Search - Jade [Blu-ray] on Blu-ray

Why are Blu-rays chinching us on the longer versions?

Charles R. Bright | Springfield, IL USA | 04/11/2010

(2 out of 5 stars)

"This was a movie I absolutely loved (though dated) when it originally came out. It had the edge of "Basic Instinct" and of course the hot girl. But this is the second Blu-ray I've bought in two days, where the Blu-ray doesn't contain the director's (extended footage) cut (as in the just released "The Natural") and now this. I do own the unrated VHS version (107 minutes long, and the studio gives us a crappy R-rated version (95 minutes long). This Blu-ray is also going back to the store with the other one. What is the deal! Blu-rays can store more data on them, so again, there is absolutely no reason (in the case where there is both an R-rated version and an Unrated version) that we should not be offered BOTH versions on the one disc. You have the room for it--put them on there studios. A couple more duds like these and I will be through buying Blu-rays. And a heads up for the studios--please don't have the audacity to offer only one of the versions of Last of the Mohicans when it comes out. The extended version has more action, but the original one has the footage with the one song cut out in the extended version. We need both."

Not a great Blu, but a decent improvement

Steve Kuehl | Ben Lomond, CA | 04/04/2010

(3 out of 5 stars)

"I had no expectations as Paramount typically does some kind of DNR thingy with their 80s/90s titles, so I was just hoping to see a nice preservation of some Bay Area locales. By the time the credits rolled on this theatrical BD cut, I wasn't disappointed, it just had some serious issues.

Admittedly, I enjoyed watching this Basic Instinct clone (at last count there were 28 identical/similar characters, scenes, etc.), so between the sights, characters and score I felt sure Michael Douglas was going to cameo any second, but Loreena Mckennitt's The Mummers' Dance version of Mystic's Dream adds a nice feel throughout (although misplaced in half the scenes). The end result is laughable, but I figure one is reading this to hear about the BD.

The picture quality is vastly improved over the other products available; The colors have been enriched, the majority of artifact has been removed, the flesh tones have been glorified and depending on the camera being used - the views of the Bay Area show a decent time capsule preservation from 94/95. The cons: The resulting edge fuzz is prevalent, there is TONS of grain on most of the interiors, and the intermittent artifact/film fade pops up in some irritating spots. Overall - a decent upgrade but there is still plenty to pick apart.

The sound is a mixed bag. The DTS felt like it was forced as the outer channels were getting used heavily, even in the smallest of scenes, to the point where is was mixed incorrectly a few times. The vocals were drowned out in some of the louder sequences by outer channel garbage, and there were a couple of scenes where the post-production must have missed the timing (lips clearly not matching the words). The score sounds clear though, and any time Mckennitt sings you almost wish for a music-only track.

The only special feature is the original trailer which shows how bad the film looked (with a few brief clips of what must be in the Director's Cut). Region coded A. I cannot give this a higher rating as a BD because it had too many technical failings, no special features, and no director's cut."