My current opinion on the state of 4K UHD

[reanimator]

Originally Posted by Geoff D

...even folks who want to zoom in widescreen movies and scrub away all that lovely grain are perfectly entitled to practice their perversions...

Blasphemy! I recommend a proper stoning.

[steelertown]

I don't personally get the same "wow" factor when comparing blu-ray to 4k as I did from SD to 1080p. I don't actually own a 4k tv yet, but from my limited viewing of 4k content I didn't feel the need to run out and upgrade immediately.

[bruceames]

Blu-rays look a little paler compared to the UHD. In some movies it's subtle (Sand Andreas) and others not so subtle (The Peanuts Movie). In all movies though, where highlights are concerned, it's anything but subtle. It sticks out like a sore thumb. And the best part about it is that it looks more natural and realistic. It looks lovely, but you really need a 1000+ nit TV to fully appreciate the HDR on UHD BD.

And as Geoff has stated, you can see slightly more detail in most of the 2K DIs even though it's "upscaled".

[The Duke]

Originally Posted by steelertown

I don't personally get the same "wow" factor when comparing blu-ray to 4k as I did from SD to 1080p. I don't actually own a 4k tv yet, but from my limited viewing of 4k content I didn't feel the need to run out and upgrade immediately.

Yeah, I was an early adopter o fBlu-ray for the clear step up from SD to 1080p, but also for the lossless audio. And if your TV is good there's maybe no rush to run out & upgrade immediately. But 4K UHD TVs were the bargain of the holiday sales, and my 6 yr old Vizio 1080p was starting to have issues. So I snagged a 50" Hisense 50H7 for under $300 and absolutely love it. Football games look like you're right on the field with the players, and my BDs never looked better - better detail, and the HDR brightens & enhances the colors of (non HDR) HDTV & BD.

I appreciate LettuceJUMP's reviews of his UHD BD collection and look forward to more, but I'm not in any hurry to upgrade, I'll just enjoy HD upscaled on my TV for now. I've downloaded a couple of 4K HDR movie trailers (in the boonies, internet is too slow for 4K streaming) and they look amazing, but when you snag a 4K TV for under $300, spending almost that much or more for a player is a non starter. And then upgrading the receiver for 4K & Dolby Atmos . . . been there, done that upgrade game.

[HomerCooper]

4K UHD Blu-ray will most likely always be a niche format. DVD still outsell blurays.
The race to get 4K TV to the market has made things very complicated for the average consumer.
The question is how long will it last before they stop producing discs.

[StingingVelvet]

Originally Posted by Geoff D

Me, I love all my Blu-ray brothers, and even folks who want to zoom in widescreen movies and scrub away all that lovely grain are perfectly entitled to practice their perversions, as long as it's not spoken about in polite society.

Even in this modern era of no shaming surely we can all agree these heathens deserve to be burned at the stake.

[LettuceJUMP]

Geoff and Velvet have a very respectful playful relationship. It's quite entertaining. Cinema love at it's best. I was a cinema studies major back in 2005 and have studied film of all decades and genres, and can generally respect anyone's opinion on a film...except for zooming in widescreen to remove the black bars. That is unlawful.

The Duke - thank you! I'm glad to hear people are saying that my findings are useful, and I will continue them until I review all of the movies I own, and as new releases come out.

Here are the new batch of reviews I promised. -

Mad Max Fury Road - 4K/HDR - 8 Movie - 6.5 Total - 14.5/20
Keep in mind all of these reviews are my opinions. I was never a fan of the original Mad Max and Road Warrior films, finding them to be odd and cult hits. This movie was a big hit with audiences, and I am definitely in the minority when I said it was okay. I had been told before viewing that the transfer was solid, but CGI and flames looked super fake on UHD. I do agree the transfer is above average. It never blew me away, and I would not consider this a reference disc. Detail looked nice at times, but this could have been a 1080p Blu-ray upscaled on it's best day. I never felt convinced this was something only 4K could do. Sorry if that is a harsh review for an 8/10 review, but I'm finding a lot of 2K digital transfers to be slightly disappointing. There have been exceptions, and hope to see more that break the mold. Oh, and this one is action from start to finish!

