Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		4.5
Overall		4.5

Grease 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Martin Liebman April 9, 2018

Paramount first released Director Randal Kleiser's world-famous Musical phenomenon 'Grease' to Blu-ray in 2009 to fair result at a time when the format was still in its relative infancy. For the film's 40th anniversary, now in the UHD era's relative infancy, the studio has released the film to the 2160p format. A companion Blu-ray has also launched simultaneously with this UHD, and both contain the same Dolby TrueHD 5.1 lossless soundtrack. A few new extras are included on the bundled Blu-ray, as well as all of the legacy content from the 2009 release.

It’s a new year at Rydell High School, and something rad is happening: National Bandstand has chosen Rydell as a venue for a broadcast, right from the school gymnasium. As the excitement builds for the year on the very first day, some of the girls greet a new Australian student, Sandy (Olivia Newton-John), who spent her summer vacation on a hot fling with local boy Danny (John Travolta). The two believed they were going their own separate ways at the end of summer, with Sandy returning home to Australia, but they are indeed in school together, unbeknownst to either at first, even as they’re pining for one another and reminiscing about their time together. But when they are made aware of one another’s presence at school, Danny drops the nice guy persona that won Sandy’s heart in favor of the cool guy façade he puts on in front of his friends. Both are heartbroken, expressing it in different ways. Can true love be enough for Danny to overcome the embarrassment that comes with wearing his heart on his leather-clad sleeve, or will hubris keep him from reuniting with the girl of his dreams? It’ll take honest reflection, and several song-and-dance numbers, to find out.

Grease may be remembered for its infectiously catchy tunes and a career-defining part for Jon Travolta, but the film is at its best in a character driven capacity, when the tenderness between Danny and Sandy turns to tension when Danny cannot bring himself to be himself in front of his friends. Grease is a movie about appearances. It's how people look and how people are perceived. Both Danny and Sandy must take that journey through peer pressure and high school life (unfamiliar as that high school life may be today, decades removed from its setting and decades removed from the movie's creation) and sift through their emotions, exploring whether they can change not necessarily who they are, but who they appear to be if their relationship is to blossom as both desire. The movie is a bit overstuffed with surrounding teen drama, peering into cliques and peer pressure and issues like teen pregnancy, with much of it feeling like filler, but the core story entertains, the songs are contagiously fun, and the performances are largely very good.

For more thoughts on the film, see the Blu-ray.com review of the 2009 Blu-ray here.

Grease 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The included screenshots are sourced from a 1080p Blu-ray disc. Watch for 4K screenshots at a later date.

Grease's 2160p/Dolby Vision UHD presentation makes for a solid, occasionally even huge, step forward over the standard 1080p Blu-ray, which by all accounts is sourced from the same restored image as this. "The original negative was scanned and received extensive clean up and color correction using previously unavailable digital restoration tools such as high dynamic range technology," Paramount boasts in its press release. The improvement in clarity and color alike are obvious from the get-go, viewing the 4K presentation almost immediately following a 1080p screening. Grain is a little more pronounced on the UHD, extending a more dynamically enjoyable filmic appearance that wasn't quite so prominent on the Blu-ray. Textures are much more complex, and usually significantly so. Skin details are particularly revealing, but so too are costumes and various environments, from dark exteriors to well-lit gymnasium interiors where, for example, its polished floors seen during the dance sequence in chapter 10, as the students arrive for the National Bandstand gig, is highly impressive in terms of its ability to convey the shine and wooden textured surface. Various shots come across as somewhat pasty by comparison to the naturally sharp elements that dominate. Some of the drive-in shots in chapter 13 look a little smooth and artificial, as Danny and Sandy sit in the parked car, with Danny looking for a way to get his arm around his date. But when the image is on, it looks incredible. Sharpness is unparalleled, clarity and textural refinement are striking, and while some softer-focus edges are readily apparent throughout, such are inherent to the film proper.

Color dynamics are wonderful, and the Dolby Vision enhancement allows for some significant pop and expert balance. Whites are a major highlight. The "Beauty School Dropout" song in chapter nine, with white backgrounds, white salon chairs, and silvery and off-white attire, dazzles in terms of its brilliance and stability (it's also one of the most inherently sharp stretches in the movie, a definite reference moment for both clarity and color on this UHD). White T-shirts under black jackets are also superb examples of white refinement in the movie. More robust colors are otherwise very well saturated. Depth is improved over the Blu-ray, and there's a greater sense of color nuance and intensity in play on the UHD. Reds are bolder and deeper, blues more lively, pinks more showy. Black level depth is a strength, and examples of crush are minimal. This is a considerably more enjoyable image compared to the Blu-ray, which is largely fine but cannot match the color intensity or structural integrity the UHD offers. UHD makes the image sing, so to speak (and apropos to the movie), and fans are going to be ecstatic with the 2160p/Dolby Vision presentation. This is far and away the best Grease has ever looked at home, easily besting even the brand-new companion Blu-ray by a healthy margin.

