Hana and Alice Comparison Review

BiscLimpkit · Post by **BiscLimpkit** » 06 Apr 2005, 19:37

Hana and Alice is a refreshing, well blossomed tale that leaves a sweet aftertaste. The two leading actresses, Anne Suzuki and Yu Aoi, provide immeasurable depths in their performances, tackling mature relationship issues in a complex teenage environment. Shunji Iwai once again provides breathtaking imagery soaked in a spectacular musical score that was composed by none other than Iwai himself. The delightful story and character study will ensure that Hana and Alice will be continuously cherished for years to come.

It is tremendously difficult to point the finger at a single release as the supreme winner. In terms of supplementary materials, the Korean edition wins due to the music video and attractive packaging. However, considering that none of the extras contain English subtitles, this makes the issue redundant. Therefore, the winner is dependant on the audio and visual quality of both discs. Hana and Alice is just as important visually as it is in terms of audio; therefore it is up to the individual to determine which is more vital. Personally, I am more swayed towards the Korean’s improved image transfer.

8)

Lourdes · Post by **Lourdes** » 07 Apr 2005, 10:15

The R3K is the clear winner. Much better picture and the audio is as the director intended and not an upmix. But intereresting to hear that the DD is better than the DTS, I authored a new disc using the DTS + R2J transfer (R3K is a port) so I'll try the DD5.1.

BiscLimpkit · Post by **BiscLimpkit** » 07 Apr 2005, 11:00

Thanks, yeah I was definately more swayed towards the Korean's improved transfer. The HK Video is painful at times. Almost like VCD level.

Guest · Post by **Guest** » 07 Apr 2005, 14:18

It's because it's on a DVD-5. Well the single disc version is but the 2-disc one only uses a DVD-9 for the extra audio tracks and there's no video improvement. I thought they might have taken the R2J transfer and recompressed it but it looks far worse than what you'd get from a consumer application like DVDShrink.

Lourdes · Post by **Lourdes** » 07 Apr 2005, 14:19

Oit, that was me.

memetic · Post by **memetic** » 14 Apr 2005, 04:24

Was anyone else disappointed with this film?

the68monkey · Post by **the68monkey** » 14 Apr 2005, 16:03

Mine's still in the shrink wrap, memetic. But it's hard to imagine being disappointed by a Shunji Iwaii film. I'll let you know, though, when I finally watch it, maybe this weekend.

Guest · Post by **Guest** » 15 Apr 2005, 10:58

the68monkey wrote:Mine's still in the shrink wrap, memetic. But it's hard to imagine being disappointed by a Shunji Iwaii film. I'll let you know, though, when I finally watch it, maybe this weekend.

I thought so too, until I saw this one (I've loved every other Iwai film I've seen). I'll reserve any further comments until I know you've seen it.

memetic · Post by **memetic** » 15 Apr 2005, 10:59

Got caught out by the "Guest"! That was me. Someone should fix that.

bradavon · Post by **bradavon** » 15 Apr 2005, 17:21

Fix what? You just need to login before posting and remember to tick the "remember me" tick box.

I'm not sure why Guests are allowed to post I'll ask Mordib. He may want it that way.

memetic · Post by **memetic** » 16 Apr 2005, 07:54

bradavon wrote:I'm not sure why Guests are allowed to post I'll ask Mordib. He may want it that way.

That's what I was meaning. Guests shouldn't be allowed to post and it bugs me when they can. If you click login then you have to browse back to your post. I only login to post, not to read and I read this forum from various computers.

bradavon · Post by **bradavon** » 16 Apr 2005, 13:16

I'd suggest ticking the option to remember you but remember to logout afterwards. Why not stay logged in like everyone else?

It looks like very few guests have actually posted which is something at least.