Clash of the Titans 4K Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		0.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		4.0
Overall		3.5

Clash of the Titans 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman August 5, 2024

Note: This version of this film is available on 4K Blu-ray as part of the When Titans Ruled the Earth 4K release from Arrow Video.

Maybe sometimes "new and improved" turns out to be neither. 1981's Clash of the Titans is probably not considered a "classic" by large hordes of film goers, but it offers the final work of special effects wizard Ray Harryhausen, and so has understandably entered the annals of beloved cinematic experiences for a certain demographic. It's not hard to imagine that among that group was Basil Iwanyk, who co-produced both films in this new set from Arrow and who is on hand in interviews offered as supplements on both discs, and he at least alludes to his desire to "update" the original film with the blandishments of then state of the art CGI. The result was big, noisy and, yes, filled with some at least intermittently impressive visual effects, but that still left critics cold (you know how they can be), even as ticket buyers lined up in droves and made Clash of the Titans an enormous international success. That of course led to Wrath of the Titans, which attempted to be bigger, noisier, and more consistently impressive, but which was met with the same critical approbation as the first film was. The sequel did manage to rake in over 300 million globally, but its budget was so immense that it may not have shown an "official" profit, leading to the cancellation of what had been announced as a third effort in the nascent series. Both of the "updated" Titans films were released on both 2D and 3D Blu-ray well over a decade ago, but Arrow has aggregated the two films together now, offering them in either 1080 or 4K UHD, and with Arrow's typically bounteous supply of bonus features and non disc swag in another really handsomely packaged release.

While this is the first 4K UHD release of this film, as mentioned above, both of the films in this set were released in 1080 years ago in both 2D and 3D presentations. Those interested in plot summaries and analyses of what the original release offered in terms of technical merits and supplements are encouraged to read Ken Brown's Clash of the Titans Blu-ray review for details.

Clash of the Titans 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Note: Screenshots are sourced from Arrow's Clash of the Titans standalone 1080 release. Per Arrow's standard operating procedure, there is not a 1080 presentation of the feature included here, and so the 2K video score above has intentionally been left blank.

Clash of the Titans is presented in 4K UHD courtesy of Arrow Video with an HEVC / H.265 encoded 2160p transfer in 2.39:1. Arrow provides the same insert booklet for both its 1080 and 4K UHD releases, with the following information on the transfers:

Clash of the Titans and Wrath of the Titans have been remastered by Arrow Films. Clash of the Titans is presented in its original aspect ratio of 2.39:1 with 5.1 audio. Wrath of the Titans is presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1 with 5.1 audio. On the 4K UHD release of the films are presented in 4K resolution in HDR10 and Dolby Vision. On the Blu-ray release, the films are presented in standard dynamic range.

The 2K DI feature master data was supplied by Warner Brothers. The films were restored and graded at Duplitech.

Longtime readers of my reviews may already know I don't always react positively to the look of grain in the increased resolution of 4K UHD releases, but this good, old fashioned shot on celluloid feature is a commendable exception to that self created rule, with a generally really nicely tightly resolved grain field that helps give the presentation an organic appearance without ever overwhelming the visuals, though some of the "heavenly" vignettes can look just a bit "textured" due to some of the special effects, especially the effulgent lighting that surrounds Zeus. Detail levels are at least marginally improved from an already excellent 1080 presentation, though a native 4K scan may have been able to eke out a little more. Rather interestingly, HDR / Dolby Vision toys with the palette in some unexpected ways. The opening vignette offers a glut of interesting highlights in the very colorful array of "celestial" happenings, but once the opening scenes begin with Perseus being found as a baby, there's a pronounced brown hue that is probably more noticeable in this version than in the 1080 version. A lot of the cool gray to blue tones that are repeatedly utilized are also emphasized more overtly here. While the palette pops agreeably, and is quite impressive in some of the outdoor material, there is a somewhat tamped down, almost desaturated, look at times that I personally found surprising. Shadow detail can still be a little "iffy" in some of the darkest moments.

Clash of the Titans 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Ken really loved the original DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track on the old Warner Brothers disc, and while I'm assuming the DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track on this disc is more or less identical to the old one, I'm just slightly "demoting" Ken's score by half a point, if only because in the intervening years since this film's release, other superceding "epic" soundtracks, especially those of the Atmos variety, may have spoiled me somewhat. That said, there is near constant immersion offered here, and as Ken mentions in his review, there's both really excellent discrete channelization and washes of panning effects and other swirling sounds throughout any number of the action sequences. While unabashedly "busy" at times, the track is very well prioritized, and dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly throughout. Optional ENglish subtitles are available.

Clash of the Titans 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

With the exception of Maximum Movie Mode, Arrow has ported over the supplements from the older 1080 release from Warner Brothers, as well as offering one new supplement. See Ken's Clash of the Titans Blu-ray review for more details on the repeated supplements.

• Scaling Mount Olympus (HD; 20:45) is the first part of a newly produced interview with producer Basil Iwanyk (the second part can be found on Wrath of the Titans).


• Harnessing the Gods (HD; 35:05) is a set of archival behind the scenes featurettes. See the Focus Points list in Ken's review for details.


• Sam Worthington: An Action Hero for the Ages (HD; 7:58)


• Alternate Ending (HD; 5:23)


• Deleted Scenes (HD; 18:12)


• Theatrical Trailer (HD; 1:10)


• Image Gallery (HD)

See the When Titans Ruled the Earth 4K Blu-ray review for more non disc supplements.

Clash of the Titans 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

If updated special effects are your thing, you may well prefer this version of Perseus' tale to the older one with those "old school" Harryhausen effects. This effort has pretty much everything that money can buy, including an A list cast, but it's still kind of listless a lot of the time. Technical merits are generally solid and the supplements very appealing, for anyone who may be considering making a purchase.