Review of Deep Impact

Video

Deep Impact is presented in widescreen 2.35:1 ratio, and the transfer is good. I did notice a little colour banding on one darker scene but this was so minimal it did not detract from the overall enjoyment of the movie. The film is divided into 30 chapters to make navigation to your favourite scene easier. Also the layer change did not appear to be noticeable. Whether there isn`t one, or I blinked at that moment I cannot be sure but I certainly don`t remember it. Colours are vivid and clarity is excellent. One thing I did notice is that on both occasions I have spun this disk, at the end of chapter 2 (the professor car crash scene), the player jumped back to the beginning of that chapter (the first view of the telescope in the observatory) and I had to manually force the machine on to chapter 3 to continue the movie. After this glitch the DVD played without a hitch.

Audio

When I started watching this film, I noticed my player seemed to default to the English Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround soundtrack rather than the 5.1 Dolby Digital soundtrack. Some other disks I own also do this, and I have to manually select DD5.1 on the player remote, but for dome reason this DVD would not let the player select the alternative soundtrack with the `Audio` button. The only way I could change the soundtrack was to go via the Deep Impact `Set-up` Menu! I have never had to do this before. That said, the 5.1 sound was worth the hassle. This kind of film with lots of booms and special effects really shows off a good audio system. I particularly liked the scene when the astronauts were on the asteroid and the sun`s horizon hit causing the gas eruptions, and the camera cuts to inside the astronauts helmet with total silence on the soundtrack apart from their loud breathing/panting as they try to get back to The Messiah space vehicle. The music is also very atmospheric, having been composed by James `Titanic` Horner.

Features

Deep Impact features static menus, and the extras you get are two theatrical trailers. Better than nothing but not great. So far there is only one version of this film on DVD so unless a `Special Edition` is due out in the near future, a `making-of` type documentary would have been nice, as well as a commentary by the director or special effects artists.

Conclusion

Deep Impact was released in the UK cinemas about a month before that summer`s other asteroid blockbuster `Armageddon`. It seems to be a more `grown up` film than Armageddon, as Deep Impact has less humour, and more character development - particularly highlighted by Tea Leoni`s pained relationship with her father. This ends abruptly on the beach near her childhood home, as the huge tidal wave from the impact of the smaller of the two asteroids crashes onto land. The plot is a little more realistic - there being a full 2 years between first spotting the asteroid being on a collision path with Earth and it hitting our planet. Compare that with Armageddon`s 18 days!!

I enjoyed this film, as I did Armageddon, and if I was to pick a favourite I think it would be Deep Impact. Apart from that woman from ER and Elijah Wood trying to sleep with his girlfriend, it is an exciting, emotional movie.