Blu Ray question

[Mayer]

On a couple of my Blu ray discs when I watch the movie there is some text in the top left corner that says "Bonusview". There is a bonus view button on my controller but it won't shut it off. It's really annoying.

Also, some of the movies I watch are kind of grainy in some scenes. Is there something I can change on my TV or Blu Ray settings to get it more clear? It's pretty lame to be watching what is supposed to be really crisp pictures and that doesn't come through.

[RW99]

Depending on your model, start the player without a disc and get the main menu. There should be something in there to disable it. Maybe try downloading your manual if you don't have one?

AFAIK grainy scenes are the result of the movie, not your player or TV. Some just have poor quality, either in the original filmed scenes or how they transferred it to disc.

[Vulcan]

To get the best picture from your TV you should try to calibrate it. If you look up your model on the net there should be some suggestions to get you started. Often CNet gives some settings but it's best to do it yourself after you turn off most of the processing that often does more to ruin the picture than help it. If the picture is still bad than it's the bluray.

[MickMcGeough]

I recommend checking out the avsforum.com forums for calibration settings. Every set is a bit different but most LCD/Plasma TVs are close enough now that you can take someone else's calibrated settings and they'll look very good on your set.

But like RW99 said, often grain is shot directly into the film. The Hurt Locker, for example, should always be grainy.

[Mazrim]

Also, older movies that were never intended for Bluray will look grainy. Only purely digital recordings (think Avatar) could be grain-free. I was watching Ocean's 11 on Bluray recently and the grain was very noticeable.

[Jimmy Stang]

Call me crazy, but I like a little bit of grain. Both in photography and in movies. I have The Graduate on Blu Ray and it looks great but it does have some grain as it was filmed on film. It is still very sharp and definitely of better quality than the DVD version (it came with a DVD and Blu Ray version), but the grain is noticeable. And that's just fine with me.