Fantastic
Beasts and Where To Find Them
(2016)/Harry
Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
(2007)/Harry
Potter and The Half Blood Prince
(2009)/Harry
Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 1
(2010)/Harry
Potter and The Deathly Hallows, Part 2
(2011/all Warner 4K Ultra HD Blu-rays w/regular Blu-rays)
Picture:
A- & B+ Sound: A- & B+ Extras: B Films:
B/B/B+/B+/B+
Fantastic
Beasts and Where To Find Them
Harry
Potter fans can now relive the exciting prequel set in author J.K.
Rowling's magical world where humans co-exist with magic folk.
Fantastic
Beasts and Where To Find Them
(2016) features a top notch cast including Eddie Redmayne, Colin
Farrell, Katherine Waterston, Dan Fogler, Colin Farrell, Ezra Miller,
Ron Perlman, and Johnny Depp to name a few with David Yates returning
in the directing chair, who can't seem to escape the Potter-verse
(this is his fifth entry in the franchise as Director in a row).
Beasts
was a critical and box office success (obviously) so many sequels are
planned and ready to go into production. However, unlike the
previous Potter
films, the Fantastic
Beasts
films do not exist in novel form and are strictly cinematic projects.
Now, Warner Bros. is putting Harry Potter in glorious 4K, which
helps us Muggles (non-magic folk) enjoy the films in a whole new, and
startlingly realistic, light!
70
years before the first Harry Potter film, a magical event that made
the history books at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry comes
to life. Supernatural animal wrangler and writer, Newt Scamander
(Redmayne) ends up in 1930s New York where he faces off against a
group of magical folk who struggle to survive in the likes of non
magic folk.
The
film is a bit slow at times but the money is on the screen and the
mix between practical and digital effects is mostly seamless, save a
couple characters (such as the Ron Pearlman character) which look a
bit too fake to pass the 4K test. The performances are pretty solid
throughout and if nothing else, this film proves that this world can
still be interesting without the familiar Potter characters and
Hogwarts as a setting.
Presented
on 4K UHD with a 2160p picture, HDR (high dynamic range 10-bit color)
and a widescreen aspect ratio of 2.39:1 (still originating on 35mm
film) and an earth shattering Dolby Atmos lossless track that sounds
crystal clear throughout, taking great advantage of its 12-tracks
(the first in the franchise to be originally designed that way).
Also on the disc is a nice sounding, lossless DTS-HD MA (Master
Audio) English 5.1 track that isn't quite as good as the Atmos
version, but will stand out well on most systems.
Also
in the pack is a standard 1080p high definition Blu-ray of the film
with a widescreen aspect ratio of 2.39:1 and the same Dolby
Atmos/DTS-HD MA (Master Audio) 5.1 mixes as the 4K UHD. The
presentation is up to standards and impressive in its own right,
though the comparisons between formats is pretty outstanding of a
difference.
A
digital UV copy of the film is also included.
Special
Features:
Before
Harry Potter: A New Era of Magic Begins!
Characters:
The
Magizoologist
The
Goldstein Sisters
The
New Salemers
The
No-Maj Baker
The
President and the Auror
Creatures
Meet
the Fantastic Beasts:
Bowtruckle
Demiguise
Erumpent
Niffler
Occamy
Thunderbird
Design:
Shaping
the World of Fantastic Beasts (360)
New
York City (360)
MACUSA
(360)
Newt's
Magical Case (360)
The
Shaw Banquet
The
Blind Pig (360)
Deleted
Scenes (11 scenes)
This
packed release brings the blockbuster to life in startling 4K UHD and
does the filmmaking full justice.
Harry
Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
(2007)/Harry
Potter and The Half Blood Prince
(2009)/Harry
Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 1
(2010)/Harry
Potter and The Deathly Hallows, Part 2
(2011)
To
go with the 4K release of Beasts,
Warner has issued the last 4 of the 8 films from the original Harry
Potter
series. Fans will likely grumble that they will have to re-buy the
series again but the improvements in new format with sound and
transfers upgraded simultaneously is worth it.
Included
along with the 4K discs are the two disc Blu-ray special editions
which were previously available in the large Ultimate Edition Blu-ray
sets that were issued individually in deluxe versions (complete with
fancy packaging). In short, if you get all four of these 4K UHD
discs then you won't be missing any bonus content, plus you get the
new 4K image, which is quite impressive and an improvement over the
1080p standard Blu-rays.
Based
on the hit teen/fantasy book series by author J.K. Rowling, these
films have been a huge hit with audiences worldwide with some
comparing its success to Lord
of the Rings
and Star
Wars
in terms of box office revenue. The Potter films have a huge cast
but along with Daniel Radcliffe in the lead, he is joined by Emma
Watson, Rupert Grint, Harry Melling, Jason Boyd, Bonnie Wright,
Richard Macklin, Kathryn Hunter, Miles Jupp, (the late, great) Alan
Rickman, Helena Bonham Carter, Ralph Fiennes, Gary Oldman, and many
more.
