Warner Home Video and IMAX studio is set to release the 3D experience called Hubble on March 29th. The documentary follows the 2009 crew of the Space Shuttle Atlantis as they embark on a mission to repair/upgrade the Hubble Space Telescope. Along the way they get fantastic footage of earth and the actual repair/upgrade, and you get to see photos of the Hubble telescope in action.
Imagining such a thing on an IMAX screen is breathtaking to the mind and senses. For a DVD that is a mere 44 minutes in length, you’ll find plenty of ‘staring a the screen moments’ when the crew jump out in the black abyss of space and start working on the giant telescope. The short documentary does terrific justice to the process of getting to the telescope and repairing it, as you get intricate details on what could possibly go wrong with the situation at hand.
Along the way on the trip you also get a fascinating history of the telescope and what it went through to get launched and how it was almost completely scrapped in the process. You also get close-up with the crew on their specific jobs to make the giant beast work again. After such a good backstory and gorgeous space footage of the repair and upgrade, you are treated to some spectacular photos taken from deep space by the Hubble device. Again, it’s breathtaking moment after breathtaking moment on this DVD.
With that said, I really wish it could have been on Blu-ray. One of the great benefits of HD is how clear it comes through with such intricate details intact in the picture. This is the type of documentary that deserved that treatment, but regardless the DVD still does a damn good job on capturing that mystical beauty.
You get to see dust clouds in other galaxies, Hawaii from space and situations that will keep you on the edge of your seat, if not just briefly.
The special features are a bit baffling, though. You get a nice featurette called ‘Inside IMAX’s Hubble 3D’, which is just as interesting as the feature film. After that there’s no other features to look forward to, which is a bit disappointing. For any science teacher looking for a way to keep kids occupied in class or just wanting them to understand how space works this might be a great place to start.
Overall, I like what Warner and IMAX did with this, but I think there could have been just a bit more.
