Anyone here succumbed to 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray?

[Jay 37,352]

Aliens, Alien 3 and Alien Resurrection are being remastered in 4K for 4K Blu-ray

[crocodile 8,006]

I think this might be fake.

 

Karol

[Jay 37,352]

Here's another article about it

 

https://screenrant.com/aliens-alien-3-alien-resurrection-remastered-4k-release/

[crocodile 8,006]

Yeah the second article refers to the first one.

 

Karol

[Jay 37,352]

Oh, I found this

 

Quote

Next up, a few quick comments on some other 4K reporting from around the Internet: A couple of you have asked about Digital Fix’s recent report that the Aliens films are being remastered in 4K for release on Disney+ Star. This is logical to be sure, but also very speculative. It falls into the same category has recent rumors about the Indiana Jones films coming in 4K. It certainly makes sense that Disney would want the Indiana Jones films remastered (and probably released) in 4K in anticipation of their planned fifth sequel, which is tentatively set to arrive in theaters on 7/29/2022. Likewise, Disney recently announced a new Noah Hawley Alien TV series that’s expected to debut on Hulu/FX (and no doubt Star internationally) probably in 2022. So it would also make sense that the studio would look to remaster all of the remaining films in the franchise in 4K and make them available digitally and possibly on disc as well.

 

BUT... in both cases, we’re looking at titles that are over a year or more away from the possibility of being released. Multiple sources tell me that much of this remastering work hasn’t even begun yet. Do keep in mind that any release of Aliens is going to require the involvement and approval of director James Cameron. And as you all know, for the last few years he’s been so focused on shooting his Avatar sequels that he hasn’t even bothered to approve the new masters of True Lies and The Abyss, nor did he seem to much care that StudioCanal released Terminator 2 on 4K disc using the lousy DNR-scrubbed 3D master instead of the proper 4K remaster (that the 3D was sourced from, and which my sources say is absolutely beautiful). For that matter, it seems a safe bet that Cameron’s Avatar will be remastered and released in 4K too (either digitally or on disc, or both) in the lead-up to the release of Avatar 2 in theaters (currently set for 12/22/22). But again, that’s well over a year away and much of the work involved to make it happen has yet to even begin.

 

Meanwhile, overeager enthusiasts on social media have already created fake 4K Ultra HD cover artwork for all of these titles (and more) and “announced” them as though they’re official and coming soon to drive follows and likes, which has in turn gotten other enthusiasts understandably excited. The problem is, as soon as people see cover artwork they think these titles are real, that they’ve been announced, and that they can start pre-ordering. And none of that is the case here. So my message to all of you is: When you see reporting like this, you should treat it all with a grain of salt until there’s official confirmation. And you should never trust cover artwork you see for titles on the Internet—especially unannounced titles this far away from release—unless it comes from the actual studio involved or from retailers (which are often given placeholder art by the studios to make pre-orders and advertising possible).

 

Bottom line... accuracy and trustworthiness in reporting are important. We’ve been covering this industry for over twenty-three years now here at The Digital Bits—nobody has better sources than we do inside the studios and post houses where work like this is done. Trust me when I say that there’s very little that’s happening in this industry that we don’t know about. But knowing that something is happening, or being planned, is very different than being able to report on it in public. We make it a policy here not to report rumors about upcoming titles until we’ve confirmed them with multiple sources that we personally know are reliable and who are directly involved in the work. Even then, we still take pains to qualify such reporting when we do it as rumor/grain-of-salt worthy until official announcements are made. While it’s fun to be the first to break an exciting scoop, we’d rather be correct before informing our readers. And to be clear, this is not said to criticize Digital Fix in any way; That’s a great site and they’re doing great work. But what typically happens, when our readers see rumored titles being discussed elsewhere online, is they start emailing us asking: Is this true? And the answer is often a lot more complicated than simply yes or no. Enough said.

