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Shine A Light (Blu-ray) Official AVSForum Review

5K views 6 replies 5 participants last post by  musicfann 
#1 ·


The Review at a Glance: (max score: 5 )

Film:


Extras:


Audio/Video total rating:

( Max score: 100 )

86






Studio and Year: Paramount - 2008
MPAA Rating: PG-13
Feature running time: 121 Minutes
Genre: Music/Concert

Disc Format: BD-50
Encoding: MPEG-4 (AVC)
Video Aspect: 1.85:1
Resolution: 1080p/24


Audio Format(s): English DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio, Dolby TrueHD 5.1, English 2.0 PCM
Subtitles: English, English SDH, Spanish, French
Starring: Mick Jagger, Ronnie Wood, Charlie Watts, Keith Richards, Christina Aguilera, Jack White III, Buddy Guy
Directed by: Martin Scorsese
Music by: The Rolling Stones
Director of photography: Robert Richardson
Region Code: A

Blu-ray Disc release Date: July 29, 2008







"Ladies and gentlemen I give you The Rolling Stones"



Film Synopsis:




Academy Award-winning filmmaker Martin Scorsese and the world's greatest rock n' roll band, The Rolling Stones, unite to bring audiences the year's most extraordinary film event, Shine A Light. With special appearances by Christina Aguilera, Jack White and Buddy Guy, and four Rolling Stones performances not seen in theaters, Shine A Light is a must-own for rock n' roll fans across generations.



My Take:


I have never really been a fan of The Stones although I appreciate their contributions to Rock and Roll and the music industry as a whole. I am familiar with a good portion of their material and enjoyed (for the most) what I recognized from this performance. I spent a number of years as a drummer in a local band and can appreciate the bands musical chops. Everyone looks quite old and Mick is slowing down in his advancing years. His attempt to bump and grind on stage with the very young, talented, and beautiful Christina Aguilera was almost embarrassing. Buddy Guy was truly impressive along with Keith in their rendition of Muddy Water's Champagne and reefer. There were quite a few archival interviews of the band spliced in which I found entertaining. I could have done without the whole Bill/Hilary Clinton and friends portion of the film although I liked Bills introduction of the band before the start of the concert. I got a kick out of Martin Scorsese in the pre-concert footage. His attempts to get a hold of the concert set list just tickled me for some reason. The funny part is that he finally gets it about 30 seconds before the concert's first song begins. The concert itself was fine although not my cup of tea. I am sure that fans will be thrilled with the opportunity to see The Stone's in this venue.




Parental Guide:


The rating is for brief strong language, drug references, and smoking.





AUDIO/VIDEO - By The Numbers:
REFERENCE = 92-100 / EXCELLENT = 83-91 / GOOD = 74-82 / AVERAGE = 65-73 / BELOW AVERAGE = under 65

**My audio/video ratings are based upon a comparative made against other high definition media/blu-ray disc.**


(Each rating is worth 4 points with a max of 5 per category)


Audio: 84


  • Dynamics:

  • Low frequency extension:

  • Surround Sound presentation:

  • Clarity/Detail:

  • Dialogue Reproduction:





Video: 84


(Each rating is worth 4 points with a max of 5 per category)

  • Resolution/Clarity:

  • Black level/Shadow detail:

  • Color reproduction:

  • Fleshtones:

  • Compression:

Shine a light comes to Blu-ray Disc from Paramount featuring 1080p AVC encoded video with an average bitrate of 30 mbps and lossless DTS-HD Master Audio and Dolby TrueHD 5.1 channel audio that have average bitrates of 4.3 mbps and 3.7 mbps respectively. An uncompressed 2.0 PCM track is included as well however I did not evaluate it during this review.

Being a concert one would hope for great sound from this lossless audio mix and I am happy to report that is exactly what was presented. I switched back and forth between the DTS-HD MA and Dolby TrueHD audio tracks and found that both sounded excellent. The DTS-HD MA audio might have a bit more presence (after matching the outputs) in the upper octaves but the differences if any would not be measurable. The mix did an outstanding job of proper placement of the musicians within the front soundstage. Surround sound activity followed the camera and helped to create the feeling of being in the wide open space of the Beacon Theater as the sounds of the cheering audience and reverberated music filled the rear sound field. Instrumentation was cleanly reproduced with superb clarity and dynamic impact. The mix didn't contain any deep sub bass frequencies but neither did the music. Bass was punchy, tight and quick with solid depth.

The video presentation had an intentional look to it that had the Scorsese signature all over it. Black and white film was used for a good portion of the pre-concert footage. Grain and high contrast was used to create a very distinct look which was quite interesting and seemed to be apropos. The video moved in and out of this and went to a more conventional style which utilized fairly natural looking colors and flesh tones. Noise was visible within the image and fine details were not readily apparent. Blacks were deep with a slight crushing effect. Once the concert got underway the image took on more of a three dimensional quality with clean lines, sharper detail and richer colors. I think that Scorsese did an outstanding job with this. I loved the camera work and his decision to give the video segments more defining style.



Bonus Features:




The bonus features include a 16 minute behind the scenes look and four additional concert songs which were not included in the original release of the film. Fans will appreciate this more than most.


  • (HD) Four bonus songs not featured in the original film release

  • Undercover of the night, Paint it black, Little T&A and I'm free

  • (HD)Behind the scenes featurette





Final Thoughts:




The Rolling Stones are Rock and Roll icons and this film is a fitting testimonial to their staying power. It has been skillfully helmed by Martin Scorsese and features excellent audio and very good video quality on high definition Blu-ray. Fans will want to run out and add this to their collection.













