Batman 1989 Australian Blu Ray release review

[Aussie_M]

I'm from Australia and during this week the 1989 version of Batman was released along with Batman Returns, Batman Forever and Batman and Robin.

So I went to my local JB Hifi Store and picked up a copy of Batman.

I was disappointed with the picture quality, it was grainy in several parts. I think warner bros could have done better with the picture quality.

The sound was dolby tru hd 5.1. not much bass was heard from the subwoofer only in some parts.

The disc does come with quite a lot of extra features which will keep you busy for a few hours.

Overall if you don't have a copy of this film already on dvd then I would recommend picking up a copy if you can find it cheap.

Otherwise its not really worth upgrading. I can't give reviews for the other 3 Batman films as I only purchased the first one.

But from going off the first one I would think the others would be the same.

Picture 6 out of 10, Sound 6 out of 10, Special Features 8 out of 10.

As this is the Australian version I would assume the Region A version will be the same.

cheers

[JamesKurtovich]

It's got to be better than the DVD. My DVD version of Batman is BAD. Very fuzzy in the '80s fashion.

[Sky_Captain]

This guys talking BS, it's exactly the same as the UK release. Not worth upgrading? LOL!!

[Neftoon]

I would have to disagree with the original poster, I got all the batmans and although it's not 10/10 it is very much worth upgrading IMO, I watched the first one a couple of days before I got the blu-ray on DVD and the detail and look of the film is much better on blu-ray, the scene with the Harvey Dent press conference is 100% better.

[HeavyHitter]

Originally Posted by Neftoon

I would have to disagree with the original poster, I got all the batmans and although it's not 10/10 it is very much worth upgrading IMO, I watched the first one a couple of days before I got the blu-ray on DVD and the detail and look of the film is much better on blu-ray, the scene with the Harvey Dent press conference is 100% better.

Yep, what I would expect.

[perfectdark]

Originally Posted by HeavyHitter

Yep, what I would expect.

yep 110% better PQ is sellar

[metsfan1545d]

i dont know about the austrailian release but i have the uk one and the pq is very good considering the films age, i mean its not rambo pq but its certainly not as bad as dumb and dumber was

[DetroitSportsFan]

Originally Posted by Sky_Captain

This guys talking BS, it's exactly the same as the UK release. Not worth upgrading? LOL!!

I agree, it's definitely worth the upgrade.

[RiseDarthVader]

Once again a review done by a guy that doesn't understand grain. But I will cut him some slack because afterall us Aussies are always behind on tech and we aren't educated enough about it till we visit sites like here.

[HD 335]

I also disagree with the OP. The 1989 Batman will never look like The Dark Knight, nor should it. But the Blu-ray release is an upgrade over the previous standard def version. Here's some screencap comparisons someone else here posted before.
http://www.zonadvd.com/modules.php?n...icle&artid=953

[NL197]

The sound may be lossless, but it's the same crappy faux 5.1 mix both versions of the DVD had, which was a poor subsitute for Dolby Pro Logic. So image quality is really the one and only reason to upgrade or not since the extras would be the same (likely SD as well) as the DVD.

[B-movies]

Originally Posted by HD 335

I also disagree with the OP. The 1989 Batman will never look like The Dark Knight, nor should it. But the Blu-ray release is an upgrade over the previous standard def version. Here's some screencap comparisons someone else here posted before.
http://www.zonadvd.com/modules.php?n...icle&artid=953

They also reviewed Batman Blu-ray: http://www.zonadvd.com/modules.php?n...content&id=456

PQ 3.5/5

[coldstone]

i agree with the OP. the Australian blu ray version is not much better PQ wise than the 2005 DVD version.

I own both and have compared both vigorously. It's only in the more brighter scenes that there is any real difference, and that difference is very small. sadly there's not many daylight scenes in the movie.


blu ray boasts about having 4 times more resolution than DVD but i'd be dumbfounded if you can even see 1.5 times more resolution in this one.

i wouldnt bother upgrading unless you can find it a fair bit cheaper than what warner wants us to fork out for a 20 year old catalog release.

[perfectdark]

I don't know about the Aussie disc but the UK warner reelase of batman and batman returns for that matter are stellar.. PQ/AQ are far superior to dvd in every aspect... This is by far the best looking catalog title I have seen.

bluray.com reviewd it https://www.blu-ray.com/movies/movie...96&show=review

4.5/5 for both PQ/AQ

[RustyK94]

If any Blu-Ray looks better than the DVD it's worth upgrading. The only question is how much would you pay to upgrade.

98% of films brought out on Blu-Ray are better than the DVD.

[richieb1971]

I thought Batman looked great for its age. Not Disney quality, but still impressive. I find the whole DVD comparison laughable.

Think of it like this. For a DVD to be comparable to the Blu ray, the DVD has to be 99.9% perfect. It has to be anamorphic, have the highest bitrates on sound and audio. Now, if they spent that much effort on a DVD and then made the worst possible transfer to blu ray, I think you might have a good argument that its not worth upgrading. But personally, I find it hard to believe this could even happen.

I just got Boondock Saints today. It is one of the few movies I still have on DVD. The difference is like night and day.

[sfmarine]

I don't have any of the Batman films on DVD. I'll probably be getting Batman and & Returns. They're old films so obviously they won't look as good as TDK. Well worth it over the dvd though. Especially if you don't have it already.

[SJcaped]

I have both the DVD and the BD, and the BD is clearly HD..Jack Nickolson's purple suits and general clothing look very good.

[plattopus]

Originally Posted by RustyK94

If any Blu-Ray looks better than the DVD it's worth upgrading. The only question is how much would you pay to upgrade.

98% of films brought out on Blu-Ray are better than the DVD.

What would be in that other 2%?

[SJcaped]

Originally Posted by sfmarine

I don't have any of the Batman films on DVD. I'll probably be getting Batman and & Returns. Ty.

Isn't Batman Returns the one with Devito and Chris Walken....if so, that's a tragically bad movie.
Last time I saw it was yrs and yrs ago on VHS and square CRT, so when FTA aired it a few months ago, I thought I'll record it in WS on watch it on my HDTV.....ohhhhh, big mistake, a complete waste of time.

Everything about it was bad......