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  1. #1
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    Die Hard: The Ultimate Collection Review (Fox)

    Had this on my Digital Versatile Disc (DVD incase you're wondering...) want list for a long time now and got around to purchasing it just a couple of days ago....there is no need to get into the plot specifics of these quint-essential action opuses, so I will concentrate on the packaging design(s), audio and video quality of the set.

    The actual box is handsome, with Willis holding the gun wearing his infamous bloody wife beater tank top; there are silver overtones on the box which makes it much like a Columbia "Superbit" package, giving the appearance of brushed aluminum on a cardboard box. At any rate, the original "Die Hard" comes as Fox's "Five Star Collection," and is loaded with special features and the film itself has been remastered in widescreen with Dolby Digital and DTS 5.1 audio options. Lets begin with the video quality; at best, Die Hard looks good. It has been remastered, and lets not forget its quite a few years old now. Perhaps the biggest letdown is in the audio department. If you read DVD ETC. or Home Theater Magazines, BOTH of these publications recently had the original Die Hard in this Five Star Collection on their "Top DVDs In All of History" lists; DVD ETC. said "No other movie plays back so well on a home theater or gives you so much value for that new A/V you've just installed....yippie kay-ay mutha ****a!!" And in the recent issue of Home Theater, in their DVDs of All Time feature, Die Hard has been described as having "Blistering" or "Boistorous" Dolby and DTS 5.1 mixes and a "razor sharp transfer"...I have to tell you, Audio Review friends, Die Hard, even with these accolades from magazines and Fox themselves attempting numerous remixes to give us what we have here, doesnt sound all that hot.....of course, I auditioned the DTS track, which sounded GOOD for a film of this age, but the surround only heated up during the extreme action scenes, and the surround channels during explosions and such sounded very mono-like in delivery; like a decent Pro Logic recording of a hi-fi VHS tape. Other websites have confirmed this for me during other reviews of Die Hard in DTS, that the surround work sounds mono and a bit hollow. And I didnt really find the video quality of this first film "razor sharp," either. Dialogue, again, was terribly low in comparison to the action sequences.

    "Die Hard 2: Die Harder," with Renny Harlin (Deep Blue Sea, Nightmare on Elm Street 4) at the helm, was almost as good as the original, but not as good as the third installment, "Die Hard with a Vengeance." The picture quality on this second DVD was just fine, even though it wasnt part of Fox's "Five Star Collection" and was instead a "Special Edition" with two discs. For a film that came out in 1990, it looked quite awesome here on DVD, in fact. But audio was more of the same in DTS, with the soundfield sounding very unnatural, and the surround activity appearing mono in nature and nothing overwhelming about it whatsoever.....nothing like you would hear in more modern DTS tracks like Columbia's "Black Hawk Down" in Superbit. Still, overall, the sound served the film well.....but with all this hype you hear in the home theater community regarding the Die Hard trilogy DVDs and their "outstanding audio" I expected more.

    Finally, the most fun of the three in my opinion, "Die Hard with a Vengeance," starring Bruce Willis again of course, and Samuel L Jackson (who were awesome together), seemed to be the best of the lot in terms of technical makeup on the DVD; while I havent finished watching it yet, this third one has a pristine widescreen picture, and some pretty powerful DTS audio.....however, the DTS, ONCE AGAIN, just doesnt knock you over your head as an action picture like this you'd think would......for some reason, score settles in well, the gunshots are real enough, but something is off with the DTS mixes of all three of these films in this set....I just dont know. Still, "With a Vengeance" sounds just fine and doesnt warrant using any curse words such as I did when Anchor Bay released "Dawn of the Dead" in DTS and sounded like crap....this film sure doesnt sound like crap, but it seems to be they could have turned the signal up a bit more when recording these DTS tracks for the Die Hard box set.

    All in all, I got a good price at $70 for the set, where other stores in my area wanted $80. I like the films, and this seems like its gonna be the definitive versions of all three for awhile. Each film has two discs, with the second being filled with special features like trailers and making-of's....the animated menus are awesome, too.

  2. #2
    Sgt. At Arms Worf101's Avatar
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    Talking Thanks for the review.

    I'm not a big fan of the Die Hard Series. I enjoyed 1 and 3 well enough but that's about it. Nice review of the sound of each though. I hope some people actually look at em.

    Da Worfster

  3. #3
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    Quote Originally Posted by Worf101
    I'm not a big fan of the Die Hard Series. I enjoyed 1 and 3 well enough but that's about it. Nice review of the sound of each though. I hope some people actually look at em.

    Da Worfster
    I hear ya Worf; thanks for the feedback. Yeah, I agree, one and three were the best of the trilogy; two was okay, but lacked director McTiernan's feel and vision of the original and third.....very much like the feedback Johnathan Mostow got from Terminator fans after directing 3....fans felt it lacked the "vision" set by James Cameron.

  4. #4
    M.P.S.E /AES/SMPTE member Sir Terrence the Terrible's Avatar
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    Printer type dude, I have just five words for your reviews. 1 your 2. reviews. 3. are. 4. terribly 5. inaccurate.

    Not worth the bandwith they take up. I own all three disc, and for their age, they are sonically off the chart. Get your system calibrated mc buck!!
    Sir Terrence

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  5. #5
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    Quote Originally Posted by Sir Terrence the Terrible
    Printer type dude, I have just five words for your reviews. 1 your 2. reviews. 3. are. 4. terribly 5. inaccurate.

