Forgetting Sarah Marshall – Blu-ray Disc Review

September 12, 2008 – 8:23 AM --- by: Justin Sluss

Tags: BD-Live, Bonus View, Digital Copy, Jason Segel, Jonah Hill, Judd Apatow, Kristen Bell, Mila Kunis, Nicholas Stoller, Paul Rudd, Russell Brand, U-Control, Universal

has an average rating of 7.6 on IMDb
1080p in AVC MPEG-4 on a 50gb disc
DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio
are ALL in HD with U-Control & Digital Copy
– &
– 2008
– 111 minutes (Rated) & 118 minutes (UNRATED)
– Universal
–

Overall Verdict – Highly Recommended

Buy it for $20.99 @ Amazon.com

— Review written by: Justin Sluss —

Trailer:

The Movie Itself was Written by star Jason Segel, Produced by Judd Apatow (of “The 40-Year-Old Virgin” and “Knocked Up” fame) and Directed by Nicholas Stoller. Director Stoller originally co-wrote the Screenplay to “Fun With Dick and Jane” with Producer Judd Apatow so they’ve worked together in the past. The story revolves around a man named “Peter Bretter” (played by Peter Segel) who’s a struggling musician that works on a television show that his girlfriend “Sarah Marshall” (played by Kristen Bell) stars on. One day Sarah comes home to find her boyfriend Peter in the nude, just getting out of the shower. Any other time this would not have been awkward for the couple but you have to keep in mind Sarah is about to break up with our leading man. Our poor, poor Peter is left heartbroken and as a result begins to rebound off every girl he can to kill the pain. Once he realizes that won’t work he shuts himself off to the outside world and eventually is dealt an intervention by his step-brother “Brian” (played by Bill Hader). Brian and everyone tell Peter he needs to forget Sarah and move on with his life.

So, Peter gets the bright idea to take himself a vacation to the very beautiful state of Hawaii. Only problem is that Sarah Marshall, Peter’s ex-girlfriend is staying at the exact same Hotel that he’s trying to check into. Peter and the lovely receptionist “Rachel Jansen” (played by Mila Kunis) both realize (along with our viewers) that she’s already with another guy. The guy Sarah Marshall is with happens to be a rock star named “Aldous Snow” (played by Russell Brand) who’s very flamboyant and well for lack of a better term, British. Peter actually at this point doesn’t have a room at the hotel as he was in the process of trying to do such when the receptionist (“Rachel“) told him they only had one available which was $6,000 a night. The off-guard nature of the confrontation for Peter of his ex-girlfriend with another man is enough to get Rachel (the hotel’s receptionist) to give him a break and let him stay in the luxurious suite. So Peter is on vacation in Hawaii and trying to forget his ex-girlfriend who just happens to be staying in the exact same hotel and it’s impossible to avoid her. That’s the whole premise to this film and it’s one that is actually easy to relate to and find great comedy in the situation.

In closing, “Forgetting Sarah Marshall” proves to be a very unique and funny comedy that you’d expect from the guys who did bring you such modern-day classic comedies as “The 40-Year-Old Virgin“, “Knocked Up” and such. Star of the film Jason Segel did a great job with his acting in the film but the real impressive thing to keep in mind is that he wrote the Screenplay as well. The film features great comedy that fans of Judd Apatow films will love and co-starring roles from regulars such as Paul Rudd and Jonah Hill to just name a few. The film is absolutely hilarious and also very emotional (heartfelt). This is by no means trying to be a catchy phrasing or anything but I will make the following statement. “Forgetting Sarah Marshall will make you both laugh until you cry and cry until you laugh. Romantic comedies aren’t just for chicks anymore.” Two thumbs up!

Video Quality on this release is in full 1080p using the AVC MPEG-4 codec, in a 1.85:1 aspect ratio on a BD-50 Disc (50 gigabyte Blu-ray Disc). This was originally shot on 35mm film according to the IMDb technical listing and makes for a nice transfer to High Definition. The picture quality holds a solid black level which helps deliver some excellent detail throughout. The color palette is extremely vivid which does the beautiful setting of Hawaii justice. Speaking of the video quality doing justice to that of which possess beauty. The fleshtones here are definitely accurate with two lovely actresses to serve as wonderful examples. Those two being Mila Kunis and Kristen Bell who are both easy on the eyes. There’s only a very tiny hint of film grain or possibly even noise present visually here which leads me to believe that maybe a slight bit of DNR (Digital Noise Reduction) may have been applied as to explain that consistency. Overall the Hi-Def video presentation here is nice, it’s fun to look at but just not quite total “eye candy” or anything beyond extraordinary. “Forgetting Sarah Marshall” on Blu-ray Disc earns itself a very decent “4 Star Rating“. Universal is starting off to a very nice start here with their presence on the Blu-ray format.

