"Soldier" is a well done action thriller
that stars
Bobby Deol and Preity Zinta
. The picture quality on this DVD is
flawless. It has
been masterfully transferred from the
original film
negative resulting in a picture that is
perfect in
every way.
The Dolby Digital 5.1 sound is used to
great effect
in the film and is especially dynamic in
the action
scenes and songs (especially "Soldier
Soldier") where
sounds bounce from speaker to speaker in
perfect
distortion free audio.
"Soldier" also includes a cool main menu
where an
image of Bobby Deol with gun shatters like
glass
being struck by a bullet every time you
select an
option. Among the extra features are
subtitles, the
theatrical trailor for "Soldier", a "now
available"
option with a detailed synopsis of 20 Eros
films.
Along with chapter index and song menu.
Some minor gripes: the subtitles cannot be
turned on
or off via the remote and the trailer for
"Soldier"
appears to be from a videotape source. All
that
aside, EROS/DEI should be proud of the job
they've
done in improving the standard of Indian
DVD making
to a higher level. Lets hope all of their
future
releases will be as
good.
SATYA
Released by
EROS/DEI. Starring J.D. Chakravarthy,
Urmila Matondkar, and Manoj Bajpai.
With 5.1
Dolby
Digital, English subtitles, 175 minutes.
Ram
Gopal
Verma's critically acclaimed crime drama
"Satya" is given first-class treatment by
EROS/DEI.
"Satya" has very cool main menu graphics.
Press DVD
menu and
you get an image of "Satya" star
J.D. Chakravarthy
pointing a gun straight at you. Select an
option and
you hear the sound of 3 gunshots followed
by smoke
oozing out the gun barrel and a jigsaw
puzzle
dismantling of the image as you head to
your
destination. Subtitles, song menu, chapter
index,
play movie, upcoming DVD releases, and
details of
currently available DVD releases are
available at
your fingertips.
Set in Mumbai,
this is the
story of Satya
(Chakravarthy) who comes to the big city
to
earn a
living but is soon drawn into the Mumbai
underworld.
He eventually meets and falls in love with
Vidya
(Urmila Matondkar, excellent in a small
role) which
complicates the life he has been living
and what he
hopes for their future. "Satya" is a
violent and
realistic crime drama with excellent
perfomances by
all. Expertly directed by Verma, one of
bollywood's
most inventive directors.
The video picture is excellent, on par
with EROS/DEI
superbly done "Soldier." The 5.1 audio is
in a word-
sensational. During a violent gun battle
with police,
bullets fly from speaker to speaker, from
front to
back and side to side. It was so realistic
I almost
felt like ducking for cover, myself. The
backgrond
music is stirring, and the songs are
melodious and memorable. Especially "Gholi
Mar",
"Sapne Mein," and "Baadlon Se." Lata
Mangeshkar and
the other singers excel.
A must-have DVD.