Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		5.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		2.0
Overall		3.0

Crank 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman June 9, 2019

Hello, faithful readers — today’s installment in our ongoing series devoted to the often seemingly random 4K UHD releases by Lionsgate focuses on Crank, the goofy but undeniably amped up (in more ways than one) 2006 feature that posited Jason Statham as a professional hitman named Chev Chelios who unfortunately runs afoul of a nefarious sort who poisons him. In a kind of inventive twist on at least one aspect of the great old noir thriller D.O.A., combined with what might be thought of as whatever the metabolic equivalent of the basic conceit of Speed is, Chev has to literally keep his adrenaline flowing in order to remain alive, something he obviously has to do in order to wreak vengeance on the poisoner. It’s all patently silly, but Crank at least had the commendable quality of not taking itself seriously, and for knowing exactly what it aimed to provide: namely, something akin to the regular adrenaline rushes Chev needs in order to endure, albeit this time for an audience experiencing a series of over the top action set pieces.

Crank was released on Blu-ray fairly early into the format, and for those wanting a plot summary I refer you to my colleague Martin Liebman's Crank Blu-ray review. I'll also point out that I'm scoring the film a bit higher than Marty did (in the latest installment of another series, namely my reminder that with different reviewers, you'll often get different scores).

Crank 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Note: Screenshots are sourced from the 1080p Blu-ray, and this is yet another Lionsgate release whose 4K UHD presentation bears little to no resemblance to the 1080p Blu-ray presentation.

Crank is presented on 4K UHD courtesy of Lionsgate with a 2160p transfer in 1.85:1 (this is another Lionsgate release where a slightly "incorrect" aspect ratio on the 1080p Blu-ray version has been rectified for the 4K UHD release). I will start this out by saying the 5.0 score for 1080p video is ported over from Marty's original Blu-ray review, and I frankly may not have been so generous had I reviewed that version. With that said, it's almost hard to know where to begin in terms of comparing the 1080p version to the 4K UHD version, since they are pretty manifestly different. As fans of the film may already be aware, Crank combined a number of different technologies, including both standard definition and high definition video, with the result being a pretty heterogeneous and frankly not always "beautiful" image which often had a kind of garish digital quality, something that is often more than evident in the 1080p Blu-ray presentation. On the other hand, this 4K UHD presentation offers something that is at least relatively more like "traditional" film in appearance, with a more consistently visible dusting of grain and an overall darker appearance. The 1080p Blu-ray certainly has moments that look more traditionally "filmic" than HD or SD video-like (for just one of several examples, when Chev heads outside in his hospital robe at circa 34:17 on the 1080p Blu-ray, you can clearly see grain on the light background of the buildings), but the entire presentation on this 4K UHD version looks like that. Kind of interestingly, at least to my eyes, the grain field isn't noticeably increased over the course of the 4K UHD version, by which I mean I didn't notice any real uptick when the movie got to places that looked like they had grain in the 1080p version. I've had some issues with what is often called "grain management" on some shot on film Lionsgate 4K UHD releases, but grain resolves nicely throughout this presentation. Also interestingly, I really didn't notice a ton of difference in the palette courtesy of Dolby Vision, though there are a few isolated moments, like a pool water scene that looks a bit more teal now, or a later showdown that is bathed in orange which almost has a burnt umber tone in this version. Some of the slightly desaturated moments are a bit more sepia toned in this version as well. Detail levels are all over the place in this presentation, and may be one of the biggest issues some fans have. The generally darker appearance actually exacerbates shadow definition, and blacks are regularly crushed (just one of several examples takes place during one of the first showdown scenes at circa 8:30, where at least marginally more detail is noticeable in the 1080p Blu-ray version). Some of what I presume to be SD video material isn't helped here, and there are what look to me like upscaling issues on admittedly minor things like telephone lines in the background, which have telltale stairstepping. There are also some curious horizontal lines that show up on occasion. On the other hand, in some of the more brightly lit moments, and at least at times in sequences that I'm assuming were sourced from HD video, detail is rather engaging. The brief close-up of a bird at circa 45:00 offers nice fine detail on the feathers, and a lot of the close-ups of Statham's face have excellent detail in terms of facial pores and crags. This is probably going to be one of those "glass half full, glass half empty" situations for fans of the film, as there are in my estimation both pluses and minuses to be observed here. The bottom line is, this is a distinctly different viewing experience than the 1080p Blu-ray, and some fans may enjoy, or at least be interested in, that fact alone.

Crank 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The one undeniable upgrade this version offers is in a really blistering and highly enjoyable Dolby Atmos track. The original 1080p Blu-ray advertised LPCM 6.1 audio, but it actually had 7.1, and the consistent surround activity that the original Blu-ray release offered is matched here and upped (literally and figuratively) by regular engagement of the Atmos channels. From the first thunks of a heart beat before the film ever really even begins, there is some very nicely placed overhead activity that generally envelops the listener and adds measurably to the enjoyment of the track. The fantastic over the top set pieces provide a glut of opportunity for discrete channelization of effects, and the pulsing score is also regularly pumped into the surround channels. Prioritization is really amazingly well handled, considering how "busy" and even noisy and loud this track can be quite a bit of the time. Fidelity is spot on and dynamic range rather wide, with an understanding that the sound design is intentionally turned "up to 11" a lot of the time.

Crank 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Lionsgate has kindly ported over most but not all of the supplements to this 4K UHD version. Refer to the second paragraph in the Supplements section of Marty's Crank Blu-ray review for details on what's included.

Crank 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Is Crank more than a little on the ridiculous side? Well, of course, but that's part of its peculiar charm for me. One of the things that struck me as probably unintentionally funny in watching it this time is how Chev can "step back" from "pumping himself up" at a moment's notice in order to get a little expository dialogue out when needed. For adrenaline junkies, there's really nothing like this film. Video here is probably going to be controversial, since the presentations between the 1080p Blu-ray and 4K UHD versions are noticeably different. Audio is a clear winner here all the way.