The Outpost - Blu-ray

[AVSCraig]

The Outpost - Blu-ray
Studio: Screen Media
Release Date: Aug 18, 2020 
Rating: R
Film:4.5/5 
Resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.85:1

Audio
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1

Plot - based on the true story of a small unit of U.S. soldiers stationed at the remote Combat Outpost Keating in Afghanistan. The film shows life at the base leading up to, and including the Battle of Kamdesh in 2009, in which 53 US servicemen were attacked by approximately 400 Taliban fighters.

My thoughts - The Outpost is based on a 2012 non-fiction book, The Outpost: An Untold Story of American Valor by Jake Tapper about the Battle of Kamdesh. I knew nothing about this story going into this film. The film has a great cast, and decent backstory regarding what life at the base is like.  We get to know the main characters fairly well, prior to all hell breaking lose. The battle sequences throughout the film are outstanding. And the fact this is a true story makes it all the more powerful a film. 


Video 4/5 – other than some banding near the top of the opening scene, I thought this Blu-ray looked very good. There is excellent detail, and the picture is pretty much problem free. Night scenes showed good shadow detail. No complaints picture wise on my 122” 16:9 Cima Neve screen.

Audio 5/5 – this soundtrack is off the charts good. Or having my 6 subs dialed in with a Mini DSP HD are just still too new to me. Using DTS NEO : X, bullets were whizzing all over the room. LFE during mortar attacks and the large ordinance drops near the end made the room shudder appropriately. This is a top notch soundtrack. 


Conclusion – this is a film I just heard of, and it was very well done. Heartbreaking at times but powerful. I’ll be watching this again soon. Recommended !


Reference Review System:
JVC DLA-RS4500 4K Ultra High Definition Front Projector
( Calibrated by Kris Deering )
Stewart Filmscreen – 128” diagonal StudioTek 130 G3 2.35:1 screen
Stewart Filmscreen – 122” diagonal Cima Neve 16:9 screen
Panamorph Paladin DCR lens
Lumagen Radiance Pro Video Processor
Denon X8500H receiver
Parasound Halo A 52+ amp – powering the left / center / right / wide speakers
Oppo UBD203 4K Blu Ray player
Panasonic DP-UB820 Ultra HD Blu-ray Player
9.6.4 Speaker System -  Martin Logan Motion 40’s ( 2 ), Motion SLM XL center speaker, Motion FX surrounds ( 4 ), Motion LX16 wide channel speakers  ( 2 ) , Motion 4 heights ( 4 )
Two  SVS SB4000 subs
Four SVS SB2000 subs
Mini DSP HD controlling the subwoofers
AC Infinity AIRCOM T8 component cooling fans ( 3 )
GIK Acoustic Panels
PFP M1500 – UPS