The 5th Wave - 4K/HDR - 6.5 Movie - 5.0 Total 11.5/20
They could have taken the Blu-ray disc, stamped UHD on it and fooled me. Recent digital releases have a similar look to them, and this one was okay. There were few moments that looked nice, like scruffy facial hair and nice tones, but it looked like a nice Blu-ray. The movie was completely forgettable.

Independence Day Resurgence - 4K/HDR - 7.0 Movie - 6.0 Total - 13/20
Being a recent release I expected a bit more. I just watched this one last night (New York was snowed in). I enjoy the original film, but this sequel is very disappointing. There is some fan service and lots of returning actors, but not a very enjoyable movie. If you need summer popcorn eye candy....rent it. The transfer looked about as good as a new release blu-ray does. It never sold me on owning the UHD release.

Man of Steel - 4K/HDR - 8.0 Movie - 6.5 Total - 14.5/20
I don't know if this has been said before, but this was one of the tougher UHD releases to find. Local stores and even online stores had this priced higher and in limited quantity. Moving on, I enjoyed the transfer. I'm not a fan of Zak Snyder and his style/look of filmmaking, but this particular transfer looked very nice. The film has a purposely dull tone but this transfer made it look good. The HDR in the opening sequence on Krypton was exceptional. The action and later set pieces had it's moments too. The film I think is a dud. I love my superhero movies, but this one was a missed opportunity.

Ghostbusters 2016 - 4K/HDR - 8.0 Movie - 6.0 Total - 14/20
The controversial female ghostbuster film looks nice on UHD. Some pretty HDR moments, and decent clarity/grain throughout. I went into this one with an open mind and found the film itself to be mostly disappointing, but it had it's fun moments.

Sully - 4K/HDR - 7.75 Movie - 6.75 Total - 14.50/20
Did everyone love this transfer but me? I watched this movie tonight with my wife, and you can see every pore on Tom Hanks in every scene, but besides that I was not impressed overall. It did not do anything for me that I feel a very good Blu-ray couldn't. I'm told this Blu-ray disc looked very good, and wish I had an opportunity to compare. But for $30, the retail price (I paid $15 on ebay), I would go out and get the Blu-ray for half the price. I'm also a New Yorker, so the story was very fresh being a local. I knew the story well, so there was very little suspense. Maybe a different audience would enjoy it more.

X-Men Day of Future Past - 4K/HDR - 7.25 Movie - 7.5 Total - 14.75/20
I'm a huge X-men fan, and felt this was one of the stronger X-Men films. If you do not care for the X-men or superheroes, maybe downgrade the movie score. The transfer is pretty good. The first scene where Wolverine goes back in time and wakes up on a water bed, does a great job of showing off the extra clarity and focused detail. Black levels seemed stronger and felt like a nice upgrade from the Blu-ray I had watched earlier. It does not hit the level of reference, but fans would enjoy this release.

X-Men Apocalypse - 4K/HDR - 8.5 - Movie - 6.75 Total - 15.25/20
This release has been said by many to be in their top 5. I can not argue with that. I would never try and tell someone this is a bad transfer. But others on this forum (StingingVelvet) have commented on 4K's ability to sometimes make CGI look bad, and have a video game or fake/too-real look to them. I'm not sure if that makes sense, but if you skip halfway through the movie to Quicksilver's "rescue everyone in the x-mansion" scene, and watch it play out. The result is definitely clean and smooth, but maybe too clean and too smooth. Maybe my OLED65B has something to do with it, but this scene looked fake to me. I used this scene as a demo for friends, and that was probably a big mistake. If you take that out of the equation, the rest of the film has excellent detail and vibrant bright colors. The HDR and 4K detail shine, but to me personally, it probably would miss out on my reference list. The movie is a step down from superior X-Men films and ends up as an average or lower tier film in the franchise.

Star Trek - 4K/HDR - 9.0 Movie - 7.5 Total - 16.5/20
This transfer is the reason I believe in native 2K. The detail is phenomenal. Ever bit of sweat, every pimple, every beauty mark is pulled off the screen, for better or worse. I absolutely loved it. I have hope that other top notch 2K native transfers will come to be, and that feeling is there because I watched this transfer. I was never a "Trekkie" but found this film to be engaging, fun and quite entertaining.

