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  Directed by
  Starring
  Specs
  • Widescreen 1.85:1
  • 16:9 Enhanced
  • Dual Layer (RSDL )
  Languages
  • English: Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround
  • English: Dolby Digital Stereo
  Subtitles
  • None
  Extras
  • Animated menus
  • 3 Music video - I Knew I Loved You, Crash and Burn, Affirmation
  • Documentaries - Parallel Lives
  • Multiple angle
  • Discography

Savage Garden - Superstars & Cannonballs

Roadshow Entertainment/Roadshow Entertainment . R4 . COLOR . 110 mins . G . PAL

  Feature
Contract

It was only a matter of time before the dynamic duo of Darren and Daniel, aka Savage Garden, would make it big world wide which can only then lead to one thing, a world tour. The best way to capture a concert is when the Boys come home and play to a capacity crowd in Brisbane.

Performing their greatest hits such as Truly Madly Deeply, I knew I loved You, Affirmation and The Animal Song showcases the range of talent this duo has. For fans of the band, this is something for the collection.

  Video
Contract

A combination of tricky source material, a bundle of extras and limited space mean that we have a transfer that is not up to the usual standards we compe to expect from Village Roadshow. The apparent problem here is the mpeg macro-blocking (artifacting around contrasting edges) that is a attribute of the limited data rate on offer.

Whilst there are times where this error becomes obvious, more so to the trained eye, it is not as stand out as the transfers of the Olympics DVDs from Warner Vision.

The source material comprises some very 70's styled lighting patterns that strobe within each other not giving the mpeg encoding process any space to breathe. Flashes of reds, yellows and greens fill the screen almost every second frame at times yet blue background lighting, deep blacks and a high level of detail still provide for a pleasent image to look at.

The entire concert was filmed in Widescreen so it is only natural for Roadshow to present the entire disc, including extras in this 1.85:1 anamorphic presentation. Even the extras are above the sub par quality we experience with other discs.

  Audio
Contract

Initially recorded on 48 tracks and then converted down to 5.1 by the Savage Garden sound crew, this concert is an excellent representation of the concert.

Boasting some deep bass driven music and high end frequency, the live renditions come across superbly. Including the audience participation and cheering in the rears and sides really does help to create that concert feel.

Included on this DVD is the 2 channel Dolby Digital mix which is equally as good. Some may think that including the 2 channel mix would take away from the bit bucket available to the entire DVD but I've been told that the 2 channel mix that is produced from downmixing the 5.1 channel mix is very sub par and the masses had to be catered for in this one.

  Extras
Contract

For a concert there is a welcome collection of extras on here that I haven't come across in other similar releases. Let's take a look at them below:

  • First up we have anamorphic enhancement throughout the entire feature and extras with some nicely themed menus. Throw in the Rain Dolby Digital Trailer and you've got a great start to the extras included.
  • An Audio Commentary is provided with a slight twist. Whilst it plays along side the main feature, it's more of a recorded interview about the concert than any real talk as you watch presentation. The cool part is that the commentary is also present as a Picture in Picture window on the bottom right quarter of the screen which adds that certain production value effort to the disc.
  • A Documentary entitled Parallel Lives looks at alot of the behind the scenes goings on of the dynamic duo and how they came to be where they are now. A nice touch is when Darren visits his old home in Brisbane, now occupied by some stunned residents having Savage Garden tour their home.
  • 3 Music Videos are included in a recomposited 1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen presentation. I Knew I loved you, Crash & Burn and Affirmation are the same as what you've seen before.
  • A first for an in house Roadshow production is the use of the multi-angle feature on 3 of the songs during the concert. Since there were an abundant amount of cameras at the show, it was only normal to have this feature be utilised.
  • Finally the discography of their albums is also presented in a similar fashion to what we are used to with normal Cast/Crew biographies.

  Overall  
Contract

Pushing the limit of what a dual layer DVD can hold is a bit much when you want to include the quality extras that are on offer here. It's a case of quantity and quality all at once with only the video losing out, just marginally.


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      And I quote...
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    - Steve Koukoulas
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    • DVD Player:
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    • TV:
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    • Video Cables:
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