Belly 4K Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		4.5
Audio		5.0
Extras		2.5
Overall		3.0

Belly 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman January 28, 2023

Lionsgate Films has once again partnered with Best Buy for an exclusive SteelBook release. This review gives a peek at the SteelBook, and for convenience sake I've copied my comments about the video and audio presentation and run down of the supplements from my Belly 4K Blu-ray review of the standard edition.

For my thoughts on the film (and Martin Liebman's, who review of the original 1080 release is linked), please consult my Belly 4K Blu-ray review.

Belly 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Belly is presented in 4K UHD courtesy of Lionsgate Films with a 2160p transfer in 1.85:1. Marty wasn't overly enthusiastic about the first 1080 release, which I have admittedly not seen, but I have to say I was genuinely impressed with the visuals on both the 1080 and 4K UHD discs included in this package. I've long had an almost Pavlovian response to shot on film features that get a 4K UHD upgrade, frankly especially when they come from Lionsgate, as I often find the grain resolution to be almost swarm like looking. That is not the case here, at least for the most part, and while there is the somewhat noisy appearance that Marty mentions in his review, especially in some of the darkest scenes, I have to say that in listening to Hype Williams' commentary track, I feel like some of the "distressed" look was an intentional stylistic gambit and not the result of poor compression. That said, even Dolby Vision and/or HDR can't quite overcome other deficits like a noticeable lack of shadow detail in those selfsame dark sequences, which are frankly pretty plentiful in this film. The 4K UHD version takes the already aggressively saturated grading and adds some nice nuance to any number of deep hues, probably most noticeably some of the omnipresent blues and reds. Detail levels tend to vary based on the stylistic flourishes and especially lighting and/or grading conditions, but on the whole are quite commendable throughout.

Belly 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Belly features a nicely propulsive Dolby Atmos track that takes full advantage of the multichannel format to deliver both some bracing low end as well as at least a few more "high reaching" moments courtesy of Atmos. I'm frankly a little surprised at the less than rave review Marty gave to the original 1080 disc's DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 track, but one way or the other, I found the Atmos track to be consistently immersive and nicely layered. The film's sound design is often as near psychedelic as the visuals, and as such there can be prioritization issues intermittently, though I found the general feel of things to be involving and well mixed. The music is a real highlight, and takes full advantage of both LFE and engagement of the side and rear channels. Dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly for the most part, with the occasional prioritization exception. Optional English and Spanish subtitles are available.

Belly 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

The 4K UHD disc features the commentary listed below as its sole supplement (other than a Bookmarking feature). The complete list of the following supplements, which seem to more or less duplicate those found on the original 1080 release, is included on the 1080 disc in this package:

• Audio Commentary with Hype Williams


• Spoken Word (SD; 39:07)


• Deleted Scene (SD; 3:33)


• Grand Finale Music Video (SD; 4:05)

I'm not a guy who typically goes crazy over packaging, and that frankly includes SteelBooks, but I have to say this is one of the cooler looking covers I've seen in a while. This has the almost feral "leopard eyes" look that is so distinctive in the film's opening moments in the strip bar, with some really deep blue and purple tones predominating. The inside cover isn't quite as luxe looking as can be seen in screenshots 5 and 7. As with the standard edition, this has a digital copy, and in lieu of a traditional slipcover this has a cool looking mylar O Ring as seen in screenshot 2.

Belly 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Belly probably would have benefited from Hype Williams having some more experienced mentor on the scene to help with story shaping and perhaps especially to guide some of the performances. But there is still an almost feral energy suffusing this film that is quite remarkable, and Williams' long experience as a music video director gives this film a really bracing visual style. My hunch is fans of this film are going to appreciate this new release, and one way or the other, technical merits are solid and the few supplements enjoyable for anyone who may be considering making a purchase. The SteelBook has a minimal but very effective cover design.