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The Movie:
Tony Scott's rather entertaining speed-fest centering around a race car driver played by a young Tom Cruise, "Days Of Thunder" is a fine example of the Simpson/Bruckheimer brand of fast, intense action movies. It isn't quite Tony Scott's best film though; that would more likely be "Crimson Tide". Performances across the board here are very good, especially Cruise, Randy Quaid and Robert Duvall.
***
THE DVD:
VIDEO QUALITY: Certainly not that bad for what seems to be the same master as what was used for the laserdisc version a few years back. Some of the lower light/smoky scenes look slightly hazy and lack detail, but a lot of the scenes during the daylight on the track actually look pretty good; crisp and nicely detailed with vivid colors and accurate color saturation. An anamorphic transfer would have improved this disc, but I certainly think the quality here is definitely watchable throughout. I just would have liked to have seen the image be a little bit sharper overall. There aren't any problems in the way of artifacts with the exception of a few very slight, not terribly distracting instances. Overall, I found this to be an enjoyable presentation; looking pretty good for a movie that's now around 10 years old.
SOUND: Woah! A "you-are-there" feeling is definitely what I'm feeling for the sound mix on this disc; I frequently felt as if I was standing in the middle of the racetrack!. The surrounds are incredibly active and effective for quite a bit of the film, which is part of an incredibly intense overall sound mix that's highly entertaining and wonderfully loud. The race scenes are absolutely fantastic. Dialogue sounds very good; natural and full throughout. As fast and furious as the movie, this is a wild and intense sound mix that's sure to thrill.
MENUS: Basic, but stylish main menu based around the poster art.
EXTRAS: The trailer.
GRADES:
The Film: 85/A = (425/500 possible points)
Video: 83/B = (330/400 possible points)
Audio: 96/A = (384/400 possible points)
Extras: 70/C-= (210/300 possible points)
Menus: 70/C- = (140/200 possible points)
Value: 82/B = (246/300 possible points)
Presentation:79.75/C+ = (79/100 possible points)
TOTAL POINTS:1814.75/2200
Overall:82.48%/B
Final Thought: An enjoyable, fun movie; the disc's image quality is alright; the sound quality is simply phenomenal.
