Dead Space: Aftermath Blu-ray Review

The video presentation of "Dead Space: Aftermath" on Blu-ray suffers greatly due to numerous technical shortcomings and inconsistent animation quality. Presented in 1080p using the AVC MPEG-4 codec, the transfer reveals the flaws in the film's shoddy animation. Several different animation companies were utilized, resulting in a jarring mix of styles, particularly in flashback scenes versus CG-animated non-flashback segments. Despite decent black levels and fair color reproduction, the film's visuals are undermined by frequent banding, uneven shading, heavy ringing, jagged edges, and detail loss. The overly murky and industrial color palette compounds these issues, giving the film an unfinished, rough draft appearance rather than a polished final product.

Despite some moments of sharp graphics and solid colors, the transfer is plagued with shimmering, aliasing, and persistent jagged lines. Objects and characters often appear distractingly ugly, with CG elements displaying archaic designs and random speckles, likely due to overlapping polygons. Faces lack detail, although certain static backgrounds stand out in their visual carnage. Unfortunately, these occasional moments of visual clarity do little to mitigate the overall poor quality of the animation. The disc itself is not faultless, as it fails to mask many of these inherent issues, resulting in a consistently subpar viewing experience.

The audio presentation of "Dead Space: Aftermath" on Blu-ray delivers an above-average experience, primarily due to the robust Dolby TrueHD 5.1 lossless soundtrack. It provides solid clarity and effective channel distribution throughout the film. The sound mix demonstrates substantial bass and low-end rumbles, especially noticeable in scenes involving heavy objects moving across the soundstage, creating an immersive effect. Metallic sounds resonate convincingly within the hollow and spacious O'Bannon, reinforcing the sense of a vast and eerie spaceship environment. Dialogue is consistently clear through the center channel despite the varying quality of voice acting. Surround speakers are utilized effectively, contributing to an engaging auditory atmosphere.

However, the track falls short of being exemplary demo material. It avoids any significant flaws that would distract from the viewing experience, yet maintains a level of minimalism that keeps it from standing out. Bass usage is adequate but not particularly impactful, supplying just enough thump to enhance certain space scenes and moments of tension. Additionally, while localized dialogue works well during angle shifts in shots, it is infrequently employed. A notable downside lies in the lip-syncing issues where voices do not match the animation seamlessly, an aspect more attributable to the animation itself rather than the audio mix quality.

Overall, the Dolby TrueHD 5.1 track for "Dead Space: Aftermath" offers a competent, albeit not outstanding, listening experience that succeeds in creating a credible and atmospheric environment but is marred by occasional technical limitations.

The Blu-ray release of "Dead Space: Aftermath" offers a limited selection of extras, primarily focused on promotional content. The disc contains high-definition trailers that primarily serve to advertise other media titles, including the "Dead Space 2" video game, "Dante's Inferno," "Let Me In," and "The Bleeding." While technically proficient in presentation with 1080p clarity, the lack of substantive behind-the-scenes content or exclusive featurettes might disappoint enthusiasts looking for deeper insights into the film or the broader Dead Space universe. However, for those purely interested in exploring tangential media, these trailers offer a crisp and clear preview experience.

Extras included in this disc:

• Dead Space 2 Video Game Trailer: High-definition trailer for the video game.
• Dante's Inferno Trailer: HD preview of the game/film.
• Let Me In Trailer: Promotional trailer for the movie.
• The Bleeding Trailer: Trailer for the film.

"Dead Space: Aftermath" is a stark departure from its predecessor, "Dead Space: Downfall," in terms of both narrative cohesion and animation quality. The film opens with a depiction of the USG O'Bannon adrift in space, setting an initially promising tone with some borderline beautiful exterior shots. However, this initial intrigue quickly fades as the movie transitions into a slow-paced and repetitive structure. The script is poorly constructed, resulting in a disjointed plot where survivors aboard the O'Bannon recount events leading up to the massacre they endured. This fragmented storytelling robs the narrative of any real momentum and leaves viewers struggling to stay engaged.

Technically, the film suffers from subpar animation, reminiscent of rough pre-visualization sequences rather than polished final cuts. Multiple animation studios contributed to the project, leading to inconsistencies in character design and visual continuity. For example, characters like Borges and Kuttner undergo inexplicable changes in appearance between flashbacks and current scenes, a distraction that underlines the film's lack of cohesion. Aside from the lackluster animation, logical inconsistencies abound, such as the unexplained absence of decontamination procedures for the survivors or the failure to retrieve alien corpses for study—oversights glaring enough to pull any attentive viewer out of the immersion.

"Dead Space: Aftermath" ultimately fails to deliver on the promise of expanding the Dead Space universe with a compelling narrative or engaging visuals. The dialogue-heavy screenplay is both poorly scripted and acted, leading to extended periods of monotonous exposition that do little to advance the plot or develop the characters. Coupled with crude animation and a fragmented storytelling approach, the film feels like a hastily assembled promotional tie-in rather than a thoughtfully crafted piece meant to bridge two video games. This makes it a disappointing experience for both fans of the franchise and newcomers alike.

"Dead Space: Aftermath" presents itself as a significant letdown in the realm of animated features, especially when compared to its predecessor. The film suffers from sluggish pacing, primarily dominated by a dull first and second act that ultimately fails to complement its more violent, yet anticlimactic, third act. Despite being mercifully short in run time, the overall experience is underwhelming. The narrative seems hastily assembled, reflected in the subpar animation quality that detracts from the viewing experience.

The Blu-ray release of "Dead Space: Aftermath" disappoints on a technical level as well. The video quality is lackluster, though it appears to be a consequence of the source material rather than a fault of the transfer process. This poor video presentation severely hampers any visual enjoyment of the film. On the audio front, the release does feature a fairly robust soundtrack, but this alone is insufficient to salvage the overall poor quality of the movie. Additionally, the Blu-ray offers no supplementary content, further diminishing its value proposition.

In conclusion, "Dead Space: Aftermath" on Blu-ray fails to deliver on multiple fronts, from uninspired storytelling and weak animation to a deeply flawed video transfer. The solid audio track and attractive slipcover are simply not enough to justify the purchase. Given these substantial shortcomings, it would be more worthwhile to invest your time and money elsewhere—perhaps into the far superior "Dead Space 2" video game. Skip this Blu-ray release.