7.5 | / 10 |
Users | 4.0 | |
Reviewer | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
Ron Stallworth, an African-American police officer from Colorado, successfully managed to infiltrate the local Ku Klux Klan and became the head of the local chapter.
Starring: John David Washington, Adam Driver, Laura Harrier, Topher Grace, Corey HawkinsBiography | 100% |
Period | 60% |
Drama | 46% |
Crime | Insignificant |
Comedy | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.39:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1
English: Dolby Atmos
English: Dolby TrueHD 7.1 (48kHz, 24-bit)
Spanish: Dolby Digital 5.1 (640 kbps)
French: Dolby Digital Plus 7.1
English SDH, French, Spanish
Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Digital copy
Slipcover in original pressing
Region A, B (C untested)
Movie | 4.5 | |
Video | 4.5 | |
Audio | 4.5 | |
Extras | 1.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
Director Spike Lee's (Malcolm X, Do the Right Thing) BlacKkKlansman is a compelling film focused on race relations in 1970s America, but its also an occasionally tonally disparate film that can be as humorously light as it can be maliciously dark. That contrast between funny and frightening helps ease the burden, but not lessen the impact, of the film's examination of racial strife and hate. Lee allows the script to flow and his actors to have fun at the Ku Klux Klan's expense, but when the narrative grows more extreme and the cards are down, Lee makes sure to turn off the comedy faucet and give the film's full attention and respect to the dangerous situations and fight against despicable extremism.
BlacKkKlansman's 1080p transfer is a beautiful thing. The movie was shot on film and this Blu-ray is undoubtedly sourced from the same master from the native 4K digital intermediate used for the gorgeous UHD. While that 4K/Dolby Vision presentation is assuredly the best way to watch the film at home, those who are still Blu-ray only will not be disappointed with Universal's presentation. Details are tight and refined, naturally sharp and presented within a handsomely filmic frame where grain is light, well manicured, and extremely complimentary. Faces are impressively revealing with sharp, intimate, and tangible pores, hairs, lines, and other features amongst the most obvious examples of the image's stalwart clarity and definition. Clothes, particularly well-preseed police shirts and the patches on them, reveal fine fabric details and stitching with ease. Location specifics are sharp as a tack across a myriad of locations, from police stations to grungy basements, from richly defined outdoor locales to low-light barrooms. The color palette also proves stable and rich. The image presents a light, vintage throwback color temperature that emphasizes period attire. Colors pop with balanced intensity and full-bodied saturation, notably on the most colorful clothes seen throughout the film but also considering natural greenery, car paints, and other more intensive and responsive hues. Skin tones appear natural and accurate. The only real disappointment are iffy black levels; low light and nighttime exteriors tend to look a little raised. Otherwise, the image is a standout. No eyesore compression or source related issues are apparent.
BlacKkKlansman's Dolby Atmos soundtrack proves its worth from the beginning with full-stage musical saturation, good low end depth, and rich, vibrant instrumental clarity. Musical excellence is a mainstay throughout the film. Ture's speech is wonderfully wide and naturally reverberating around the entire stage (which includes a mild above-stage component, one of precious few that take any advantage at all of the height channels), while crowd cheers are perfectly immersive and detailed. The track brings every environment to life with impressive spacing and saturation. Police station office din is audibly compelling and sonically detailed. The sound of a ringing phone, which is fairly prominent in the film (phone conversations in general drive much of the plot), often emanates with a sharp, clear ringing across the back, which is amplified considerably in the final minutes. A few gunshots strike with commanding power. Dialogue drives most of the film, however, and the spoken word enjoys rich, natural clarity, firm center placement save for when expansion is necessary, and prioritization above all competing elements.
BlacKkKlansman's Blu-ray release contains a featurette and an extended trailer. A Movies Anywhere digital copy
code is included with purchase. The release ship with an embossed slipcover.
BlacKkKlansman champions black power but also proper and peaceful race relations; many of the film's best scenes involve Stallworth, alongside one or several white characters with whom he works at the police station, laughing at David Duke, who is unknowingly speaking to a black man on the other side of the telephone. Conversely, the film's most challenging scene features an elderly black man named Jerome Turner (played by the legendary Harry Belafonte) telling stories of the Klan's torture of colored people while several Klan initiates are sworn into the organization in a juxtaposed sequence. Lee makes his points sharply and directly but does so with care and consideration for his characters and his audience. Heroes and villains are clear-cut, and the winner to come out of it all is a tremendously entertaining yet very pointed film that was clearly a passion project for Lee, an acclaimed filmmaker who may have just released his best work yet. Universal's Blu-ray is very good, skimpy on the extras but otherwise boasting a high quality 1080p video transfer and a wonderful Dolby Atmos soundtrack. Highly recommended.
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