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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.
Engineering Connections (2008)

Engineering Connections (2008)

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Released 24-Jun-2009
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Details At A Glance

General		Extras
Category	Documentary	Main Menu Audio
Rating
Year Of Production	2008
Running Time	200:14
RSDL / Flipper	Dual Layered	Cast & Crew
Start Up	Menu	Cast & Crew
Region Coding	1,2,3,4,5,6	Directed By	Nick Metcalfe Kenny Scott Mike Slee
Studio Distributor	National Geographic Madman Entertainment	Starring	Richard Hammond
Case	Amaray-Transparent	Starring	Richard Hammond
RPI	?	Music	Alasdair Reid

Video		Audio
Pan & Scan/Full Frame	None	English Dolby Digital 2.0 (224Kb/s)
Widescreen Aspect Ratio	1.85:1
16x9 Enhancement
Video Format	576i (PAL)
Original Aspect Ratio	1.85:1	Miscellaneous
Jacket Pictures	No	Miscellaneous
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

Richard Hammond of Top Gear fame hosts this interesting but slightly uneven documentary series which was made in 2007/8 for National Geographic Channel. It was recently shown locally on SBS. The basic concept is investigate modern engineering achievements and look for links to older inventions and/or natural phenomenon. This makes for an interesting viewing experience for those who like to understand how things work. Some of the links are demonstrated with live action demonstrations which are reminiscent of challenges on Top Gear. Examples of these include using a chicken gun to fire chickens at pieces of aluminium to simulate bird strikes on planes, setting fire to a boat and Hammond riding a horse trying to fire a long bow. He makes for an enthusiastic is sometimes annoying host especially when he repeats obvious things just said by an expert.

The series is made up of four episodes each of about 50 minutes. The episodes are

Airbus A380 - Links the design of the new super jumbo to eagles, Mongol bows, rockets and bikes. The best episode of the series.
Deep Space Observer - Investigates the Keck Observer telescope in Hawaii and links it to ancient death rays, fridges, spy planes, the Theremin and thermal imaging. Not as good as the first episode due to a bit of geekiness.
Super Rig - Looks at the Troll A gas platform of Norway and its incredible design and construction. Links to plant pots, farmers in the US midwest, concrete pillars, the Tacoma Bridge disaster and car turbos. Interesting stuff.
Taipei Tower - The world's tallest building and its links to racing yachts, bird cages, steam pumps, safety belts and sports cars.

An interesting series for people with a passing interest is how things are constructed but maybe a little light for full blown techheads.

Don't wish to see plot synopses in the future? Change your configuration.

Transfer Quality

Video

The video quality is good.

The feature is presented in a 1.85:1 aspect ratio, 16x9 enhanced which I would guess is the original aspect ratio.

The picture was quite sharp and clear without being really crisp. Shadow detail is good. There is also some light grain in some backgrounds plus some minor blocking such as at 7:40.

The colour was very good with no issues.

There was some regular jagged edges and aliasing which would have been even more prevalent without progressive scan.

There are no subtitles.

There is no obvious layer change in the episodes.

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

Audio

The audio quality is good.

This DVD contains one audio option, an English Dolby Digital 2.0 stereo soundtrack encoded at 224 Kb/s.

Dialogue was somewhat variable. The voiceover was generally quite audible but sometimes drowned out a little by the music. Live recorded voices were sometimes difficult to catch. Subtitles would have been useful.

The music used added tension and excitement to some of the stunts.

The surround speakers were used for some atmosphere when played using PLII.

The subwoofer added a little bass to the music.

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

Extras

None

R4 vs R1

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

This seems to be the first global release of this series on DVD.

Summary

An interesting documentary series about engineering marvels and their connections to nature and older inventions.

The video quality is good but marred by aliasing.