Omega Man Disappointment

[JasonR]

The Video: Sizing Up the Picture

'The Omega Man' first received the remaster treatment back in 2003, when Warner issued the film on standard DVD. Since the studio is only releasing the flick on high-def as a quick cash-in with the upcoming Will Smith update, it's no surprise that this HD DVD's 1080p/VC-1 encode (identical to the Blu-ray) is minted from the same master used for that previous DVD. But in this case that's actually a positive, as the 2003 remaster was a real surprise, with 'The Omega Man' looking way better than any 1971 film has a right to. I would even go so far as to say this is one of the better catalog remasters I've seen from Warner in recent months.

Warner has really spiffed up the print, with very few signs of the kind of wear and tear that you'd normally associate with such a dated sci-fi flick. Sure, there's grain throughout and some dirt specks and such, but it is consistently minimal, to the point where you forget about it within minutes. Colors are nicely reproduced as well, with reds and blues especially vibrant and clean. I can't say that the level of detail rivals that of a new release, but considering the age of the film and the archaic effects techniques of the time, the illusion of depth is considerable, and shadow delineation is well above average for a catalog title. The studio has done a fine job with the encoding, too, as there are no major compression artifacts to speak of, nor is edge enhancement an issue. An impressive transfer, all around.

This is the HDDVD review, it is the same as the Blu-Ray though.

http://hddvd.highdefdigest.com/1064/omegaman.html

How high is your sharpness turned up? I haven't seen this version, but if it looks that bad I would say it is a calibration problem.

[reconredneck]

Originally Posted by JasonR

This is the HDDVD review, it is the same as the Blu-Ray though.

http://hddvd.highdefdigest.com/1064/omegaman.html

How high is your sharpness turned up? I haven't seen this version, but if it looks that bad I would say it is a calibration problem.

I turned on the Samsung NR and brought down sharpness which seemed to help with the snow and grain.. It seems like when they were filming Omega Man they must of had more than one film crew, with different sized film stock and equipment, because sometimes the picture is crystal and then it becomes muddy with grain, possible from poor lighting.. and I will not even bring up the sound quality..

[Sky_Captain]

Don't know what the hell disc the OP was watching. Assuming the BD has the same transfer as the HD DVD,(which I own), it should look very good. It kicks the crap out of the DVD.

[cartman781]

Very happy with my BD

[PowellPressburger]

I won this on BluRay also and used to own the previous DVD release. This one does look a bit better than the standard edition release esp. the city scape shots look so detailed. You can't get rid of the grain though and that doesn't bother me. People need to know that if the film contains grain so will the transfers.

We probably won't see Soylent Green on Blu in a while since that film seems to have a very dirty look in some scenes. It looks like it is coated in brown dust/dirt at times. This would be huge headache for most HD movie buyers.

[olds403]

Not sure what disc the OP is looking at either? I have this BD and it looks great(for the age of the movie) on my 60" sony 60a3000. I saw none of the snow that was mentioned. Overall great picture quality to me.

[Blu Titan]

I would agree with most of the posts in this thread. I own the Omega Man in BD and the PQ is very good. NOT a bad transfer at all.

[Mr. Joshua]

Originally Posted by reconredneck

I turned on the Samsung NR and brought down sharpness which seemed to help with the snow and grain.. It seems like when they were filming Omega Man they must of had more than one film crew, with different sized film stock and equipment, because sometimes the picture is crystal and then it becomes muddy with grain, possible from poor lighting.. and I will not even bring up the sound quality..

Part of your problem is if you have blu-ray and you are using HDTV you need to turn the sharpness all the way off. Set it at -0- (zero). That is what the experts say. You also may want to calibrate your HDTV... Just curious what samsung set do you own. I have the Samsung LN-T4671F . If you would like I can give you my tv settings just send me an email on here...

[reconredneck]

Originally Posted by wsciv123

Part of your problem is if you have blu-ray and you are using HDTV you need to turn the sharpness all the way off. Set it at -0- (zero). That is what the experts say. You also may want to calibrate your HDTV... Just curious what samsung set do you own. I have the Samsung LN-T4671F . If you would like I can give you my tv settings just send me an email on here...

I have the LNS-4696D 46".. I would be interested in your settings.
All my other Blu-Ray movies look fantastic, except for the Omega Man Disc.

[reconredneck]

You Guys don't Get me wrong... I love Omega Man. I just feel cheated that my SD copy looks better than my BD version of it... I mean why bother if no improvements can be made..
Heres someone who basically is saying what I am saying about this BD version:
http://www.hometheaterforum.com/htf/dvd-reviews-archive/266703-htf-blu-ray-review-omega-man.html

Video Quality

3.5/5

The Panavision 2.40:1 aspect ratio is presented in a 1080p transfer using the VC-1 codec. Image quality is an up and down affair. Almost all of the scenes with Heston are sharp, dimensional, and free from blemishes (though there is one nighttime sequence in which dirt sparkles like glitter most disconcertingly taking the viewer completely out of the action). The image is sharp enough, for instance, to notice clearly Heston’s stunt double on the motorcycle and in some other driving sequences. Colors can be strong though blacks are mediocre, and some scenes have trouble with adequate shadow detail. The film has been divided into 30 chapters.

Audio Quality

2.5/5

The Dolby Digital 1.0 mono track, completely typical of its era, has limited fidelity (at 192 kbps, that’s no surprise) and is disappointing overall sounding rather flat and lifeless.

My point, exactly