Aguirre, the Wrath of God 4K Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		5.0
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		2.5
Overall		4.5

Aguirre, the Wrath of God 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Two prior editions of Werner Herzog's Aguirre, der Zorn Gottes (Aguirre, the Wrath of God, 1972) have been covered on our site by my colleagues. Dr. Svet Atanasov wrote about the BFI's 2014 SteelBook and Jeff Kauffman reviewed Shout! Factory's 2015 "Collector's Edition". To read Svet and Jeff's insights and analyses of the film, as well as the discs' a/v presentations, please refer to the linked reviews above.

Aguirre, the Wrath of God 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Shout Select's recent "Collector's Edition" has arrived in a 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray + standard Blu-ray combo. There were early murmurings that the 2160p transfer would be encoded with HDR10+ but I can confirm that the encode is instead presented in Dolby Vision (HDR10 compatible). Over a decade ago, Svet quoted the BFI's booklet as stating that a 2K scan was made from the original camera negative (OCN) of Aguirre, the Wrath of God held in the archives of Werner Herzog Film GmbH. The remastering was performed by Alpha-Omega Digital GmbH in Germany. Shout has made a new 4K transfer struck from this 35 mm OCN. Hartwolf (Lucki) Stipetic served as restoration supervisor. While neither Herzog nor cinematographer Thomas Mauch are officially listed in the packaging as involved in this restoration venture, Stipetic is well qualified to supervise it. He is Herzog's brother and was the line producer and production manager on this film.

In perusing screen captures Svet made of the BFI's 1080p Blu-ray, images look crisp with pretty rich colors. Shout's release is a couple steps up from that strong transfer. As you can see from my downsampled 1080p captures from the 4K disc, colors are generally bold and vividly rendered. Green leaves on trees are rich and very well delineated (see Screenshot #s 4 and 20). Wardrobe colors also stand out very nicely.

Jeff cited some filtering on Shout's older transfer, which made grain difficult to point out from time to time. Fortunately, grain is relatively easy to spot in several different types of shots. I could see a smattering of grain in close-ups and medium close-ups. Grain is also pronounced in medium shots and some long shots. Grain is also visible in establishing shots and extreme long shots of the rivers and tributaries.

The transfers on both discs are nearly 100 percent free of print artifacts or age-related defects. The only anomaly I detected is a short vertical tram line beginning at the top middle forehead of Inez de Atienza (Helena Rojo), Ursua's mistress, in one shot. Inez is to the left of Flores (Cecilia Rivera) in Screenshot #3.

I watched the UHD disc thrice altogether in calibrated Movie Mode and Filmmaker mode on my QLED. I also watched Shout's new 1080p Blu-ray upscaled to 4K on my Panasonic UHD player. There's definitely disparities in color depth and hue saturation between the two. The DV and HDR grade make those differences quite noticeable on the UHD disc. The 4K disc is generally brighter and sunnier (depending on the amount of natural daylight captured by the camera).

The UHD boasts an average video bitrate of 82.0 Mbps and an overall bitrate of 94.4 Mbps on this BD-66. The MPEG-4 AVC-encoded BD-50 (disc size: 33.21 GB) carries a mean video bitrate of 34764 kbps.

Screenshot #s 1-20, 22, 24, 26, 28, 30, 32, 34, 36, 38, & 40 = Shout Select 4K Ultra HD BD-66 (downscaled to 1080p)
Screenshot #s 21, 23, 25, 27, 29, 31, 33, 35, 37, & 39 = Shout Select 2024 BD-50 (from a 4K restoration)

The 95-minute feature receives the usual dozen chapter breaks from Shout on both discs.

Note: both discs have prefatory titles in English only.

Aguirre, the Wrath of God 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Shout has supplied three film sound track options (as well as two archival commentaries) for Aguirre: a multilingue DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 Surround remix (3926 kbps, 24-bit), a multilingue DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 (1573 kbps, 24-bit), and an English-dubbed DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 (1843 kbps, 24-bit). The average audio bitrates are identical on the UHD disc and the Blu-ray. The multi-language tracks are primarily spoken in German and Spanish with some Quechua. Shout lists "stereo" next to the 2.0 tracks on its press release and disc packaging. However, both of these mixes are purely in mono. I listened to both the German and English mixes and there's really no sound to speak of coming out of the surround channels. I am almost positive that they are sourced from the same magnetic masters that are encoded in LPCM Mono on the BFI and DTS-HD MA dual mono on Shout's 2015 disc.

