Sully [Blu-ray] [2016]

This movie provides a gripping look at the events of Captain Sully's emergency landing in the Hudson. Recreations of the landing event from the pilots' and the controller's point of view and it's investigation afterwards provide details beyond the Hero Headlines. Very informative special features with interviews with Captain Sullenberger and the movie makers. The only additional special feature I would have wished for would have been the inclusion of the actual landing video and rescue footage. The Blu-ray video is superb with highly detailed resolution and dynamic sound quality. Highly recommended.

What an unbelievable but true story!! When watching this movie, it should definitely be in 4K if at all possible!!

If you look at the current ad, it states that the Ultra HD version comes with a Digital Copy. What it fails to tell you is that it is an "Ultra Violet" copy which does not play well on an iPad. As a consumer, I am very disappointed that UV was the only digital download option available for a "premium copy" of a movie.

I had no choice but to have a medical procedure on a weekday. I like this film very much, and it is safe to show to a class, even when I cannot be there. So, I photocopied a reading assignment, ordered this film, and put together a film watcher's guide. Problem solved!

Nothing like going with your gut to do something unprecedented and finding out you were right after all the possible negative blow-back headed your way. Sully is a story about a seasoned pilot named Chelsey Sullenberger (Tom hanks) who after just taking off and flying a few miles away from the airport experienced birds hitting the plane and crashing into the engines causing it to no longer provide thrust. He then decides to turn around to head back to the runway but makes a bold decision to land in the Hudson river because he determined that they would not make the trip back. After landing on the water, they were able to save all the passengers with no injuries. Following due process an investigation is ran to find out how or why this happened, which leads to the possible chance of Sully losing his life's work after simulations of the same flight reveal different results. Not only did they say that one of the engines was still functioning but that he could have made it back to the airport with no issues. At first sight of this trailer I thought that this was just caucasian version of Denzel Washington's movie "Flight". When you look at it it has the same kind of feel to it. In Denzel's story he made the daring attempt to save everyone's life by rolling the plane to make a crash landing in a field. In Tom Hank's story he makes a daring attempt to save everyone's life by landing the plane on icy cold water. Both were great pilots and celebrated but the major difference in these stories is that Denzel's character was a lush and had no control at all over his drinking habits and was found drunk while flying. Sully was a clean and sober man that just made a questionable choice that deeply concerned the airline and the insurance companies so was also investigated. Tom Hanks as usual did not miss. His performance was as genuine as it could be. Aaron Eckhart masterfully played his first officer/co-pilot and added that necessary genuine friendship and key witness that helped you really root for Sully. He went through so much during this process that it made you want to hate the investigators as they were doing their job but yet seemed like they were accusers. He went through many judgment questioning thought processes and dreams that made start to question that maybe there was more to his initial story. As the story progressed you realize that this is so similar to what we all face or will face in our lives. Sometimes you have to do something that is so completely strange, unorthodox and not by the book to get a specific job done that you never know might be life changing or life saving. The doubts that he faced were real doubts that no one can fault him for having even after he did the "impossible". As the record shows, there are very far and in between crashes in water that people survive but in this case all 155 passengers survived. I really liked how at the end of the movie during the credits they showed the real Sully and some of the passengers that were on that flight to add the extra authenticity to the film. One thing director Clint Eastwood knows how to do is give a true story it's authentic feel. The pacing was practically perfect along with the flashbacks that gave you more and more as the story unfolded. I really recommend this movie. Definitely one that keeps your attention the whole entire time. 4 1/2 out of 5 STARS

