I have a HDTV and want to show some friends the differnece between a standard DVD player and a progressive scan model. I'm looking more for visuals then sound here. I have the following DVDs to pick from: Matrix, U-571, SHREK, Star Wars Ep. I, HEAT, Saving Private Ryan, Armageddon, Gladiator, Snatch, Three Kings, Rush Hour 1 & 2, A Knight's Tale, Atlantis, The lost empire, and The Pricenss Bride to name a few. Any help here would be great!

Shreck is good, as are any of the new animated DVD's such as Toy Story. Fifth Element is long regarded as a visual standard.

Gladiator, U-571, and Saving Private Ryan are good discs for audio demo's. The LFE track in U-571 is especially impressive.

Of the ones you listed, really only Shrek and Gladiator are good visual ones to show. You may want to invest a few bucks in some of the following DVD's, if you want your friend's jaws to drop:

1. Baraka. Make sure it is the 2001 release in the green case. It was filmed in 70mm, and contains awesome nature scenes from around the world. The colors are awesome, and the Dolby Digital 5.1 sound is great. The nice thing about Baraka, is that it appeals to people of all age groups.

2. Toy Story 2. The color and crispness of the picture is amazing.

3. The Fast and the Furious. The two main race scenes look awesome. Great colors and special effects. The DTS sound track will make your house shake!

4. Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon SUPERBIT. I was a little disappointed with this one, because most of the movie is filmed at night or indoors, and can seem a bit dark at times. There are, however, some scenes outside that look awesome in the Superbit. One thing to take in to account when buying a Superbit DVD, is that it doesn't have all the languages, etc. of the regular versions. That is because the space in the disk is used for higher quality picture and sound. Since this movie was originally filmed in some form of Chinese, it didn't come with an English track- which meant I had to read subtitles. I guess we English speaking people get kinda spoiled that way.

5. Ok, this'll sound a bit strange- but here goes: My wife owns both Moulin Rouge and Sense and Sensibility. As far as I remember, both of them are filmed in 1.85:1, so they look awesome on my big widescreen HDTV set. Moulin Rouge has some of the most spectacular colors you'll find in a movie. Sense and Sensibility has some breathtaking English countryside scenes that are both bright and crisp.

Everybody seems to recommend The Fifth Element Superbit. So far, I just can't bring myself to buy it. In my opinion, it is probably one of the worst movies ever made. That femmy black guy that screams throughout the whole thing, and that lady with the blue dreadlocks ruined it for me. I suppose one day I'll just break down and get it to see what all the fuss is about. By the way, WalMart is a great place to buy Superbit DVD's. All of the Superbits are only $19.99. They generally start at $24 and up everywhere else I've seen them.

Thanks for this info, it will come in handy!

let's not forget toy story 1&2 visually stunning!

The first chapter of Toy Story 2 is good for both video AND audio! :-)

Check out this link, too.

[Link: remotecentral.com]

Fith Element is fantastic, even if bruce willis is in it it is is still one of my all time favourite movies and i have watched it at least 20 times in two years.

Dave

Fifth Element is very close to being a stupid, redicuous SciFi disaster, but... They stopped just in time to prevent that from happening. I watch it and I keep thinking that I should hate it but I don't.

Great movie!

Even though HEAT is limited to the DD 5.1 and not DTS. The Bank Robbery scene can really show off the surround effect of your speakers. If you have a sub, this chapter becomes even that much better!

The opening sequence of Star Trek Insurrection has been used by the ISF(Imaging Science Foundation)as it contains many elements that will truly put your video processor to the test.

Which sequence? The village where Data goes haywire?

I just played it and say lots of jaggies during the pans. I suppose that means I need a progressive scan player? :)