I would largely echo Svet and Jeff's comments on the three mixes. The 5.1 remix really opens up the natural ambience of the Peruvian Andes. Sounds emanating from insects and animals are clearly audible on the satellite speakers. My research indicates that the dubbed English mix was produced around 2000 for the Anchor Bay Region 1 American DVD of Aguirre. When the film played in the US in 1977, the original multi-language mix was presented with English subtitles. This is also confirmed from the distributor materials I perused from New Yorker Films. The dub is synced well with the movement of the actors' mouths. While listening to the English audio, I could hear a few pops during the main titles but no other defects throughout the rest of this recording.

The band Popol Vuh wrote a chorale prelude that accentuates the awe-inspiring expedition the conquistadors embarked on. He also employs bowed instruments to underscore the pathos experienced by the characters. This is a memorable score that deserves an official soundtrack release.

There are optional English subtitles available when any of the two German tracks is selected and English SDH when English audio is selected.

Aguirre, the Wrath of God 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Shout has retained the four bonus features that appeared on its 2015 BD-50.

DISC ONE: 4K UHD

• Audio Commentary with Writer/Producer/Director Werner Herzog, Moderated by Film Critic Norman Hill - this feature-length track was originally recorded in 2000 for Anchor Bay's US DVD. I echo Svet's remarks about the commentary. Hill has a great and informative chat with Herzog. The critic is wise to ask brief but detailed-enough questions so the director can use the air time to go into considerable depth on various topics related to the film. (Hill doesn't interrupt him.) There are several priceless anecdotes about what went on during the making of the film, which apparently was unforgettable in so many ways. Herzog shares his first-hand recollections of the on-location confrontations he had with Klaus Kinski. Both participants speak in English. The track isn't subtitled.

• Audio Commentary with Werner Herzog, Moderated by Distributor Lauren Straub - this feature-length German track was recorded ca. 2007 for Kinowelt Home Entertainment's R2 DVD. This commentary is more scene specific compared to the one Herzog recorded seven years earlier. He adds a lot of detail to the stories about Aguirre's shoot that he discussed in the prior track. Herzog also provides specifics about what went on during particular days of filming. He even delves into the costumes he designed. Straub is most active querying Herzog during the first half of the film. He lets the director speak on his own for much of the second half. There are few gaps. One quibble is that I wish Shout had provided brackets with the speaker's name in the English subtitles. Generally, though, the viewer should be able to distinguish between Straub's voice and Herzog's.

• Audio Commentary with Writer/Producer/Director Werner Herzog, Moderated by Film Critic Norman Hill - this feature-length track was originally recorded in 2000 for Anchor Bay's US DVD. I echo Svet's remarks about the commentary. Hill has a great and informative chat with Herzog. The critic is wise to ask brief but detailed-enough questions so the director can use the air time to go into considerable depth on various topics related to the film. (Hill doesn't interrupt him.) There are several priceless anecdotes about what went on during the making of the film, which apparently was unforgettable in so many ways. Herzog shares his first-hand recollections of the on-location confrontations he had with Klaus Kinski. Both participants speak in English. The track isn't subtitled.

• Audio Commentary with Werner Herzog, Moderated by Distributor Lauren Straub - this feature-length German track was recorded ca. 2007 for Kinowelt Home Entertainment's R2 DVD. This commentary is more scene specific compared to the one Herzog recorded seven years earlier. He adds a lot of detail to the stories about Aguirre's shoot that he discussed in the prior track. Herzog also provides specifics about what went on during particular days of filming. He even delves into the costumes he designed. Straub is most active querying Herzog during the first half of the film. He lets the director speak on his own for much of the second half. There are few gaps. One quibble is that I wish Shout had provided brackets with the speaker's name in the English subtitles. Generally, though, the viewer should be able to distinguish between Straub's voice and Herzog's.

• Theatrical Trailer (3:19, 1080p) - an English-language trailer for Aguirre with snippets of various scenes. The date this trailer was produced is unknown. It appears fully restored.

• Still Gallery (5:23, 1080p) - a moving slide show comprising 39 distinct images from the production and distribution of Aguirre. The first 25 consist of color photographs taken on location. Images 26-34 are in black and white. There are several stills showing Herzog with his cast and crew. The last set of images are film posters from different countries.

Aguirre, the Wrath of God 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Aguirre, the Wrath of God (1972) is a Conradian journey into a heart of darkness that is surreal, poetic, and frightful. This monumental film has been given a superb 4K restoration that looks gorgeous on Shout's two-disc set. While there aren't any new extras, the archival commentary tracks with Herzog are most revelatory and insightful about the behind-the-scenes chaos that ensued during the making of an epic. VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.