- Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1
- Video Codec: MVC (3D); AVC/MPEG-4 (2D)
- Resolution: 1080p/24 (23.976Hz)
- Audio Codec: English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1, French & Spanish DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
- Subtitles: N/A
- Region: A (B? C?)
- Rating: NR
- Run Time: 90 Mins
- Discs: 1 (1 x Blu-ray 3D/Blu-ray)
- Studio: Image Entertainment
- Blu-ray Release Date: December 6, 2011
- List Price: $24.98
[amazon-product]B005LS4MUU[/amazon-product]
BestBuy.com:
Purchase Arabia on Blu-ray 3D at CD Universe
Shop for more Blu-ray titles at Amazon.com
Overall
[Rating:4/5]
The Film
[Rating:3.5/5]
Video Quality
2D HD: [Rating:4.5/5]
3D Effect: [Rating:4.5/5]
Audio Quality
[Rating:4.5/5]
Supplemental Materials
[Rating:2/5]
Click thumbnails for high-resolution 1920X1080p screen captures
(Screen captures are lightly compressed with lossy JPEG thus are meant as a general representation of the content and do not fully reveal the capabilities of the Blu-ray format)
–
The Film
[Rating:3.5/5]
MacGillivray Freeman films offers up another brief travelogue with this IMAX exhibition film, Arabia, which takes viewers on a brief tour through the Arabian peninsula while offering only a slight bit of history on the geographical region. Referring to what it calls the two “golden eras” of Arabia, the time of Frankincense, and of course, the modern oil boom. Mentions are made of the Islamic influence on mathematics and the sciences, such as the creation of Algebra and studies in optics and gravity. Helen Mirren shares some of the narration duties, but it’s the typically beautiful IMAX photography from MacGillivray with the gorgeous vistas, sand dunes, and overhead shots that makes this one worth viewing.
Video Quality
2D HD: [Rating:4.5/5]
3D Effect: [Rating:4.5/5]
Arabia is a beautifully filmed IMAX presentation from MacGillivray Freeman and in the standard 2D presentation, in a 1.78:1 framed 1080p AVC encodement it looks gorgeous, with a clean image, vibrant colors and excellent depth of field. The 3D presentation is almost equally as strong, with only slightly less detail. There are many segments that have exceptional added dimensionality, but there are also others that are hardly three-dimensional at all. This seems to be typical of the many IMAX presentations on Blu-ray I have seen to date. There is little crosstalk in even the strongest 3D scenes, although it does crop up from time to time.
Audio Quality
[Rating:4.5/5]
Audio is typically engaging for an IMAX film. The surrounds are frequently engaged with foley effects from the sound of the breeze or, during the underwater sequences, the rush of the water. Ambience is lush and lows are powerful and extend way down in the range. Narration in the center channel is full and clear, while always above the the sound effects. The Middle Eastern musical score is expansive and dynamic with wide stereo imaging and natural sounding high frequencies.
Supplemental Materials
[Rating:2/5]
The supplements are limited to MacGillivray’s usual promotional video on the studio’s history and a making of on the film in high definition, which gets into a bit of detail on the technical aspects of the filmmaking process. Other than that there some additional IMAX trailers and a BD-Live feature that doesn’t offer much.
The supplements:
- Making Of (1.78:1; 1080p/24; 00:24:31)
- MFF History (1.78:1; 1080p/24; 00:07:37)
- Trailers
- BD-Live
The Definitive Word
Overall:
[Rating:4/5]
Arabia may not be an in depth history of the Arabian peninsula, but the splendid eye candy it provides makes it a worthy addition to any high definition library.
Additional Screen Captures
–
[amazon-product]B005LS4MUU[/amazon-product]
BestBuy.com:
Purchase Arabia on Blu-ray 3D at CD Universe
Shop for more Blu-ray titles at Amazon.com
Overall
[Rating:4/5]
The Film
[Rating:3.5/5]
Video Quality
2D HD: [Rating:4.5/5]
3D Effect: [Rating:4.5/5]
Audio Quality
[Rating:4.5/5]
Supplemental Materials
[Rating:2/5]
–
