Seal Team Six: The Raid on Osama Bin Laden (Blu-ray) Official AVSForum Review

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

Film:

Extras:

Audio/Video total rating:

( Max score: 100 )
84





Studio and Year: The Weinstein Company - 2012
MPAA Rating: NR
Feature running time: 90 minutes
Genre: Action, Drama

Disc Format: BD-25
Encoding: AVC (MPEG-4)
Video Aspect: 1.85:1
Resolution: 1080p/24


Audio Format(s): DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
Subtitles: English SDH, Spanish
Starring: Cam Gigandet, Anson Mount, Eddie Kaye Thomas and Freddy Rodríguez
Directed by: John Stockwell
Written by: Kendal Lampkin
Music by: Paul Haslinger
Region Code: A

Blu-ray Disc release Date: January 8th, 2013

Film Synopsis:

A break in the manhunt for Osama bin Laden serves as the backdrop for the gripping story about an extraordinary group of U.S. Navy SEALs who undertake the mission of a lifetime. Despite inconclusive evidence that bin Laden is inside the compound, and ignoring the possible ramifications of an unannounced attack on Pakistani soil, the Pentagon orders the attack. SEAL Team Six bands together in the most daring military operation of our generation, completing their mission of justice in a riveting final showdown.


My Take:

We all know this story all too well, and by the above synopsis and the everyday news, talking specifics and politics would be redundant at best. The film is not without its little controversy as it was aired two days before the presidential elections. Conservatives complained that is seemed to glorify Obama's decision making about the raid. As I watched I realized they filmmakers couldn't know all the facts they were presenting, so I took it as entertainment, not a documentary. As a look into the Navy SEAL team who's mission became the one to take down Osama Bin Laden, this Made for TV flick was captivating and intriguing, and yes, better than most made for TV productions. Directed by John Stockwell (Actor, Cougar in "Top Gun", turned Director "Crazy/Beautiful, "Into the Blue"), the film moved along at a nice pace which really helped kept the viewer in the loop, feeling like on of the SEAL's as developments are found out, and they eventually realize they are the team going in to get Bin Laden. The films shining moments were when with the team members relationships with each-other and with family at home. The night before the raid they Skyped home and told family they were safe and loved them etc. This was heavy as they knew full well what they were doing the next day; that scene made the movie for me. The filmed portions are intertwined with real footage of news and press conferences, adding a level of realism. Most will want to compare this with the excellent Kathryn Bigelow film, " Zero Dark Thirty", and while not being up to that caliber, this does easily stand on its own as well as make a good companion film to it. Where Zero Dark Thirty is broader in scope dealing with the decade long manhunt, here we focus in on the boys who were sent in. I recommend this to those interested and don't think you will be disappointed. Just remember it is a made for TV movie...


Parental Guide:

Violence and adult language.



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.**


Audio: 88

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Green: 80

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Seal Team Six: The Raid on Osama Bin Laden comes to Blu-ray from Anchor Bay Home Entertainment featuring 1080p AVC encoded video that has an average bitrate of 22.4 mbps and DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 sound that has an average bitrate of 2.4 mbps

Seal Team Six: The Raid on Osama Bin Laden is a bit of a mixed bag combining Lo-Fi stock news segments with the filmed portions of the movie. If the variables ended there this would have garnered higher remarks but the film fluctuates as well. From deep blacks to grayish blacks, from high resolution to soft shots, it just was never stable. The colors were a bit dull, and this was the same across the board. It was passable, but reference this is not. Audio-wise things fared a bit better, helping draw the viewer into the film with its concussive gunfire, well placed sound-stage that considers the dialogue as paramount, and its classy use of surround channels that add real world atmosphere to the film.




Bonus Features:

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• (HD) The Making of 'SEAL Team Six: The Raid on Osama Bin Laden (17min)

Final Thoughts:

Anchor Bay Home Entertainment brings Seal Team Six: The Raid on Osama Bin Laden to Blu-ray with OK Video and a very enjoyable Audio track. Considering its lackluster amount of extra features, I would consider this a prime candidate for a rental. I enjoyed the film, however, I looked at it as entertainment, not gospel. If you go in expecting complete accuracy and a documentary type mentality you might be disappointed.











Lee Weber
AVS Forum Blu-ray Reviews





Reference Review Systems:

JVC DLA-RS4810 3D 1080p 3D High Definition Front Projector
Screen Innovations Solar HD 1.3 120" 2.40:1 CinemaScope Screen
Onkyo PR-SC5509 Pre/Pro
Sunfire Theater Grand 7201 Amplifier
Sony BDP-S790 Blu-ray Player (HDMI Audio/Video)
Triad InRoom Gold LCR's
Triad OnWall Silver Surrounds
2 Triad Silver OmniSubs


Panasonic TC-P65VT30 3D 1080p Plasma
Marantz NR1603 Receiver
Sony PS3 (HDMI Audio/Video)
MKSound MP-7 LCR's
MKSound SUR-55T Surrounds
MKSound SB-8 Subwoofer

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