The films of producer Tim Burton have a certain visual flair, and 9 is no exception. Co-produced with Timur Bekmambetov, it tells a tale of humanity's final days and how one dedicated scientist provides the spark of life to nine of his creations.

I'm generally a fan of the Coen brothers' films, but this bizarre tale confused the hell out of me with all the Jewish references. Despite my bewilderment, I couldn't stop thinking about the plot for days afterward, and when revisiting some scenes for this Ultimate Demo, I found myself laughing out loud, and I will certainly revisit it in the future to not only laugh but to enjoy the demo-worthy video presentation.

In 1997 came Titanic and its estimated $200 million production budget, a record sum at the time. Had Paramount lost its mind bankrolling the project? Fortunately for the studio, its financial gamble paid off when Titanic became the highest-grossing film of all time (not inflation adjusted), earning $600 million in the US ($1.8 billion worldwide) and winning 11 Oscars in the bargain. Cameron truly was the king of the world.

Beauty and the Beast was the first animated film to be nominated for an Academy Award for Best Picture (plus five other nominations) and won two Oscars for Best Original Song and Best Original Score. The talent behind the voices includes Angela Lansbury as Mrs. Potts, Jerry Orbach as Lumiere, the candelabra, and David Ogden Stiers as Cogsworth, the mantel clock. The story is engaging and filled with adventure, but it's the score by Alan Menken and Howard Ashman that makes this film a classic.

Thus far, the movie studios haven't had a lot of success in converting 2D films into 3D in post-production and delivering satisfying results. Fortunately, the 2D-3D conversion here is one of the best I've seen. Separation between objects is exemplary, and the added depth enhances the texture and intimacy of the cinematography. Even more impressive is the DTS-HD MA 7.1 soundtrack that features reference-quality dynamic range, an engaging score from Alan Silvestri, and plenty of window-rattling explosions.

Alfonso Cuaron's vision of the future is bleak and depressing, but damn it looks and sounds awesome on Blu-ray. Don't expect a cornucopia of color, which is virtually nonexistent in 2027 with perpetual overcast skies and gloomy lighting, and there certainly isn't any stimulus money being spent on infrastructure—the world needs some fresh paint! The disc excels in detail—both foregrounds and backgrounds are always razor-sharp. The audio features top-notch frequency response, dynamic range, and imaging.

When Carl Sagan wrote Contact, he framed it in the context of a feature film, and it shows. Where most sci-fi flicks rely on wiz-bang special effects and evil alien invaders, this one is story-driven and has a firm grasp on real science. The video encode is solid, but it's the Dolby TrueHD 5.1 soundtrack that steals the show with an immersive surround experience, first-rate frequency response, and superlative dynamic range.