Reds: Initial thoughts

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I got hold of a Blu-Ray copy of the Warren Beatty film "Reds" this past week and took a quick glance at it on Thursday (I plan on watching it the film today). I have to say that along with "M:I-III", Paramount is really starting to deliver some VERY nice Blu-Ray transfers. Granted, it's not the video and audio experience that "M:I-III" is, but for a 25-year old film, it looks pretty damn gorgeous.

There are a few very grainy scenes I noticed here and there, but that isn't a defect of the disc. The colors are rich, blacks solid and deep and I was hell-bent to see any macroblocking or compression artifacts in the background.

The 5.1 remixed sound is good. It's a mostly front-channel, dialogue-driven track, but it sounds fine. And, the original Mono track has also been included as well (haven't listened to that yet, just the 5.1).

The extras are on disc two and comprise of 70 minutes of interviews with Beatty, Nicholson and a few other cast and crew members and studio execs who were at Paramount back when the film was made. Also included is a pretty lousy, made-for-DVD trailer that is best left skipped.

So, if you are a fan of the film, as I am, you should be quite pleased with the disc. It's a great transfer and the extras are actually worthwhile.