New to Blu: June 13 – 19

Red Sparrow flies high on both Blu-ray and 4K-UHD.

The Digital Bits reports the spy thriller was finished as a native 4K digital intermediate and given a high dynamic range grade in HDR10.

This is a gorgeous image, with beautifully photographed architecture that’s perfectly enhanced by the use of anamorphic lenses, creating a lovely elliptical bokeh effect, to say nothing of the way the glass handles light, and flattens the depth of field just slightly.

The HDR grade is restrained and naturalistic, but still deepens the shadows while allowing the brightest areas of the frame to gleam realistically.

“This 4K UHD presentation rarely fails to disappoint,” Blu-ray.com concurred while describing the 1080p transfer as “consistently sharp and well detailed”.

“12 Strong has a very graded and gritty look and feel to it,” Blu-ray Authority said.

The 2.40:1 AVC HD image is razor sharp and is perhaps one of the few redeeming qualities of the film. If you’re looking at this from a sheer visual perspective (and I often am) you won’t be disappointed.

Blu-ray.com said the 5.1 mix was “every bit as lively and active as one would expect from a modern-day war epic, with the roar and rumble of heavy machinery testing the subwoofer and the sounds of bullets whizzing back and forth through the room”.

“Lady Bird has a really unique visual style which may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but this Blu-ray disc offers excellent technical merits one way or the other,” Blu-ray.com said.

Insidious: The Last Key’s “video and audio presentations are both decent,” said High-Def Digest while AV Forums said Braven has “a strong enough video presentation”.

Mountain, which came out on DVD earlier this year, gets the Blu-ray showcasing it deserves while earning a 4K-UHD upgrade are:

• Darkest Hour (“the detail on show is immense … When you add to this the benefit of HDR and WCG you have an image that is spectacular“), and
• Mamma Mia! The Movie (“a fairly healthy step forward from the aging Blu-ray, and it’s largely because of the significant add to colour vitality and vibrancy courtesy of the HDR colour enhancement”).

Midnight Run is the pick of the back-catalogue Blu-ray bargains, which include Mobsters, Secret Window, The Covenant, National Security and Blue Streak.

Also new are season five, volume one of Vikings, the first seasons of Travelers and The Imposters, WWE: Wrestlemania 34 and an anime bonanza:

• Sailor Moon S: Complete Season 3
• Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood Part I
• Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood Part II
• Fairy Tale: Guild Collection 3 (eps 97 – 143)
• Blue Exorcist: Kyoto Saga Vol 1 (eps 1-6)
• And You Thought There is Never a Girl Online
• Tales Of Zestiria: The X – Complete Season 2
• Occultic; Nine – Vol 1 (eps 1-6)
• Flip Flappers: The Complete Series
• The Heroic Legend of Arslan: Season 2.