 

https://thedigitalbits.com/columns/my-two-cents/022421-1400

[A24 4,331]

 

Hey, there's a 4K release of this. Who knew?

[toothless 963]

I knew and I preordered it  

 

BTW there is a great comparison here: https://www.hdnumerique.com/dossiers/904-test-4k-ultra-hd-blu-ray-gattaca.html

[Jay 37,352]

That's a cool movie

[Naïve Old Fart 9,516]

14 hours ago, AC1 said:

 

Hey, there's a 4K release of this. Who knew?

That's a damn good film. One of my favourites of the '90s.

[A24 4,331]

 

Those crops reveal a lot of grain. 

[Jurassic Shark 12,067]

Is this about that guy who extends his legs in order to take on another guy's identity?

[filmmusic 1,826]

Basic Instinct comes in 4k!

 

https://www.zavvi.com/blu-ray/basic-instinct-zavvi-exclusive-4k-ultra-hd-steelbook-includes-blu-ray/13031609.html

 

[Unlucky Bastard 7,782]

Oh wow I can see her fanny in 4k!

[Chen G. 3,949]

6 hours ago, Unlucky Bastard said:

Oh wow I can see her fanny in 4k!

 

Literally the first thing every man reading about this release would have thought.

[Gruesome Son of a Bitch 6,488]

Seems like everything will get a 4K remaster before the original Star Trek movies 

[Chen G. 3,949]

4K remasters for movies that have lots of opticals are a kind of scam anyway.

[Gruesome Son of a Bitch 6,488]

The original Star Trek movies need remasters. They are very dated transfers with excessive DNR. Generations has a heavy greenish tint. The only exceptions are TWOK, which is only available digitally in 4K and Nemesis, which is a decent looking one.

[Nick1Ø66 4,714]

On 4/12/2021 at 6:47 PM, Jay said:

Aliens, Alien 3 and Alien Resurrection are being remastered in 4K for 4K Blu-ray

Well two outa three ain’t bad.

[Jay 37,352]

Well Alien already had a 4k blu ray release for its 40th in 2019

[Nick1Ø66 4,714]

1 minute ago, Jay said:

Well Alien already had a 4k blu ray release for its 40th in 2019

Yeah I know. I was referring to the quality of the respective  films. 😉
 

Actually this comes as a minor surprise (though a welcome one) given these are Disney properties now and they’re mostly getting out of the physical media business. Mostly.

[Jay 37,352]

Well if you read the responses after the post you quoted, you will see that it appears to not actually be true

[Amer 2,099]

18 hours ago, filmmusic said:

Basic Instinct comes in 4k!

 

https://www.zavvi.com/blu-ray/basic-instinct-zavvi-exclusive-4k-ultra-hd-steelbook-includes-blu-ray/13031609.html

 

Here is the full regular Zaarvi packaging. It would have been nice to have the Quartet Records release of the score tied to this release like they did with TOTAL RECALL via Studiocanal.

[A24 4,331]

9 hours ago, Chen G. said:

4K remasters for movies that have lots of opticals are a kind of scam anyway.

 

Opticals?

[Unlucky Bastard 7,782]

Chen G would rather see lots of digital compression artifacting than allow for higher digital resolution to allow for a more accurate scanned image of the film frame.

[Chen G. 3,949]

1 hour ago, AC1 said:

Opticals?

 

Effects created optically by compositing different camera elements. Any optical means various camera elements need to be printed one unto the other, which causes a degradation of the picture quality of at least part of the image. Depending on the process, the finished result may well resolve ~2K, making a UHD transfer rather superflouous outside of HDR or less compression.

[A24 4,331]

Aren't movies more than the sum of their optical effects?

[Unlucky Bastard 7,782]

Chen thinks a 1080p release of Kramer vs Kramer is about good enough.

