BC of the Month, May 2007: Matt Paprocki - Page 3

In your DVD reviews, you go into the technical (i.e. audio/visual) aspects of the discs in great detail. How did you come by your technical background? Does paying attention to that stuff ever distract you from the fact that you're watching a story unfold, or do you watch twice? What's your home set-up like?

On the technical side, I’ve taught myself everything. It’s not necessarily difficult to pick out flaws in the video if you’re looking for them. There’s not a lot of training needed when you’re watching something and scratches are all over the place. That’s simply a lazy/cheap effort by the studio who didn’t want to spend the money to restore said movie. Stuff like compression is easily found once you’ve spent the few minutes it takes to learn what to look for.

On the audio side, it’s even easier. Does the sound follow the action on screen? Are actions happening on the left come from the left speaker? True die-hards will dive deeper and get into compression rates and such. I don’t have the money to spend on some massive home theater to pick up on things like that, and the space allowed really wouldn’t make a difference anyway even if I could. It’s not a special talent or anything to critique things like this. Most people either won’t care or don’t see a need to learn, and there’s nothing wrong with that. For nit pickers like myself, the information is there.

I generally try to pick out video and audio flaws early so I can get into the film during critical parts. Sadly, not all of the problems will occur early on, so it’s always in the back of my mind to watch for technical problems. The worst cases are foreign movies in their original language with subtitles. I always take notes as I’m watching to make sure I don’t forget to include things in the review, and fumbling around a dimly lit room with pen and pad while trying to read is not easy. Generally, the rewind button is my friend in those cases, but to watch the movie over again, well, there’s no time for that.

It’s actually more difficult when a DVD is really well made. You need to really dig deep to make sure there’s nothing wrong and that nothing is being overlooked.

My set-up is on the low end compared to most home theater enthusiasts. However, there’s a thing called overkill and a lot of people end up there. Is a $20,000 audio receiver better than a $500 one? Of course. Would most people know the difference, at least one significant enough to alter their viewing experience? Not a chance. I’m not even sure the people who do spend that much know the difference.

Article Author: Lisa McKay

Lisa McKay is Blogcritics' Executive Editor. At BC she can usually be found hanging out in the film section. She recently started food blogging at Will Kill for Food.

In her spare time, she watches movies, listens to music, reads, and caters to the whims of two spoiled cats. …

Visit Lisa McKay's author page — Lisa McKay's Blog