Audio Quality on this release is presented in DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio. Usually I’d be one to say lossless 5.1 surround is overkill on a “romantic comedy” but this proves to be a major exception. First off, dialogue is very distinct throughout — delivering every “punch line” perfectly. The amount of rear channel presence here is absolutely impressive in instances like when Peter Segel performs a song in the bar from his rock opera about “Dracula” or when he decides to really try to ride a wave. I hate to say this but some of the bass and rear channel presence found in the surfing scene beat the sound on a surfing documentary that will go unnamed. This has really caught me off-guard in the sound department and I’ve really enjoyed that surprise. “Forgetting Sarah Marshall” earns a very respectable “4 Star Rating” for overall audio quality.

Bonus Materials are all presented in High Definition (1080i/p) using the AVC codec and Dolby Digital 2.0 sound.

• Both the R Rated (Theatrical) and UNRATED versions of the film are presented here on one disc.

• “U-Control” is included which features Picture-In-Picture via “Bonus View” — requiring a “Profile 1.1” Blu-ray Disc Player. This has a total of three options, Visual Commentary which serves as basically a PIP (Picture-In-Picture) video commentary track with the filmmakers and cast members. The second option is your basic Picture-In-Picture experience that includes interviews, rehearsals and behind-the-scenes footage. Both of these play alongside the movie or separate (by chapters). The third and final option in “U-Control” on this release is Karaoke which allows you to sign along with six videos of songs from the film such as “Dracula’s Lament“, “We’ve Got To Do Something” and “Inside of You“.
• “Digital Copy” is included which is a FIRST for Universal. This is featured on a 2nd disc that is a DVD-ROM for use in both PC and Mac. Once you’ve inserted the disc you’ll be prompted to a menu that asks wether you’d like to copy the film (in it’s Theatrical 111 minute cut) to your iTunes or Windows Media Player. This will allow you to playback the file on your iPod or such devices. Not sure if this supports PSP (PlayStation Portable) or Microsoft Zune yet. We’ll update this when the digital copy feature is enabled likely on street date (September 30th).

• BD-Live is included which (when enabled likely on street date) will allow you to connect to the internet via “Profile 2.0” Blu-ray Disc Player and download new content. Stay tuned for more information on this soon.
• Deleted and Extended Scenes
• Line-O-Rama is a regular extra included on Judd Apatow films that fans will recognize. This one is definitely hilarious.
• Drunk-O-Rama is a parody of sorts on the “Line-O-Rama” extras that include well… being intoxicated.
• Sex-O-Rama is… oh think for yourself already!
• Gag Reel
• More from “Crime Scene“ gives you some more clips of the parody TV Show featured in the film. This “CSI” parody is actually pretty damn funny.
• Video Diaries includes footage from over 20 days of filming.
• Feature Commentary with the Director, Producers, Writer and Stars on both the R Rated and UNRATED versions of the film.
• Music Video for “We’ve Got to Do Something“
• “The Letter U” is a clip from a show for kids hosted by “Aldous Snow“
• Sarah’s New Show” gives you some alternate versions of different shows that “Sarah Marshall” was on.
• “A Taste For Love” gives you a behind-the-scenes look at how the crew created the puppets used in the film.
• “Puppet Break-Up” is too funny to even begin to describe.
• Russell Brand: “Aldous Snow“ is a little featurette to help you get to know the fake British rock star a little better.
• Raw Footage allows you to watch the webcam chats between Jason Segel and Bill Hader featured in the film.

Overall the bonus materials here come with some awesome surprises. You have the unexpected (but pleasant) inclusion of Digital Copy which (again) is a first for Universal and you have the excellent addition of a Visual Commentary with filmmakers and cast members in the “U-Control“. The fact all the bonus materials (stand alone, aside from “U-Control“) are not only included but are also in full glorious 1080i/p Hi-Def is very awesome. This earns a very nice “4.5 Star Rating” for bonus materials. Fans will have an absolute blast with this release!

Blu-ray Disc packaging:

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