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Polar Bear King (The)
R2 - United Kingdom - Odyssey Review written by and copyright: Samuel Scott (30th October 2014). |
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The Film
 ***This is a technical review only. For reviews on the movie from various critics, we recommend visiting HERE.*** In a land far, far away, a jealous witch casts a wicked spell turning a young king into a polar bear. The polar bear travels to the far off land of Winterland in search of a beautiful princess who he must remain with for seven years in order to reverse the spell. The princess and the polar bear form a warm and loving relationship and together, they journey back to the polar bear's magical kingdom in order to defeat the evil witch. Will they live happily ever after in this beautiful land or will the jealous witch ruin their plans? A captivating and enchanting fairytale for children, young and old.
Video
Independent British distributor Odyssey give the Norwegian fairy tale "The Polar Bear King" it's third DVD release in the United Kingdom, with previous discs coming from High Fliers and Scanbox. Odyssey provide the movie in the original aspect ratio of 1.66:1, and it receives an anamorphic transfer. At time of writing, I've not viewed any of the previous releases, but I imagine they will all have come from the same mediocre source. Although at times this transfer can be quite impressive, it does have some signs of wear and tear running throughout, with small bits of dirt and a few nicks. There's also occasional scratches, but thankfully they tend to be rather small and last just a few frames a time. However, the transfer is almost saved with some very nice looking outdoor scenes, which show great depth when it comes to colours, and good clarity and sharpness. Close-up details in these scenes are also very strong, especially in the stone work of buildings and facial particulars. Darker scenes don't fare quite as well though, with some backgrounds appearing blocky and lacking precision. The film is uncut, and runs 83:41.
Audio
Odyssey have provided us with a single audio option for this release; English Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo. For those who are unaware, the original language for this feature is Norwegian, so it is rather unfortunate that we have only been given a dub here. Thankfully, the dub isn't too bad, with most of the dialogue fitting the mouth movements to a reasonable degree, and the voices suiting the faces. The track suffers from a distinct lack of separation though, and doesn't have much in the way of depth. Large swathes feel rather flat, and the effects and score don't do much to help the film feel immersive. Still, there are no technical issues here, and no signs of damage such as drop outs or scratches. No subtitles have been included.
Extras
None.
Overall
"The Polar Bear King" is a Norwegian fantasy folk-tale that just plods along. Not bad, but it'll likely only interest children of the nineties.
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