But, while Boyle is certainly central to the narrative, the film is as much about El Salvador as it is about him. Yet, even if it isn't always the smoothest or most cohesive of Stone's films, it is certainly one of his most passionate and fiery. The new widescreen anamorphic transfer of Salvador looks great. On his audio commentary, even Oliver Stone marvels at how good it looks, as he remembered a muddier looking picture. The image is sharp and clear throughout, without only occasional grain in some of the nighttime sequences.
Colors are bold and strong, with realistic flesh tones and good saturation.
Overall, it would be hard to ask for a better transfer of a movie shot 15 years ago on a relatively low budget. While much of the soundtrack is centered on the front soundstage with only occasional use of the surround channels for ambient effects and music, the speakers really come to life during the battle sequence in Santa Ana that brings the film to its violent climax. He tends to speak in bursts, with long silences of several minutes in between. However, when he does speak, his comments are insightful and interesting, although they tend to stay more with generalities, rather than dissecting what is on-screen at that moment. There's a lot of fascinating information behind the making of Salvador , especially since Stone made it outside the studio system as a kind of guerilla production.