6.5 | / 10 |
Users | 4.0 | |
Reviewer | 3.5 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
Based on Disneyland's theme park ride where a small riverboat takes a group of travelers through a jungle filled with dangerous animals and reptiles.
Starring: Dwayne Johnson, Emily Blunt, Edgar Ramírez, Jack Whitehall, Jesse PlemonsAdventure | 100% |
Action | 67% |
Family | 59% |
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 (Canada): Dolby Digital 5.1
Japanese: Dolby Digital Plus 7.1
Spanish: Dolby Digital Plus 7.1
English SDH, French, Japanese, Spanish
Blu-ray Disc
Two-disc set (2 BDs)
Digital copy
4K Ultra HD
Slipcover in original pressing
Region A, B (C untested)
Movie | 3.5 | |
Video | 4.0 | |
Audio | 4.0 | |
Extras | 2.5 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
Disney's world-famous theme park attraction comes to life in Jungle Cruise, a family adventure film directed by Jaume Collet-Serra (Orphan, Non-Stop). The film incorporates many of the sights and sounds found on the ride and brings its own spirit of adventure -- and complex backstory -- to the screen in what is a fun, if not predictably superfluous, thrill ride. The film works well as disposable entertainment that feels like a mesh of Indiana Jones and Pirates of the Caribbean mixed with an Anaconda foundation. It's an interesting amalgamation that largely works, again not in some highbrow art form sort of way but as a fully satisfying escape for a moviegoing world hungry for something to distract from the realities of a reeling real world.
The included screenshots are sourced from a 1080p Blu-ray disc.
Disney's 2160p/HDR UHD release of Jungle Cruise offers a modest upgrade over the companion and concurrently released Blu-ray, gaining a bit of sharpness and color depth to the experience. It's nothing
radical but the differences do add up to a slightly improved picture overall. The picture adds some essential sharpness and clarity over the Blu-ray,
which is itself quite satisfying for core structural integrity, bringing out crisper textures and more satisfying definition to the film's core visual elements,
including the rickety boat, period attire, and facial features. The UHD squeezes out the last little bit of visual complexity that the Blu-ray cannot reach,
making this, texturally, anyway, the superior of the two. The HDR color grading darkens the image, and by quite a bit. It holds to the bronze-ish color
temperature and maintains the extreme warmth evident in the Blu-ray but this HDR grading is less about popping color dynamics and more staying
faithful to the color spectrum while tuning the brightness level. The result is darker, yes, but with critically deeper blacks at night and more luxurious
colors in daytime, albeit, again, within the film's by-design visual parameters. Dark scenes teeter on being too dark, but the added color density
certainly
helps push the image a bit ahead of the Blu-ray in light-saturated shots, scenes, and sequences. Whites are notably crisper and more lively, particularly
various subtitled text. Skin tones are fine within the picture's color timing. Noise is managed a bit better on the UHD as well and there are no encode
issues to report.
Disney brings Jungle Cruise to the UHD format with a rip-roaring and quite satisfying Dolby Atmos soundtrack. There is little evidence of the sonic neutering that has made Disney audio the bane of many an audiophile's existence over the past few years. The track is notably large, taking full advantage of the Atmos configuration. Better, it's not too shallow at reference volume and low end engagement and extension do not appear to be reduced or absent. While the track might not be a full-on powerhouse, it is well versed in the basics required of a big budget modern film. There are a number of examples of the track's willingness to engage the low end, a practice that has been hit or miss (mostly miss on various Disney releases over the past few years). A scene through raging waters in chapter 14 offers not only prodigious and precise surround content, it engages the low end with some superiority as well, maybe not quite so dominant as the best tracks but the output is certainly not wanting for significantly more power. Such holds true of every major action scene in the film; it's all both balanced and powerful and should leave audiences satisfied with the thrill-ride soundtrack. Ambient effects are just as crucial to the listen and again Disney's track does not disappoint. Jungle ambience comes alive with the added height channels, allowing the listeners to feel as fully enveloped into the sonically diverse world as current home audio allows. More immediately immersive sound elements are equally appealing, such as the excellent sense of submersion the track provides to a crucial underwater scene at the 91-minute mark. Musical spacing and clarity are first-rate, too, and dialogue is clear and well prioritized from its natural front-center home.
Jungle Cruise's UHD disc contains no extras but the bundled Blu-ray houses "Expedition Mode," a handful of featurettes, deleted scenes, and
outtakes. DVD and digital copies are included with
purchase. This release ships with an embossed slipcover.
Jungle Cruise satisfies as a popcorn muncher and that its ambitions never reach beyond puts it in a good place for family entertainment. It's easy on the eyes and ears, maybe a little dark in places for younger children but it's a solid enough crowd pleaser fit for most of the family. Disney's UHD delivers hearty video and audio along with a handful of extras. Recommended.
Bonus Disney Classic Stories Jungle Cruise eBook
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