4/09/2010

Blu-ray Review: IMAX: Under the Sea (2009)

Now Available to Own





In electronics stores, the employees use the most state of the art technology including optimal digital picture and sound calibration to set up displays where the high intensity of CG heavy action movies quickens shoppers' pulses in the hopes of luring them to buy a television.

And while this is standard operating procedure for most home theatre departments, it wasn't until I saw the awe-inspiring Warner Brothers Blu-ray of the IMAX title Under the Sea that I realized that pet stores could definitely take a cue from this model. By setting up a television playing this Blu-ray, employees could watch the aquariums start flying out the door in the hopes that shoppers could make their living quarters look as blissfully serene, astoundingly colorful and exotic as the images contained in this 41 minute effort.

Narrated by Jim Carrey who manages to make the musical wit of his voice evolve into something soothing and complimentary to the overpowering images that upstage our favorite ham -- the film makes an ideal companion piece to 2010's earlier nautical release Wild Oceans that's sure to get you in the mood for both DisneyNature: Oceans and the Planet Earth follow-up Life.

A succinct yet stunning treasure from the same production team that created Into the Deep and Deep Sea, Under the Sea offers you an in-depth and unprecedentedly intimate look at sea-life, coral reefs, and areas of the ocean most of us will never see without the aid of cinema.

Primarily set in Papua New Guinea, southern Australia and other south pacific ocean floors including Indonesia, Carrey eases us into the story of nature where fish and other creatures go through the circle of life, blending in with the scenery to catch other fish in a brilliant depiction of evolutionary adaptation to environments, fighting fellow males to find a mate (in one case playfully set to “Perhaps, Perhaps, Perhaps”) and seeking suitable shelter in a race to stay alive as temperatures go on the rise.

With the future threats of global warming purported to greatly diminish or even end certain populations never out of earshot for long, Carrey reminds viewers through the aid of breathtaking imagery just how important and fickle life itself can be, urging us to realize it's within our power as opposed to the underwater creatures' to make changes to better our planet and prevent some species from doom.

Including some bonus footage only available in this edition, the Blu-ray boasts a flawless transfer that's so crisply vivid you nearly feel as though you can reach your hand out and reach into the water – when the sea snakes aren't nearby, of course.

Moreover, Under the Sea is an exceptional example of WB Blu-ray high definition that's so dynamic it not only brings you to the ocean but ensures that the effects of the ocean flood your living room, leaving you inspired and ready to purchase an aquarium now that you have already found the waters welcome enough for that home theatre investment.

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FTC Disclosure:
Per standard professional practice, I received a review copy of this title in order to evaluate it for my readers, which had no impact whatsoever on whether or not it received a favorable or unfavorable critique.