Rating summary

Movie		5.0
Video		5.0
Audio		4.5
Extras		4.0
Overall		4.5

Glory 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Martin Liebman June 5, 2024

Sony has released Director Edward Zwick's 1989 masterpiece 'Glory,' starring Matthew Broderick, Denzel Washington, Cary Elwes, Morgan Freeman, Jihmi Kennedy, and Andre Braugher, to the UHD format. This is the film's second release to the UHD format following Sony's 2019 HDR-only issue. This new release includes the same audio and extras as that 2019 disc but includes new Dolby Vision color grading and ships exclusively in a breathtaking SteelBook package.

For a full film review, please click here; note that this link points to the 2009 Blu-ray release.

Glory 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Sony re-releases Glory to the UHD format with a 2160p transfer that now also includes Dolby Vision color grading; the previous release featured only HDR color grading. First, a few words on the image's textural prowess. I didn't spot any night-and-day differences in making the comparison between the two UHD releases. This one might squeeze out just a shade more potent clarity and textural realization, but it would seem that, beyond the finest point examinations under the tightest scrutiny, one can call this area of the comparison a wash. And that's not a bad thing. The original 2019 UHD was stellar, and so is this one. Both offer a faithfully filmic appearance, and both are home to a very obvious grain structure that never pushes to overly intense but rather maintains a satisfying faithfulness throughout the film, with only modest spikes in intensity in the most challenging of lighting and environments. The resultant image is very cinematic and captures the abundance of details to be found in every shot, scenes, and sequence, whether showing the 54th in fresh Union uniforms with their well-defined fabric elements and adornments, the frayed and bloody uniforms seen ahead of the Fort Wagner assault as the men amass on the beach, or high caliber clarity on faces that show every pore and hair with razor accuracy. In short, both UHDs look tremendous.

The selling point here is, of course, and aside from the amazing SteelBook presentation (more on that below), the Dolby Vision color grading. Is this a massive, monumental, game-changing presentation next to the HDR colors? No, but there's an obvious fine tuning at work here where the Dolby Vision grading allows for that highly desirable frame-by-frame accuracy rather than the single sweep that HDR application entails. The result is a picture with even more realistic colors: healthier natural greens, superior skin tones, deeper blues on the Union uniforms, and the like. These are not, as mentioned, radical changes, but viewers will appreciate how the new Dolby Vision color grading really gets Glory down to a science to reveal the very best that every single shot has to offer. Black levels are also slightly better, whites a touch brighter, and the result is not a game changer but the absolute, hands-down best Glory has ever looked, and probably will look for quite some time. Add in the resplendent encode work and the perfect source elements that show nary a blemish, and this becomes a very highly desirable UHD that fans of this all-time classic will want to own as quickly as possible.

Glory 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

This UHD includes the same Dolby Atmos soundtrack that was included on the 2019 UHD release. For a full audio review, please click here.

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

This UHD release of Glory contains the same extras as the previous UHD release. Most are on the Blu-ray, which is identical to Sony's 2009 release, while the UHD includes a picture-in-picture video commentary and a trailer, the same extras from the 2019 UHD. See below for a list of what's included and please click here for more information.

UHD:

• Picture in Picture Video Commentary
• Theatrical Trailer

Blu-ray:

• Audio Commentary: Director Edward Zwick.
• Virtual Civil War Battlefield
• The Voices of Glory
• The True Story Continues
• Original Theatrical Making-Of Featurette
• Deleted Scenes: With optional director's commentary.

The SteelBook is wonderful. The front image is simply a recreation of the film's iconic poster art with several soldiers in silhouette with a dark blue sky giving way to a deep red bottom. The film's title appears in white cursive letters, center. The rear panel features a similar color scheme and depicts Private Trip charging during the battle at Fort Wagner. The spine is black with the film's title in white block print letters, center. A white Sony logo appears at the bottom.

Inside, the digital copy code is tucked underneath the left-hand-side tabs. The two discs, one UHD and one Blu-ray, are situated on the right in staggered-stacked formation. The inner print is a two-panel spread that features the 54th marching towards Fort Wagner with an explosion blowing sand behind them.

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

Glory just never fails to grab me and move me in many ways every time I watch it: the story, the acting, the score, the cinematography...it's a complete movie and one of my top two personal favorite films of all time. Sony's new UHD is stellar, not dramatically changing from the previous release but adding some welcome color depth and fine-tuning that makes this, along with a perfect SteelBook presentation, the definitive version of the film. It earns my highest recommendation.