The Last Full Measure (Vudu HDX) review

[David Vaughn]

Studio: Lionsgate 
 Release Date: April 7, 2020
 Rating: PG
Film: 4.5/5
 
 Plot
 The true story of William H. Pitsenbarger, a U.S. Air Force medic who personally saved over sixty men before making the ultimate sacrifice in Vietnam’s bloodiest battle. Three decades later, Pentagon staffer Scott Huffman investigates a Congressional Medal of Honor request made by Pitsenbarger’s mission partner and parents. Huffman interviews Army vets to learn more about Pitsenbarger’s courageous acts – and uncovers a high-level conspiracy behind the medal’s denial.
  
 My Thoughts
 I generally like movies that are based on true events so when the opportunity arose to review this, I jumped at the chance—even though it was only available digitally due to Covid-19 work restrictions which has shut down the movie distribution companies in the Los Angeles area.
 
I’m not a huge fan of streaming since I always want the best A/V experience possible, but in times like these we need to adapt, so that’s what I’ve had to do. The film itself is outstanding and features an all star cast of A-list actors such as Samuel L. Jackson, William Hurt, Christopher Plummer, and Sebastian Stan, who is in the starring role. I’ve dug into the story of the real life Pitsenbarger and the story has been sensationalized in the movie, but it does a great job of highlighting the heroism shown by Pitsenbarger on the day of his death in the Vietnam War. He definitely deserved the Medal of Honor for his actions on the battlefield and saved over 60 lives in the process.
 
I viewed the film on Vudu with its HDX streaming option. The audio track is a standard Dolby Digital Plus 5.1 track. The streaming quality was excellent and I can’t say I was disappointed with the results at all. The soundtrack includes some battle sequences and I didn’t think that the lossy track suffered too greatly versus a lossless track, but I’m hoping to get a Blu-ray copy at some point in the next month to compare the two.

  
 Video 4/5 (Vudu HDX Streaming)
 
 Audio 4/5 (Dolby Digital Plus 5.1)
 
 Special Features:
 

• None

 
 

 Conclusion
 For some reason the reviews on this film were somewhat middling, but I found it to be a powerful story that moved me to tears on multiple occasions. The Vietnam War was a horrific time in our country’s history, but the soldiers who went over there to fight aren’t to blame by bonehead decisions our politicians made. I guess one could say the screenplay was a tad melodramatic and a bit too sentimental, but the underlying story of heroism and self-sacrifice by an American hero is definitely worth watching. Recommended.
 
 Reference Review System:
  
 Reference Review System:
 JVC DLA-RS2000 4K Ultra High Definition Front Projector
 (Calibrated with Portrait Displays CalMAN color calibration software & C6-HDR Meter from Portrait Displays)
 Stewart Filmscreen - Firehawk 110” 2.35:1 Fixed Screen
 Anthem AVM60 Audio/Video Processor 
 ATI AT527NC Powering Bed Channels
ATI AT524NC Powering Atmos Speakers
 Panasonic DP-UB820 Ultra HD Blu-ray Player 
 System Controller: URC MX-980
M&K S-150 THX Ultra (R-C-L Speakers)
M&K SS-150 x4 (Surround Speakers)
 Atlantic Technology IC6-OBA x 4 Overhead Speakers
 SVS PC-Ultra Cylinder Subwoofer
 HSU VTF-15H MK2 Subwoofer
 JL Audio Fathom F110 Subwoofers x 2 (stacked)
JL Audio Dominion D110 Subwoofer x 2 (stacked)
Mini DSP HD controlling all subwoofers
 Audioquest and Monoprice - Audio/Video/Speaker Cabling
 PureAV PF60 Power Conditioner

 

[AVSCraig]

This movie looked interesting. I might check it out now. Thanks.