The Beauty of Snakes on Blu-ray Disc Review by Brandon A. DuHamel on BigPictureBigSound

Blu-ray Disc and DVD : Blu-ray Disc Reviews

Published: 2009-03-25 - 10:30:14

The Beauty of Snakes on Blu-ray Disc Review

By Brandon A. DuHamel

The Show

There are 15 families and over 2,900 species of snakes in the world. They dwell on every one of our planet's continents except Antarctica, making them one of the most common species in the world. Throughout human history they have been both revered and reviled; appearing as symbols of evil in the Bible and as healers in ancient Greece, where Asclepius, a son of Apollo and god of healing, carried two intertwined on his wand. This symbol can still be found in the form of a caduceus, displayed on ambulances and worn by many doctors today.

Most laymen will know that there are basically two types of snakes, venomous and non-venomous. Neither type is particularly prone to attacking humans, and, in fact, most shy away from human contact as much as possible. Snakebites amongst humans tend to occur when snakes are accidentally stumbled upon or provoked in some way. Human deaths caused by constrictors are even far more rare as only a few of these snakes, such as an anaconda are large enough to kill a human, yet many people are still afraid of these reptilian creatures.

Animal Planet's The Beauty of Snakes turns its high definition lens on these creatures and documents every aspect of their existence, from mating, birth and feeding, to the way different species move and their interaction with humans. The brilliant macro-photography of Discovery Channel's camera operators -- perhaps rivaled only by that of the BBC -- captures stunning images of these animals both in the wild and in staged settings. Each aspect of the snakes' condition is examined and explained in brief yet informative segments.

The film is resplendent with memorable images of snakes in motion around the globe: an anaconda takes a leisurely swim in the Amazon rainforest; the feared black mamba slithers on a beach in coastal South Africa; a sidewinder makes its way across the hot desert dunes in Namibia. It's a stunning spectacle of serpents, and a wonderful sight for any fan of nature shows.

The Picture

I'd watched this Animal Planet show before when it aired on Discovery's HD Theater network, and I was impressed then even though it was heavily compressed over satellite and presented in 1080i. So I was excited to hear that it was coming to Blu-ray and hopeful that it would be in a 1080p/24 transfer. But, alas, The Beauty of Snakes was originally captured in high definition at 1080i, so 1080i/60 in an AVC/MPEG-4 transfer is all we get on this Blu-ray Disc release, but never fear, this disc looks amazing.

The colors truly dazzle: from the brilliant yellow of the eyelash pit viper to the prism-like scales of the rainbow boa and the verdant greens of the South American rainforest. Blacks are obsidian, deep, and stable with strong shadow delineation and contrast is strong with no blooming. Detail is sharp -- each scale on every snake can be made out, as can the individual strands of fur on their prey, the mice. In the scenes of the rattlesnakes in the U.S. South West, there is much detail in the individual rocks and crevices both in the foreground and background shots. Video noise is also thankfully subdued and compression issues are not a factor.

The Sound

The Beauty of Snakes comes with a subtle yet engaging 5.1 mix that surrounds the listener in the sounds of the natural world. Whether they are the sounds of crickets chirping or rain falling through the leaves on trees, the soundfield is 360 degrees, and well balanced, with good low frequency extension. Aoife McMahon's narration is clear and clean in the center channel, but it sounds a bit thin and nasally. Unfortunately, the audio is only provided in the Dolby Digital, lossy variety, so it never reaches the fullest potential that a lossless codec may have provided.

There is also a Dolby 2.0 mix provided, which is equally well mixed, but naturally the soundstage collapses a bit from the 5.1 mix. The low frequencies and midrange are just as solid in the 2.0 mix, however. One strength of the 2.0 mix over the 5.1 mix is that the narration sounds fuller, and less nasally, which makes it less fatiguing to listen to.

The Extras

There are no extras available on this release.

Final Thoughts

The Beauty of Snakes is a fitting title for this show from the Discovery Network's Animal Planet channel. It displays the natural grace and beauty inherent in the colors and motion of these creatures and serves to remind us that, were it not for these snakes, humans very well might be overrun by rodents. This Blu-ray release from Genius, despite only being 1080i, is nevertheless a spectacular presentation that is quite breathtaking to watch. Although the audio quality doesn't quite match up to the video presentation, I easily recommend this title as reference viewing material.

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