[crocodile 8,006]

2 hours ago, Chen G. said:

 

Effects created optically by compositing different camera elements. Any optical means various camera elements need to be printed one unto the other, which causes a degradation of the picture quality of at least part of the image. Depending on the process, the finished result may well resolve ~2K, making a UHD transfer rather superflouous outside of HDR or less compression.

Yes, but that's still higher resolution. 

 

Karol

[Chen G. 3,949]

On 4/22/2021 at 12:34 PM, crocodile said:

Yes, but that's still higher resolution. 

 

I don't think people can really tell the difference between 2.15K and 1.8K...

 

I sure can't.

[Jurassic Shark 12,067]

Only Chen can, but he's no ordinary person.

[crumbs 14,306]

17 hours ago, Jay said:

Well if you read the responses after the post you quoted, you will see that it appears to not actually be true

 

I'm hopeful they'll turn up in physical 4K at some point but probably just bare-bones and minimum-effort like Alien 4K (they didn't even scan the Director's Cut material in 4K; just upscaled the old Bluray master).

 

IIRC Aliens was actually remastered in 4K by Lowry for the Bluray release, but Alien 3 and Resurrection reused the same dated HD masters from their debut on DVD in the 90s. Resurrection looks particularly soft on BD and Alien 3 isn't much better (and the Assembly Cut material looks noticeably better because it was scanned years later with newer tech).

 

Sadly I doubt Disney will bother hiring Charles De Lauzirika (or Mike Matessino!) to create a definitive 4K set with both cuts of each film in 4K. Such a shame because Mike could improve the isolated score for Alien 3 now the digital masters turned up! And Charlie could correct the alternate ending with Goldenthal's intended ending cue, rather than the awkward edit of the revised cue.

 

Would be cool if they included Mike's Alien Legacy documentary too!

[MikeH 768]

I’m looking forward to whenever they put the Bond films on 4K discs, but only if they correct the majority of the audio issues that plagued the previous Blu Rays. Most of the pre-stereo Bond films have lots of issues. 
 

Why is it so difficult for studios to include the original mono or stereo tracks without messing them up? They often include heavy noise reduction, compression, and low bitrates. And the 5.1 remixes are a mess for the most part.
 

I was watching the Man with the Golden Gun the other day, switching between the mono track and the “new” 5.1. It was very sloppy. Yes the score is in full stereo now, but cues often begin or end too early or too late, instruments are missing in certain cues (no Trumpets in “Search for Scaramanga’s Island), and there’s some severe compression which takes all the bite and air out of the score. The mono is no better, compressed to hell and the high end is lopped off. The special edition DVD and the 1993 laserdisc sound miles better. 

Listen to how the opening brass and the rest of the mix sounds in the Blu Ray release compared to every other released version. They took all the air and life out of it. 

 

Blu Ray

 

 

 

DVD/Laserdisc/CD

 

 

[crumbs 14,306]

I've seen the new 4K remasters of the Roger Moore era films onwards and they look sensational. I've been meaning to go back and watch the Connery films in 4K. Not sure why they haven't turned up on physical media yet. 

 

But they're a vast improvement on the old Lowry Bluray masters, which were plagued by frozen grain and other annoying issues. 

[filmmusic 1,826]

21 minutes ago, crumbs said:

I've seen the new 4K remasters of the Roger Moore era films onwards and they look sensational. I've been meaning to go back and watch the Connery films in 4K. Not sure why they haven't turned up on physical media yet. 

 

But they're a vast improvement on the old Lowry Bluray masters, which were plagued by frozen grain and other annoying issues. 

Where have you seen them? In digital?

[Nick1Ø66 4,714]

They’ve been available on digital for a while now. And while they are 4K, there’s no HDR.

 

They are definitely an improvement over the 1080p versions, but without HDR (which the eventual disc release will certainly have) not enough of an improvement at the moment to consider upgrading IMO.