All of my many Blue Ray reviews focus solely upon the actual quality of the film from Standard Def DVD quality to the higher standard set for Blu Ray. Summaries of the plot and opinions of the story line and acting can be found in the majority of the other reviews so I do not want to be redundant. My rating is based solely upon the Blue Ray disc's video and audio quality and not the quality of the movie itself. Keep in mind, however, that the quality of what you see and hear is also dependent upon the quality of the TV monitor you are watching on as well as the home theater set up you are using. The monitor I use is a fairly new Panasonic ZT 65" plasma and the amps, speakers, cables, OPPO 103 BluRay player and AVM-60 7.1 Atmos enabled Surround Processor I use are hi end esoteric gear to provide me with a more realistic and objective perspective. The Oppo player is not enabled to transcode Atmos audio so it will default to the next best audio coded, in this case, DTS HD MA 7.1 I am not trying to be a snob here, but just pointing out that what you see and hear is very dependent upon the quality of the gear you are using. VIDEO QUALITY..... The video resolution is really quite decent for this shorter than expected film which runs for 1.5 hours. Color grading is fairly neutral and real life. Excellent contrast throughout with only the slightest hint of grain in just a few areas. Small details such as skin pores and hair separation are easy to discern. Bit rate averages about 31 Mbps. There really is no need to mention how deep the blacks go as there really aren't any deep black scenes. There are a couple of nighttime street scenes where the dark sky does look very true to life. Sky scenes show no banding at all. AUDIO QUALITY.... While there is no Atmos 7.1 soundtrack, the default to Dolby Tru HD 7.1 does a very commendable job when immersion into the sound field is called for. Much of the film is center speaker, dialogue based with a few audio pans across the front stage. There is not a whole lot of foley fx coming from the surrounds during these scenes. That said, during the sky and water landing scenes, your LFE channel as well as your surrounds will all come into play with aggressive use and immersive ambience drawing you into the scene. Audio pans from rear to front are several and foley fx from the surrounds are fitting and at proper, if subdued levels. Dialogue is clear and transparent throughout. EXTRAS....I hate ads for other movies of which there are many on here. That said, there are 3 very good extras including interviews with the real characters, extraordinary footage of an actual crash that didn't have the good fortune to have Sully as captain and a making of doc. All in all, I can't quite say I'd pull this disc for use as a demo disc, not only is the film well made but the entire storyline plays out in totally realistic tone. Look out for director Clint pulling an Alfred Hitchcock move in one of the scenes....I won't tell you which. I do hope this review has been of some help to you in deciding upon your purchase. Thanks for reading.

From a movie releasing perspective it seems that September and October each year are reserved for excellent films that studios believe will draw crowds but also believe don’t have the panache of the Oscar baiting films of November and December. Recent examples might include “Everest” and “Sicario” from 2015 or “Gone Girl” from 2014. Not summer blockbusters but films with more “adult” themes that can be watched now that the kiddies are back in school. This film from director Clint Eastwood (“American Sniper”) tells the story of the eventful Hudson River landing of a U. S. Airways Airbus in January, 2009. The pilot, Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger, was credited for heroically guiding his plane, with disabled engines, into the frigid New York river saving the 155 passengers and crew. What few were aware of is that his actions as well as his co-pilot, Jeff Skiles (Aaron Eckhart, “London Has Fallen”), were challenged by the National Transportation Safety Board. Sullenberger is perfectly played by Tom Hanks. Hanks is the go-to actor who represents the “common man” in society. Like his “Captain Phillips” or James Donovan in “Bridge of Spies,” his “Sully” is just doing his job the best way he knows how. While every accident involving aircraft is investigated by the NTSB, Eastwood seems bent on making their inquiry more of a confrontation between the board investigators and the pilots than NTSB just trying to gather the facts. The inquiry contributes significant minutes of the brief 96 minute running time, but is broken up with flashbacks to the events which we get to experience a few times from different perspectives, including Sully’s nightmares. The only two actors who receive character development are Sullenberger and Eckhart and both Hanks and Eckhart are up to the task. Sully gets most of the attention of course but Eckhart’s quiet performance is noteworthy. During the inquiry, he seems ready to jump out of his skin when the interrogation gets a little pointed. But Sully manages to keep his composure using his wits and technical skills to prove he had no choice to make a water landing. Naturally the crash includes CGI components mixed with staged and actual footage but is extremely well done giving the viewer a sense of what it was like…without getting their feet wet. The flight simulations are equally well staged as the NTSB provides information that suggests the plane could have returned to La Guardia or nearby Teterboro Airports. This is a well-made movie that provided an uplifting conclusion in 2009 and will today. Highly recommended.

It’s a great movie. It’s nice to know how Sully saved all these lives.