Welcome to moviemarbles!

We do things a little differently here than you may be used to, so here is a quick tutorial of how our Blu-ray scorecards work.

Most review sites use a 1-5 star scoring system when reviewing Blu-ray releases. Due to the amount of detail contained in a review scorecard, we had to re-think the way to display our review ratings. Gone is the standardized “star” rating structure, replaced with a simple + or -.

So how do these + and - relate to the old-school star ratings? In our world, a + would be the equivalent to a 4 or 5 rating while a - would equate to a 1, 2 or 3 rating. So if a disc gets a + rating in one of the categories, you know it is top quality.

These +’s and -’s are then weighted (35% film, 25% audio, 25% video, 15% extras) to create an overall verdict of the disc, back in the common five-star rating system... it is quite a science.

Here are the terms used in our Blu-ray scorecard so you can get a better understanding of what each of our ratings mean...

Film

• plot (story, flow)
• acting (dialogue/believability)
• sound (score/soundtrack/sound mixing)
• visuals (special effects/costumes/set design/vibrancy/cinematography)
• entertainment value (replay value, watchability)

Audio

• fidelity (degree of accuracy with which sound is recorded or reproduced)
• dynamic range (difference between the max level of distortion-free signal and the minimum limit)
• dialogue (clarity and placement of voice activity)
• bass (LFE) (low in pitch; of the lowest pitch or range)
• soundstage (surround activity, sound movement through the different channels)

Video

• transfer (lack of digital artifacts/noise/edge enhancements/compression artifacts)
• image depth (dimension, 3D feel)
• sharpness (lack of film grain, clarity of image, image detail)
• color levels (color accuracy, vibrancy)
• contrast (accurate deep black levels, range of brightness between the darkest/lightest elements)

Extras

We have taken a very simplified approach to the this section by informing which extras add value to a release and which are not worth your time. We have listed the most commonly valuable extras found on Blu-ray releases - featurettes, commentaries, deleted scenes (including outtakes and alternate endings), documentaries & digital extras (digital copy, bonus view, bd-live) - and if the extra is worth watching you will see a +, if the disc does not contain the extra or it is not worth watching you will see a -.

We are really changing the game here, so this new review format may take some getting used to... but I am sure you will come to realize that this new game is the way it should be played.

American Sniper delivers a beautiful audio/video presentation on this BD. The extras are underwhelming, but the overall disc is strong.