Justice League 4K UHD – Blu-ray review

Synopsis

Inspired by Superman’s selfless act, Bruce Wayne (Batman) joins with Diana Prince (Wonder Woman) to face an even greater new enemy. Together, Batman and Wonder Woman work quickly to find and recruit a team of metahumans – Aquaman, Cyborg and The Flash, to vanquish a powerful threat.

Specifications

Warner Brothers
(2017) Color, Rated PG-13, 2016p with Dolby Vision, Dolby Atmos,
1.78:1 Aspect Ratio, 2 hours.
Starring: Gal Gadot, Henry Cavill, Ben Affleck, Amber Heard, Amy Adams, Jason Momoa
Directed by: Zack Snyder

Rating

Rating:

Video:

Audio:

Extras:

Violence: Yes
Sex: No
Language: Yes

Commentary

Justice League is an attempt to clean up the cinematic mess of Batman vs. Superman which displeased a lot of fans. This new movie, introducing new movie characters from the DC superhero clan, is a much better film, but I think superhero movies are beginning to wear out their welcome.

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The writers haven’t made this film as dark as Batman vs. Superman and it’s clear the script put an emphasis on a lighter tone. Batman has some funny and apt lines and I think the character of The Flash is in there mostly for his comedic timing. There are also a few blatant product placement highlights throughout. Since AT&T is trying to do a mega-merger with Warner Brothers, I was amused to see an AT&T logo pop up on every cell phone screen that appears in the movie.

The acting is pretty much standard superhero dialogue delivered a bit blandly and the plot meanders more than I would have liked, but the film is still an enjoyable 2 hours. There’s plenty of action and the characters have a bit more dimension and depth. I think that comes from Josh Whedon taking over the direction of the film when Zack Snyder had to leave for family issues. There were many re-shoots and I think that’s when the added depth and humor came in.

Technical

Seeing the film in 4K is a real delight. That’s mainly because of the HDR. I watched the movie on an LG OLED set with Dolby Vision and the movie looks terrific. Shots taken near sunset (a CGI sunset, no doubt) are spectacular. Details in the costumes and the faces of the actors look astonishing.

I listened to the Atmos track, (mixed to 7.1 since I haven’t put in overhead speakers yet), and the audio was strong, directional, with plenty of deep bass when the frequent chaos ensued.

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Extras

The features are 1080p and appear on the included Blu-ray:

The Return of Superman – deleted scenes
Road to Justice – a 50m year history of the League in other media
Heart of Justice – Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman
Technology of the Justice League – interviews with production and set designers
Justice League: The New Heroes – background of the new characters introduced
Steppenwolf the Conqueror – The bad guy and interview with Ciarán Hinds
Scene Studies – details on some of the epic scenes from Justice League
Suit Up – Interview with costume designer
Introductory Trailers

Mel Martin

Mel spent most of his life working in television journalism in Ohio, Florida, the BBC in London, and in Seattle, WA. He won a few EMMY awards along the way which most people mistake for bowling trophies. Being around all those expensive monitors frustrated him when he got home to his threadbare TV and stereo, so he began to improve things, brand by brand, upgrade by upgrade. He’s got a lovely OLED TV now, flanked by Magnepan 3.6r speakers, and a Home theater with an Epson Projector and Focal speakers. Also scatted about the house are HiFiMan headphones, and 6 Sonos Connect devices that are spraying his rather large music collection from room to room. Other equipment is from Oppo, Sony, Aurender, PS Audio and Emotiva. Musical tastes range from Classical to Jazz to New Age to classic Rock and Roll. Mel has written a biography of film producer Samuel Bronston (El Cid, King of Kings) and is working now on a second film related book. He resides in Arizona where, when he’s not adjusting his home theater, he dabbles in landscape and astronomical photography.