Captain Corelli's Mandolin

Nicholas Cage and Penelope Cruz star in the romantic drama Captain Corelli's Mandolin. Boasting a dazzling 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen transfer, Captain Corelli's Mandolin's picture is nothing short of near perfect. Except for the slightest amount of edge enhancement in one scene, the image and color schemes are all evenly saturated and very pleasing to the eye. The audio is presented in Dolby Digital 5.1 in English and French, as well as DTS in English. Both the Dolby 5.1 and the DTS soundtrack sound very full and expansive. Range on both of these tracks is very good with Surround Sounds utilized during many scenes, especially those containing wartime fighting or Italian music. All aspects of the soundtrack are distortion free and very bombastic. Also included on this disc are closed captions in English. Captain Corelli's Mandolin contains a few extra features that should please fans. Starting off the disc is an insightful and informative commentary track by director John Madden. While the director sometimes lapses into moments of silence, overall this is a good commentary track with many behind-the-scenes stories and information. Also included on this disc is a music video by opera singer Russell Watson for the song "Ricordo Ancor," some production notes, cast and crew information, a theatrical trailer for the film, and some DVD-ROM features for a PC computer. This isn't the most in-depth DVD ever produced, but it should satisfy those who enjoyed the film.