DVD Reviews

Blood: The Last Vampire (Blu-Ray)

I always enjoy getting a Blu-Ray release to something I already have on DVD.  Just being able to compare the two really shows you how superior Blu-Ray is over the DVD format.  Blood the Last Vampire and anime in general, should be seen in high definition.  You never really notice the faults of DVD when viewing animation on old CRT screens but as soon as you throw it on a nice big screen LCD or plasma, it becomes apparent that it’s not adequate.  As most animation has very prominent crisp lines, the amount of detail available in the picture is extremely important.  With Blood, you get some stunning 2D animation as the entire film was created digitally and thus, it is a perfect film to get a great Blu-Ray transfer.

At the Yokota Air Force base in Japan, a nervous American military is on the brink of the Vietnam War. But a greater threat exists within the walls of the heavily guarded compound: Vampires. A team of top-secret undercover agents dispatches a mysterious young woman to destroy them… she is the last remaining original.

Audio comes in a lossless 5.1 DTS-HD MA track.  What this means is you get clean, clear and always understandable dialogue and extremely active surrounds during action sequences.  Low end frequencies are given a good workout from booming gun shots down to rumbling subways. The beautiful score is also a nice piece of auditory bliss.  You will be hard pressed to find a better audio presentation than what you get here.  The audio only comes in English with a few scenes having Japanese dialogue.  As such, there are no subtitles except for some non-optional English subtitles that appear during the scenes with the Japanese dialogue.

The video on this release comes in two formats.  Both have a 1.85:1 AVC transfer which look spectacular in 1080p.  The first transfer (the default choice) is ported over from the Telecine source which gives it a nice film like look while the second transfer (listed under the special features) is the Digital Data version and is much cleaner and sharper.  Both transfers are absolutely beautiful.  Colours are perfectly reproduced, lines are smooth and crisp (unlike on the DVD release of the film), light sources and digital images just pop off the screen and textures are extremely detailed showing off little things you may not have noticed before.

Extras are limited to having a second version of the film (previously mentioned), the film’s theatrical trailer and “Making Of Blood: The Last Vampire” which is presented in standard definition and is the same making of that was on the DVD release.  Not included are the image gallery from the DVD or the standard selection of Manga promo materials commonly found on every Manga DVD release.  Though their DVD Catalogue isn’t missed I always enjoyed watching their previews so I’m a bit disappointed no other Manga/Anchor Bay trailers were included on this Blu-Ray.

Though Blood: The Last Vampire is an extremely short film running under an hour in length, the beauty of the picture combined with superb audio make this already brilliant looking film a very worthwhile purchase on Blu-Ray.  Though I really wish there were more extras on this release to make up for the short run-time, fans of the film are sure to be pleased by the presentation and as such I highly recommend this release for purchase and/or upgrade for true fans of the film.  If you’re only somewhat into the film, stick with your current copy as you already have more extras than this release offers and the improved audio and video probably aren’t that important to you. If you’ve never seen Blood: The Last Vampire, make sure to watch the anime before the new live action film and do so by renting this Blu-Ray, not the DVD, so you can appreciate the beautiful digital art to its fullest.

 Review By Robert Harding