Rating summary
Movie | | 4.5 |
Video | | 3.0 |
Audio | | 4.0 |
Extras | | 4.0 |
Overall | | 3.5 |
Pan's Labyrinth 4K Blu-ray Movie Review
Reviewed by Randy Miller III September 30, 2019
Guillermo del Toro's Pan's Labyrinth, well-received by
critics and audiences alike in 2006, has been released in a
variety of formats
since then: a Special Edition DVD, competing HD DVD and Blu-ray discs in 2007, and Criterion's 2016 Blu-ray that doubled as part of a
deluxe boxed set the same year.
Warner Bros.' new 4K edition serves up a 2160p transfer that
predictably beats those
previous versions while coming up a little short in other
departments. It's still a decent release, but one that falls
victim to several oversights that
prevent it from being definitive. Worse yet, the included Blu-ray
is recycled from 2007...so if this review's screenshots look a
little unimpressive,
there's your answer.
Speaking of 2007, please refer to former Blu-ray.com reviewer
J.C. Ribera's write-up of
that disc for an
analysis of the film. I share his sentiments for the most part
and, while
Pan's
Labyrinth doesn't affect me quite as deeply now as it did a
decade ago, it's still an outstanding production that stands as
one of Guillermo del
Toro's best efforts to date.
Pan's Labyrinth 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality
Previously on Pan's Labyrinth: Those who have
bought this film on earlier formats (DVD, HD DVD, and/or
Blu-ray) likely know that
Warner Bros.' 2007
Blu-ray and Criterion's 2016 Blu-ray offered
fundamentally different
1080p images. The former was a decent early-format
presentation unfortunately slathered in digital noise reduction,
while the latter contained a few
director-approved color tweaks and more prominent black
levels...but was also slightly hampered by a few mild
compression-related issues. Pound for
pound, Criterion's disc still easily came out on top.
The quickest summary of Warner Bros.' new 4K disc is that it
looks like a more ideal version of their previous Blu-ray. The
film was finished at a 2K digital intermediate (likely because of its often lower-res VFX,
whose seams now show a bit more), so don't expect any kind of
quantum leap forward in
regards to fine detail and texture. Still, this new 2160p
transfer clearly serves up a more crisp and satisfying
presentation overall, thanks as much to
its lack of DNR as the format's higher resolution. Outdoor
daytime scenes obviously fare the best, with dense foliage and
close-ups revealing subtle
details not nearly as noticeable in 1080p. Other moments are
absolutely bathed in black, but even these are afforded a
boost by the slightly
more refined shadow detail. Compression artifacts are also not
an issue, especially due to the disc's generous bit rate which
often peaks at or
above 95Mbps. Overall, this 4K presentation marks a solid
step up from both earlier Blu-rays, but for entirely separate
reasons. And while those
director-approved color tweaks from the Criterion disc have not
been fully applied to this transfer, the format's HDR grading
does predictably boost
depth and saturation in key scenes; that's a good thing, as having both
would have likely been overkill.
As mentioned earlier, the included Blu-ray is the same as
Warner Bros.' 2007 release, for better or worse. While its 1080p
transfer is serviceable at
first glance, I am a lot more critical of certain flaws -- namely,
the excessive noise reduction -- and thus the "Video" rating
above reflects a lower score
than what it originally got in 2007.
Pan's Labyrinth 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality
In perhaps this release's most baffling oversight, Warner Bros.'
4K disc lacks the DTS-HD 7.1 Master Audio mix present on
both previous Blu-rays,
opting for a slightly scaled-down DTS-HD 5.1 MA track instead.
(Adding to the confusion, the recycled Blu-ray included in this
two-disc set
does include the 7.1 track.) To be fair, the missing two
channels don't represent a huge loss even if you own
the proper equipment,
but that still warrants a half-point deduction. For an evaluation
of the 5.1 and 7.1 tracks, please refer to our review of
Criterion's 2016 Blu-ray, which
contains both.
Pan's Labyrinth 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras
Pan's Labyrinth arrives on 4K in a two-disc keepcase
with new cover artwork, a matching slipcover, and a Digital
Copy redemption code. As
the included Blu-ray is identical to Warner Bros.' 2007 Blu-ray, the extras from that edition
are all intact and listed below. (Unsurprisingly, the
supplements from Criterion's 2016 Blu-ray are not
included.)
Please note that the commentary is the only extra on both
discs; everything else is on the Blu-ray only.
- Audio Commentary with director
Guillermo del Toro
- Enhanced Visual Commentary
- Featurettes - "The Power of Myth", "Pan
and the Fairies", "The Color and the Shape", and "The Melody
Echoes the
Fairy Tale"
- The Director's Notebook - "Del Toro's
Notes and Sketches", "Storyboard / Thumbnail Compares",
"VFX Plate
Comparison", and "Galleries"
- The Charlie Rose Show featuring
Guillermo del Toro, Alfonso Cuarón, and Alejandro Iñárritu
- Comics - "The Giant Toad", "The Fairies",
"Pan", and "The Pale Man"
- Marketing Campaign - Theatrical Teaser,
Trailer, and TV Spots
Pan's Labyrinth 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation
Pan's Labyrinth is a wonderful grown-up fairy tale and
one of Guillermo del Toro's best films; it's ambitious in scope,
near-flawless in
execution, and features outstanding production design and
visual effects. It's been well-represented on Blu-ray thus far
with a decent edition from
Warner Bros. in 2007 and a more lavish upgrade from Criterion
a decade later, both highlighted by a wonderful mix of extras
and outstanding 7.1
audio. Sadly, the latter is absent on Warner Bros.' new 4K disc
(but present on the Blu-ray, recycled from 2007), although the
4K's excellent new
transfer will probably be enough reason for die-hard fans to
upgrade. But newcomers and those not equipped for 4K yet
should give this a hard
pass; with a few simple tweaks, it would have been a much
more accessible and definitive release.