Star Trek Into Darkness - 4K/HDR - 9.25 Movie - 7.25 Total - 16.5/20
I will not break my rules and give this transfer two scores, but if I could, I would give the IMAX scenes a 9.5, and the standard widescreen resolution scenes an 8.75. The opening IMAX scene should be your reference disc/demo. The colors and the detail are stunning and vibrant. When IMAX leaves you are sad. Not to say the rest of the film does not look good. I'd say it looks just a notch below the previous film's transfer, or maybe that is just me comparing it to those gorgeous IMAX scenes. As far as the movie, if you enjoyed the first you'll most likely enjoy the second. It may not be as strong as the first, but it's still well done.

Deadpool - 4K/HDR - 8.0 Movie - 7.75 Total - 15.75/20
This movie gets a ton of credit for it's transfer. I've watched this one 3x, probably more than any other UHD I have, and I have to say it is strong, but not jaw dropping. I have rated a handful higher, and while there is nice detail, clarity and colors, it never hits reference for me. The movie was a surprising hit that most people seemed to enjoy, but lets not go crazy, it's still a superhero origin story in a comedy.

Suicide Squad - 4K/HDR - 6.75 Movie - 6.0 Total - 12.75/20
I don't know what's more disappointing, the movie or the UHD. The movie is all over the place, with a story that barely gets by. The transfer looks like a 1080p Blu-ray and had very few moments of excellence. Stick to Blu-ray, especially because the UHD does not have the extended version which is slightly better.

Batman V Superman : Dawn of Justice - 4K/HDR - 8.0 Movie - 6.5 Total - 14.5/20
We all know what mess this movie is. I like Wonder Woman's music, and frankly most of her appearances but this movie is a mess. 6.5 out of 10 is a generous score for a movie that I feel missed the boat. Don't get me started on the portrayal of Lex Luthor. The transfer on the other hand was pretty darn good. It has very similar look and feel to Man of Steel, which was grainy and bland. This was a bit darker, but had a nice upgrade to the Blu-ray.

Hitman Agent 47 - 4K/HDR - 7.75 Movie - 5.25 Total - 13/20
Bad movie translation from a video game franchise. Solid transfer that makes the movie almost watchable...almost.

Eddie the Eagle - 4K/HDR - 7.5 Movie - 5.5 Total - 13/20
Feel good story based on true events that was almost interesting. Of all the true events made to films, this one was a bit of a stretch for a full length film. Hard to believe it's the same actor from Kingsman. But this one is completely forgettable.
The transfer was good, not bad. Decent, not excellent. Slight upgrade from Blu-ray, not fantastic.

Pineapple Express - 4K/HDR - 6.75 Movie - 6.25 Total - 13/20
Maybe it's just me but this UHD was extremely soft. I felt the need to check my TV settings 3-4 times throughout the movie. Colors looked washed out and I still believe it might have been my calibration that effected my viewing. I even went online and saw screenshots that seemed more vivid than what I was watching. It had nice grain and detail, but the colors looked over saturated? If you love the movie, maybe look beyond my review, but I did not enjoy the look of this film. The movie is pretty dumb, as I had watched it previously on Blu-ray, but will make you snicker at some of the more moronic moments.

Snow White and the Huntsman - 4K/HDR - 7.25 Movie - 6 - Total - 13.25/20
Huntsman Winter's War - 4K/HDR - 7.5 Movie - 6 - Total - 13.50/20
I lumped these two together even though one was shot on film and the other digitally. But both had decent transfers that saw decent upgrades from the blu-rays. I would not say either were reference or jaw dropping, but I have seen worse UHD's. The movies are both pretty bad in my opinion, and are just barely watchable.

War Dogs - 4K/HDR - 6.75 Movie - 6 - Total - 12.75/20
Watched this one tonight, and thought it was like every other drug dealer or arms dealer film I have ever watched. I can rattle off 30 of them and they are all the same. Lots of success in the beginning then things go bad. I did not enjoy the movie, and found the disc to look like an upscaled Blu-ray. I can count on my hands how many moments I saw significant detail (By 4K standards) and actually was even slightly impressed by the transfer.

[RudyC]

I also prefer passive 3D to 4k HDR.

keep in mind i only have 2 4k discs. ghostbusters 1984 and independence day 1996. i have no desire to buy any of the "new" movies. I am an old fuddy duddy.

