Grand Slam DVD Review:


The Movie

A quiet yet cunning schoolteacher recruits an elite team of international criminals for the ultimate caper: robbing $10 million in diamonds from and impenetrable Rio de Janeiro vault at the frenzied peak of the city's Carnival. The planning is meticulous. The crime must run like clockwork. But even if they can pull off the most daring theft in criminal history, are the wildest surprises of all yet to come?

The 1967 film GRAND SLAM hardly breaks any exceptional grounds but it definitely has its moments. GRAND SLAM is a clever story that never gets tiresome. Director Giuliano Montaldo knows how to capture the audience’s attention. Although not a unique film, GRAND SLAM has the packaging for a decent classic heist thriller offering a reasonably entertaining experience.

The Video

GRAND SLAM appears in an aspect ratio of 2.35:1 on this single-sided, dual-layered DVD; the image has been enhanced for 16X9 televisions. Based on the movie's age the DVD presented a dazzling picture that consistently appeared admirable.

GRAND SLAM looks about as good as it ever will. Sharpness seemed immaculate. I noticed no problems related to softness or fuzziness. Even during wide shots, the picture stayed perfect and solid. Print flaws seemed to be insignificant.

Throughout the movie, I noticed a couple of speckles, grit, grain, scratches and streaks, but those came about occasionally. Edge enhancement caused no major concerns, and I noticed no signs of jagged edges. Overall, the image worked well in this transfer.

The Audio

GRAND SLAM is presented in a Dolby Pro Logic 2.0 surround mix. The film offered a simple mix, principally because it only consists of dialogue and simple effects. Speech sounded like it may have been dubbed at some point in time, although this seems to be how the director intended to have the movie filmed.

Effects seemed clear and decisive, without any alteration. Overall, the track seemed fairly typical of its era and type of film despite the fact that the audio came across as somewhat better than average.

The Extras

Theatrical Trailer

Poster & Still Gallery

Overall

Blue Underground continues its string of attractive DVDs with GRAND SLAM. Fans of the genre will be very pleased with Blue Underground’s transfer. I would have to say that the DVD has a very eye-catching presentation that would make others envious. For those of you who enjoyed films like Heist, The Score, and Ocean’s Eleven, GRAND SLAM is where it all began. Highly Recommended.

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