Grease 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

For its 40th Anniversary UHD release, Paramount has not changed the encode or channel configuration from the 2009 Blu-ray, but the studio has nevertheless tinkered with the track. For this new take on the Dolby TrueHD 5.1 lossless soundtrack, "audio was enhanced from a six-track mix created for an original 70mm release." The track is hardly a revelation, but it offers a solid enough foundational listen. The track is fairly front-heavy, but the musical numbers are satisfyingly rich and wide. The American Bandstand segment in chapter 11 stretches the system and offers impressive instrumental clarity throughout the range. There's not much immersion, even as surrounds are engaged (though listeners would be hard-pressed to really notice), but the aggressive frontside push minimizes the missing impact of a more effective wraparound sensation. A few basic sound effects present with enough distinction and stage presence to please, such as deep, rumbly engine revs during the race near film's end. Dialogue is largely fine and sonically defines much of the movie beyond song and dance numbers interspersed throughout. That said, it does have its moments of struggle, perhaps the most notable coming just prior to that aforementioned race where words are notably harsh-edged and slightly garbled. Much like the video presentation, this is an imperfect soundtrack, but it certainly serves the film well enough, and during its critical music moments in particular.

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

Grease's 40th Anniversary Edition UHD ships in standard format packaging and does not receive the DigiBook or SteelBook options its 1080p counterpart enjoys. The bundled Blu-ray contains many extras, most of which carry over from the previous "Rockin' Rydell" release, and several of which are new. New extras are marked as such, and reviewed (note that I do not have access to a copy of the original 2009 release and markings of what extras are new is based on the Blu-ray.com review of that 2009 disc, written by another reviewer, as well as the press release provided by Paramount). No extras of any kind are included on the UHD disc. A UV/iTunes digital copy code is included with purchase.

• Audio Commentary: Director Randal Kleiser and Choreographer Patricia Birch.
• Introduction by Randal Kleiser (480i, 0:24): Available both under the special features tab and as an option when the selecting the "Play" menu button.
• Rydell Sing-Along: Karaoke versions of songs form the film with an option to play all during the movie.
• The Time, The Place, The Motion: Remembering Grease
• NEW! Grease: A Chicago Story (1080p, 24:30): A look back at the original stage production in Chicago. With Grease co-creator Jim Jacobs and others, the piece looks at origins and inspirations, Jacobs' collaboration with Warren Casey, writing the story, its stage debut, transition to Broadway, legacy, and more.
• NEW! Alternate Animated Main Titles (1080p, 3:44): A 'rough demo" recently uncovered in the Paramount vaults, finished especially for this 40th anniversary release.
• NEW! Alterante Ending (1080p, 0:45): Only previously available by way of a black and white work print. It is now being shown in color for the first time.
• Deleted/Extended/Alternate Scenes (480i, 10:17 total runtime): Includes an Introduction by Randal Keiser and the following scenes: "T"-Birds Harass Eugene -- Extended, Classroom Announcements -- Extended, Pink Ladies and Sandy at Lunch -- Extended, She's Too Pure to Be Pink -- Extended, Intro to Summer Nights -- Deleted, Rydell Pep rally -- Extended, Kenickie and Danny Outside Frosty's -- Deleted, The Stroll -- Extended, National Bandstand - - Alternate, At the Dance -- Alternate/Extended, and Thunder Road -- Deleted.
• Grease Reunion 2002 -- DVD Launch Party
• Grease Memories from John and Olivia
• The Moves Behind the Music
• Thunder Roadsters
• John Travolta and Allan Carr "Grease Day" Interview
• Olivia Newton-John and Robert Stigwood "Grease Day" Interview
• Photo Galleries
• Theatrical Trailer

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

Grease was a hit when it released and has become a cultural icon with serious staying power, now 40 years since its debut. For the film's milestone anniversary, Paramount has released the favorite on UHD with a brand-new 2160p/Dolby Vision transfer and a new multichannel soundtrack (though in the same Dolby TrueHD 5.1 configuration as the previous release). A few new extras are included on the bundled Blu-ray on top of the prodigious pile of supplements from the previous edition. Unfortunately, the UHD is not available in DigiBook or SteelBook packaging, as is the Blu-ray. Nevertheless, it comes highly recommended for the new 4K transfer.