niro), a producer, desperately trying to save his two films from falling apart while managing the chaos of two marriages that already have. Ben is challenged, to say the least, to survive a treacherous world of backstabbing, greed, and runaway egos—Hollywood. (Gary Reber)

    Special features include audio commentary with Director/Producer Barry Levinson and Writer/ Producer Art Linson, three deleted scenes (HD 07:07), behind the scenes (SD 02:47), 12 casting sessions (SD 26:58), the featurette Making Of What Just Happened: From Book To Script To Screen (HD 23:47), and up-front previews.

    The 2.40:1 1080p AVC picture quality is terrific. The presentation is pristine, with no noticeable noise or other artifacts that distract. The color palette is perfectly natural throughout, with excellent contrast and deep, solid blacks and rich saturated hues. Shadow delineation is also excellent overall, though, at times, a dimly lit editing room and club scenes exhibit crushed blacks and murky shadow details. Fleshtones are perfectly natural. Resolution is generally good, especially in close-up shots, which reveal fine facial expressions and textures. Overall, the picture exhibits a warm, natural color palette that is pleasing to view. (Gary Reber)

    While the soundtrack production is conventional, the recording quality delivered by the lossless DTS-HD Master Audio™ 5.1-channel encoding is superb, especially with respect to the music score. At times the music sounds suspended around the room in a wonderful holosonic® surround envelopment. The soundstage is deep and wide, with excellent phantom imaging all around. Dialogue is virtually all-production sound or ADR-recorded and completely center-channel focused, except for the ceremonial scene, which achieves excellent spatial integration. Still, the dialogue mostly sounds generally well integrated and is always perfectly intelligible. Low-level resolution is good as well, but there is limited LFE .1 bass support. When the LFE channel does kick in, the bass is deep and powerful, extending to below 25 Hz. The music score recording is the distinguishing quality that, at times, is very impressive in fidelity and surround envelopment. (Gary Reber)

    Reason #8 Why Readers Love Widescreen Review:

    Widescreen Review summarizes the information I need to make informed decisions about DVD purchases. My DVD library is growing by leaps and bounds, and it's great to have WSR let me know when I may be disappointed with a disc before I buy it. I also like the new DVD release list to let me know what's ahead. On top of that, reading WSR is a great way to keep abreast of new technologies. Sometimes the interviews with those who bring these technologies to market give more insight into the overall demands and future directions of the market.

    Dan Zucker
    26864 Mandelieu Drive, Murrieta, CA 92562 • Phone: 951 676 4914 • Fax: 951 693 2960
    Copyright © Information • All Rights Reserved • www.widescreenreview.com • Web Site Established In 1995 • Privacy Policy • Partners