Best movies for a 50 inch Plasma, and is Blu-Ray worth getting?

Question

I just bought myself a Samsung 50 inch Plasma series 4, and was blown away by the experience. I just wondered which DVDs you guys would say would be in you Top 8 to make use of this cinematic experience?

I'd guess things like 300, 2001, Matrix, etc would be well worth watching.

What else? Give your TOP 8...!

As a sneaky second question, is Blu-Ray really all that? If so, which Blu Ray player should i get (reasonable cost, please)

Thanks guys - 10 points to the most helpful...!

Answer 1

Blu-ray is all that, I have the PS3 and I want your TV, please.

Any good war movie like Saving private Ryan or Braveheart would be good, for sure 300.

Answer 2

I never really though Blu-ray would be all that good, but then I saw one set up on a full HD LCD. I was literally awestruck. Went and got a 46" Sony Bravia LCD and PS3 as soon as I could. Some movies stand out much better than others. Hellboy and Die Hard 4 are definately good. Any computer animated movie looks fantastic becuase they are a direct transfer of the digital source. Happy Feet is a great example, because with the majority of colour being harsh white and strong blacks, details and edges are well defined, and when other colours are shown they really stand out brilliantly. It also helps that a lot of effort was put into the transfer, which is why it is quite often used as a demo material on display in stores. Monster House also looks brilliant, but I am a huge fan of that films look anyway. While 300 does look good on Blu-ray (I've yet to come across a movie that actually looks 'bad') being as it is so stylised, contrasted and artificially grained, It does not make ideal demo material. That said, any fan of the look of the film (which I am) will love seeing it on Blu-ray in all it's glory with full detail just as the director intended. Another (suprisingly) good example of Blu-ray, which Sony recommends to retailers as demo material is The Simpsons Movie. At first I thought 'how much more detail can bold 2D animation have?'. But in the case of The Simpsons movie, the true power of Blu-ray is in the colour, which is strong and vibrant and the amount of effort the animators put into making it look more cinematic than the episodes really shows. A good website that I look at to see what reviewers are saying about the picture quality of movies that come out on Blu-ray is - http://www.blu-ray.com/movies/reviews.ph... - These guys can be picky, and will mention very slight issues with the picture, (keep in mind that even slightly flawed blu-ray transfers are still amazing) but that way you know if they say something is flawless, it really is flawless.

Also, before making the leap to Blu-ray (if you're considering it) you should make sure your TV is Full HD, although seeing as you just got it I'd assume so.

Oh and in answer to you're first question, good DVDs for surround sound - I found Transformers is always a brilliant way to show off my home theatre (with the subs turned right up!), also 300 and Big Fish both have very god picture.

Answer 3

I'd wait to get a blu-ray, because soon they are going to only be making blu-rays so the price will get signifigently lower kind of like when DVD players first came out, oh and a good movie would be something with lots of action I cant seen to think of any right now besides the newest Die Hard