Please Note: My review and ratings are based on the quality of the new 4K version of this film--images, sound, and extras and how these compare to the previously-released Blu-ray version of the film. I am not rating the acting, direction, set design, etc. which can be found in other places, but instead I am helping you decide to upgrade to 4K or not.
The quality of 4K films, in comparison to the regular Blu-ray versions, often depends upon two things: (1) the quality of the original that they have to work with; and (2) how much effort they put into the project. Here there must have started with either the original film or a first-generation print of it.
There is a noticeable upgrade from the regular Blu-ray version to the 4K version. I did a side-by-side comparison of both films and you will notice improvements in the video quality of the 4K version--more details, sharper images throughout, improved resolution, and better color saturation. You will notice the improvements most in outdoor, daylight scenes and less so in night-time scenes. There are no glitches in the print--no "snow," spots, or lines. It is a very good image.
Interestingly, there is no mention of this new release being an HDR version of 4K, and that's probably a good thing. HDR makes the contrast sharper by making dark colors darker and light colors lighter. This has worked well for some films and not well for other films. The most common complaint for HDR when it is bad is that the scenes are too dark in the 4K version of the film, particularly night-time scenes (Skyfall, Spectre, & Van Helsing all suffer from this). Happily no HDR problems here. Everything looks good, including the night-time scenes or dimly-lit submarine underwater scenes.
The 5.1 audio is excellent and an improvement from the regular Blu-Ray version. Several special features are included as well, including commentary by the director and a feature entitled "Beneath the Surface."
I now own about sixty 4K movies or nature specials. Roughly 45 of the 60 show noticeable improvements in video and audio. The others either are roughly the same from Blu-Ray to 4K or suffer from the aforementioned HDR darkness issues. So it's overall good but in some cases not worth buying the film again in 4K. My favorites in 4K and I'm talking about imagery, not the plot or acting? Jurassic World, The Bridge on the River Kwai, Planet Earth II, and the Flight of the Butterflies. Those films really wow you in 4K.
This is an excellent film in 4K and is worth upgrading to if you already own the regular Blu-ray version.
| Additional DVD options | Edition | Discs | Price | New from | Used from |
|
DVD
December 1, 1998 "Please retry" | — | 1 | $7.95 | $1.55 |
|
DVD
May 6, 2003 "Please retry" | — | — | $8.99 | $2.00 |
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Customer reviews
This is a great movie. But DO NOT get this Blu Ray version. First of all, the case has a completely different picture than shown on Amazon (see attached photo). Which really isn't a big deal. The big problem is that if you pause the movie and then resume it the audio of the dialogue is super low while the audio of everything else is fine. Then the dialogue slowly fades back in. I thought maybe it was my Blu Ray player, but I tried other Blu Ray movies and they played fine. I returned it to Amazon and they sent me a replacement, but it did the same thing.
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