Chronos [Blu-ray]
Studio: E1 Entertainment Release Date: 02/13/2007 Run time: 45 minutesTaking the familiar conventions of time-lapse cinematography to a transcendent level of artistic achievement, filmmaker Ron Fricke circled the globe to make Chronos, a stunning 70-millimeter time-lapse tour of natural and man-made wonders. The entire film has the enhanced, hyper-realistic quality of a laser-etched photograph, and by using special cameras and motion-control photographic techniques, Fricke and his technically expert crew were able to create mesmerizing images guaranteed to spark any viewer’s sense of awe and wonder. Accompanied by the hypnotic music of Michael Stearns, this visual journey takes the viewer on a tour of over 50 locations on nearly every continent of the world, including explorations of Paris, the Vatican, the Egyptian pyramids, the African veldt, and many more stunning vistas. The cumulative effect is the feeling that the world–from the busiest metropolis to the most serenely remote wilderness landscape–is dictated by “chronos,” the rhythm of time to which all living things must submit. Like Koyaanisquatsi and Baraka, this is one of those eye-candy films that was conceived according to its specific theme, so it’s not only a soothing visual experience but a thought-provoking study of our fascinating planet. –Jeff Shannon
User Ratings and Reviews
3 Stars Chronos Blu-Ray Poor Quality
I bought this title with great anticipation after having read reviews on other sites. But I was very disappointed. The video quality is just not good. It looks like a poor quality film transfer. I haven’t seen the DVD version, but I doubt that the Blu-Ray is any improvement.
In the opening scenes with the rock formations in the desert, it looks like a low resolution, non-HD image. It just doesn’t have the apparent depth that I expect from HD. There is also lots of grain. I can understand some film grain, especially in low light conditions. But this is a bright daylight scene and there is just too much grain.
At first, I thought I had a defective copy. So I returned it to Amazon for replacement. The replacement is the same.
I also bought Baraka. There is no comparison. Baraka’s quality is amazing (except for the playback issues).
5 Stars Amazing Time Laps Imagery
This is really a nice piece of special cinematography. Shot completely with a very unique “Chronos” large format camera, which was custom built for shooting uncompromising time laps movies. Thanks to this camera capabilities the movie uncovers hidden beauties of many dark and obscure places, inside of cathedrals and many other amazing locations around the world.
Some reviewers are complaining about the length of the movie and the background music. The length was set by the venue the movie was originally produced for, the IMAX theaters, and thanks to this fact the HD image quality is pretty good. And for the music, I found it at minimum intriguing.
So in summary, a great piece of artwork will always spark decent amount of criticism, and that is exactly the sign which confirms taht “Chronos” is a unique master piece.
4 Stars Breathtaking!
As with Anima Mundi and Baraka, this breathtaking film cannot very adequately be described in words.
5 Stars HD DVD = beautiful transfer
I am familiar with and own the 3 main works of Ron Fricke… and have always consider Chronos to be 2nd to none. The photography is fantastic and it is nice to have this title avail on HD DVD. The detail of the transfer is superb… the orig aspect ration has been cropped to 16:9, but it was quite artfully done and does present an HD screen filling experience. Highly recommended for HD enthusiasts.
5 Stars GREAT PRODUCTION
Very good production.
I enjoyed it a lot.
Will recommend to watch at least one time.
Filed under: Blue Ray Movie Reviews