Time for Drunken Horses, A (Zamani Barayé Masti Asbha) (2000) |
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General | Extras | ||
Category | Drama |
Theatrical Trailer Biographies-Crew-Bahman Ghobadi Trailer-The Cat's Meow; The Circle; Kandahar;Molokai;Monsoon Wedding |
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Rating | |||
Year Of Production | 2000 | ||
Running Time | 75:04 (Case: 80) | ||
RSDL / Flipper | No/No | Cast & Crew | |
Start Up | Menu | ||
Region Coding | 1,2,3,4,5,6 | Directed By | Bahman Ghobadi |
Studio
Distributor |
Madman Entertainment |
Starring |
Ayoub Ahmadi Rojin Younessi Amaneh Ekhtiar-dini Madi Ekhtiar-dini Kolsolum Ekhtiar-dini Karim Ekhtiar-dini Rahman Salehi Osman Karimi Nezhad Ekhtiar-dini |
Case | Click | ||
RPI | ? | Music | Hossein Alizadeh |
Video | Audio | ||
Pan & Scan/Full Frame | None | Dolby Digital 2.0 (224Kb/s) | |
Widescreen Aspect Ratio | 1.66:1 | ||
16x9 Enhancement |
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Video Format | 576i (PAL) | ||
Original Aspect Ratio | 1.66:1 | Miscellaneous | |
Jacket Pictures | Yes | ||
Subtitles | English | Smoking | Yes |
Annoying Product Placement | No | ||
Action In or After Credits | No |
A Time For Drunken Horses is a film about a young Kurdish boy who is forced into taking a dangerous and physically demanding job to support his family.
Twelve year old Ayoub and his family live in a small Kurdish village on the border of Iraq and Iran. When his father is killed smuggling goods across the border, Ayoub becomes responsible for the other children in his family and he must find some way of supporting them. With few options, Ayoub takes on the same dangerous job that killed his father, smuggling everyday goods across the border. When it becomes clear that his disabled brother Madi requires an operation to prolong his life, Ayoub must take great risks in order to earn enough money for the surgery.
This film contains a number of visually stunning scenes and competent performances by the lead actors but due to the film's storyline it is quite depressing. Despite this, the film is still able to hold the viewer's attention, showing the sacrifices that people will make to keep their families together. The film was honoured with the Camera d'Or for the Best First Film award at the 2000 Cannes Film Festival for writer/director Bahman Ghobadi, and received wide critical acclaim.
The transfer is presented at an aspect ratio of 1.66:1 and it is 16x9 enhanced.
The transfer is extremely sharp throughout and it always displays very high levels of detail. No low-level noise was detected at any time during the transfer. During the small number of dark scenes, excellent levels of shadow detail may always be seen.
The colour palette displayed during the transfer employs a large percentage of dirty greens, greys and browns, reflecting the harsh conditions that the film is set in.
No MPEG artefacts were detected at any time during the transfer. A very small number of aliasing artefacts may be seen during the transfer at 6:53, 22:05 and 47:09. Each of these artefacts is very minor and is unlikely to be detected by most viewers. A small number of film artefacts may be seen during the transfer. Some examples of these artefacts may be seen at 2:34, 7:44, 8:11, 10:56 and 21:47. All of these artefacts are very minor and are never annoying.
A single set of yellow English subtitles is provided for the transfer. They are always clear and easy to read but on a small number of occasions fail to translate background lines of dialogue.
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Shadow Detail | |
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Film-To-Video Artefacts | |
Film Artefacts | |
Overall |
The dialogue is always clear and easy to understand at all times during the transfer. No dropouts or problems with audio sync were detected at any time during the transfer.
The traditional original musical score by Hossein Alizadeh is used sparingly throughout the transfer and always suits the on-screen action while never drawing attention to itself.
The surround and LFE channels were not utilized during this transfer.
Dialogue | |
Audio Sync | |
Clicks/Pops/Dropouts | |
Surround Channel Use | |
Subwoofer | |
Overall |
The non-animated menu is presented at an aspect ratio of 1.78:1 and it is 16x9 enhanced.
This trailer is presented with a Dolby Digital 2.0 soundtrack at an aspect ratio of 1.66:1 and it is not 16x9 enhanced.
This is a four-page biography and filmography for writer/director Bahman Ghobadi.
This trailer is presented with an English Dolby Digital 2.0 soundtrack at an aspect ratio of 1.33:1.
This trailer is presented with an Iranian Dolby Digital 2.0 soundtrack at an aspect ratio of 1.78:1 and it is not 16x9 enhanced.
This trailer is presented with an English Dolby Digital 2.0 soundtrack at an aspect ratio of 1.85:1 and it is not 16x9 enhanced.
This trailer is presented with an English Dolby Digital 2.0 soundtrack at an aspect ratio of 1.78:1 and it is not 16x9 enhanced.
This trailer is presented with an English Dolby Digital 2.0 soundtrack at an aspect ratio of 1.78:1 and it is not 16x9 enhanced.
NOTE: To view non-R4 releases, your equipment needs to be multi-zone compatible and usually also NTSC compatible.
This film does not appear to be currently available in Region 1.
A Time For Drunken Horses is a well crafted story detailing the hardships that many people must endure to survive each day.
The video transfer is of extremely high quality and it only displays a small number of very minor artefacts.
The Dolby Digital 2.0 soundtrack is suitable for the style of material presented.
The very small collection of extras provides minimal insight into the film.
Video | |
Audio | |
Extras | |
Plot | |
Overall |
Review Equipment | |
DVD | Toshiba 2109, using S-Video output |
Display | Sony KP-E41SN11. Calibrated with Video Essentials. |
Audio Decoder | Built in to amplifier/receiver. Calibrated with Video Essentials. |
Amplification | Front left/right: ME75b; Center: DA50ES; rear left/right: DA50ES; subwoofer: NAD 2600 (Bridged) |
Speakers | Front left/right: VAF DC-X; Center: VAF DC-6; rear left/right: VAF DC-7; subwoofer: Custom NHT-1259 |