BLU-RAY REVIEW

Crazy Heart

Featured In Issue 148, May/June 2010

Picture4
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):
20th Century Fox Home Entertainment
(Catalog Number):
2266596
(MPAA Rating):
R
(Rating Reason):
Language and brief sexuality
(Retail Price):
$39.99
(Disc Type):
Single Side, Dual Layer (BD-50)
(Widescreen Edition):
Yes
(Full Screen Edition):
No
(Running Time In Minutes):
111
(Color Type):
Color
(Chaptered/Scene Access):
Yes
(Closed Captioned):
Yes
(Regional Coding):
A
(Theatrical Year):
2009
(Theatrical Release):
Yes
(Direct-To-Video Release):
No
(Disc Release Date):
04/20/10
(THX® Digitally Mastered):
No
(Director):
Scott Cooper
(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):

"Crazy Heart" is the powerful story of a country music star's rocky road to redemption. Bad Blake (Bridges) is a boozy, broken-down singer who reaches for salvation with the help of Jean (Gyllenhaal), a journalist who discovers the real man behind the music. Based on the novel by Thomas Cobb. (Gary Reber)

Special features include ten deleted scenes and alternate music cuts (SD 28:22), "Jeff Bridges, Maggie Gyllenhaal and Robert Duvall On What Brought Them To Crazy Heart" (HD 03:02), the theatrical trailer, up-front previews, and a digital copy of the film.

The 1080p 2.36:1 AVC picture exhibits a raw, rugged, natural look with a generally dark overcast character. Colors are richly and warmly hued throughout. Fleshtones are accurately rendered and are unflattering. Contrast is generally balanced with revealing shadow delineation, especially evident in the night club scenes. This is best viewed in a darkened environment, preferably a black room, to optimize the shadowy darkness of numerous scenes. Resolution is excellent and revealing of fine facial features and object textures, especially during close-ups. Blacks are deep and solid. The picture delivers a cinematic canvas that conveys a lot of visual emotion. The imagery really smokes with country attitude! (Gary Reber)

The DTS-HD Master Audio™ 5.1-channel soundtrack is essentially a monaural experience, with the exception of the music, which projects wide and deep and expansive. Surround energy during music performances is aggressively enveloping and transforms an otherwise monaural experience. Still, dialogue is nicely integrated spatially. If you are a country music fan, the soundtrack delivers. (Gary Reber)