I certainly hope that Washington receives the appropriate recognition at award time. As for James Woods, he completely steals all of his few brief scenes, as the fast-talking and funny newspaper editor. Absolutely flawless is the about best way to describe the image, as well as Jack N. Green's terrific cinematography. Everything is crystal clear and razor sharp, with even the darkest portions of the image being rendered with marvelous detail. Color reproduction is top notch- the warm, highly saturated hues are recreated without a hint of chroma noise or distortion, plus flesh tones look perfectly healthy.
Blacks are impeccable and the contrast is incredibly smooth.
Solid DVD authoring and the use of dual layer technology precluded any traces of digital compression artifacts. The Dolby Digital 5.1 channel soundtrack features a well-balanced mix that perfectly complements the visual. Channel separation proves to be quite wide across the forward soundstage, giving the track a very open sound. The surrounds are effectively deployed to create a realistic sonic environment filled with ambient sounds and directional effects. Additionally, the surround channels are also utilized to add emphasis to certain musical cues in Lennie Niehaus' score.