Captain America: The First Avenger 4K Blu-ray Movie

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Captain America: The First Avenger 4K Blu-ray Movie United States

Cinematic Universe Edition / 4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray + Digital Copy
Disney / Buena Vista | 2011 | 124 min | Rated PG-13 | Feb 26, 2019

Captain America: The First Avenger 4K (Blu-ray Movie)

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Movie rating

7
 / 10

Blu-ray rating

Users4.4 of 54.4
Reviewer4.0 of 54.0
Overall4.0 of 54.0

Overview

Captain America: The First Avenger 4K (2011)

Steve Rogers volunteers to participate in an experimental program that turns him into the Super Soldier known as Captain America. As Captain America, Rogers joins forces with Bucky Barnes and Peggy Carter to wage war on the evil HYDRA organization, led by the villainous Red Skull.

Starring: Chris Evans, Hayley Atwell, Sebastian Stan, Tommy Lee Jones, Hugo Weaving
Director: Joe Johnston

Adventure100%
Action100%
Sci-Fi78%
Comic book73%
Period4%

Specifications

  • Video

    Video codec: HEVC / H.265
    Video resolution: 4K (2160p)
    Aspect ratio: 2.35:1
    Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1

  • Audio

    English: Dolby Atmos
    English: Dolby TrueHD 7.1 (48kHz, 24-bit)
    French (Canada): Dolby Digital 5.1
    French: Dolby Digital Plus 7.1
    Spanish: Dolby Digital Plus 7.1
    German: Dolby Digital Plus 7.1
    Italian: Dolby Digital Plus 7.1
    Japanese: Dolby Digital Plus 7.1

  • Subtitles

    English SDH, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Spanish, Norwegian, Swedish

  • Discs

    Blu-ray Disc
    Two-disc set (2 BDs)
    Digital copy
    4K Ultra HD

  • Packaging

    Slipcover in original pressing

  • Playback

    Region free 

Review

Rating summary

Movie4.5 of 54.5
Video4.5 of 54.5
Audio4.0 of 54.0
Extras3.5 of 53.5
Overall4.0 of 54.0

Captain America: The First Avenger 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Cap'n 4K.

Reviewed by Martin Liebman March 7, 2019

Disney has released the fan-favorite 2011 Superhero film 'Captain America: The First Avenger' to the UHD format with new 2160p/HDR video and Dolby Atmos audio. The package includes a Blu-ray copy of the film, which is identical to the disc Paramount released in October 2011. No new extras are included on the UHD disc.


World War II is in full swing, and most able-bodied young men are eager to sign up. Unfortunately, young Steve Rogers' (Chris Evans) dreams of standing up to Nazi bullies are shattered when he's rejected from service for a myriad of health-related issues. The scrawny Steve is a classic 4F, but his heart and determination to enlist catches the eye of Dr. Abraham Erskine (Stanley Tucci), a German defector and the brilliant scientist who's going to get Steve into the action. The only catch is that Steve must submit to a select program for growing super soldiers using Erskine's highly advanced serum, perfected with the aid of industrialist Howard Stark (Dominic Cooper) and administered under the supervision of Army Colonel Chester Phillips (Tommy Lee Jones) and British officer Peggy Carter (Hayley Atwell). Steve is selected for his grit, bravery, and determination to be the first injected with the serum. It works; Steve becomes a larger, more muscular, and supremely athletic version of himself, but his transformation may be the last. A Nazi saboteur destroys much of the lab and gets off with the last vile of serum, but Steve is able to catch him before he escapes, opening a door that leads to a ruthless and power-hungry Nazi officer named Johann Schmidt (Hugo Weaving) who had previously undergone Erskine's genetic manipulation but with unforeseen negative consequences. Now, with Schmidt in possession of an otherworldly power fit only for gods and in command of a powerful army that calls itself "Hydra,", Steve Rogers must go behind enemy lines as a new breed of hero dubbed "Captain America" and save the world from a foe more dangerous than even Hitler himself. Not bad for a skinny little nobody kid from Brooklyn.

For a full film review, please click here.


Captain America: The First Avenger 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality  4.5 of 5

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

Captain America: The First Avenger's visual construction does not allow for prototypical "eye candy" imagery. The film is inherently drab and dull, notably flat, and without much enticing color saturation or extraordinary textural depth. The film was also reportedly finished at 2K. It has, then, a few factors working against its UHD release if one is looking for a "wow!" sort of experience. The movie nevertheless does enjoy a boost in color depth thanks to the HDR palette as well as a modest increase in image sharpness. The question, then, is just how much of an improvement can one expect when upgrading from the older, but very well received, Blu-ray release?

