Mr. Popper’s Penguins - Blu-ray Review

3.8 Stars (out of 5) 

Synopsis                               

In this live-action adaptation of Richard and Florence Atwater's classic children's book, Jim Carrey takes on the titular role of Mr. Popper, a businessman who inherits a small flock of penguins and must transform his Manhattan apartment into an arctic habitat. Buy Now $24.99

Starring:

Jim Carrey, Carla Gugino, Madeline Carroll, Angela Lansbury, Ophelia Lovibond, Jeffrey Tambor, Philip Baker Hall, James Tupper, Clark Gregg, Dominic Chianese, Kelli Barrett

Director:

Mark Waters

Blu-ray Release Date:

December 6, 2011

Subtitles:

English SDH, Spanish

Rating

Overall rating weighted as follows:
Audio 40%, Video 40%, Special Features 20%, Movie - its just our opinion so take it with a grain of salt

Audio 3.0 Stars (out of 5)

Dolby and DTS Demo Discs used as basis for comparison
●    Subwoofer – 1.0 Stars
●    Dialog - 5.0 Stars
●    Surround Effects – 2.0 Stars
●    Dynamic Range – 4.0 Stars

English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1, French: Dolby Digital 5.1, Spanish: Dolby Digital 5.1

What I remember most about the audio in this movie is the loud ear piercing honks of the playful penguins. The honks pan the left and right speakers and command your attention. The dialog is handled superbly, and no line of dialog is ever missed. However, the subwoofer is hardly ever used. There were a few small action scenes that could have been used some bass, but the low end was ignored most of the film. It almost seams like some family films minimize heavy bass usage to keep children from getting scared. Surround effects are rarely used, but can be noticed in scenes with crowds of people, rushing water, and various penguin movements.

Video  4.9 Stars (out of 5)

Spears & Munsil Benchmark Blu-ray Edition used as basis for comparison
●    Color Accuracy  - 5.0 Stars
●    Shadow detail – 5.0 Stars
●    Clarity – 5.0 Stars
●    Skin tones – 5.0 Stars
●    Compression – 4.5 Stars

Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC, Resolution: 1080p, Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1, Original Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1

Mr. Popper’s Penguins visually pop on Blu-ray. Colors are vibrant and still remain natural looking. Edges are sharp enough to make out blemishes, tiny wrinkles, fine clothing textures, and even tiny penguin feathers. The black and white on the penguins have stunningly perfect contrast. Dark scenes look great, and show very little artifacts from compression. This is a beautiful video presentation that features some great shots of New York buildings and several close-ups on the beautiful penguins.

Bonus Features 3.0 Stars (out of 5)

• Audio Commentary with Director Mike Waters, Editor Bruce Green, and Visual Effects Supervisor Richard Hollander.
• Nimrod and Stinky's Antarctic Adventure (1080p, 6:11): A animated short.
• Deleted Scenes (1080p, 14:32): Twelve deleted scenes with optional commentary.
• Gag Reel (1080p, 2:05)
• The Legacy of Mr. Popper's Penguins (1080p, 4:04): A discussion about the book that inspired the film.
• Ready for their Close-up (1080p, 8:28): A featurette about having live penguins on set.
• Ladies and Gentooman (1080p, 5:55): A SeaWorld specialist gives a few facts about penguins.
• Stuffy Penguin Theater (1080p, 4:21): Shows how filmmakers used stuffed penguins as stand-ins for the eventual CGI penguins.
• Penguin Pandemonium (1080p, 3:12): Shows the process of planning out the scenes by using puppets and lighting passes.

Movie - 3.5 Stars (out of 5)

Review

Mr. Poppers Penguins is a warm hearted family film that addresses important issues of family in a very unconventional way. The story unique with a ridicules premise, that requires you to leave reality behind. Somehow this movie is able to walk fine line of being completely silly and sensitive at the same time. This is mostly due to Jim Carrey's performance. It's nice to see him in a comedy that doesn't require him to make a fool of himself. His charisma and comedic timing carry the film and make it charming. The movie handles the dark topics of death and divorce without using a heavy hand and remains fun to watch. Sometimes it seems a little too light, but for a family film the tone was perfect. While watching the movie I thought the CGI penguins were remarkable. I watched the extra features and was surprised to find out that 80% of the time, the penguins were real.