[Gruesome Son of a Bitch 6,488]

I own most of the 007 movies digitally in 4K. The only exception is Man with the Golden Gun, which wasn't available to purchase. I think they look fine, some better than others, but I have my issues with the Lowry Digital remasters lacking much definition, I guess. Everything constantly looks so flat and rather desaturated, scrubbed of grain. Lowry seems to despise film grain.

[Ollie 1,059]

I guess I’m going to have to upgrade if I ever want to see True Lies and The Abyss in proper format.

 

Plus Toho apparently found the original elements to King Kong vs Godzilla and remastered the film in 4K. But the print used on the criterion set was from the Toho Blu-ray and that print was in need for some serious restoration. 
 

Due to rights issues, Criterion had to present the poorly edited / assembled US version of the film as the main release while  the Japanese version was allowed to be presented as “supplement material”. 

[Unlucky Bastard 7,782]

5 hours ago, Ollie said:

Plus Toho apparently found the original elements to King Kong vs Godzilla and remastered the film in 4K. But the print used on the criterion set was from the Toho Blu-ray and that print was in need for some serious restoration. 

 

And some bits were even in SD!

 

But still I'm grateful to finally have been able to see it, although it is a relentlessly slower entry in the Showa Era. The next few films were much better.

[Mephariel 451]

No streaming is the future.

[Unlucky Bastard 7,782]

Yeah but that's just watching movies on the internet.

[bruce marshall 1,315]

Do folks here upgrade a title they own  in bluray to uhd?

Is it worth it?

[Unlucky Bastard 7,782]

Depends. I've only upgraded a few like BTTF, ID4, Godzilla '98, the Burton/Schumacher Batmans, Alien, Jaws and Die Hard.

 

Most look fine, although ID4 has some colour-timing issues. Even BTTF looks like they've given it the yellow bias justtttttt slightly.

[Gruesome Son of a Bitch 6,488]

ID4 has weird color timing. 

 

Batman has a teal tint in the nighttime scenes, specifically in the finale.

 

I own all versions that can be purchased in 4K. The best looking ones I think are TLW, Batman and Godzilla (1998).

[Unlucky Bastard 7,782]

I forgot I bought the JP flicks.

[bruce marshall 1,315]

3 hours ago, Unlucky Bastard said:

Depends. I've only upgraded a few like BTTF, ID4, Godzilla '98, the Burton/Schumacher Batmans, Alien, Jaws and Die Hard.

 

Most look fine, although ID4 has some colour-timing issues. Even BTTF looks like they've given it the yellow bias justtttttt slightly.

How much better is a bluray played on a UHD machine going to look?

Seems to be a slight upgrade in resolution ( like a DVD player on a BR machine)

I just watched BRAVE on BR and don't see how it can Look ' better'

[Unlucky Bastard 7,782]

17 minutes ago, bruce marshall said:

How much better is a bluray played on a UHD machine going to look?

Seems to be a slight upgrade in resolution ( like a DVD player on a BR machine)

I just watched BRAVE on BR and don't see how it can Look ' better'

 

Playing a regular blu-ray on a 4K UHD machine needs a 4K TV to get the upscaling effect. When that's done, it looks surprisingly okay, depending on how the image was mastered.

[A24 4,331]

Wait! Blu-ray is only a slight upgrade to DVD? Come to my place, I would like to demonstrate you the opposite. And if you come, please wear masks!

[bruce marshall 1,315]

2 minutes ago, AC1 said:

Wait! Blu-ray is only a slight upgrade to DVD? Come to my place, I would like to demonstrate you the opposite. And if you come, please wear masks!

A standard DVD upconverts to 720 pi on a BR machine.

 

What did you read, Magoo?

[A24 4,331]

So? It means it fills a 720p screen. It doesn't magically turn your DVDs into Blu-rays.

 

[bruce marshall 1,315]

2 minutes ago, AC1 said:

So? It means it fills a 720p screen. It doesn't magically turn your DVDs into Blu-rays.

 

Who said it did Deaf Man?