I didn't have the independence day blu to compare. But i did have the ghostbusters sony "4k" blu to compare.

the real 4k ghostbusters looked more "real" than the blu. blu looked a bit smoother with less grain.
anyway i did feel the more realistic image was better overall.

Just to compare...passive 3D to me looks just beautiful and let's me see more detail because of how the image sort of pops out. only drawback is having to wear the slightly dim glasses. But, it's worth it imo.

[sukraj]

Originally Posted by StingingVelvet

My set has weak HDR and I am sure that is part of it. Maybe on my future OLED with 4,000 nits and Dolby Vision I will be blown away, but we'll see when I get there. For now I definitely see what it is doing and like it. The Yorktown sequence in Star Trek Beyond is probably my fave with lots of sunny highlights interacting with the darker tunnel the ships fly through. However it doesn't really blow my skirt up, like I told Geoff the other day. It's neat, but... just not something I get all worked up over (at this current time).

Also I am very much a film purist so I do worry about how intended it is and all that. I wouldn't want it for any movie made before 2010 or so, but studios are forcing it onto every UHD disc, which bums me out.

what type of tv do you own mate

[StingingVelvet]

Originally Posted by LettuceJUMP

Geoff and Velvet have a very respectful playful relationship. It's quite entertaining. Cinema love at it's best.

He's my forum buddy but man he's so wrong sometimes! Liking Chronicles of Riddick? Isn't that a hate crime? Pretty sure it is.

Originally Posted by LettuceJUMP

Star Trek Into Darkness - 4K/HDR - 9.25 Movie - 7.25 Total - 16.5/20
I will not break my rules and give this transfer two scores, but if I could, I would give the IMAX scenes a 9.5, and the standard widescreen resolution scenes an 8.75. The opening IMAX scene should be your reference disc/demo. The colors and the detail are stunning and vibrant. When IMAX leaves you are sad. Not to say the rest of the film does not look good. I'd say it looks just a notch below the previous film's transfer, or maybe that is just me comparing it to those gorgeous IMAX scenes. As far as the movie, if you enjoyed the first you'll most likely enjoy the second. It may not be as strong as the first, but it's still well done.

I actually found that opening scene more impressive on the BD. The UHD version has less color and contrast, for some reason. The BD looks much more vibrant. Geoff noticed the same thing, so I'm not crazy. Though it could be our HDR Loooomens or whatevs.

[Crimsoncleaver]

I've yet to watch Ghostbusters 2016 in UHD. Bought the US set for the 3D being included. Now, as much as that film is forgettable itself, the 3D is some of the best, in terms of in your face and going outside the films frame, it made for a really entertaining experience.

That's probably the scenario where 3D tops UHD HDR. Where it doesn't for me is on the Captain America films, for some reason those shaky cam sequences just do my head in

[master gandhi]

Originally Posted by LettuceJUMP

I knew some people would shoot down my post, but I appreciate everyone else's opinions and input.

I like Geoff's response which is very glass half full. Positive approach.You definitely shine our current state in a nice light.

And sorry MechaGodzilla, Lucy and Pacific Rim are far superior films to Smurfs 2. But they are still average films at best.

Thatonelad94, I never purchased films to win some contest or say I have more. I like films to showcase the TV and the format, I consider myself a videophile, and by purchasing these early releases maybe I give some confidence to the companies releasing them that there are people interested. But yes I am a collector and enjoying building my collection for my own joy. I never personally stated they were not worth viewing. But the average person might not love the selection available.

I am encouraged for the future, and hope CES brings us some news this week of things to look forward to.

You didn't buy them in such a way that the studios would notice. You bought them second-hand off eBay. But those eBay sellers are grateful.

Once Disney is on-board, we should see this format legitimized more. I've only bought 7 UHD discs so far (and two movies in UHD on Vudu). I plan to buy more, but it's not that exciting right now, since I don't have a player for them and Dolby Vision is still on the horizon, and there's no special features that are exclusive to UHD. 1080p upconverted to 4K looks good enough for me right now, so I'm mostly still buying movies in that resolution.

[LettuceJUMP]

Master_gandhi - Yes ebay does not generate business for the studios to notice, but I have bought 25 or so in stores. I like to support certain studios when they put the effort in and deserve it.

I anxiously wait for Disney to get on board as well. Then the format can go mainstream with Marvel and all of Disney's catalogue.