Ralph Potts
AVS Forum Blu-ray Reviews





Reference Review System:



JVC DLA-RS1x 1080p High Definition Front Projector

Carada Precision Brilliant White 96" Screen

Oppo 970HD universal disc DVD Player (480i HDMI)

Toshiba HD-XA2 HD DVD Player (HDMI Audio/Video)

Panasonic DMP-BD30 Blu-ray disc Player (HDMI Audio/Video)

Sony Playstation 3 Blu-ray disc Player (HDMI Audio/Video)

Marantz DV7001 Universal Disc Player

Denon AVR 5308CI THX Ultra 2 Preamp/Video Processor

Outlaw Audio Model 7700 seven channel amplifier

B&K Reference 200.7 Series 2 seven Channel amplifier

Canton "Ergo" Series speakers

Axiom Audio QS8 Quadpolar speakers

SV Sound PB-13 Ultra (Rosenut finish)

APC AV S15BLK Power Conditioner/Surge Protector

Wireworld, VizionWare, Audioquest, Best Deal Cables - Audio/Video/Speaker Cabling

Cool Components - CP-CP102 cooling package
 
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14
#2 ·
Hi Ralph,


Let me begin by saying that I am a hugh Rolling Stones fan and avid collector of their music as well as attending two different concerts. I saw this at Blockbuster and said what the heck...


First, the movie should be re-titled to "PLEASE DON'T Shine a Light on me" or "Dead Men Walking". Keith Richards looks like a bad Salvador Dali painting. This is what a heroin addition does to you. I really believe he is already dead and since he has involuntary movements of his arms, the rest of the band assumes he is still alive. Mick is not much better. Ron Wood has always looked like something from the mind of Andy Warhol.


This title has both DD True HD & DTS-MA available and both soundtracks are way, way below other current release titles. I listened to my 4 favorite songs and couldn't take it. If Scorsese gave me one more close up, I was afraid I would vomit. When "Sympathy for the Devil" started I honestly thought my sub-woofers were off, everything sounded thin and unnatural. Nope, this really was nails down a chalkboard to my ears. Whatever was coming out of Mick's mouth wasn't a pleasant sound.


I could go on and on. This is by far the worst sounding Blu-ray title I have entertained in my theater room. Add to it the visuals of Richards & Jagger and you have the making of a great Zombie movie.


Save your money!


Larry
 
#3 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by laugsbach /forum/post/14493292


Hi Ralph,


Let me begin by saying that I am a hugh Rolling Stones fan and avid collector of their music as well as attending two different concerts. I saw this at Blockbuster and said what the heck...


First, the movie should be re-titled to "PLEASE DON'T Shine a Light on me" or "Dead Men Walking". Keith Richards looks like a bad Salvador Dali painting. This is what a heroin addition does to you. I really believe he is already dead and since he has involuntary movements of his arms, the rest of the band assumes he is still alive. Mick is not much better. Ron Wood has always looked like something from the mind of Andy Warhol.


This title has both DD True HD & DTS-MA available and both soundtracks are way, way below other current release titles. I listened to my 4 favorite songs and couldn't take it. If Scorsese gave me one more close up, I was afraid I would vomit. When "Sympathy for the Devil" started I honestly thought my sub-woofers were off, everything sounded thin and unnatural. Nope, this really was nails down a chalkboard to my ears. Whatever was coming out of Mick's mouth wasn't a pleasant sound.


I could go on and on. This is by far the worst sounding Blu-ray title I have entertained in my theater room. Add to it the visuals of Richards & Jagger and you have the making of a great Zombie movie.


Save your money!


Larry

lol! Awesome post, and I agree that these guys look like they are the walking dead!



I did not think the sound was quite as bad as you, but I agree it is behind most other BR music discs I have listened to. The bass and drums were so far back in the mix it just sounded weak.


What realy made this sound weak was listening to the TrueHD track on Where the Light Is: John Mayer Live in LA. Talk about killer sound!
I hope Ralph reviews this one as my PB13 ate this one up and I know he owns the same sub, plus I would love to see his thoughts on the overall sound which I thought was reference.
 
#5 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by Toe /forum/post/14496105


What realy made this sound weak was listening to the TrueHD track on Where the Light Is: John Mayer Live in LA. Talk about killer sound!
I hope Ralph reviews this one as my PB13 ate this one up and I know he owns the same sub, plus I would love to see his thoughts on the overall sound which I thought was reference.

Hi Toe,


I agree completely about John Mayer and also throw in the mix Dave Matthews & Tim Reynolds: Live at Radio City Music Hall and Chris Botti: Live with Orchestra & Special Guests. I just played all three of these titles within the last week and that is where I was coming from about sound quality vs. the Stones title.


Larry
 
#6 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by laugsbach /forum/post/14499249


Hi Toe,


I agree completely about John Mayer and also throw in the mix Dave Matthews & Tim Reynolds: Live at Radio City Music Hall and Chris Botti: Live with Orchestra & Special Guests. I just played all three of these titles within the last week and that is where I was coming from about sound quality vs. the Stones title.


Larry

Agreed. I own the Dave and Tim disc as well as Chris Botti and rented the John Mayer (looking to buy when I find a deal)....All 3 just awesome.
 
#7 ·
I can't wait until Scorsese goes back to making REAL films, instead of these cookie-cutter documentaries, that really, ANYONE can do. He just doesn't bring anything new to the table here, that we already don't appreciate about the group...it's like preaching to the converted. How could ANYONE, not produce something entertaining ?
 
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