Source France | Publisher : ESC Editions | Release date : 19 July 2023
Video format
2160p24 – Ratio 2.40
Dolby Vision / BT.2020 – HEVC encoding
Master intermediate 4K
Soundtrack
English DTS-HD MA 5.1
French DTS-HD Ma 5.1
Subtitles
French
Rated 2.5 out of 5
Artistic : 3.5 | Video : 8.5 | Audio : 8
It is brought to the attention of our dear readers that, in addition to the specified and used viewing equipment, the rendering may differ from one installation to another, whether or not it is calibrated, as well as personal preferences and expectations may influence notation. Moreover, the images in the article are not representative of the edition tested.
Test equipment and condition (Config. HP: 5.1.4)
Video broadcaster : Sony Bravia XR-65A80J (Dolby Vision Luminous)
Sources : Oppo UDP-203 Audiocom Reference | Zappiti Reference
Pregnant : Sennheiser Ambeo Soundbar (DTS Neural:X), SVS SB-4000
WORK - Crazy Bear
Winnie the Bear and Porcinet have grown and become deeply wild creatures since Jean-Christophe abandoned them to go to university. They have developed hatred for humans and murder anyone who adventures in the Forest of Blue Dreams.
Although he has covered the chronicle (he can thank the online sharing of the netizens), this blunt slasher still remains an opportunistic Z series that revisits the world of the famous little cub to make it a sociopath to the obvious murderous madness.
And despite a real desire to do well, the budget limits of this crazy company (10 days of shooting and 100,000)$ of expenditure) are clearly not permitted to Rhys Frake-Waterfield transcend your twisted pitch (or even do something about it). The scenario accumulates the clichés, the characters (a close interpretation of amateurism) are interchangeable and all postulate for an assured death, the decorum is too limited even if it has a mouth, the brutal murders are diminished by the use of digital blood, the staging never succeeds in creating the slightest tension and the monstrous facies of the two antagonists (conocted by Immortal Masks) discard but are too unmovable.
Will the shooting be rectified with his next budget five times higher? What is certain, however, is that the producers have flaired the right line since Bambi: The Reckoning and Peter Pans: Neverland Nightmare Come to haunt us...
IMAGE - Forest of amber nightmares
A more than exemplary definition, a sharp pique like the blade of a scalpel, a deliciously outrageous colorimetric palette and very contemporary contrasts for digital exuberant that the present UHD Dolby Vision transfer, two fingers from the precellence (a little noise and some chromatic aberrations), comes boost.
Because if the Blu-ray is already quite astounding, the amazing visual proposal of the chef op Vince Knight (especially for low cost production) is even more sublimated by increased resolution (more precise textures), a WCG improving color calibration (from more subtle to more living primary shades) and an HDR encoding to perfect the many shades (densified blacks) and lights (with increased brightness).
SOUND - Songs no longer get along
The VO DTS-HD MA 5.1 provides good spatialisation (effects are well distributed), pleasantly distilled atmospheres at the back (wildlife and flora), dynamic nerves, well-incorporated voices and faithful musical accompaniment even though in the acoustic space.
Due to a dubbing (so nanardesque that it accentuates the stupidity of the protagonists) too prominent on the power plant, the VF DTS-HD MA 5.1 loses before much of its horrific atmosphere. Still a certain vigour and effective surrounds.
CONCLUSION - Friends for Life?
After an unexpected release in the French theatres, ESC continues to be the ideal companion of this ill-licked bear by offering it a particularly neat 4K Ultra HD edition with a limited steelbook with phosphorescent effect, cards, a poster and truly surprising A/V services. In fact, whoever wants to put his foot in the honeypot will find the taste of blood there!
[...] Knight has distanced himself from the digital exuberant to the deliciously outrageous visuals of the 1st opus for a more repulsive visceral approach, including rendering (obtained of course in post-prod) [...]