Logan – 4K UHD Blu-ray Movie Review

It’s 2029 and mutants are all but extinct. Logan/Wolverine (Jackman) is now a limo driver by night and feeble Prof. Xavier‘s (Stewart) caretaker by day. Hiding out along the Mexican border they both are lying low and confronting their past sins. No new mutants have been born for years and Wolverine doesn’t heal like he used to when he was younger. One day a mysterious young girl shows up with adamantium claws like Logan. Then, the trouble begins.

Specifications

20th Century Fox
2017, 2160p with HDR10, Rated R, 2 hours 17 minutes
DTS-MA 7.1 (Dolby Atmos), 23.9:1 Aspect Ratio
Starring: Hugh Jackman, Patrick Stewart, Boyd Holbrook
Directed by: James Mangold

Rating

Entertainment:

Video:

Audio:

Extras:

Violence: Yes
Sex: Brief bosoms
Language: Yes

Has Jackman really played Logan for over 17 years? Time flies. But what a time it has been! Jackman took a pay cut to ensure this film received an R rating. It is graphically violent, gritty and somber. Xavier is failing physically and mentally, but exudes a sweet fatherly emotional core that grounds the ever angry Logan. The movie is based on a comic called “Old Man Logan”, and it depicts an aging Wolverine (around 190+ years as I calculate it) who drinks a lot in order to dull the pain his battered body is in.

Xavier has seizures that cause damage to everyone around him. Gone is the school for mutants, gone are the X-Men and soon, gone is the hope of leaving the past for a peaceful retirement when a young girl shows up with claws like Wolverine. Soon some government baddies show up and Wolverine must spring into action. This time, the action is violent and bloody. The claws rip off heads and puncture torsos left and right. The young girl kills as many, if not more, that the Wolverine. The action sequences are deliciously well choreographed and there is none of that herky-jerky camera work that is so in vogue today.

What I liked about this film was the realism and the satisfying conclusion at the end. It’s not a neat and tidy ending, but it is fitting for the characters involved. Everyone gets a fitting send off that doesn’t feel tacked on. The other thing I must mention is the inclusion of the black and white “Noir” version. Having watched both the color and B/W version on consecutive nights, I think I preferred the gritty noir version the best. It just seemed to enhance the fatalistic mood of the film. You get both, so see which one you like the most. This is my favorite X-Men movie of the franchise, though due to the violence and swearing, it is not for the kiddies. Recommended!

I was curious to see how HDR works with B/W, and was stunned at the amount of detail and specular highlights that it showed. The color version was great, with desert vistas and primary colors that popped and amazing details in texture and skin pores and scars. The noir version made the contrasts even greater with deep blacks juxtaposed against brilliant white highlights. This is not just a matter of taking the TV and turning off the color.

The HDR was dazzling, when turning off the color made a murky mess on the screen. Audio was thunderously loud and powerful; all adding to the impact of the action sequences. This film gets my near highest marks for picture and sound…and may well be my choice for disc of the year (with half a year to go).

Included are the “Noir” and BD copies along with Deleted Scenes, Making Logan: Casting The Film, Making Logan: Crafting The Story, Making Logan: Crafting The Score, Making Logan: Designing The World, Making Logan: Stunts and Fights & Making Logan: Wrapping Logan. These are over an hour of extras and all are worth watching.