- Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1
- Video Codec: AVC MPEG-4
- Resolution: 1080p/24 (23.976Hz)
- Audio Codec: English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
- Subtitles: English SDH, Spanish
- Subtitles Color: White
- Region: A (B? C?)
- Rating: R
- Run Time: 87 Mins
- Discs: 2 (1 x Blu-ray + 1 x DVD)
- Digital Copies: UltraViolet
- Studio: Universal Studios Home Entertainment
- Blu-ray Release Date: April 23rd, 2013
- List Price: $19.99
–
Overall
[Rating:2/5]
The Film
[Rating:1.5/5]
Video Quality
[Rating:3.5/5]
Audio Quality
[Rating:4/5]
Supplemental Materials
[Rating:0.5/5]
Click thumbnails for high-resolution 1920X1080p screen captures
(The below TheaterByte screen captures are taken directly from the Blu-ray Discs and losslessly compressed in the PNG format. There should be no loss of picture quality with this format. All screen captures should be regarded only as an approximation of the full capabilities of the Blu-ray format.
–
The Film
[Rating:1.5/5]
A Haunted House, the latest spoof film from the Wayans brothers, tells the story of Malcolm (Marlon Wayans) and Kisha (Essence Atkins), a young couple who have recently moved into their dream home. With the hopes of starting a family, the two soon find themselves in a home where odd things start occurring. Turns out that Kisha is possessed, and now Malcolm must go to extreme lengths in order to save his girl. What results is a forgettable comedy effort.
I’ll come right out and easily say that I had expectations for this film. While a few readers may immediately wonder what I was thinking, I digress. Look back to the original Scary Movie. While the most recent entry is a complete and utter waste of film (try 0/0,) the original entry was hilarious with many, many quotables lines/scenes. The charm here came from the different Wayans’ brothers. It’s with that known fact, that I went into House not necessarily expecting the SAME result (because we ALL know that NEVER happens.) Rather, I expected something somewhere in between. Decent, but not overly great. Well, I’m sad to report that this latest effort by Marlon Wayans lacks any of the style and wit that any of his early efforts had. While I may be in the majority amongst people in my age group (28), Haunted House is an overly long (and that’s a lot to say at its 87 minute length) film. The jokes are dumb, out of place at times, and over-the-top in their gross out tone. Skip this one, unless mundane humor is your cup of tea.
Video Quality
[Rating:3.5/5]
A Haunted House spooks its way onto Blu-ray with a mostly satisfying transfer. Akin to that of the Paranormal series aims for that ‘found footage’ bit. Due to this, the overall quality of this transfer never ascends to the typical day-and-date quality we’ve come to expect from Universal titles. With that said, the film’s palette features a mixed bag of decent black levels, grays and blues. Black levels, in particular, fluctuate from scene to scene. Some showcase accurate detail, while the very next scene looks murky, lacking a solid sense of clarity. Speaking of clarity, overall clarity isn’t what I expected, but detail is overly strong. I suppose Wayans and co. were aiming for this, so I guess we can commend them on a job (somewhat) well done.
Audio Quality
[Rating:4/5]
This Blu-ray Disc includes a lossless DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 mix, one of which fares better than the aforementioned video presentation. Tending to focus more on the front channels with a rather heavy dialogue film (like that of numerous other comedy films,) I’ll admit that I was a bit surprised by the amount of atmosphere this film held. Granted a majority of the film’s atmosphere (one may assume) was probably added in post-production (what with the screams and sudden breathing,) but still the atmosphere was far better than anticipated. Also better is the film’s LFE, which offers up a good amount of bass response. Expectations aside, I’ll say this effort serves the film well.
Supplemental Materials
[Rating:0.5/5]
All included features are presented in High Definiton:
- How to Survive a Paranormal Presence – A VERY brief 2 minute look into the making of the film.
- DVD – A DVD of the film has been included on a separate disc.
- Digital Copy – An UltraViolet Digital Copy has been included.
The Definitive Word
Overall:
[Rating:2/5]
Despite high expectations, Universal’s Blu-ray for A Haunted House is an all around boring, occasionally sleep inducing film. While their Blu-ray features a somewhat solid technical presentation, I can’t recommend this one in the slightest sense. Actually, I recommend you just queue up Scary Movie once again.
Additional Screen Captures
[amazon-product]B00C2YW0B4[/amazon-product]
[amazon-product]B00AZMFIRS[/amazon-product]
BestBuy.com:
Purchase A Haunted House on Blu-ray Combo Pack at CD Universe
Shop for more Blu-ray titles on Amazon.com
–
[amazon-product]B00C2YW0B4[/amazon-product]
[amazon-product]B00AZMFIRS[/amazon-product]
BestBuy.com:
Purchase A Haunted House on Blu-ray Combo Pack at CD Universe
Shop for more Blu-ray titles on Amazon.com
Overall
[Rating:2/5]
The Film
[Rating:1.5/5]
Video Quality
[Rating:3.5/5]
Audio Quality
[Rating:4/5]
Supplemental Materials
[Rating:0.5/5]
–