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PLEASE NOTE: Michael D's is currently in READ ONLY MODE. Anything submitted will simply not be written to the database.
Lots of stuff is still broken, but at least reviews can now be looked up and read.
Fight for the Ashes, The: The Complete 2005 Test Series (2005)

Fight for the Ashes, The: The Complete 2005 Test Series (2005)

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Released 14-Dec-2005

Cover Art

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Details At A Glance

General Extras
Category Sports Main Menu Audio & Animation
Featurette-The Analyst
Featurette-5 Great Performances With The Bat
Featurette-5 Great Performances With The Ball
Featurette-Commentators' Moments Of The Summer
Notes-Scorecards, Stats And Facts
Featurette-Richie Benaud's Goodbye
Gallery-Montage-The Best Of 4sight
Rating Rated E
Year Of Production 2005
Running Time 423:40 (Case: 480)
RSDL / Flipper Dual Layered
Multi Disc Set (3)
Cast & Crew
Start Up Menu
Region Coding 4 Directed By None Given
Studio
Distributor

Roadshow Home Entertainment
Starring None Given
Case Amaray-Transparent
RPI $49.95 Music None Given


Video Audio
Pan & Scan/Full Frame None English Dolby Digital 2.0 (256Kb/s)
Widescreen Aspect Ratio 1.78:1
16x9 Enhancement
16x9 Enhanced
Video Format 576i (PAL)
Original Aspect Ratio 1.78:1 Miscellaneous
Jacket Pictures No
Subtitles None Smoking No
Annoying Product Placement No
Action In or After Credits No

NOTE: The Profanity Filter is ON. Turn it off here.

Plot Synopsis

    There would probably not be too many test cricket series which would justify a three DVD set of highlights. Well, I think the most recent Ashes series certainly does and what an excellent production it is. Obviously, the series in question is the 2005 Ashes series which was won by England in a very closely fought series. It was held in England and this set is a production of the English network, Channel 4, which covered the cricket. This coverage was also screened here on SBS.

    Each test match of the series is covered in detail with chapters for each day, enabling you to access the day's cricket you are after quite easily. All five tests include over an hour of footage, some more than an hour and a half. Each test includes an intro covering the situation in the press and any pre-match issues or incidents such as Glenn McGrath's injury before Edgbaston. Mike Nicholas is featured prominently and the commentators include Tony Grieg, Richie Benaud in his last season commentating in England, Geoffrey Boycott, Mike Atherton, Michael Slater and more. The coverage of each day's play gives you a good feel for how the day went featuring wickets, dropped catches, good shots, milestones and end of day interviews. In addition to each test, the main program also includes an overall intro to the series (3:10) and a final wrap-up (5:04 of crowing). To my mind the amount of footage included for each test is enough to be significantly better than just highlights and not enough to be boring.

    The five tests are:

  1. Lords (64:42)
  2. Edgbaston (78:56) including extended highlights of the nailbiting finish.
  3. Old Trafford (84:31)
  4. Trent Bridge (88:45)
  5. The Oval (98:32)

    Highly recommended for cricket fans.

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Transfer Quality

Video

    The video quality is very good.

    The feature is presented in a 1.78:1 aspect ratio 16x9 enhanced which is the original aspect ratio.

    The picture was very clear and sharp throughout, with no evidence of low level noise. There were some patches of light grain or mild macro-blocking to be seen on the outfield, especially noticeable when the ball ran across to the fence. These were not terrible but did occasionally catch the eye.

    The colour was excellent, rich and solid throughout.

    The only noticeable artefact was aliasing which was mild and irregular, generally on fences and logos.

    There are no subtitles.
    

Video Ratings Summary
Sharpness
Shadow Detail
Colour
Grain/Pixelization
Film-To-Video Artefacts
Film Artefacts
Overall

Audio

    The audio quality is very good.

    This DVD contains an English Dolby Digital 2.0 surround soundtrack encoded at 256 Kb/s.

    Commentary was clear and easy to understand and there was no problem with audio sync.

    The surround speakers added some mild atmosphere.

    The subwoofer was not used.

Audio Ratings Summary
Dialogue
Audio Sync
Clicks/Pops/Dropouts
Surround Channel Use
Subwoofer
Overall

Extras

    There are quite a few quality extras, all on the third disc.

Menu

    The menu included motion, music and allowed for the user to choose a specific day's play.

Disc 3

The Analyst (15:16)

    Channel 4's cricket analyst, Simon Hughes gives his thoughts on each test, which provides an interesting summary of each game's tactics and critical moments.

5 Great Performances with the Bat (3:52)

    Only one Aussie performance is included but that is probably fair. Good stuff.

5 Great Performances with the Ball (3:59)

    More Aussies on show here as it is only our bowlers who kept us in this series (sometimes when they were batting!).

Commentators Moments of the Summer (19:39)

    A roundtable discussion at the end of the fifth test with all the commentators discussing the important moments of the series. Well worth seeing.

Scorecards Stats & Facts (31:23)

    Full scorecards and statistics for the series roll by at their own pace accompanied by music. Also included are records and trivia for each game. Excellent for the statistically minded.

Richie Benaud's Goodbye (7:56)

    This is the last few minutes of Richie's commentary career in England. Nice addition to the extras.

The Best of 4 Sight (5:28)

    An excellent selection of the super slo-mo shots from the series accompanied by Mendelssohn. Another nice extra.

R4 vs R1

NOTE: To view non-R4 releases, your equipment needs to be multi-zone compatible and usually also NTSC compatible.

    A similar 3 disc set is available in Region 2, however it seems to have different extras. I cannot find any more details about its contents, but I will assume they would be reasonably similar.

Summary

    An impressively put together collection of highlights from the 2005 Ashes test series.

    The video quality is very good.

    The audio quality is very good.

    The set has a selection of quality extras, all of which are worth your time.

Ratings (out of 5)

Video
Audio
Extras
Plot
Overall

© Daniel Bruce (Do you need a bio break?)
Tuesday, March 07, 2006
Review Equipment
DVDPioneer DV667A DVD-V DVD-A SACD, using Component output
DisplaySony FD Trinitron Wega KV-AR34M36 80cm. Calibrated with Digital Video Essentials (PAL). This display device is 16x9 capable. This display device has a maximum native resolution of 576i (PAL)/480i (NTSC).
Audio DecoderBuilt in to amplifier/receiver. Calibrated with Video Essentials.
AmplificationPioneer VSX-511
SpeakersMonitor Audio Bronze 2 (Front), Bronze Centre & Bronze FX (Rears) + Yamaha YST SW90 subwoofer

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