The Video: How Does The Disc Look?
The film’s original 2.35:1 aspect ratio is presented in a very good anamorphic transfer. The film’s use of stark blacks, grays and whites certainly lends itself to a first-rate video transfer and even in standard 480 resolution, the results here are quite impressive. From the opening title sequence in which Miller uses the similar black-and-white style Rodriguez perfected in Sin City, the shadowy noir-influenced images of The Spirit literally dancing across a high-tension wire as he prowls the city looking for criminals pop off the screen with deep, inky blacks and crisp, clean whites. The occasional splashes of color — the fluttering flash of The Spirit’s red necktie, the yellow glow of Sand Serif’s coveted treasure — offered a sharp contrast to the otherwise monochromatic color scheme. Color balance and saturation levels, when present, were all consistent with evidence of blooming or smearing. There were no obvious signs of compression artifacts, macroblocking or edge enhancement and the transfer revealed no evidence of specks or blemishes on the source print. Details such as the odd tattoo design on The Octopus’ eyes and the glittering necklace and jewelry worn by Sand Serif throughout all looked sharp and well-defined. Overall, a very good and solid video presentation.
The Audio: How Does The Disc Sound?
The lossy English 5.1 EX track on this DVD offers a surprisingly aggressive and fully-involved audio experience that perfectly complements the better-than-expected video presentation. This is a loud, ambient and very active audio presentation that delivers constant directional and discrete content to all six channels throughout. From the opening credit sequence, the driving score by David Newman kicks in and provides a full and enveloping aural experience through all six channels. Effects such as the dull, booming thud of punches as The Spirit’s fists connect with his nemeses or the rapid echo of gunfire as The Octopus comes in with pistols blazing all sound natural and realistic. Sound cues, in general, continually pan from front to back and right to left, offering a nice depth and dimension to the experience. Dialogue always remained clear and concise through the center channel mix, while directional cues were well-placed in both the front stereo and rear surround channels. Overall, a very good and involving audio presentation.
The optional subtitles are in English and Spanish.
