The Terminal DVD Review

The Terminal comes with an anamorphic 1.85:1 image that is devoid of edge enhancement, but also appears a little on the soft side. The vibrant colours of advertising hoardings and yellow plastic “CAREFUL - WET FLOOR” warning cones accentuate the bleakness of an airport terminal setting. There's often a slight green tinge to the picture, but I assume this is deliberate or caused by the marbleised flooring in the airport - it certainly adds to a feeling of realism to the setting.

Given the Spielberg connection I was unconsciously expecting a crystal clear image, but that's not what we get here. But then, it's not exactly of poor quality either - it's just very “averagely good”!

As is usual with Spielberg movies, we're given the choice between Dolby Digital and DTS tracks. This being a character and ultimately mostly dialogue driven movie, there really isn't much to comment on. After a few careful comparisons I believe the Dolby slant on things is actually a little more intricate and better controlled than its DTS counterpart. Take a listen to the few jazz pieces, or the “bed making scene” for example - the Dolby track just seems a little more open sounding, allowing subtle detail to be heard that is just a little lacking when it comes to the DTS offering. To be fair, neither is likely to be used as demo material, but Dolby just edges things. Most importantly centre speaker dialogue is always clear and particularly bassy. By contrast, rear channels are almost never utilised.

No supplemental features. No inner sleeve. And this is one of those clipped DVD cases - so don't do what I do and become frustrated when you the lights are low and you can't open the case no matter how much you force it apart.

If you want extras there is a three disc Limited Edition that may be worth auditioning.
I liked The Terminal. It's simple movie fun, with a charm that oozes from its star's comedic acting talents. I didn't particularly like the numerous product placements that are obvious throughout, but having said that seeing old Viktor chomp into a Double Whopper certainly brings the message home - the guy is hungry!

The Terminal is ideal for these cold winter nights. Snuggle up to the wife on the sofa and enjoy an “old style” movie.