BLU-RAY REVIEW

Johnson Family Vacation

Featured In Issue 191, November 2014

Picture5
Sound3.5
WSR Score4
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):
2291967
(MPAA Rating):
PG-13
(Rating Reason):
Some sexual reference, crude humor and brief drug material
(Retail Price):
$16.99
(Disc Type):
Single Side, Dual Layer (BD-50)
(Widescreen Edition):
Yes
(Full Screen Edition):
No
(Running Time In Minutes):
96
(Color Type):
Color
(Chaptered/Scene Access):
Yes
(Closed Captioned):
Yes
(Regional Coding):
A
(Theatrical Year):
2004
(Theatrical Release):
Yes
(Direct-To-Video Release):
No
(Disc Release Date):
03/04/14
(THX® Digitally Mastered):
No
(Director):
Christopher Erskin
(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+ 2.0 Surround, 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):

When the "Johnson Family" goes on "Vacation," the word "togetherness" takes on a whole new meaning. Nate Johnson (Cedric), his estranged wife Dorothy (Williams), son D.J. (Bow Wow), and daughters Nikki (Knowles) and Destiny (Gabby Soleil) begin a cross-country trip in a brand new SUV. Driving from Los Angeles to Missouri, they head for a big family reunion, and Nate does what he can to make things right again with his wife. But he gets much more than he bargained for, as they run into one mishap after another along the way. (Tricia Spears)

Special features include commentary by Cedric the Entertainer, Bow Wow, Director Christopher Erskin, and Producers Eric C. Rhone and Paul Hall; commentary by Writers Todd R. Jones and Earl Richey Jones; and 18 deleted and extended scenes with optional director's commentary.

The 1080p AVC picture, previously reviewed as a DVD in Issue 88, exhibts a bright color palette that is quite pleasing throughout. Hues are nicely saturated with accurate fleshtones and deep blacks. Images are sharp with nicely rendered details and well-balanced contrast and shadow delineation. (Gary Reber)

The DTS-HD Master Audio™ 5.1-channel soundtrack delivers good fidelity and tonality. This soundtrack is a straightforward comedy without many surprises. There is some very effective channel separation during some scenes. Dialogue reproduction is good, although there are some ADR-style qualities. (Gary Reber)