The Great HD Movie Format War

These days games consoles are much more than a platform on which to play games, with movies playing an important role in deciding which console to opt for. In the last generation (PS2 and Xbox) we only had DVD, but with the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 we have entered the wonderful world of high definition movies. The Xbox 360 has its HD DVD Player add-on and the PlayStation 3 seems to be more famous for featuring Blu-ray than it is for gaming. Each week we’ll be trawling through the new releases on each format and giving readers the only verdict they need: which format is king.

Release Round-up:

Usually we’d be detailing all the new releases of the week, but seeing as this is the first instalment of our feature we’ve taken the opportunity to highlight the best HD DVD and Blu-ray has to offer.

HD DVD Exclusives

The Matrix Trilogy: Available only in a set The Matrix trilogy has never looked better than it does on HD DVD. The movies might go downhill after the first, but each offers seriously impressive visuals and speaker shattering audio that make them a must for all action buffs.

The Ultimate Bourne Collection: Matt Damon has his share of critics but no one can argue with the high-octane, bone-crunching thrill ride that is the Bourne trilogy. Each of the three movies is available separately but we highly recommend picking up the collection.

Batman Begins: With prior Batman movies doing their best to destroy a much loved action hero, Christopher Nolen’s retelling of the Dark Night has given the franchise a new lease of life. With the second of the Christian Bale Batman movies out this summer, there’s no better time to pick up Batman Begins.

Top Gun: We at VideoGamer.com have a soft spot for this 80s classic and fans of this action-packed cheese-fest have no excuses for not adding Top Gun to their collection.

Knocked Up: One of the best comedies to hit screens in recent memory, Knocked Up from the writer and director of The 40 Year-old Virgin might not be one to show off your fancy new HD TV, but there’s no better way to watch the beautiful Katherine Heigl.

Blu-ray Exclusives:

James Bond: Casino Royal: Some PS3 owners may have already picked this one up for free during the launch of the console, but for those of you who don’t already have this in your collection, you should seek it out immediately.

Spider-Man Trilogy: The third movie might go a bit too cabaret and certainly isn’t up there with the second movie, but as a series of action movies they’re well worth picking up on Blu-ray. Spider-Man 3 is available separately but if you want the first two movies you’ll need to pick up the trilogy.

Pirates of the Caribbean: The almost relentless action set pieces, impressive CGI and beautiful environments make the Pirates movies a perfect fit for Blu-ray, offering top draw visuals and spot on sonics. It’s worth pointing out that Keira Knightley also scrubs up pretty well in HD too.

Die Hard 4.0: Although not available in an uncut form as it is on DVD, Die Hard 4.0 is still well worth picking up. The movie’s packed full of explosions, gun fights and car chases, which quite frankly is just what the HD movie formats were made for.

Starship Troopers: OK, it’s not going to win any Oscars (although it was nominated for Best Visual Effects in 1998), but Paul Verhoeven’s 90s sci-fi romp is about as cheesy as they get and the splatter of alien bugs in HD makes the whole experience even more enjoyable.

Best dual format releases:

300: For those that don’t actually dine in hell, 300 is highly recommended for a night’s viewing on either format. Technically the movie looks and sounds the same on both formats, but if you have the option the HD DVD version is the one to go for because of an exclusive set of features, including the ability to watch the entire movie in its blue-screen state before all the post-production wizardry was applied.

Blade Runner The Final Cut: Sadly not available in the five-disc wiz-bang version available in the US, but the two disc set available in the UK is still well worth picking up. The restoration of this seminal sci-fi classic is phenomenal and on HD you’ll be hard pushed to pick a movie which looks better. It’s not to everyone’s tastes but fans are in for a treat.

Now onto page two for our pick of the best high definition movie currently available.

Review: Transformers HD DVD 2-Disc Special Edition

As an HD DVD exclusive, Transformers is a real coup for the format in its battle against the Blu-ray brigade. Having cleaned up at the box office the home video version is fantastic on DVD but even better on HD DVD.

The Movie:

As a huge fan of the animated series and movie I went to the cinema unsure about Michael Bay’s re-invention, but came out discussing possibilities for a sequel and eager to Google the lovely Megan Fox. The action sequences are easily some of the most impressive I’ve ever seen. The CGI looks fantastic, with all the Transformers looking every bit as real as their on-screen human co-stars and while the story isn’t that strong, it’s held together nicely with some great moments of comedy.

4/5

Look and Sound:

As a film to demo your home cinema Transformers is very hard to beat. Pick any of the film’s action sequences (or a scene involving car repair) and you’re likely to be blown away by the eye candy. On our 55″ Full HD display there were no signs of compression artefacts to ruin the presentation and, despite lots of fast cuts in the action, I actually found it much easier to follow at home with less of the motion blur experienced at cinemas. The surround mix is also astounding, delivering an almost non-stop barrage to the eardrums. On a downside there are no high-res audio tracks, but this isn’t something the large majority of buyers are likely to care about.

5/5

Extras:

The 2-Disc set is jam-packed with extra content, so much so that it’s the reason the movie lacks the high-res audio tracks – there simply wasn’t enough space on the discs. What you get is a host of behind the scenes features, commentaries, and interviews all in high definition. The HD DVD version also boasts all-new content not available in the standard definition DVD release, including the Transformers Heads Up Display. It’s a picture-in-picture commentary which features production notes, trivia, voice cast recordings, animatics and more. What’s good is that all this is new content and not simply recycled footage from features found elsewhere in the 2-disc set.

5/5

On to page three for the HD DVD vs Blu-ray verdict.

The Verdict:

It’s still early days for both formats, but recent announcements regarding studio support has swayed the battle in favour of Blu-ray. Last week Warner announced it is to drop support for HD DVD as of June 1, switching its high definition movie releases to Blu-ray. Previously released HD DVD exclusives from Warner are also now likely to end up on Blu-ray.

HD DVD still has the backing of Universal and Paramount Pictures, but studio support for the format is much lower than Blu-ray. Even though Blu-ray appears to be winning the battle, for the time being many movie fans will feel the need to adopt both formats in order to get access to all releases.

For those unable to swing both ways, VideoGamer.com will be rounding up all the new releases each week and delivering its verdict on whether it’s best to be HD DVD or Blu-ray enabled. Stay tuned.