Beverly Hills Chihuahua (Blu-ray) Official AVSForum Review

( Max score: 100 )

91

Film Synopsis:

Get ready for a hilarious fun-filled adventure starring Chloe (voiced by Drew Barrymore), a diamond-clad ultra-pampered Beverly Hills Chihuahua who gets lost while on vacation in Mexico. Papi (voiced by George Lopez), an amusing Chihuahua who's crazy about Chloe, springs into action and heads south of the border to rescue her, while Chloe gets help from Delgado (voiced by Andy Garcia), her newfound friend and self-appointed protector. Beverly Hills Chihuahua from Walt Disney Pictures is a heartwarming and outrageously funny tale proving once again that good things do come in small packages. It's a real treat for the whole family.

My Take:

Beverly Hills Chihuahua is a cute and cuddly movie that hits all the formulaic highlights that make these types of films appealing. The story is elementary which strikes the appropriate chord for young viewers. On the other hand there is enough clever dialogue and thematic situations so that adults can partake in the fun also. Dog lovers get the best of both worlds. There are pooches of all sizes and shapes that get plenty of face time. The CGI work that enables them to speak and have expressive features is really quite good. This adds a subtle air of authenticity to the characters that sort of allows you to forget that they are animals and become more involved in the story. The cast that lends their voices to the dogs is filled with well known actors and I always enjoy trying to figure out who is playing what part. Funny men like George Lopez, Cheech Marin, and Paul Rodriguez keep things light while Edward James Olmos, Placido Domingo, and Andy Garcia lend strength to their characters. Drew Barrymore has a special place in my heart. I always find her appealing and this case was no different. I like feel good movies and when all is well that ends well that is just fine with me. Chloe, Delgado, Papi and the gang hit some rough patches but manage to persevere. That gives nothing away really (after all this is Disney) but the fun is watching them interact as it things out over the course of film. I thought that the script, pacing and direction were right on the money which makes this an easy watch for parents as well as enjoyable for the little ones.

Parental Guide:

The rating is for some mild thematic elements.

Audio: 82

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Video: 100

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Beverly Hills Chihuahua comes to Blu-ray from Disney featuring 1080p AVC encoded video that has an average bitrate of 24 mbps and lossless uncompressed 5.1 PCM audio that has a constant bitrate of 6.9 mbps.

This is reference quality video presentation from Disney that simply looks stunning. Images are impeccably detailed with enriching transparency and three dimensional depth that seems to reach as far as the eye can see. Fine rendering is as good as I have seen from any Blu-ray disc. Close ups of the animals looked extraordinary as varying degrees in the texture of their fur coats was easily discernible. The extensive palette of colors, are vibrant, deeply saturated and visually stimulating. Primary colors are particularly striking which made the lush, gradational greens of the vegetation covered landscapes, and various blues and reds really pop. If I had one nit to pick it would be that fleshtones are a golden bronze that gave them a sun burnt tonality that didn’t seem to vary from person to person. It didn’t make them unnatural looking and considering the fact that the animals were the main focus it didn’t warrant a deduction in my opinion. Blacks are deep and rich, with extended dynamic range that gives them incredible visual depth. Contrast is strong which seemed to energize colors and bright sequences without compromise to fidelity. Shadow delineation is equally impressive which provided a near infinite level of depth perception to dark backgrounds and low lit scenes. A great example of this is during the wide angle long range nighttime shot of the Chihuahua infested Aztec pyramid valley. Even in the low level lighting I could easily make out the various shapes and texture of the stones in the pyramid at the far end of the compound. Of course resolution this good made some of the CGI effects such as the encounter with the mountain lions and Manual the mouse look a little cheesy but that’s a small price to pay okay for image quality that is this good. Disney continues to set the bar with superb, high quality video on their day and date Blu-ray Disc releases.

The lossless uncompressed PCM soundtrack was the highest quality option available and while it didn’t live up to the video it presented the source elements with aplomb. The quality of the dialogue was unwavering as voices sound crisp and tonally balanced. Dynamic range was very good which lent subtle distinction to low level sounds and gravity to broader ones. A large portion of the film has little need for this as dialogue, atmospheric ambience and musical enhancement is readily conveyed by the front channels. However there are several sequences that engage the entire system to briefly produce entertaining and room filling sound that is measurable. The sequence in the finale when Chloe finds her “bark” is one example and another is at the conclusion of the run in with mountain lions as the “sandstorm” approaches. This soundtrack isn’t demonstration worthy but it handily delivers a satisfying experience that didn’t leave me in any was disappointed. Kudos to Disney on a fine job with this presentation.

Bonus Features:

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• (HD) Legend of the Chihuahua – 3 minute animated feature
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• (HD) Pet pals: The voices behind the dogs – 9 minute featurette
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• (HD) Hitting their bark: On set with the dogs of Beverly Hills Chihuahua
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• (HD) 10 deleted scenes with director introduction – 24 minutes
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• (HD) Blooper scooper – 3 minutes
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• Audio commentary by Director Raja Gosnell
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• Disney BD-Live enabled

Final Thoughts:

Beverly Hills Chihuahua is a fun family film from Disney that can be enjoyed by both parents and kids alike. It doesn’t bring anything new to the table but that’s okay because it uses a formula that works. Disney brings it to Blu-ray featuring captivating high definition video quality that will look stunning no matter how large your display is. It offers very good lossless sound and fun bonus supplements that provide a behind the scenes peek at the production. This one is worth a rental on family video night so enjoy!