These
last 4 films were directed by David Yates (The
Legend of Tarzan),
continuing the saga of Harry Potter (Daniel Radcliffe) who lives in a
modern world where magic and humanity coincide, as he faces off
against the evil Lord Voldemort (Fiennes) who wishes to kill him and
bring down Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry once and for
all using dark magic and an unusual cast of characters. Along with
the challenges of growing up, Mr. Potter and his friends Hermione
(Watson) and Ron (Grint) grow more and more competent in their skill
for magic despite impossible odds as the series progresses.
In
the case that you haven't seen any of the Harry Potter films and are
checking them out for the first time, I would definitely suggest
watching them in order or you may get lost pretty quickly. One cool
thing about watching them now is that you get to see the young cast
members grow up more and more and the films progress. As far as
content goes, the tone of the films change from more adventurous and
child-like to darker and more adult by the time The
Deathly Hallows
films come around. As a matter of fact, these later Potter films are
much darker than early entries and feature some pretty impressive
special effects that still hold up in this Ultra High Definition
release despite being a few years old.
In
The
Order of the Phoenix,
Harry and Dumbledore are targeted by the Wizard authorities as an
authoritarian bureaucrat slowly seizes power at Hogwarts. At the
same time, Lord Voldemort's presence starts to swell as more clues
are unraveled.
In
The
Half Blood Prince
(2009), it's Harry Potter's sixth year at Hogwarts School of
Witchcraft, Harry finds a book marked mysteriously, "This book
is the property of the Half Blood Prince," which helps him excel
at Potions class and teaches him a few dark and dangerous ones along
the way. Meanwhile, Harry is taking private lessons with Dumbledore
in order to find out about Voldemort's past so they can find out what
might his only weakness.
My
favorite installment in the Potterverse, The
Deathly Hallows, Part 1,
Harry, Ron, and Hermione race against time in the modern world to
destroy the Horcruxes (a trail of unique items that help give Lord
Voldemort power) and along the way, they uncover the existence of
three incredibly powerful objects known as the 'Deathly Hallows'.
In
Part
2,
Harry, Ron, and Hermione continue their quest of finding and
destroying the evil Lord Voldemort's three remaining Horcruxes and
soon find him and his dark army at the doorstep of Hogwarts School of
Witchcraft and Wizardly. In the explosive last installment, an epic
battle is fought and stunning revelations are unearthed!
The
Ultra HD 2160p with HDR (high dynamic range 10-bit color) Blu-rays
showcase 4K resolution with High Dynamic Range (HDR) and a wider
color spectrum, offering brighter, deeper, more lifelike colors
besting even Blu-ray, which was once thought to be the superior
format. Almost immediately you can tell the difference, with even
more detail down to the last hair and colors that just a tad more
realistic. If you're a videophile and have been holding out,
releases like this are the reason to upgrade.
All
four films were shot on 35mm film with the intention of 70mm/IMAX
blow-up and the improvements in the 2160p Ultra HD with HDR
presentations in the widescreen aspect ratio of 2.40:1 (or 2.39:1,
but all 4 of them) and a flawless DTS-X lossless track that is as
good as it gets. If you're looking for discs to test out your 4K
system, I would definitely suggest these Harry
Potter
titles. Also included are the original 2 Blu-ray discs which show
the film in 1080p with a 2.39:1 widescreen aspect ratio and the same
audio tracks as the 4K discs. At the time of this review, this is
the highest quality available to the consumer market for home
presentation. All films are also digital recordings (Phoenix
was issued exclusively in IMAX with strong Sonics-DDP sound, the rest
in all the theatrical sound formats (DTS, Dolby, Sony Dynamic Digital
Sound) of the time) and as much of the soundmasters' high fidelity
from each film has been brought out to the greatest extent possible
by the 12-track DTS-X format.
Digital
copies of the films are also included in UltraViolet format.
As
mentioned, the special features on the Blu-ray discs are the same as
the Ultimate Editions which were released a few years ago. All of
the extras are in 1080p high definition.
Special
Features for The
Order of the Phoenix
include:
On
Disc One...
In
Movie Experience
Focus
Points
And
on Disc Two...
Behind
the Story: Part Five
Deleted
Scenes
Trailers
Special
Features for The
Half Blood Prince
include:
Maximum
Movie Mode
Focus
Points
Behind
The Story
Deleted
Scenes
Interstitials
Trailers
Special
Features for The
Deathly Hallows, Part 1
Include:
On
Disc One...
Maximum
Movie Mode
Focus
Points
And
on Disc Two this time...
Behind
the Story: Part Seven
Harry
Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2
Sneak Peak
Deleted
Scenes
Trailers
And
Special Features for Deathly
Hallows, Part 2
include...
Maximum
Movie Mode
Focus
Points
Behind
The Story
Deleted
Scenes
Warner
Brothers Studio Tour London: The Making of Harry Potter
Pottermore
Preview
Trailersind
the Story: Part Five
Deleted
Scenes
Trailers
Harry
Potter
is one of the best fantasy franchises out there and one of the rare
cases where the hype is met with the content. Much like Star
Wars,
it's nice for fans to have future installments to look out for, when
at one point it was thought to be concluded.
-
James Lockhart
https://www.facebook.com/jamesharlandlockhartv/
