New to Blu: May 1 – 7

Glass

➢ “Glass‘ 2160p/HDR enhanced UHD presentation generally rates as a moderate-to-major boost over the perfectly rated 1080p Blu-ray … Generally, both detail and colour find improvement in every scene. At its best, the image soars above the Blu-ray, particularly in character close-up, revealing breathtakingly complex and intimate skin details that the 1080p image cannot render with anywhere near this much clarity.” — Blu-ray.com.

➢ “Where this HDR10 presentation ultimately wins over its HD SDR counterpart is the colours with primaries, in particular, looking fuller and a tad more saturated. However, the 4K video remains true to the stylised photography where much of the action and conversations fall on the lower end of the grayscale, displaying a deliberately sombre and occasionally near-monochromatic palette.” — High-Def Digest.

➢ “The Blu-ray, featuring 1080p high definition, has an aspect ratio of 2.35:1. Picture quality is excellent, with details such as the veins in the Beast’s body, facial stubble, and clothing, appearing clear and well-defined. The colour palette is significant. Muted and dark colours dominate early scenes, with more vivid hues emerging as the story unfolds.” — The Digital Bits.

The Favourite

➢ “This is an excellent high definition video presentation from Fox. Image depth during the brighter sequences is appreciable from nearly every camera perspective. Objects within backgrounds have definable structure/texture which makes them appear very lifelike and three dimensional. In general, the video is crisp with defining detail and appreciable sharpness.” — AVS Forum.

➢ “Shot on film and finished at a 2K DI (according to the IMDb), The Favourite makes a stunning transition to Blu-ray in another often sumptuous offering from Fox … The stylistic gambits of fisheye lenses and often quite brisk tracking shots both mean certain allowances need to be made in terms of detail, and especially fine detail, levels, notably toward the edge of the frame, where things can tend to look a bit blurry at times.” — Blu-ray.com.

➢ “For the most part, this is a great looking transfer, whose only issues lie in the way director Yorgos Lanthimos and cinematographer Robbie Ryan chose to shoot the movie, rather than any technical issues with the presentation here … The featured track for the Blu-ray is an English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio one, and it’s about everything one would want from such a mix.” — High-Def Digest.

Mary Queen of Scots

➢ “Mary, Queen of Scots appears on Blu-ray in its original 2.39:1 screen aspect ratio.  The film does not seem to show a bright range of colour on Blu-ray, but fine detail is appropriately exquisite.  Shadow detail is also enviable with solid blacks and excellent contrast.” — Home Theater Forum.

➢ “Mary’s freckles, Elizabeth’s pock-marked face, elaborate hairstyles, and costume details are striking. The use of colour is dramatic. Elizabeth’s blazing red wigs, the blood-red dress Mary wears at the chopping block and a blue one she wears in an outdoor scene, really pop against the otherwise muted colour palette. The dull stones of the castle, the skies, and the many candle-lit scenes lean either toward grey or deep shadows.” — The Digital Bits.

➢ “The 2.39:1/1080p/AVC-encoded image is fantastic, and gives plenty of opportunities to marvel at the intricate costumes. Fine-object detail is excellent, and wide shots are crisp and clean. Outdoor landscapes stretch for miles without a hint of compression noise, and the interiors of castle corridors are rich in detail and texture.” — DVD Talk.

Instant Family

➢ “Instant Family boasts a good 1080p HD transfer with a 2.40:1 aspect ratio. This is a sleek looking HD image; however, it’s not filmic. Colours are bright and bold with great primary colours throughout each interior space.” — High-Def Digest.

➢ “The picture is typical of a contemporary high end Blu-ray, featuring agreeably complex and naturally sharp textures all around. Core skin and clothing details are good, of course, offering naturally complex definition both in intimate close-up and in medium distance shots alike.” — Blu-ray.com.

● Also new are 4K-UHD re-issues of the Captain America movies, and Blu-ray re-issues of The Karate Kid, Watership Down, Hollowman and Storm Boy.