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Category:    Home > Reviews > Science Fiction > Drama > Thriller > Romance > Outer Space > Passengers (2016/Sony 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray + Blu-ray 3D + Blu-ray 2D)

Passengers (2016/Sony 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray + Blu-ray 3D + Blu-ray 2D)



Picture: A /B+/B+ Sound: A /B+/B+ Extras: B Film: B



Chris Pratt and Jennifer Lawrence star in Morten Tyldum's Passengers (2016) - an epic Science Fiction love story with an interesting screenplay and great onscreen chemistry between the two leads. The film was released around Christmas and got lost in the shuffle of all of the other big Holiday movies with the Sci-Fi crowd heading to see Rogue One for the second time over seeing this. Now that Passengers is on disc in this grand presentation thanks to Sony, its worth giving a bit closer attention. Also in the film are Michael Sheen, Laurence Fishburne, and a small cameo by Andy Garcia. Its also worth noting that this screenplay was in development for several years, with Keanu Reeves involved at one point, which would have made for a very different film.


Taking place primarily on a grand spaceship floating through the cosmos known as 'The Avalon', which is carrying 5,000 passengers on a 90-year flight to a new planet in a new century, a hibernation pod malfunctions and Jim (Pratt) is awakened a lifetime too early. The only person awake for a year, Jim starts to go mad with loneliness with only a robotic bartender (Sheen) to keep him company. One day by accident, he comes across the pod of Aurora (Lawrence) and starts to fall in love with her via her profile. On a whim, he opens her pod and wakes her up too soon as well. Alone on the ship together, a romance starts to blossom between the two, but Jim must struggle with whether or not to tell her that he broke the rules and woke her up too soon... as the ship continues to malfunction, hurtling towards its final destination.


Passengers has a few very cool special effects sequences that are definitely worth noting, one when Aurora is swimming and the ship goes into anti-gravity mode. I also enjoyed a scene where Jim and Aurora are romantically studying a planet up close in a romantic scenic view out the window. There are also several visual motifs that pay tribute to Kubrick's The Shining, namely the bar that Jim interacts with Sheen's character, that I found amusing as well.


This edition features every desirable format you can imagine with a 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray 3D, and Blu-ray editions to choose from, all of which are pretty impressive, but clarity and detail are the most evident in the 4K UHD. At times the 4K UHD 2160p presentation is bit too clean, revealing some of the film's digital effects as phony to the untrained eye, shine nearly every scene has some digital element to it. Still, if you have the home system setup, this disc is sure to help get the most out of your system.


Passengers is presented in 4K 2160p with with HDR (high dynamic range 10-bit color) in a widescreen aspect ratio of 2.39:1 and a Dolby Atmos 11.1 lossless track that provides the highest standard of home viewing possible at the time of this review. For a film of this nature that is heavy in special effects, this presentation hits the nail on the head in terms of detail on character's faces down to the last stubble, to the ripples in the water and clean and sterile look of the spaceship. Other audio tracks on the disc include the Dolby TrueHD 7.1 track (core of the Atmos track as mixdown), which is also pretty impressive. The 3D and 2D Blu-rays only offer lossless DTS-HD MA (Master Audio) 5.1 mixes that offer fine mixdown presentations, but nothing can beat the Atmos tracks here.


Blu-ray and Blu-ray 3D present the film in 1080p high definition with a 2.39:1 widescreen aspect ratio and the same audio tracks as the 4K UHD. The 3D works well in expanding the depth of field throughout the film, which adds something extra to the detail on the interior of the spaceship, but a little detail can be lost in simple places. It doesn't impact the enjoyment of the film any less in 2D, however. A digital UV copy of the film is also included for your smart phone or tablet.



Special Features...


- Deleted Scenes


- "Space on Screen: The Visual Effects of Passengers" Featurette


- Outtakes from the Set


- "Casting the Passengers" Featurette


- "Creating the Avalon" Featurette


- "On Set with Chris Pratt" Featurette


- Book Your Passage Looking for a new life? Learn more about the Homestead Company. See what awaits you.


- Passengers VR Experience First-Look



- James Lockhart

https://www.facebook.com/jamesharlandlockhartv/


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