Rating summary

Movie		5.0
Video		3.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		4.5
Overall		4.5

Gandhi 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Sony has released Director Richard Attenborough's timeless 1982 classic 'Gandhi' to the UHD format. The 4K presentation is currently exclusive to the studio's prestigious Columbia Classics Collection boxed set. New specifications include 2160p/HDR video and Dolby Atmos audio. This four-disc set bundles in the pair of Blu-ray discs originally released in 2012. The film proper on UHD is spread across two discs.

Gandhi 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The included screenshots are sourced from a 1080p Blu-ray disc.

For its 2160p/HDR UHD release of Gandhi, Sony has split the film across two discs. Disc one runs 1:32:00 while disc two runs 1:39:14. One might rightly describe both Gandhi the man and Gandhi the UHD with the same adjectives: wondrous, impeccable, flawless. Sony's 2160p/HDR UHD presentation of the Oscar-winning classic looks better than most movies made in the past few years. The picture is perfectly filmic. Grain is fine and ever-present, a consistent companion and necessary component in the image that allows it to maintain a picture-perfect cinematic texturing that only enhances the remarkable clarity and fine-point attention to detail evident in essentially every shot. The picture is jaw-dropping gorgeous in all areas, but particularly in its total sharpness. Textures appear effortlessly complex and in-depth. It goes well beyond the Blu-ray which does not look at all poor but the UHD manages to bring out a sizable increase in both intimate and intricate details and also allow the broader elements to come alive with newfound definition and vitality. Whether basics like facial details or attire or natural landscapes or city elements, every shot dazzles with both the clarity of core components and the supportive details around. Everything is breathtakingly true to the source. This is a prestigious presentation.

The HDR color enhancement is also a major boon for the movie. Tones pop with heretofore unknown natural saturation and clarity. Greens leap off the screen with every example. The varied skin tones are alive with precision nuance and gentle gradations. Blue skies are expressively rich and relaxing. Myriads of tones seen on clothes and flowers and buildings find far greater depth and accuracy than the Blu-ray can offer. Whites are a high point, particularly as they define Gandhi's attire. Whites -- crisp, bright, and pure -- advance well beyond the comparatively creamy look on the Blu-ray, serving as a vital component in bringing the movie to life. Add perfectly defined black levels and the transfer is like the proverbial well-oiled machine. It just works in perfect harmony one component with another. UHD doesn't get any better than this.

Gandhi 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Gandhi's soundtrack is certainly not what one would describe as of the high-energy variety, but Sony's new Dolby Atmos presentation handles the film's mostly modest, but occasionally more demanding, sound needs quite nicely. Dialogue is the most vital component here, and it presents with all of the foundational goodness and attention to detail one expects of a finely engineered track. Atmospheric effects arrive in steady procession, offering detailed and smartly positioned elements, beginning with a smattering of voices emanating from all over the stage in the film's opening minutes. As the film progresses, gentle supports such as singing birds, blowing winds, and other natural elements find perfect engagement and spacial awareness throughout. The overheads gently support here, too, and with a little more definition as the situation warrants, like in recreating the sense of aural hollowness as a train enters a tunnel in the 53-minute mark. The first example of truly expressive sonic output comes in chapter six at the 34-minute mark when music rises and stampeding horses power through the stage, both to fine effect. Generally, music finds excellent spacial awareness, dominant in the front but supported throughout the stage with a mild overhead lift. Likewise, the horses power through with impressive detail and quality low end extension, taking full advantage of the entire stage to put the listener in the middle of the mayhem. The track does not strain sound systems, but the Atmos presentation brings all of its pieces together in great, practically perfect, harmony.

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

Gandhi contains extras on both bundled 1080p Blu-ray discs and adds a pair of trailers to the second UHD disc. For a few thoughts on the disc one extras, please click here. Because the original review did not review the disc two extras, find below extremely brief synopses and technical specs of each extra. As it ships within the Columbia Classics Collection boxed set, Gandhi includes a non-embossed slipcover and a Movies Anywhere digital copy code.

Blu-ray Disc One:

• Director's Commentary
• Gandhi's Legacy: A Picture-In-Graphics Track
• Introduction by Sir Richard Attenborough

• Interviews (480i): Interviews that cover several key filmmaking and narrative elements. Included are Ben Kingsley Talks About Gandhi (19:23), From the Director's Chair - On Casting (7:03), and From the Director's Chair - On Music (2:54).
• In Search of Gandhi (480i, 9:26): Attenborough discusses his first encounter with Gandhi in news reels and continues to discuss the man's life, impact, and making the film.
• Looking Back (480i, 18:21): Trimming the film's original 4-hour runtime, the picture's successes, audience reaction, Oscar nominations and wins, the picture's legacy, and more.
• Madeline Slade: An Englishwoman Abroad (480i, 9:41): A closer look at the Mirabehn character and Slade's performance in the film.
• Reflections on Ben (480i, 9:23): Casting Kingsley and exploring his performance in detail.
• Shooting an Epic in India (480i, 17:56): A journey through the film's production history, challenges, and benefits of shooting in India.
• Designing Gandhi (480i): A three-part feature that explores specific elements within the film. Included are Building the Ashram (1:16), The Tent (2:06), and Finding Trains (2:16).
• The Funeral (480i, 13:34): Crafting the film's unforgettable opening sequence.
• The Words of Mahatma Gandhi (480i, 1:58): A series of text-displayed quotes.
• Newsreel Footage (480i): Vintage reels much like those that inspired Attenborough. Included are Gandhi Goes to England (3:42), Gandhi's Farewell Talk in Europe (1:09), Mahatma Gandhi Begins His Death Fast (0:53), and Gandhi Talks: First Talking Picture Ever Made by India's Famous Leader (4:20).
• The Making of Gandhi Photo Montage (480i, 5:24): Stills from the set accompanied by music.

• Theatrical Trailer 1 (1080p, 2:55).
• Theatrical Trailer 2 (1080p, 5:05).

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

Only the eyes can truly behold the majesty that is Gandhi on the UHD format. It's frankly breathtaking, and even this far into the format and after more than a dozen years of Blu-ray/UHD reviewing, a presentation as good as Gandhi still manages to impress and delight. It's absolutely of reference quality start to finish. Text just can't do it justice. The Atmos soundtrack is a treat, too, and while most of the supplements carry over from the previously issued Blu-ray, what's here is plenty good in a support capacity. As it releases in the Columbia Classics Collection, Gandhi earns my highest recommendation.