Atlantis Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		3.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		0.5
Overall		3.0

Atlantis Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Kenneth Brown November 24, 2025

Just in time for holiday shopping and potentially ideal for those French alt-genre film-fans in your family or friend group comes the Luc Besson 9-Film Collection from Sony, which offers six of the controversial filmmaker's movies on 4K UltraHD with Dolby Atmos tracks and three additional flicks on standard Blu-ray with DTS-HD Master Audio. Besson has a messy, I'll just call it "icky" personal past (a word that feels generous), but for those who can separate art from an artist's alleged and/or admitted misdeeds, this box set makes for a solid albeit flawed gift. The films included in the collection are black-and-white post-apocalyptic drama Le Dernier Combat (The Last Battle, 1983), stylized crime dramedy Subway (1985), theatrical and director's cuts of off-kilter romance The Big Blue (1998), proto-Wick assassin thriller Le Femme Nikita (1990), underwater documentary Atlantis (1991), theatrical and extended versions of the beloved, fan-favorite Leon: The Professional (1994), zany '90s sci-fi epic The Fifth Element (1997), domestic and international cuts of underrated historical biopic The Messenger: The Story of Joan of Arc (1999), and visually striking supernatural noir Angela-A (2005).

Though it may not be clear from the rest of his filmography beyond The Big Blue, one of Besson's deepest passions is the ocean. Teeming with life, its watery depths hide visions unseen by most of the walking world, available only to those willing to brave a trip beneath the waves. This "Marine Opera" (as Besson describes it) captures the diversity, breadth and wonder of Earth's underwater life from locations far and wide including the Seychelles, the Arctic, the Red Sea and the Great Barrier Reef.

After a brief opening, the subsequent bulk of the film is entirely devoid of narration a la BBC Earth and other popular nature documentary films and educational series, choosing instead to lean on meditative visuals, atmospheric music, and a scattering of chapter titles that appear on screen, denoted by a single, evocative word (e.g. "Movement"). Unfortunately, there's not much more to Atlantis, certainly nothing hidden that might be uncovered, lost that might be found, or buried beneath the sand that might be brought up into the sea. It's almost screen-saver-ly, which isn't necessarily a bad thing, so long as you know what to expect going in. There's also little context as to where we are in the world's oceans, or exactly what creatures we're watching. Not that it's hard to identify the vast majority of marine life on display. There's very little in the way of mysteries here, and even less in the way of unraveling the complexities and enigmas of the aquatic kingdom to which we're bearing witness. There are stunning shots aplenty as well, but even then, dated underwater camera technology -- that might have wowed audiences in the '80s -- is simply outmoded and limited in its ability to truly showcase the magic and majesty of the undersea ecosystem.

Atlantis Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Just as the film is dated, so too is its original photography, which, despite a polished 1080p/AVC-encoded presentation, looks decidedly past its prime and, well, unimpressive. (Subjectively speaking, at least.) Colors are decent, insofar as the murky waters allow, and the depths of the oceans are backed by some beautiful, inky blacks. Sadly, contrast is a bit lacking, primaries don't often satisfy, and detail is only as revealing as the footage allows... which typically isn't very much. Grain, visible in the watery backdrops, borders on pixelated at times (though it's merely granular and inherent to the photography), and aliasing occasionally pops up to remind viewers of the Blu-ray nature documentaries of yesteryear. In better news, there isn't much at all in the way of banding, blocking or other major issues, so that's a plus. And there isn't a lot to complain about that doesn't trace back to the ho-hum visuals that, again, lag only by way of subjectivity. So, shoulder shrugs all around.

Atlantis Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The film's atmospheric music fares better than its visuals courtesy of a healthy DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 surround track, although it too makes for a restrained and unremarkable experience. The ambient effects, watery sounds, rush of waves high above, echo of the depths far below, and other choice sources make solid use of the surround and LFE channels. The only downside, once again, is that the entire presentation sounds unmistakably of its era and doesn't have a lot of weight or surprises to throw around.

Atlantis Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

The only extra included with Atlantis is its original theatrical trailer (HD, 2 minutes).

Atlantis Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

A relatively beautiful but ultimately boring "documentary" (in the loosest sense of the term) that substitutes music for narration and serves up a pretty screen saver; one with outdated photography that traces back to the limited technology of the era. The resulting film hinders the video and audio presentations as well, delivering a decent but subjectively forgettable AV package. I'm sure someone will suggest I'm being too hard on Atlantis, but it sinks when it should swim and lost me long before it was over.