The answer is "a fair bit." It's hardly revelatory on either side of the coin -- considering clarity or color -- but the UHD does find steady improvements in both categories. The picture certainly benefits from the larger bitrate and increased resolution, solidifying many of the comparatively less dynamic and stable textures from the Blu-ray, which was (and is) still a very nice image on its own but one that clearly lags behind this newer release. Viewers will note increased sharpness on Cap's shield in a few scenes where it's seen in close-up, revealing both the natural metallic dynamics that define it and the battle damage that gives it character: greater depth to slashes, refined definition of surface impacts. Cap's uniform and, more broadly, various other costumes (G.I. uniforms, Red Skull's black leathery coat) bear the fruit of improved sharpness, allowing the viewer to spot more fabric intricacies. Total image sharpness sees various environments more stout and naturally tactile, from Brooklyn alleyways to dense European forests. Facial textures are more refined as well, with special note of Red Skull's face seen in close-up, where the blend of Hugo Weaving's facial features and the Red Skull makeup make for one of the more dynamic mugs in the film.

The HDR color enhancement offers additional image solidification, giving the film a deeper, denser, and more complete color experience. As noted the film is fairly drab by its nature, playing out often in lower light with desaturated color and a lack of absolute pop even on some of the most prominent color elements in the film, chiefly Cap's shield and Red Skull's face. Both of those do boast improvements to color depth and definition, each finding increased stability and accuracy. Contrast is improved throughout, giving the film a more evenly managed color spectrum even as the presentation expands to a much more stable of finely honed and diverse shades. Some of the more interesting examples of color improvements come by way of brightly illuminated blue Hydra weapons and technologies. Such emit on UHD with greatly improved luminance and accuracy. Skin tones are managed well with greater attention paid to nuance. Black levels are a highlight, creating and maintaining an appropriate level of depth.

The image suffers from no egregious examples of source wear or encode artifacts. This UHD presentation is quite good, limited in part by the movie's inherently flat and visually bland structure but proving its worth with improved textural clarity, resolution stability, and improved color depth and luminance. It's not the prettiest UHD on the market, but it does offer a marked improvement in all areas of concern over the more than 7-year-old Blu-ray.


Captain America: The First Avenger 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality  4.0 of 5

For its UHD debut, Disney has encoded Captain America: The First Avenger with a Dolby Atmos soundtrack, replacing the Blu-ray's well regarded DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 audio presentation. As with most every new Disney audio track, this one requires an upward volume adjustment from calibrated reference listening levels to fully enjoy. Once there, the track plays well, obviously not to a revelatory level of increase over the older 7.1 track but certainly delivering a very healthy and capable listen. Surrounds are used extensively in action scenes. A lab experiment at the 19-minute mark offers one of the first truly big, expansive moments the track has to offer. Excellent low end depth, healthy and full surround integration, and a tangible overhead component all work together to reveal the remarkable power signature at work in Hydra's machine. Flak pops all around the stage when Cap embarks on his own unauthorized rescue mission in chapter eight. Each explosion, bursting all over the stage with some overhead presence, thumps with positive low end depth and discrete placement that transports listeners into the aerial frenzy. It's not on the same level as the opening sequence from Overlord, which was just a ridiculously fun barrage of sound, but the net effect in Captain America is still very positive. Additional action scenes, including the third act finale, offer more of the same, with robust low end, discrete surround support, and some nicely integrated overhead components all helping to create a fun, immersive listen. Musical engagement is terrific, featuring wide front stage envelopment and seamlessly integrated surround support. Light atmospherics in several locations, such as a bustling command center, yield fruitful environmental supports. Dialogue is clear, center focused, and well prioritized for the duration.


Captain America: The First Avenger 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras  3.5 of 5

Captain America: The First Avenger's UHD disc contains no supplemental content. The included Blu-ray, which is identical to that released back in 2011 (and still even bears the Paramount logo on the label), brings with it the full order of extras that have been with the movie for many years now. See below for a list of what's included, and please click here for full coverage. This release ships with a Movies Anywhere digital copy code as well as an embossed slipcover.

  • Audio Commentary: Director Joe Johnston, Director of Photography Shelly Johnson, and Editor Jeffrey Ford.
  • Marvel One-Shot: A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to Thor's Hammer
  • Outfitting a Hero
  • Howling Commandos
  • Heightened Technology
  • The Transformation
  • Behind the Skull
  • Captain America's Origin
  • The Assembly Begins
  • Deleted Scenes
  • Trailers


Captain America: The First Avenger 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation  4.0 of 5

Captain America: The First Avenger certainly isn't at the head of the pack in terms of comic book movie greatness, but it epitomizes that genre better than any of its contemporaries. The movie is playfully fun, an addictive watch, and loaded with action, but still smart enough to offer fair character development and a good plot line, both of which aid in enhancing the movie's dual finales and setting it up for future installments in the Marvel universe. Additionally, the cast is strong, the direction is smooth, and ancillary elements are top-notch. In short, Captain America is everything a movie fan could want from a big budget comic book Summer movie. Disney's UHD delivers a positive upgrade over the Blu-ray both visually and aurally, but it's not necessarily a standout in either category within the broader UHD landscape. No new extras are included, but the set does carry over the old Blu-ray and all of its extra content. Recommended.