    Not worth the bandwith they take up. I own all three disc, and for their age, they are sonically off the chart. Get your system calibrated mc buck!!
    And I have a couple of phrases for YOU, Terry Me Boy.....(always GREAT to hear your feedback and to frolick in the fact that you take the time out of your *cough* busy schedule to write nonsense regarding my posts because thats ALL your comments are to me and a bunch of wiser folk around these here parts....COMPLETE NONSENSE)....1. Your 2. Comments 3. Dont 4. Mean 5. SQUAT 6. To 7. Me.....

    As I said, OTHER WEBSITES HAVE REFERENCED THE DIE HARD BOX SET as, on the AUDIO side, being EXTREMELY MONO-SOUNDING IN THE REARS, most notably on the FIRST FILM....the third film sounds fine to my ears, as I said, but the FIRST FILM, AS OPPOSED TO WHAT HOME THEATER MAG HAD TO SAY ABOUT THE "BLAZING 5.1 DTS SOUND", did not sound so "blazing," NO MATTER WHAT you try and tell me different about it.....OTHER PEOPLE REVIEWING THIS DISC FOUND THE SAME THING.....the surround effects appeared MONO-LIKE in dissipation, according to DVD Times, and thats JUST what I found.

    People, please dont listen to Terrence as he continues to try and take pot shots at me for personal reasons (*awwww* *Whimper Whimper*)......the audio on this three disc Die Hard set is NOT mind-blowing, mind-numbing or whatever the press writeups on this set would have you believe (and Terrence the Terr-eee-blay)....I am telling you from closely scruitinizing all three audio tracks (DTS) on all three films that even for their age, the DTS audio could have sounded more NATURAL, swollen and aggressive.....believe me on this one. This cowpoke is simply trying to begin yet another personal debate because there seems no one left to pick on, and thats what he is used to....but he scares me not, and shall never have me hear something I am not with my own ears.

    Just read the comment made by LYNN who posted to me regarding my review of MYSTIC RIVER, and how he agreed, after discussing with his wife a great deal, that the dialogue was WAAAAAAAY too soft, but Terrence would have you believe that he is willing to murder me to prove that the disc sounded JUST FINE....whatever. What a joke.

  6. #6
    Sgt. At Arms Worf101's Avatar
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    Red face Yipes...

    as Da Worfster ducks from the chair thrown at Lex's head he surries to get out of the line of fire. Lex is non-plussed by the errant missle and grins wickedly as he pulls the throwaway piece he keeps in his right pant leg and takes aim. Sir TT laughs at seeing the snubnosed .38 and dares Lex to "put one of those caps where you think it'll do the worst".

    Me, being the chicken s**t that I am, slinks out the baroom door shouting for da Police to come break the fracas up fore any manslaughterin' gits done.

    Later folks..

    Da Worfster

  7. #7
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    Quote Originally Posted by Worf101
    as Da Worfster ducks from the chair thrown at Lex's head he surries to get out of the line of fire. Lex is non-plussed by the errant missle and grins wickedly as he pulls the throwaway piece he keeps in his right pant leg and takes aim. Sir TT laughs at seeing the snubnosed .38 and dares Lex to "put one of those caps where you think it'll do the worst".

    Me, being the chicken s**t that I am, slinks out the baroom door shouting for da Police to come break the fracas up fore any manslaughterin' gits done.

    Later folks..

    Da Worfster
    Hahahahhaha......the Worfster has escaped the ultimate barroom brawl! You sly fox you...

    At least no broken teeth for you to deal with! Hey Worf, did ya watch anything cool this weekend DVD wise or hit the theaters? Last thing I saw was Spidey 2 in the theaters...

  8. #8
    Sgt. At Arms Worf101's Avatar
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    Yeah, I saw "I Robot"

    I did a review a few threads below. I felt it was "so so". Be interested to see what some REAL Asimov fans think of the film. Bears no resemblence to any Robot story I read of his. Some cool special effects though. I thought Data's defence of "sentience" in STNG was more moving than this one.

    Da Worfster

  9. #9
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    Quote Originally Posted by Worf101
    I did a review a few threads below. I felt it was "so so". Be interested to see what some REAL Asimov fans think of the film. Bears no resemblence to any Robot story I read of his. Some cool special effects though. I thought Data's defence of "sentience" in STNG was more moving than this one.

    Da Worfster
    Cool....gonna have to read your review....my better half wanted to see I Robot...

  10. #10
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    Well, upon closer examination and much more thorough analysis of the original Die Hard's sound by watching the DVD again last night (took it out of my new box set because I was in the mood), I may have to change my original opinion and agree with Terrence on this one, folks....the DTS track on Die Hard IS in fact impressive for the films age....again, I found the dialogue flat and soft most of the time --- especially compared to the action sequences --- and some action did in fact appear mono-like to my ears, even in the surrounds....but all in all, the effort was MUCH better than I originally reported on, and I can give Fox a Thumbs Up for the DTS delivery on the first Die Hard. The gunfight scenes, where Hans Greuber's goons are shooting it out with Willis, sounded AWESOME upon closer examination in DTS....in fact, they packed quite a punch and activated my sub many times....those machine guns sounded like they were going off right in my apartment, and my receiver wasnt up that high!

    Still, what I need to complain about is the fact that dialogue still seemed very low, hollow, well, just "flat" as I said.....and then suddenly there would be action or a gunfight, and the soundstage would open up and get REALLY loud; the mix between dialogue and loud action just wasnt mixed right in my opinion, and it became distracting. I will have to go back and re-watch Die Hard 2: Die Harder, and report on that film's DTS track, as well. As I said about Die Hard With a Vengeance, that DTS track sounded just powerful enough for a 1995 action blockbuster.

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