Alien: Covenant 4K Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		4.5
Audio		5.0
Extras		0.5
Overall		3.0

Alien: Covenant 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Ridley Scott returns to his Alien well once again, by way of a slight detour through Prometheus, with Alien: Covenant. How do all those scary xenomorphs look in UHD? Read on.

Alien: Covenant 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The included screenshots are sourced from a 1080p Blu-ray disc. Watch for 4K screenshots at a later date.

Alien: Covenant is presented on 4K UHD courtesy of 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment with a 2160p transfer in 2.40:1. As discussed in the Alien: Covenant Blu-ray review, this was shot with Arri Alexa cameras and then (perhaps surprisingly) finished at a 2K DI, and this has the typical uptick in detail and fine detail levels that are often seen in 4K UHD presentations of DIs with the same resolution. In some ways this is one of the more impressive upgrades in terms of fine detail like facial pores and things like ridges on the rubbery spacesuits some of the astronauts wear, but there are occasional slight anomalies. The mist strewn planet looks considerably more "digitally enhanced" than on the 1080p version, and in fact a couple of times the foggy environments started to resemble noise, especially when the camera is pointed up toward slate gray skies. The palette is subtly different than the Blu-ray version, with HDR adding new highlights in several greenish sequences (including the Fox logo, by the way), where a kind of slightly teal tone now informs the proceedings. Other colors, like the orange crates attached to the outside of the Covenant, seen in the first establishing shot of the spacecraft, pop with a new vividness in this presentation. The entire transfer looks considerably cooler, almost metallic, at times now, with a kind of evocative but still strange looking desaturated yellow quality in many of the planetary scenes. Shadow detail is at least marginally improved in several of the darkest sequences (especially those on the planet), though occasional slight deficits pop up, especially in the underground sequences. CGI can look slightly soft, as in the standard Blu-ray presentation, but generally speaking this is a sharp and precise looking 4K UHD viewing experience.

Alien: Covenant 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The Blu-ray boasted a forceful and nuanced DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 track, something the 4K UHD disc's Dolby Atmos track only improves upon. From the first washes of synth pads and gonglike tones that waft through the surround channels as the film gets underway, it's clear that there's some really well done placement of effects, with several hovering midair. LFE is arguably more pronounced on this track, with panning jolts like when the recharge sails are deployed clearly passing overhead and around the listener in a way they don't quite on the DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 track. Explosions, like the catastrophe engulfing the lander, are also incredibly forceful, with washes of sound that clearly thrust past the listener. Dialogue is cleanly rendered and smartly directional throughout this top notch presentation.

Note: As tends to be the case with Fox releases across different platforms, the audio and subtitle specs are not the same for the Blu-ray and 4K UHD discs. The specs above are for the 4K UHD version; for the Blu-ray specs, please see that review.

Alien: Covenant 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

The 4K UHD disc ports over the Commentary track from the Blu-ray. The other supplements detailed in our Alien: Covenant Blu-ray review are of course available on the Blu-ray disc also included with this release.

Alien: Covenant 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Those coming to Alien: Covenant looking for answers to questions still unanswered from Prometheus may find this film a fairly frustrating experience, and in fact this film raises a host of its own questions which (in my estimation, anyway) weren't particularly well addressed. If, however, fans are looking to re-experience the "gut busting" pleasures (?) of the first film may find this a worthwhile thrill ride. The 4K UHD presentation features generally excellent video and outstanding audio.