Shutter

Newlyweds Ben (Jackson) and Jane (Taylor) are packing their bags and heading for Japan, where Ben has a new assignment as a fashion photographer. Hoping to sneak in a few days of honeymoon bliss before Ben starts his new job, he and Jane plan to visit a remote cabin outside of Tokyo. Jane, who has become lost driving to the cabin, hits a girl standing in the middle of the road, which causes the couple's car to careen off the road and knocks them unconscious. When they regain consciousness, they search the road for any sign of the injured girl, but cannot find even a single drop of blood. Now strange apparitions are showing up in Ben's photographs suggesting a fault with the Shutter or lens of the camera. When no explanation can be found, Jane begins to reexamine the man she married. (Stacey Pendry)

Special features include a commentary track by cast and crew; the following featurettes: A Ghost In The Lens (eight minutes), A Cultural Divide: Shooting In Japan (nine minutes), The Director: Masayuki Ochiai (ten minutes), A Conversation With Luke Dawson (six minutes), A History Of Spirit Photography (five minutes), Create Your Own Phantom Photo (four minutes), and The Hunt For The Haunt: Tools And Tips For Ghost Hunting (three minutes); 11 alternate/deleted scenes; and previews.

The anamorphically enhanced 1.83:1 DVD exhibits a sharp picture, with fine details nicely preserved. Black levels are fairly inconsistent, but they can be deep. Shadow delineation is nicely rendered though. The picture can be noticeably noisy in many black scenes, but it is generally clean. The color scheme is wide and saturated well. Contrast is balanced nicely, but fleshtones have a sickly, greenish hue. Compression artifacts are minor and not overly distracting, and edge enhancement isn't overly noticeable. The H.264 AVC-encoded Blu-ray Disc is relatively soft, with minor compression artifacts noticeable at times. Black levels are deep, though, and shadows are rendered well. (Danny Richelieu)

The DVD's Dolby® Digital 5.1-channel soundtrack can favor the front three screen channels, but there are times when it is quite engaging, with nicely crafted pans and good phantom imaging. The LFE channel is incorporated well to build suspense, and the hard-hitting bass is quick and tight. Dialogue generally sounds pristine, as does the rest of the soundtrack, but there are times when it can sound distorted. Dynamic range is very good and channel separation is solid, leaving an enjoyable experience. The Blu-ray Disc's lossless DTS-HD Master Audio encoding improves on the dynamic range noticeably, sounding more natural and visceral. Fidelity across the board is also improved, with better articulation and crispness. (Danny Richelieu)