Clue: The Movie

Not quite sure what prompted the re-release of Clue: The Movie, this time on Blu-Ray. Maybe it has to do with the plethora of board game based movies that have come out, have been rumored, or are already in production. In any case not much other then a revamped picture and slight audio option have been added to this release, the supplemental package containing the same 3 alternate endings from the last release on DVD in 09. With that being said let us move on to how this classic film looks on Blu-Ray.

As most of you may have surmised, the picture quality for Clue really is a balancing act between an impressive restoring of the original film to HD and of course some scenes that just couldn’t be helped. Thankfully the film leans more towards a definite improvement with soft grainy bits here and there in some insignificant shots (for example a dark rainy shot of the mansion as two victims drive up). Once inside color and detail get a decent boost. While not as mind blowing as some transfers for films that are far older, it works for a movie like Clue.

For those that have never seen Clue: The Movie, the film takes the idea of the board game and builds it up around a murder mystery that is soaked in political satire, sociological comments, and the absolute over the top performances from its, then, huge cast. Professor Plum, Miss Scarlet, and the whole crew come together under mysterious circumstances, led by mysterious letters sent to each. When they show up they all find they have something in common and it has brought them all together under one roof providing motive for murder. With the aid of the butler, played in the usual overenthusiastic manner by Tim Curry, the group of strangers (or are they) find themselves in danger, and not all of them will make it through the night.

PICTURE AND AUDIO QUALITY:
It doesn’t take a side by side comparison (via the Total Recall treatment) to see that the film definitely has been given an HD make over. Detail is more defined in just about everything from clothing to facial details and color look a bit more polished. As I said before, the film does have its difficulties with scenes that look as if they won’t find themselves getting any better then what you see here. Small flecks dot the screen and grain is apparent in the darker exterior shots that are far and in-between. All together though this should suffice fans of the film who are looking to upgrade their DVD copy for a better picture quality.

Unfortunately audio is only as good as a DTS-HD 2.0 offering. Do not expect robust thundering sound, even the dialogue sounds bit tin in some scenes. As far as I can tell the upgrade is present but not impressive enough to warrant this as an asset for re-purchase. If you have a decent television set or surround sound system you’d get just as much out of your DVD copy’s audio track as you would here.

BONUS FEATURES:
The same old, same old. Three alternate endings. You can choose to watch them all back to back or play the film with a random ending. At first I thought that might be kind of cool but really what if I watched the film twice in a matter of days and the random choices end up being the same ending? Sounds a bit like retracing my steps unnecessarily. While I did enjoy the film I don’t think I could stand watching it again expecting to see an alternate ending as a reward at the films end only to find myself watching the same version again. Other then that you have the films HD trailer.