Family Plot 4K Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		0.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		2.0
Overall		3.5

Family Plot 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Universal has released the 1976 Alfred Hitchcock film 'Family Plot' to the UHD format. The disc is currently available individually (this release) and as part of a larger five-film UHD boxed set along with Shadow of a Doubt, Saboteur, The Trouble with Harry, and Marnie. New specifications include 2160p/HDR video. No new audio track is included. No new extras are included, either, but the UHD disc does house all of the legacy supplements.

Family Plot 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Universal brings Family Plot to the UHD format with a rather sparkling 2160p/HDR presentation. The original Blu-ray was (is) notoriously poor, performing to a far below acceptable standard for that format. However, the UHD presentation certainly advances the picture's most vital qualities and characteristics by leaps and bounds by improving resolution, fine-tuning colors, and offering a more visually arresting and naturally occurring grain structure. The grain is gorgeously rendered. It's pure and authentic, consistent in density, and while sharper than the Blu-ray far more purely filmic and handsome. Underneath are bountifully crisp and sharp details. The picture holds to some inherently soft imagery but the vast majority here is razor-harp and organically complex, besting the Blu-ray by a significant margin for overall clarity and adherence to natural resolution and definition. Colors are bolstered by a healthy and even HDR application. The colorists have balanced the natural state of things with added depth and boldness that offers a beautifully natural and healthy presentation. At times, the picture is bolder and more intense; at others a bit more reserved and less garish than the Blu-ray (look at a shot at the 30:14 mark, for example). Colors are solidified and very healthy, including bolder primaries. Black levels are deep but do veer into crush territory on occasion. Whites, on the other hand, are beautifully brilliant and crisp. Skin tones look amazing. The picture is free of any obvious source flaws or encode drawbacks. This is a beautiful presentation from Universal and by far the best improvement from Blu-ray to UHD amongst the five Hitchcock films released in this second UHD wave.

Family Plot 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The audio track is simply a repurpose of the DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 lossless soundtrack that was paired with the original Blu-ray. The presentation is fine, offering ample front-end space, good elemental clarity, distinctive music, and center imaged dialogue. No real problems here. It's a good thing that Universal did not expend any effort to reconfigure to a track with height channels; such would have added nothing of value to the core listening experience as the track was engineered decades ago. For a slightly more in-depth review, please see Kenneth Brown's writing accomapnying the original Blu-ray by clicking here.

Family Plot 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

While no new supplements have been added for this release, the UHD disc itself does carry over the legacy extras, which are outlined below (please click here for full review coverage). As it ships individually, the legacy Blu-ray disc is included. A Movies Anywhere digital copy code has been included with purchase. This release features an embossed slipcover.

• Plotting Family Plot (1080p, 4x3 & window box, 48:22).
• Storyboards: The Chase Scene (1080p, 4x3, 9:39).
• Production Photographs (1080p, 4x3, 14:29).
• Theatrical Trailers (1080p, 3:17 total runtime).

Family Plot 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

To say that Universal has done wonders with Family Plot would be to undersell the radical improvement that is this UHD over the Blu-ray. The image looks spectacular. Sound and supplements are unchanged, but that's OK. This is well worth the upgrade for the new video alone. The film is pretty good, too, and a worthy addition to every serious home video library. Highly recommended.