Angels & Demons 4K Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		5.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		3.0
Overall		4.0

Angels & Demons 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Sony has released 'Angels & Demons' to UHD to celebrate the film's 10th anniversary and tie-in with the upcoming release of 'Inferno.' It's also been paired with the film's 1080p Blu-ray reissue, which is also included with this UHD disc. This new UHD release features new 4K video, Atmos audio, and a blend of new and old supplemental content, most of which is the latter. Note that this release does not include the extended version, either on UHD or Blu-ray; only the film's shorter theatrical cut is included. Unfortunately, those who prefer the film's longer presentation and wish to view it under the newly remastered video presentation and Atmos audio are out of luck.

Robert Langdon.

Angels & Demons 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

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

Angels & Demons realeases to UHD with a 2160p/HDR-enhanced image that's amongst the most dazzling yet on the format, right up there with the likes of Pineapple Express as the most gorgeous reference worthy material to date. Sony's presentation is practically above reproach, with only black levels that could stand to push a shade deeper the only real sore spot of note. The picture was shot on film rather than digital and it comes sourced from a true 4K digital intermediate, seemingly one of the few on the market in this age of digitally photographed and 2K-finished movies (the companion The Da Vinci Code is another shot on film and presented in "true" rather than upscaled 4K). Grain structure is gorgeous, enhancing details and offering a textural grace to the picture that replicates the look of film-based cinema as well as anything on the market. The image isn't, at-a-glance, vastly superior to the "mastered in 4K" Blu-ray that was released alongside, but it doesn't take long to note the significantly finer material and skin details and the greater clarity and accuracy of broad, intimate, and background textural elements alike. Colors are resplendent, with the red finding an increased level of nuanced clarity and vividness absent even on the 4K sourced, 1080p resolution Blu-ray. The color explodes off the screen but in a way that's gorgeously refined, not loud or obscene. The entire image, in fact, may be described as "refined." It's a clear step forward from the Blu-ray and, more than most any other UHD on the market, a true indicator of how the format can be a game changer even over a top-end 1080p image. It absolutely screams to be viewed on a large canvas; the 65" screen used for this review does it justice, but it would be a treat to see it bigger.

Angels & Demons 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Unlike the companion 1080p disc, which features only a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 lossless soundtrack, this UHD release of the film features a Dolby Atmos soundtrack which, much like as was said of the video counterpart, is amongst the finest the format has to offer. It's big, dynamic, very clear, and makes good, balanced use of the added back and overhead channels. The film begins with its greatest single sonic moment mere minutes into the film. In the collider, steam, heavy pounds of bass defining machines powering up, and a blaring alarm klaxon mix with a lighter office din as the particles begin the colliding process. As they zip through the machinery, the increase intensity and verve as the particles zoom through the stage with both weight and clarity of movement and placement is absolutely remarkable. Music is rich and detailed. It's wide, fully immersive, and nicely balanced across every channel. Low end support is strong and complimentary, too. Gunfire inside the vault later in the film features several good bullet ricochets around the stage, and the sound of falling glass moments later seems to come from straight above; it's as if a rush of shards are literally dropping right on top of the listener. Another reference moment comes around the 1:17:30 mark when both blaring police sirens and several ringing church bells collide and create one of the fullest and most interesting moments in the track. Supported by fabulously clear and prioritized dialogue -- which features several excellent moments of top-layer and surround-sound reverberation, prominently when Langdon is recruited for his mission at the Harvard pool -- this is a big winner of a soundtrack and a reference presentation all the way through.

Angels & Demons 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Sony's UHD release of Angels & Demons contains its core supplements on the included Blu-ray disc. The UHD contains a collection of "moments" (2160p, HDR, Atmos) that are, essentially, categorized highlight reels from the movie. Included are Illuminati (11:11), Robert Langdon (16:58), Vittoria Vetra (9:50), and Camerlengo Patrick McKenna (14:05). Also included is the "Cast & Crew" tab that features still photos of key cast and crew. A UV digital copy voucher is included. Below is a breakdown of what extras are included on the Blu- ray disc. New material is marked as such, and reviewed. For reviews of previously released material, please click here.

• NEW! Legacy of Langdon with First Look at Inferno (1080p, 4:10): This supplement shares a name (minus one "a") with one found on The Da Vinci Code's reissue, but it's a bit different. It opens with a look at Inferno and moves on to examine how the films are similar and different (with a closer look into Angels & Demons), and eventually comes back full circle to Inferno. Note that the back of the box advertises this supplement (labeled as "A First Look at Inferno") as well as "A Look Back with Tom Hanks, Ron Howard, Dan Brown and Brian Grazer." That latter supplement doesn't appear to actually exist on its own, so it seems like Sony made it sound like two extras when it is, in reality, just this one (Hanks, Howard, Brown, and Grazer all appear in this extra). The packaging listing definitely demarcates them with a "bullet point" symbol. Pretty shady if that's the case.
• (Sort of) NEW! Extended Cut Scenes (1080p, DD 2.0, 9:23): While audiences cannot watch the extended cut in full, the trimmed scenes are at least here to peruse separate of the picture proper. Included are Not Eligible, Parking, Pressure Change, In the Church, Oxygen, Law, Seeking Guidance, We Must Open the Doors, Gunfight, Oxygen Mask, and Impossible. These scenes were presented in 5.1 lossless sound on the original Blu-ray; why not here, too?
• Rome Was Not Built in a Day
• Writing Angels & Demons
• Characters in Search of the True Story
• CERN: Pushing the Frontiers of Knowledge
• Handling Props
• Angels & Demons: The Full Story
• This is an Ambigram
• NEW! Teaser Trailer (1080p, 1:11).
• NEW! Theatrical Trailer (1080p, 2:16).

Angels & Demons 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Sony's UHD Blu-ray release of Angels & Demons is nothing short of magnificent. Picture and sound are glorious, each approaching the pinnacle of what the still relatively young UHD format has to offer. Fan of the film or not (and it's pretty good, all things considered), UHD owners owe it to themselves to see it in action, and hopefully hear what the Atmos track has to offer, too. Very highly recommended.