Anatomy of a Murder 4K Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		5.0
Video		4.5
Audio		5.0
Extras		3.0
Overall		4.5

Anatomy of a Murder 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Martin Liebman October 13, 2021

Sony brings Anatomy of a Murder to the UHD format with a resplendent new 2160p/HDR video presentation and a Dolby Atmos soundtrack. The two-disc set also includes the film on Blu-ray, which houses several supplements. At time of writing, this disc is only available as part of the second volume in Sony's prestigious six-film 'Columbia Classics Collection' (Volume 1 released to rave reviews in June 2020). Other films in volume 2 include 'Oliver!,' 'Taxi Driver,' 'Stripes,' 'Sense and Sensibility,' and 'The Social Network.' Note that this film was previously released to Blu-ray via Criterion in 2012.

For a full film review, please see Dr. Svet Atanasov's writing accompanying the 2012 Criterion Blu-ray release by clicking here.

Anatomy of a Murder 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The included screenshots are sourced from a 1080p Blu-ray disc.

Sony's new 2160p/HDR UHD presentation of Anatomy of a Murder looks resplendent. That's no surprise for a centerpiece film in the studio's flagship 4K line, but the presentation is truly meticulous. Sony confirms that the 4K image is sourced from a restoration from the original camera negative. It's tack sharp, grain management is wonderful, and clarity abounds. The grain is one of the top highlights. It's very even and consistent in presentation density, certainly not fine but in no way coarse, either. Fine object detail and overall image clarity, stability, and sharpness could not be better. Period clothes are richly alive with incredible tactile depth well beyond the Blu-ray format's limits. That is not to say that the Blu-ray is a detail slouch, but that is to say that the UHD's mastery of clarity and fine sharpness reach a point of visual perfection. Whether that aforementioned clothing, faces, wooden courtroom furnishings or accents, or really anything the movie has to offer, there's no mistaking the visual acumen and the vast image superiority the UHD offers. Better, the print is meticulously clean and the encode is perfectly efficient; there are neither splotches nor speckles nor errant authoring issues to report.

Even as a black-and-white film the HDR grading is quite the bolstering add for the presentation. A-B comparisons between the UHD and the included Blu-ray product are striking. One can immediately see the true grayscale on the UHD whereas there's a creamier, less dynamic, deep, and true presentation with the Blu-ray's SDR colors. There's a majesty to the grayscale on the UHD, a sense of firm fidelity and fine-pint accuracy that offers improved separation between shades of white, black, and gray. The grayscale spectrum is much deeper overall with profoundly deep blacks and, conversely, impressively intense whites. The mid-scale grays are finely defined across the spectrum, leaving behind that creamy color for a more stable, stout, and sure look. It's easily the blacks that are the driving force here for the impactful depth and stability – compare a scene at the 56:39 mark where the Blu-ray's blacks are deep but teeter on crushed while there remains absolute black depth and definition without crush on the UHD -- but audiences are going to be thrilled with how this one turned out. This is the best-case scenario for this film on the UHD format; fans of this film or the look of black-and-white film in general are going to be in for a very special treat.

Anatomy of a Murder 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Sony presents Anatomy of a Murder on the UHD format with a Dolby Atmos soundtrack. It's probably overkill for a film with a fairly subdued sound design, focusing primarily on music and dialogue with some intermittent environmental supports, but the larger area of operation is welcome, anyway (the studio has also included several other options, including English 5.1 lossless and lossless mono for pursuits). Nevertheless, the Atmos track supports a very pleasing sound presentation. The Jazz score plays with fruitful width and definition. It's breezily alive as it flutters across the front, at times, such as during the film's opening minutes, and dominant in its more potent depth and detail, such as during a dance scene in the 52-minute mark. While it never commands the entire stage with aggressive posturing, mild aid from surround and overhead channels help to create a modest sense of greater spatial awareness. Fidelity is without question and front end spacing and engagement are top tier. Mild atmospherics play with impressive, if not slight, engagement, always well defined for place and detail. Dialogue propels most of the experience forward. The spoken word is clear and firmly grounded in the front-center channel.

Note that the Blu-ray only includes DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 lossless audio; no Atmos track is included.

Anatomy of a Murder 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Sony releases Anatomy of a Murder to the UHD format (as part of the Columbia Classics Collection) without any extras on the UHD disc. However, the bundled Blu-ray includes several interviews, a commentary, and a couple of other goodies. I cannot comment if the three interviews are the same interviews supplied on the Criterion disc (Dr. Atanasov notes that Criterion's "was recorded exclusively for Criterion in 2011"). However, Sony does not explicitly list these interviews as "new" (only the commentary track earns that distinction in the press release) so it is highly likely that these are repeats. As it ships in the Columbia Classics Collection, a slipcover and digital copy code are included with purchase.

• Gary Giddins Interview (1080p, 21:45): Giddins discusses the film's pace and excellence and moves on to discuss the score in detail.
• Pat Kirkham Interview (1080p, 14:52): Saul Bass' movie titles and art designs are the subject of Kirkham's interview.
• Foster Hirsch Interview (1080p, 29:43): Hirsh speaks in some depth and detail about the film's director, Otto Preminger.
• NEW! Audio Commentary: Film Historian Foster Hirsch explores the film in great detail.
• Excerpt from Firing Line Featuring Otto Preminger (1080i, 4x3, 10:22): Preminger chats about "production codes and censorship" with William F. Buckley, Jr. on the television program.
• Theatrical Trailer (1080p, 4:49).

Anatomy of a Murder 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

What a treat! This classic film looks impeccably great in 4K with its HDR grayscale. The new Atmos track is well defined as well. Sony has not included an exhaustive supplemental collection, but what is here, including a new commentary track, is superb. This release earns my highest recommendation.