Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion Home Theater Movies for Showcasing

I seem to remember a thread some time back where everyone was listing their favorite movies for showcasing home theater. I have searched and apparently my skill at searching is not adequate. Does anyone have a link to that thread?...........Rob

Ooh.. this is like my favorite topic. I'll hold off and wait to see if another thread surfaces tho.

I probably joined after that thread was started and never saw it. I know "Master and Commander" is a great movie to watch on a nice HT.

if its just to showcase video and Audio, get your hands on the blu ray version of the Police reunion tour called The Police: Certifiable Blu-ray. its the perfect blu ray demo. Very hard to find.

I'm just killin time while I save up for a purchase. Every now and then, I drop back onto the forum for some wishful thinking. A lot of topics recycle every so often - The favorite movie post was a fairly long one and I was going to reread it but couldn't find it. As I recall, Master and Commander was one of the more popular movies as was LOTR. Those are a couple to several years old and I thought newer movies could be added to the list - movies like Transformers for example - although that one is a bit dated as well.

I just watched Serenity on bluray. It's the movie made after the show "Fire fly" THe beginning scene when the ship ascends into the atmostphere is pretty amazing. Lots of LFE. You can hear the pressure crushing the ship as it ascends. I think I will buy the movie just for that scene.

Could this be the thread you are thinking of?

http://www.axiomaudio.com/boards/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=234292#Post234292

I don't know if we had a dedicated 'show-off movies' thread, but this one has many suggestions for good demo material.

But if you want my list, off the top of my head...

Master and Commander has been one of my top picks for a long time now. Very impressive on DVD, stunning on BluRay. The opening battle is a serious workout for your sub. Crank it up, and the cannons produce among the most incredible LFE I've ever come across.

Of course, the LOTR series has to be near the top. It's full of amazing visuals & wonderful audio.

The storming of Omaha beach in Saving Private Ryan is an incredible scene to demo. It's certainly not for everyone, but the brutal visuals combined with great surround mixing make for a powerful experience.

The Dark Knight. The latest Batman has some pretty amazing stuff in it. The gritty darkness of the filming is a workout for the dark levels in your HDTV.

The Fifth Element stays near the top of my list for demo material, and one of my favorite movies anyway. Wild visuals combined with interesting music make it a fun demo film.

There's a film called Baraka that is simply stunning. It's not really a movie, it's a film about, well, the human condition. No characters, no dialog. The cinematography is, IMHO, flawless. The music is good too, but the filming is primary. Absolute eye candy. Just, stunning.

The Fall is another movie that really impressed me. It's certainly a movie - characters, plot, etc, but not a mainstream one. Incredible movie with jaw-dropping cinematography. Highly recommended if you're going to show off an HD set.

Pan's Labyrinth is yet another great movie. Amazing story, great visuals and a well-mastered audio track. Parts of it I would consider 'demo-worthy'.

Kung Fu Panda (Blu-ray) - Reference quality animated film for you t.v and audio system. I really love the audio in this movie. Great use of surrounds, enjoyable LFE content throughout.

I, Robot (Blu-ray) - The DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack has superb clarity. I especially like the part at the beginning where Will Smith turns on the radio inside his home. Dialogue has a very clean, "crisp" tonal quality, enveloping surrounds and very impressive LFE moments. Also has decent video as well.

Since you're looking for newer stuff...

If you're looking for an overall movie to show off great sound (both subtle and direct), get The Orphanage.

All of the Pixar Blu-Rays are great demonstrations. My favorite might be the beginning of Ratatouille and the chase scene away from the old lady's house. You're getting great rain and weather effects, breaking glass, dialogue, shotgun blasts and it's a good total package scene.

3:10 to Yuma is really good as a 7.1 showcase, and there's a shootout near the end that has impeccable audio.

The Blu-Ray for Forbidden Kingdom sounds great. The movie's a little cheesy and has a lot of the typical child-saves-the-world mumbo jumbo, but the big fight scenes are great HT showcases too.