New to Blu: June 3 – 9

Onward, the movie that bypassed cinemas for direct-to-consumer release on Sky TV and streaming platforms because of the COVID-19 lockdown, can be bought on Blu-ray this week but not 4K-UHD.

It’s the first new Pixar movie not to debut on both HD formats, despite its availability on 4K-UHD in Australia.

This is another worrying sign for NZ’s 4K-UHD market, with Universal Pictures NZ opting not to distribute Spies in Disguise on 4K-UHD here (despite it being for sale on the format in Australia).

However, another ‘toon, Sonic the Hedgehog, is out on both Blu-ray and 4K-UHD.

High-Def Digest dubbed it “a glorious 2160p transfer with Dolby Vision that has sharp detail and a fantastic colour palette.

“This 4K video is a good upgrade from the 1080p Blu-ray version for a few reasons. One being the Dolby Vision colour enhancement …

“It’s a colourful looking image that never bleeds or becomes murky. Black levels are consistently deep and the skin tones are always natural.”

“The 1080p transfer looks terrific,” AVSForum said of the Blu-ray, “but this [4K-UHD] rendering takes it up a notch with a discernible increase in detail, and emboldened highlights, both light and dark.”

Also new on both Blu-ray and 4K-UHD is Van Diesel’s latest, Bloodshot.

“The digitally shot Bloodshot arrives on the UHD format with a native 4K/HDR presentation that’s a solid all-around upgrade over the counterpart 1080p Blu-ray,” Blu-ray.com said.

“The picture is obviously more crisp and well defined, evident right out of the gate. Skin textures are high yield for intimate definition and overall image clarity and sharpness rate very high …

“Sony elevates Bloodshot‘s sonic credentials with a Dolby Atmos soundtrack that powers well beyond the more limited 5.1 configuration accompanying the Blu-ray.”

The week’s other Blu-ray newcomer is the sumptuously produced Emma (“excellent high definition video, crystal clear lossless sound”) while being re-issued on 4K-UHD is Top Gun (“as good as the new 4K image is though, the new English Dolby Atmos mix is even better“).