Rating summary

Movie		2.5
Video		5.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		3.5
Overall		3.0

Conan the Barbarian 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman September 18, 2017

My The Cabin in the Woods 4K Blu-ray review mentioned how Lionsgate is seemingly randomly going through its vast catalog and upgrading certain titles for the 4K UHD format. Looking back on it now, these sometimes strange choices included August’s release of The Lincoln Lawyer 4K, but Lionsgate's 4K UHD release strategy (?) really caught my eye in September, with RED 4K and RED 2 4K accompanying The Cabin in the Woods 4K on its early September release date. Now Lionsgate is back in mid September with two more kind of odd choices for 4K UHD upgrades (in addition to this, Lionsgate is also bringing out The Legend of Hercules 4K), at least in terms of how the films have been received critically and with regard to boxoffice appeal.

Mention the character of Conan the Barbarian to those of us of a certain age, and almost inevitably Arnold Schwarzenegger comes to mind, replete with bulging biceps and his own very special version of eighties big hair. Both Conan the Barbarian and Conan the Destroyer were campily enjoyable in their own ways (the first film much more so than the sequel), but the overwhelming boxoffice appeal of this unlikely duo based on Robert E. Howard’s iconic creation probably tagged them as obvious candidates for a remake. The deafening sounds of both critical lambasting and audience indifference greeted this particular Conan the Barbarian when it premiered theatrically in 2011, so it’s debatable whether a new Conan the Destroyer will ever see the light of day. That may be some of the only good news in a reboot effort that unfortunately doesn’t even offer the camp value that the old Schwarzenegger films did.

For my thoughts on this film, please see our Conan the Barbarian Blu-ray review.

Conan the Barbarian 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

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

Conan the Barbarian is presented on 4K UHD courtesy of Lionsgate Films with a 2160p transfer in 2.40:1. Shot on film and finished at a 2K DI, Conan the Barbarian often looked pretty spectacular in 1080p on standard Blu-ray (I gave top marks to it in my review), and as with many other 2K upgrades, there are noticeable if at times rather subtle upticks in detail levels and, when lighting conditions allow and close-ups prevail, fine detail levels as well. Some of the most striking differences, though, come courtesy of HDR, which lends new presence to the kind of desaturated, charcoal gray sensibility that informs the film's opening scenes. Some of the more sun drenched material has a slightly warmer appearance than the Blu-ray version. Interestingly, some of the background paintings assume more of a Frazetta-ish quality than in the 1080p version. Grain can occasionally look just slightly noisy, typically in some of the more brightly lit outdoor moments where blue skies predominate and slightly swarm like arrays are more noticeable.

Conan the Barbarian 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Both this release and The Legend of Hercules 4K have been upgraded with Dolby Atmos audio, and the results on Conan the Barbarian are apparent from the get go, with Morgan Freeman's narration wafting clearly overhead in a way that isn't quite as noticeable on the already fantastic sounding DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 mix. The fight scenes offer a glut of midair activity, and the film's rather enjoyable score also offers a lot of surround presence. As I mentioned in the Conan the Barbarian Blu-ray review, the film's huge climactic showdown provides some of the most awesome sound design in the feature, and the Atmos track ups the ante in both terms of extremely forceful LFE and a glut of discrete channelization.

Conan the Barbarian 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

The 4K UHD disc ports over the supplements detailed in the Conan the Barbarian Blu-ray review. That said, note that the 1080p Blu-ray disc provided in this package is the standalone 2D version, a disc that contains no supplemental material (other than trailers for other Lionsgate properties) and 5.1 audio (instead of the 3D Blu-ray disc's 7.1 audio).

Conan the Barbarian 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

It's hard to outright recommend a film as silly and cliché ridden as Conan the Barbarian is, but its presentation on 4K UHD is often quite striking visually and probably even more frequently astounding from a sonic standpoint. Lionsgate hasn't provided the 3D version of the film on Blu- ray, for fans looking for that element.