8.2 | / 10 |
Users | 3.8 | |
Reviewer | 4.5 | |
Overall | 3.8 |
A retired Marshal must defend his town from a revengeful villain.
Starring: Gary Cooper, Thomas Mitchell (I), Lloyd Bridges, Katy Jurado, Grace KellyWestern | 100% |
Drama | 91% |
Thriller | Insignificant |
Video codec: HEVC / H.265
Video resolution: 4K (2160p)
Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.37:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono (48kHz, 24-bit)
English SDH
Blu-ray Disc
Two-disc set (2 BDs)
4K Ultra HD
Slipcover in original pressing
Region A (locked)
Movie | 5.0 | |
Video | 4.0 | |
Audio | 5.0 | |
Extras | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.5 |
Fred Zinnemann's "High Noon" (1952) arrives on 4K Blu-ray courtesy of Kino Lorber. The supplemental features on the release include archival program with editor Mark Goldblatt; archival program with filmmaker and film historian Michael Schlesinger; new audio commentaries by critics Alan K. Rode and Julie Kirgo; vintage trailer; and more. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.
Kino Lorber's release of High Noon is a 4K Blu-ray/Blu-ray combo pack. The 4K Blu-ray is Region-Free. However, the Blu-ray is Region-A "locked".
Please note that some of the screencaptures that appear with this article are taken from the 4K Blu-ray and downscaled to 1080p. Therefore, they do not accurately reflect the quality of the 4K content on the 4K Blu-ray disc.
Screencaptures #1-19 are from the 4K Blu-ray.
Screencaptures #21-35 are from Blu-ray.
I have two other releases of High Noon in my library and used both to do various comparisons. The first is this Region-A release from Olive Films. The second is this Region-B release from Eureka Entertainment. Both releases introduced the same 4K restoration of the film, but in different territories.
On the 4K Blu-ray, High Noon can be viewed with Dolby Vision and HRD grades. I viewed the entire film with Dolby Vision and only quickly sampled a few areas with HDR. However, I spent plenty of time with the 1080p presentation, which I am going to address before the 4K native presentation.
On my system, the 1080p presentation clearly struggles to match the quality of the previous two releases I mentioned above. Why? In many areas, certain visuals look softer and flatter. The most obvious examples with such fluctuations emerge during outdoor footage, but some can be encounetered even during indoor footage with sufficient light. It appears that high-frequency information is affected, creating the impression that a filter has been applied. On the previous releases, many of the same areas look sharper and better defined. Also, light black crushing is noticeable, and its presence exacerbates some of the softness and flatness. On my system, the best looking visuals were almost always close-ups.
In native 4K, virtually all of these inconsistencies are eliminated. I do not know exactly why. It could be that the superior encoding preserves more high-frequency information. It could be that the improved density levels and the expanded dynamic range of the visuals dramatically enhance the perception of depth. However, there is a pretty big difference in quality between the native 4K and 1080p presentations, and I do not think that it is justified. (The 1080p encode should have been a lot better, but I am unsure if this is the only reason there is such a substantial gap in quality. For the record, the framing discrepancy that exist between the previous releases and this release, 1.37:1 vs. 1.33:1, respectively, is irrelevant). Dolby Vision handles darker areas pretty well. However, some background information is easier to see on the previous releases. Fludity is very good, but a few uneven spots remain because of inherited source limitations.
So, what is the final verdict on the native 4K presentation? Its overall quality is very good. The dynamic range of many visuals is clearly improved. In many areas, depth appeared superior as well. The grayscale is convincing. But a few areas where high-frequency information could have been handled better and darker details should have been better exposed slightly dampened my enthusiasm for the 4K presentation.
There is only one standard audio track on this release: English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature.
While viewing High Noon in native 4K, I did not encounter any technical anomalies to report in our review. The dialog is clear, sharp, and easy to follow. Of course, the native limitations of the original soundtrack are easy to recognize -- dynamic intensity is modest and some of Dimitri Tiomkin's music occasionally becomes a tad thin.
4K BLU-RAY DISC
There have been some drastically different interpretations of the political overtones in Fred Zinnemann's High Noon, but I personally find them largely irrelevant now. The film is rightfully placed amongst the all-time greatest classics of the western genre because of its technical qualities, which are quite simply brilliant. Kino Lorber's release offers a good 4K presentation of High Noon on 4K Blu-ray, but if you purchased Olive Films' Blu-ray release a few years ago, you already have a very good looking copy of the film in your library. VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.
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