Fight for the Ashes, The: The Complete 2005 Test Series (2005) |
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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 |
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Rating | |||
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 |
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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 |
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:
Highly recommended for cricket fans.
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.
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Overall |
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.
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Subwoofer | |
Overall |
There are quite a few quality extras, all on the third disc.
The menu included motion, music and allowed for the user to choose a specific day's play.
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.
Only one Aussie performance is included but that is probably fair. Good stuff.
More Aussies on show here as it is only our bowlers who kept us in this series (sometimes when they were batting!).
A roundtable discussion at the end of the fifth test with all the commentators discussing the important moments of the series. Well worth seeing.
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.
This is the last few minutes of Richie's commentary career in England. Nice addition to the extras.
An excellent selection of the super slo-mo shots from the series accompanied by Mendelssohn. Another nice extra.
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.
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.
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Review Equipment | |
DVD | Pioneer DV667A DVD-V DVD-A SACD, using Component output |
Display | Sony 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 Decoder | Built in to amplifier/receiver. Calibrated with Video Essentials. |
Amplification | Pioneer VSX-511 |
Speakers | Monitor Audio Bronze 2 (Front), Bronze Centre & Bronze FX (Rears) + Yamaha YST SW90 subwoofer |