6.2 | / 10 |
Users | 4.0 | |
Reviewer | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
Indiana Jones' newest adventure begins in the desert Southwest in 1957 — the height of the Cold War. Indy and his sidekick Mac have barely escaped a close scrape with nefarious Soviet agents on a remote airfield. Now, Professor Jones has returned home to Marshall College — only to find things have gone from bad to worse. His close friend and dean of the college explains that Indy's recent activities have made him the object of suspicion, and that the government has put pressure on the university to fire him. On his way out of town, Indiana meets rebellious young Mutt, who carries both a grudge and a proposition for the adventurous archaeologist: If he'll help Mutt on a mission with deeply personal stakes, Indy could very well make one of the most spectacular archaeological finds in history — the Crystal Skull of Akator, a legendary object of fascination, superstition and fear.
Starring: Harrison Ford, Cate Blanchett, Karen Allen, Shia LaBeouf, Ray WinstoneAdventure | 100% |
Action | 99% |
Period | 30% |
Supernatural | 17% |
Video codec: HEVC / H.265
Video resolution: 4K (2160p)
Aspect ratio: 2.39:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1
English: Dolby Atmos
English: Dolby TrueHD 7.1 (48kHz, 24-bit)
French: Dolby Digital 5.1 (640 kbps)
Spanish: Dolby Digital 5.1 (640 kbps)
Italian: Dolby Digital 5.1 (640 kbps)
Japanese: Dolby Digital 5.1
Russian: Dolby Digital 5.1
English, English SDH, French, Italian, Japanese, Spanish, Cantonese, Danish, Dutch, Finnish, Korean, Mandarin (Simplified), Mandarin (Traditional), Norwegian, Russian, Swedish, Thai
Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Digital copy
4K Ultra HD
Region A (B, C untested)
Movie | 3.5 | |
Video | 0.0 | |
Audio | 5.0 | |
Extras | 0.5 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
Paramount has released Director Steven Spielberg's 2008 sequel film 'Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull' to the UHD format. New specifications include 2160p/Dolby Vision video and Dolby Atmos audio. No new supplements are included. At the time of publication, this release is only available in a four-film, five-disc boxed set with the other films in the franchise (as of 2021).
The included screenshots are sourced from the legacy Blu-ray disc.
Crystal Skull is the newest Indy film and by a wide margin, premiering nearly two decades after The Last Crusade. Yet this film shares a similar aesthetic with the others,
structurally and technically on UHD. The picture holds to a fine grain structure, the finest of the four to be sure, and the most consistent. Whereas grain
was a bit on the sharper side, at least at times, in the other films, here it's very light but very attractive, not necessarily more so than the others but
within its own style, at least. The result is a very pleasing, healthy, organic, and true film-like presentation. Details are effortlessly sharp across the full
spectrum, including basics like faces and clothes and extending to within and throughout the diverse landscapes and set pieces; some of the best come
in the final act both outside approaching the temple and within its darker interior where even low light cannot halt the exquisite texturing. Viewers will
never be less than pleased with the extravagant textures and fine grain pattern; it's far and away superior to the aged Blu-ray.
The Dolby Vision color grading is likewise very good. This is a rather intensive tonal solidification, bringing a substantial boost to color accuracy, palette
depth, and contrast perfection over the Blu-ray, which is flat and dull in comparison. As with all of the Indy films, there's a general gravitation
towards earthy tones which are full and fabulous here, but natural greens, bright blue skies, and other color output finds health and vibrancy well
beyond the old Blu-ray's limitations. Black levels are fabulous, perfectly deep and dark and never crushing the detail within. Whites, at the other end,
are bold and brilliant and perfectly crisp. Flesh tones couldn't be more realistic.
With no source splotches or wear and no encode flubs or failures, either, Crystal Skull stands as the best looking Indy film on UHD
though certainly each are by-and-large perfect in their own rights. This is just the most balanced of the four.
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull features a five-star Dolby Atmos soundtrack. The film opens with subtle desert atmosphere, followed by a hard-charging car and classic Rock tune, none of which really excite the aural senses but that do play with solid clarity and spacing, the former more through the back, the latter a bit more fully but dominantly along the front. But the track is consistently high energy and high yield, offering the best pure musical fidelity and sound effect clarity through the first four films. The familiar Indy refrains and new arrangements alike for this film blast through the speakers with appropriate intensity and also superior spacing with no speaker left unused and no gap in stage saturation. Action effects are full and immersive, too, likewise taking full advantage of every speaker and each square inch of audio real estate within the listening environment. There are some terrific audio cues that hit the Atmos sensation hard, including a series of swinging monkeys around the 83-minute mark which are so prolifically immersive and intense that the listener seems to be right there in the midst of them. The ant swarms to follow are unique for the sheer mass of moving sound and the small bits of precision found within the larger whole. Cavernous reverb, gunshots, and all variety of higher yield sound effects are crystal clear and generously spaced. Dialogue is center positioned and lifelike in delivery.
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull's UHD disc only includes a trio of trailers (the same included on the Blu-ray discs released
in 2012), but the four-film set
in which this release is included does house a bonus Blu-ray special features bonus disc. Please click here for a listing of what's included on
that disc. As it ships in that boxed set, a digital copy voucher is included with purchase.
Paramount's new Indiana Jones UHD discs delight. The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull looks amazing, sounds great, and the film isn't half bad. The four-film set in which this disc is found earns my highest recommendation.
Limited Edition
2008
2008
2-Disc Special Edition
2008
Two-Disc Special Edition
2008
1981
1984
1989
2006
2018
1983
2015
2017
2011
2015
IMAX Enhanced
2019
2019
1995
2002
Long men fei jia 3D
2011
2019
1987
2008
1981
2012