Out of Africa appears in an aspect ratio of approximately 1.85:1 on this Blu-ray Disc. De-noised and processed within an inch of its life, this became a problematic transfer.
Sharpness was a significant issue. Some shots demonstrated good delineation, but much of the flick showed drab definition.
The image generally ranged from vaguely soft to downright blurry. The flick lacked virtually any of the clarity and detail we expect from Blu-ray.
No issues with jaggies or shimmering occurred, but edge haloes were a frequent distraction. In terms of source flaws, I saw occasional specks and nicks, but nothing heavy.
I got the impression heavy digital noise reduction affected the image. It showed very little grain and came across with an unnatural sheen that stripped it of life.
Colors appeared bland. The movie lacked natural tones, as the hues usually came across as somewhat wan and pinkish.
Few instances of full colors materialized, as these felt lackluster. Black levels mainly appeared adequately deep, but they varied.
Sometimes these appeared too gray and soft, and on other occasions they could look too dark. Shadow detail usually seemed appropriate, though the occasional overly dark blacks sometimes made this area look too opaque.
I found myself consistently dissatisfied with this transfer. At its best it became passable, but it usually looked worse than that.
On the other hand, the film's DTS-HD MA 5.1 soundtrack worked pretty well for its era. The forward soundstage appeared pretty well-defined, with much stereo activity occurring.
All three front channels offered some nicely spaced and separated audio. The surrounds were more limited, but the rear channels provided adequate reinforcement for the front and they could become active at times.
Quality of the audio was also pretty good for its age. Dialogue was easily intelligible and fairly natural, so a little reediness occurred, but the lines usually worked well.
Effects and music showed some roughness, but they had fairly nice range and heft. Nothing here dazzled, but the mix was above average given its era.
How did Blu-ray compare to the circa 2000 DVD? Audio worked better, as the DTS-HD mix seemed a bit more involving and dynamic. It still showed its age, but it felt more pleasing than its Dolby Digital 4.1 predecessor.
As for the visuals, it became a toss-up to pick which one you prefer. I actually thought both exhibited pretty similar definition, and the DVD might even offer slightly superior sharpness.
At the very least, its softness didn’t stand out as such a big distraction. It seemed noisier and dirtier, but without the excessive processing, it looked more film-like.
I could make out facial textures on the DVD, whereas those details got erased on the Blu-ray. Neither presentation proved to be terribly satisfying, but the DVD felt a bit more pleasing to me, perhaps just because it didn’t look like someone smothered it in noise reduction.
When we move to the extras, first comes an audio commentary from director Sydney Pollack. He presents a running, screen-specific discussion.
Pollack covers a nice variety of subjects, from historical facts to location issues to many facets behind both the technical and the creative sides of the production. We learn about casting and performances, casting and sets, and many other topics.
The track does suffer from a fair number of gaps, but these become somewhat forgivable due to the length of the film and also because most of Pollack's comments seem compelling. He repeats himself a couple of times but generally provides a lot of useful and illuminating information about the film.
More of the same appears in Song Of Africa, a one-hour, 12-minute and 45-second documentary. We see interviews with Pollack, actor Meryl Streep, composer John Barry, screenwriter Kurt Luedtke, and biographer Judith Thurman.
We also witness some brief interviews from the set itself - all with Pollack - plus some documentary footage from real life.
“Song” discusses historical aspects of the story, sets and locations, cast and crew, characters and performances, shooting in Africa, the score, and a few other production elements.
Inevitably, it repeats some info from Pollack’s commentary, but the historical perspective adds a lot. I also like Streep’s comments, largely because she’s a very entertaining storyteller. Though it’s too bad more participants don’t appear, this ends up as a solid program.
Note that the Blu-ray’s version of the documentary runs longer than the DVD’s. This one adds about 23 minutes of content.
A few other supplements round out the package. The film's theatrical trailer appears, complete with cheesy, tres-Eighties synthesizer score.
I guess John Barry's score wasn't ready yet, but still! With the terrible music featured in the trailer, it's a miracle anyone went to see the movie.
We end with 15 minutes, two seconds of Deleted Scenes. The set includes 19 of these, which means you shouldn’t expect anything extended from them.
Virtually all of them provide brief snippets that act as minor character embellishments. Given the theatrical cut’s already extended running time, I can’t find anything here that I’d consider to be worth adding, so these feel like pretty forgettable little tidbits.
On the flipside of the Blu-ray, you’ll find a standard DVD Version of Africa. This appears to provide a literal replication of the old 2000 DVD.
While I can't whole-heartedly recommend Out Of Africa, I can't really steer you away from it either. No, the film doesn't do a lot for me, but I can understand why a lot of others like it and why it became so successful. The Blu-ray presents good audio and some nice supplements but it demonstrates decidedly subpar picture quality. This turns into a disappointing release.
