DKN REVIEW: The Dark Knight Rises (Blu-ray/DVD Combo+UltraViolet)

DKN writer, Adam Prince, reviews The Dark Knight Rises Blu-ray/DVD Combo + Ultra Violet. Click the jump to see more.

Warner Home Video sent me (Adam Prince) the Blu-ray/DVD of The Dark Knight Rises. This is not a review on the film, but on the quality of the film, features, and what you can expect from this amazing Blu-ray/DVD Combo.  Enjoy!

QUALITY:

Both the Blu-ray Combo Pack and the single  DVD will include the UltraViolet, which will allow you to download the standard version of the film. I thought the Blu-ray was beautiful  in the fact you could see things more clearly than the DVD, but that is to be expected.  As far as the film’s sound quality on the Blu-ray, the quality was dynamic from the low moments to the epic explosive scenes.  I was never disappointed with the quality. Alternate language Dolby Digital 5.1 tracks are available on Blu-ray in French, Portuguese, and Spanish. The DVD’s alternate language is available only in Spanish and French. There is also a feature called  “The Dark Knight Rises FX”on the first Blu-ray disc that allows you to sync your movie to your Apple devices capable of running on  iOS 5 and higher. Unfortunately, this app only works on select Android devices such as: Samsung Galaxy devices including S2, S3, Note, Nexus and Tab.

FEATURES:

On the DVD, the only special you get is an eight minute feature titled “The Journey Of Bruce Wayne.” The feature gives an in-depth look on Bruce Wayne’s character arc, goals, and the difficult decisions he makes to accomplish those goals. There are guest commentaries by Christian Bale, Christopher Nolan, David S Goyer (trilogy co-writer), Jordan GoldBerg (trilogy co-producer), and Hanz Zimmer (trilogy musical composer) who spoke about Bruce Wayne’s journey in this feature.  As a Batman fan, I really enjoyed the feature because it provides insight into what Bruce had to go through and over time what his decisions have done to him physically, mentality, and emotionally.

On the Blu-ray, you really get your bang for your buck! You get an one hour-long documentary on the film. An amazing art gallery and a run time of  165 minutes of  material in small features much like what you have seen in the Batman Begins‘ two disk DVD.  The segment titled ” The Batmobiles ” was by far my favorite! Whether you’re young or old watching extreme detailed history and hearing interviews in this segment will blow you away! The Blu-ray gives great details on the making of Batman’s cave and Bane’s  lair.  It is mind blowing just from hearing and seeing the progression of shots, sounds,  stunts, and all the constant detail that went into the making of Christopher Nolan’s Batman films.

While watching the other special features, I found a few interesting facts that I would like to share with you . Did you know that the burner on the  Adam West Batmobile was actually a 5 gallon paint bucket! Also, that West once dressed up as Batman and took the Batmobile out to do some trick or treating?! Anne Hathaway never watched other actresses’ performance of Catwoman. Instead, she took inspiration from  actress Hedy Lamar and the comics themselves. Selina Kyle/Catwoman’s outfits were heavily influenced by Audrey Hepburn’s sytle in Breakfast at Tiffany’s and La Femme Nikita. The actors, Bale and Hardy, did their own fight scenes . Most of the winter scenes were filmed in Pittsburgh during the summer in 95 degree weather! The ’89 Batmobile used both Chrysler and Ferrari lights . Lastly, the ‘Bat’ weighed 3,ooo pounds and was 30 feet long and was 17 feet wide!

The only downside to me was that some of the cast members such as Michael Caine and Joseph Gordon Levitt didn’t receive as much screen time as the other actors. Plus, there wasn’t in-depth look at Heath Ledger’s Joker or deleted scenes in this combo. Maybe one day, we will be able to see some of that footage. All in all, I give The Dark Knight Rises Blu-ray/DVD Combo and Ultra Violet a 5 out of 5! A DEFINITE  MUST BUY!

The Dark Knight Rises available on Blu-ray Combo pack, DVD and for download December 4th!

-Adam Prince