Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		0.0
Audio		4.5
Extras		3.0
Overall		3.5

Ocean's Twelve 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Back in action.

Reviewed by Randy Miller III April 26, 2024

Steven Soderbergh's Ocean's Trilogy was a pop culture staple of the 2000s and made of three star-studded films: Ocean's Eleven, Twelve, and Thirteen, all released during that decade. They were early releases on the Blu-ray format and, as such, featured now- ancient VC-1 transfers and lossy Dolby Digital audio. Now roughly 20 years later, they've earned an upgrade to 4K UHD from WB, who recruited the director to oversee these new 2160p/HDR10 transfers. The 5.1 tracks have also received an long-overdue bump to DTS-HD Master Audio and the bonus features are primarily sourced from WB's later Ocean's Trilogy Collection, which included a disc of new extras. All three are part of WB's forthcoming Ocean's Trilogy 4K set or available separately via three stylish 4K Steelbook releases.

Ocean's Twelve is the creatively-named follow-up to Soderbergh's "original"; it's usually seen as a step down but, for my money, still a decent and equally entertaining sequel that's probably better than you remember. For a synopsis of the main feature, please see Marty Liebman's coverage of WB's initial 2007 boxed set of all three films.

Ocean's Twelve 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

NOTE: These screenshots are sourced from the earlier Blu-ray edition and are for decorative purposes only.

Much like its predecessor's delightful new 2160p/HDR10 (Dolby Vision incompatible) transfer, Ocean's Twelve was recently "restored" (not really the right term, given its relatively young age) at Warner Bros. Discovery's Motion Picture Imaging (MPI) facility under the supervision of director Steven Soderbergh, and in many ways shares the same innate strengths with a clean, polished, and precise appearance that nonetheless looks true to its source.

But despite its colorful gradient opening logos, Ocean's Twelve trades in the majority of its more vivid values for only occasional ventures into striking saturation, as this decidedly darker chapter in the trilogy goes extremely easy on the neon. That's not to say that colors don't do any driving like they do in Ocean's Eleven, but here the overall image is more carefully controlled by its black levels and contrast, both of which exceed expectations and create a surprising amount of visual interest under the right conditions. One thing I failed to mention in my review of Eleven was how well it handled bright light sources; specifically, how they're shown at full strength without falling victim to blooming, and the same applies here though to a slightly lesser extent. Yet the colors, while more limited in direct comparison, still pull their own weight and, above all else, look accurate to a reasonable degree while taking into account the continued use of occasional filtering for mood. A handful of scenes just look drop-dead gorgeous, such as the warm and inviting scenes shot in and around the villa owned by Baron François Toulour (Vincent Cassel), with a richer expanse of colors at their disposal that stand in sharp contrast to the film's darker sequences. But any way you slice it, this is another top-quality transfer with a similarly high bit rate and solid encoding that doesn't show any flagrant artifacts or imperfections including banding, macro blocking, or posterization. Again, fans will be extremely pleased here.

Ocean's Twelve 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

At the risk of repeating myself, Ocean's Twelve gets a notable and long-overdue upgrade in the audio department too, as again this lossless DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio mix -- overseen by original re-recording sound mixer and sound editor Larry Blake -- far outpaces the older Blu-ray's DVD-grade Dolby Digital 5.1 track. Improvements can be found across the board, from overall dialogue clarity and balance to the punchiness of its original soundtrack and, of course, discrete activity and overall presence. It's another weighty but precise effort that doesn't try to reinvent the wheel, but rather it attempts bring the main feature back to its theatrical-grade glory. (Of course, I'm saying that with extremely faded memories of that experience, but I'm sure die-hard fans will agree when they hear it for themselves.) Bottom line, it's a great-sounding mix that shines like new without compromising or notably changing the source material.

Optional subtitles, including English (SDH), are included during the main feature and all applicable extras below.

Ocean's Twelve 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Like to the other two Steelbooks, this packaging resembles a deck of playing cards and it's a striking design indeed. The details unique to this film are clever and give off a very sleek vibe for an image that's essentially monochromatic. Inside is a photo spread of our key players and the lone UHD disc features a similarly printed design. My only nagging complaint is that the exterior is a little too glossy; something a bit closer to matte or semi-gloss may have been more suited to the "playing card" aesthetic. It's still a fine-looking effort and fits this stylish film like a glove.

On-disc extras mostly mirror those found on the on the 2008 Blu-ray (re-released as part of this set); though a handful of minor legacy supplements seem to be missing in action, one retrospective piece created for the 2014 Ocean's Trilogy Collection has been ported over as well. See both linked reviews for more details.

• Audio Commentary with director Steven Soderbergh and screenwriter George Nolfi

• Ready, Jet Set, Go: The Making of Ocean's Twelve (25:39)

• HBO First Look: Twelve is the New Eleven (13:02)

• Deleted Scenes (18 clips, 28:19 total)

Ocean's Twelve 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Steven Soderbergh's Ocean's Twelve marks a small step down from its predecessor, but I still feel this is a slightly underrated film in its own right and worthy for a reevaluation. Still, this release may not be the best way to do that: sure, it fits in nicely with the other recent Ocean's Steelbooks, but the price will undoubtedly keep many away as WB's standard-issue Ocean's Trilogy 4K set is much more affordable. That said, the A/V merits are great and the legacy extras are decent, which means that staunch supporters and packaging collectors may find it tough to resist.