- Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1
- Video Codec: AVC/MPEG-4
- Resolution: 1080p/24
- Audio Codec: English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
- Subtitles: English
- Classification: 18
- Region: B (Region-Locked)
- Discs: 1
- Studio: Optimum Home Entertainment
- Blu-ray Release Date: April 11, 2011
- RRP: £19.99
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Overall
[Rating:4/5]
The Film
[Rating:5/5]
Video Quality
[Rating:4.5/5]
Audio Quality
[Rating:3.5/5]
Supplemental Materials
[Rating:3/5]
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:5/5]
Who better to play an alien than Ziggy Stardust himself, David Bowie? Near what was probably the height of his glamdom, Bowie starred in this Nicolas Roeg directed sleeper from the Walter Tevis novel. A sci-fi drama about a humanoid alien crash landing on our planet in order to get water for his dying world, the film is more a mirror turned on humanity, like the best sci-fi always is, than it is a geeky special effects-laden romp.
An alien who can blend in with humanity traveling under the alias Thomas Jerome Newton (Bowie) uses his superior intelligence to build a worldwide corporate empire, World Enterprises, crushing his competition, so that he can obtain enough wealth to return home and help his dying world. What he doesn’t count on is falling in love with a human woman, Mary-Lou (Candy Clark), and falling prey to the ruthless world of corporate greed. Thomas ends up weakened by lust, alcohol, and avarice, while under attack from his corporate rivals and the military who have been suspicious of his intentions from the beginning.
The Man Who Fell to Earth is a hip, sexy, and poignant look at the the corruptible nature of mankind, the cruelty of the modern world, and the struggles faced by all outsiders.
Video Quality
[Rating:4.5/5]
The film’s AVC transfer has pleasant film-like quality with lots of detail that extends well into the background and good flesh tones. Black levels are good, but sometimes wash out a bit. The source looks relatively clean, although there are a couple of spots with noticeable tramlines.
Audio Quality
[Rating:3.5/5]
Optimum has given The Man Who Fell to Earth a LPCM 2.0 Stereo mix. The sound provides clear dialogue, but it does at times sound a bit dull, the stereo spread is a little narrow, and there is definite clipping that can be heard on some of the sound effects.
Supplemental Materials
[Rating:3/5]
There are a few never-before-released interviews as well as the Watching the Alien documentary offered up as supplements on this release.
The supplements provided with this release are:
- Interviews:
- Director Nic Roeg
- Cinematographer Tony Richmond (new)
- Writer Paul Mayersberg (new)
- Actress Candy Clark (new)
- Audio Interview from 1984 with Author Walter Tevis, Conducted by Don Swan (new)
- Watching the Alien Documentary
- Theatrical Trailer
The Definitive Word
Overall:
[Rating:4/5]
A superb commentary on the world, even today, decades after its 1976 release, The Man Who Fell to Earth arrives in a solid Blu-ray package from the folks at Optimum Home Entertainment. Highly Recommended.
Additional Screen Captures
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[amazon-product align=”right” region=”uk” tracking_id=”bluraydefinit-21″]B004EMS07K[/amazon-product]
Shop for more Blu-ray titles at Amazon.co.uk
Shop for more Blu-ray titles at Amazon.com
Overall
[Rating:4/5]
The Film
[Rating:5/5]
Video Quality
[Rating:4.5/5]
Audio Quality
[Rating:3.5/5]
Supplemental Materials
[Rating:3/5]
