7.1 | / 10 |
Users | 4.5 | |
Reviewer | 4.5 | |
Overall | 4.5 |
A former mountain rescuer is pitted against a group of criminals who have lost suitcases full of cash during a plane crash in the Rocky Mountains.
Starring: Sylvester Stallone, John Lithgow, Michael Rooker, Janine Turner, Rex LinnAction | 100% |
Thriller | 89% |
Heist | 19% |
Adventure | Insignificant |
Video codec: HEVC / H.265
Video resolution: 4K (2160p)
Aspect ratio: 2.40:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1
English: Dolby Atmos
English: Dolby TrueHD 7.1 (48kHz, 24-bit)
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
French: Dolby Digital 5.1
French (Canada): Dolby Digital 2.0
Spanish: Dolby Digital 2.0
English, English SDH, French, Spanish
Blu-ray Disc
Two-disc set (2 BDs)
Digital copy
4K Ultra HD
Slipcover in original pressing
Region free
Movie | 4.0 | |
Video | 3.5 | |
Audio | 5.0 | |
Extras | 3.5 | |
Overall | 4.5 |
Sony has widely released a UHD SteelBook packaging variant for the 1993 Action film 'Cliffhanger.' The disc offers a new transfer with Dolby Vision color grading and new supplemental content. It is not the same disc found in the 2019 UHD release. See below for a review of the new video and supplements and the 'Special Features and Extras' section of the review below for more on the SteelBook's look and feel.
Sony ascends Cliffhanger to the UHD format yet again, this time with Dolby Vision color grading. There are certainly some differences to
explore. The old HDR UHD looks a little more garish, at times, especially comparing the red rescue helicopter seen very prominently at the 7:29 mark.
The red on the new Dolby Vision disc appears just a bit fuller and more lifelike. It's a touch more vivid on the HDR disc, but not quite as full and
accurate.
The differences are not dramatic, but still evident. The blue sky in the background is likewise just a degree different, offering on this new disc a shade
deeper and more accurate blue. Some shots and elements prove to be a little more obvious in terms of grading differences. Take a shot outside the
Denver Mint at the 34:30 mark. Vividness is slightly subdued on the new Dolby Vision disc, but the gain is in color depth and accuracy. The Dolby Vision
disc, in this shot, looks a slight bit more yellow/green, an observation that seemed to hold anywhere I conducted a direct A-B comparison, which also
includes the vast amounts of bright white snow seen throughout the film. Generally observing, the Dolby Vision disc turns down brightness for added
color fullness, and that fullness usually makes a fairly dramatic impact on the overall image stability and quality.
Just watching the film, though, and not worrying about comparisons, audiences will find this new Dolby Vision grading to be of great value on its own
merits for color vividness, boldness, and accuracy. While the differences are not always absolutely stark and striking, they are oftentimes fairly dramatic
and make a "good" HDR grading a "better" Dolby Vision presentation. As for the rest of the image, there does not appear to be a dramatic difference
or significant upgrade in terms of clarity, sharpness, grain management, or anything of the sort.
For this UHD release, Sony includes what appears to be the same Dolby Atmos soundtrack found on the previously issued UHD. For convenience that
review is repurposed below:
Cliffhanger's Dolby Atmos soundtrack is the perfect complement to the largely impressive new video presentation. Helicopter rotors sound --
and feel -- as if they are slicing through the theater as the rescue chopper maneuvers through the mountain range and settles onto an adjacent peak
to secure the other end of the rescue line in the film's opening moments. It's the first of many fully engaging sonic extravaganzas that take full
advantage of every speaker in the configuration and every square inch of theater real estate afforded to it. Whirring machinery inside the Treasury
department in the next scene offers a compelling immersion into the environment. The Treasury plane rumbles through, and above, the stage at the
19-minute mark, followed by wonderfully balanced but very prominent din from inside, including jet engine hums and rattling compartments that are
the perfect sonic signature for the jet as it lumbers high above the earth. Action scenes are many and each is a delight. There is full stage
engagement as a plane crashes in chapter five. Debris and snow are flung to and fro, the scene a symphony of chaos that begins the bloody and
relentless pursuit for the three missing cases full of cash. That scene, and many others, deliver some prodigious, seat-rattling bass that's amongst the
deepest and most intense one will find in an Action film. Gunfire is punchy and authoritative, too. The overhead channels support a number of the film's
most prominent effects, including an avalanche in chapter seven and immersive reverb in a cave later on in the film. Musical fidelity is terrific and, like
every other sonic component, there's no shortage of stage stretching length and depth. Dialogue is perfect. This is a reference Atmos track.
Sony's previous UHD release of Cliffhanger included no extras, but this new issue includes a select number of deleted scenes. The included
Blu-ray
is identical to that released back in
2010 and of course contains all of the supplemental content from that original release. Below is a list of what's included. For full supplemental
reviews,
please
click here. This UHD does ship with a Movies Anywhere digital copy
code.
UHD Disc:
Cliffhanger is certainly a guilty pleasure Action movie of the highest order. It still holds up to repeat viewings three decades after its release and it screams to be watched on the largest screen possible. This 2160p/Dolby Vision UHD disc will offer the best image on any size screen, presenting the film with newly improved and stabilized colors in conjunction with a handsome filmic veneer and excellent image quality overall. The Atmos track is excellent and the new deleted scenes are a welcome bonus. the SteelBook is very nice, too. Very highly recommended!
1996
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2010
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2019
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2023
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2009
Collector's Edition
1986
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1979
2013