Gomorrah: Season Four Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		5.0
Video		5.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		1.0
Overall		4.5

Gomorrah: Season Four Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov February 28, 2022

"Gomorrah: Season Four" (2019) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Kino Lorber. The only bonus features on the release are original trailers for the other seasons in the series. In Italian or English, with optional English subtitles for the main feature. Region-A "locked".

I often think about all the people that had to die so that we could get here.

Secondigliano is on the verge of a profound and irreversible transformation that could jeopardize the next phase of Genny Savastano’s (Salvatore Esposito) grand plan. It is why he reaches out to his uncle, Don Gerlando (Gianni Parisi), the head of the Levante family, which does not have any business interests in Secondigliano, and asks that he helps him maintain peace between the rivaling clans. A few days later, Don Gerlando’s men send a powerful ‘message’ to the aggressive Cappacios, the clan that stands to benefit the most from an all-out war.

Soon after, Genny begins the long and tricky process of establishing himself as a legit businessman. His dream is to build a second airport in Naples with a vibrant commercial park that will forever separate him from his past as a crime boss. He teams up with Alberto Resta (Andrea Renzi), a veteran developer who desperately needs cash to prevent his company from going belly up. As they begin acquiring the land for the project and preparing the proper paperwork for the city officials, Genny officially transfers his drug dealing business to Patrizia (Cristiana Dell'Anna) and appoints her the new Queen of Secondigliano.

But a bad deal in London quickly confirms Genny’s suspicion that the legit businessmen he must engage to make his dream a reality are a lot like his former partners and foes in Secondigliano, so as the project moves forward, he is forced to use the same tactics that made him successful in the drug dealing business. Resta proves to be an unreliable partner as well.

Meanwhile, the police intercept a large shipment of cocaine and put Patrizia in a very difficult spot because she is supposed to distribute it between different members of the Alliance. Without any product to sell on the streets, or cash to make up for the loss, tensions immediately begin to rise and consequently the Cappacios and The Blue Bloods threaten to begin working with new suppliers. In the ensuing chaos, Valerio (Loris De Luna), the best friend of the leader of The Blue Bloods, Enzo (Arturo Muselli), and then Nicola (Ricardo Ciccarelli), the most senior soldier Patrizia relies on when she deals with the other clans, begin suspecting that someone very powerful might have arranged the police raid as a part of a complex plan to collapse the Alliance. Both are proven right when some of the confiscated cocaine is spotted in a different part of town.

Even though tensions continue to rise, Patrizia falls in love with Mickey Levante (Luciano Guigliano), Don Gerlando’s eldest son, and when they begin planning for the future cause some unexpected division in the powerful family. But the real trouble begins when Don Gerlando makes a strategic play to take over the drug business in Secondgliano and the rivaling clans abandon their commitments to the Alliance. In the bloody turf war that ensues, Genny finds it impossible to remain a neutral observer.

Season Four has twelve episodes, each again approximately an hour long, that premiered in the summer of 2019. Four were directed by Francesca Comencini, two by Marco D’Amore, two by Enrico Rosati, two by Ciro Visco, and one by Claudio Cupellini.

Despite leaving the impression that it is the most intimate and beautiful simply because the camera spends a lot more time observing Genny’s transformation into a legit businessman, loving husband and father, Season Four is every bit as intense and disturbing as the previous three seasons. In fact, there is actually something a lot more unsettling in the way crime is committed by the ‘normal’ crowd that Genny works hard to become a part of.

The quality of the writing is once again exceptional. It makes the character transformations quite unpredictable but very convincing, which is ultimately why the complex drama never overwhelms. The previously reserved Patrizia, in particular, emerges as one of the best characters in the entire series.

The great finale is yet another stunner that clearly sets the stage for a grandiose clash that would determine the fate of Secondigliano.

Gomorrah: Season Four Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Gomorrah: Season Four arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Kino Lorber.

On my system, Season Four had the most consistently solid visuals. While viewing the other seasons occasionally I could tell that some minor optimizations could have been made, but on Season Four everything looked terrific. It is possible that there might be a few areas again where minor optimziation tweaks could have been used, but if you are as focused on the drama as I was, I guarantee that you will be very impressed with the quality of the visuals. Clarity, sharpness, delineation, and especially depth are simply outstanding. I upscaled a couple of episodes to 4K and on my system they looked as good as some recent native 4K content. Color reproduction is fantastic too, so I am unsure if a native 4K presentation could offer a meaningful improvement. There are no stability issues. (Note: This is a Region-A "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-A or Region-Free player in order to access its content).

Gomorrah: Season Four Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are four standard audio tracks on this Blu-ray release: Italian DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1, Italian DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0, English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1, and English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0. (Again, there is a lot of dialog in Neapolitan, plus some small exchanges in English). Optional English subtitles are provided.

I viewed the entire season with the Italian DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track and I have to say again that it met all expectations I had. Clarity, sharpness, depth, and balance were outstanding, plus the range of nuanced dynamics is superb. Predictably, the great soundtrack once again produces an incredible atmosphere.

Gomorrah: Season Four Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Trailers - each disc has original trailers for Gomorrah Season Two, Season Three, and Season Four.

Gomorrah: Season Four Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

When back in the '80s La Piovra began airing, it was one of those unmissable shows that altered all kinds of different perceptions about Italian TV content practically overnight. Gomorrah is much, much better than La Piovra, and I think that it will become the ultimate Italian TV crime show. To be honest with you, I expected Season Four to be slightly inferior to the previous seasons, but its characterizations, drama, and visuals are simply superb. I should have known that they would be. Hopefully, the folks at Kino Lorber are already planning to give us the fifth and final season of Gomorrah on Blu-ray later this year. VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.