Ambition seduces and power corrupts in a nerve-wracking thriller from Academy Award® nominated director George Clooney (Good Night, and Good Luck). Idealistic campaign worker Stephen Meyers (Ryan Gosling) has sworn to give all for Governor Mike Morris (Clooney), a wild card presidential candidate whose groundbreaking ideas could change the political landscape. However, a brutal Ohio primary threatens to test Morris's integrity. Stephen gets trapped in the down-and-dirty battle and finds himself caught up in a scandal where the only path to survival is to play both sides. The all-star cast includes Philip Seymour Hoffman, Paul Giamatti, Marisa Tomei and Evan Rachel Wood.
The Ides of March arrives on Blu-ray with a 1080p transfer in the aspect ratio of 2.40:1. Sony continues it's streak of consistently stellar transfers. What is on display is a natural film like presentation with top notch fine detail. Colors exhibits a lot of warm yet natural tones. Black levels were inky while allowing good shadow detail to come through. There were no signs of edge enhancement or any other anomalies to report. I enjoyed every moment of this flawless transfer. 10/10
Audio is provided by a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track. While the video is a knockout the audio track is well represented but the talk heavy nature of the film doesn't lend itself to demo worthy material. What we get though is a tasteful listen that uses surrounds subtly to bring you into the room of a debate or to expand the atmosphere in a crowded office. Dialogue was crisp and clean. The Bass lends some nice heft to the well done score. 8/10
* Audio Commentary: Actor/Director/Producer George Clooney and Writer/Producer Grant Heslov - A very engaging listen. George Clooney gives a lot of detailed information on every aspect of the production. The Actor and Director have a good speaking chemistry as well.
* Developing the Campaign: The Origin of The Ides of March (7min9sec, HD) - A brief, but interesting look at the behind-the-scenes story.
* Believe: George Clooney (6min20sec, HD) - Basically a puff piece with cast and crew gushing over Clooney.
* On the Campaign: The Cast of The Ides of March (5min49sec, HD)
* What Does a Political Consultant Do? (7min29sec, HD)
* Previews
* BD-Live
* UV Copy - I cannot stand this method of digital copy, although I still don't see the excitement over watching a movie on a 3-inch screen.