Queen Rock Montreal & Live Aid 4K Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		5.0
Video		0.0
Audio		4.5
Extras		1.0
Overall		5.0

Queen Rock Montreal & Live Aid 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman May 15, 2024

This two disc set offers a glut of live performance and rehearsal footage that should certainly entice any fan of Queen. Back when the rebranded Mercury Studios was still Eagle Rock Entertainment, they released a previous 1080 version of Queen Rock Montreal & Live Aid which is so dated at this point that both its video codec (VC-1) and surround audio codec (DTS-HD HR 5.1) may well be largely unknown to some. The Montreal concert was filmed live at the city's Forum, which evidently seats 18,000 people. As some liner notes on this release allude to in passing, that 18,000 may seem positively miniscule when contextualized by an audience of 131,000 who say the band play in Sao Paolo Brasil's Morumbi stadium.

If the Montreal concert is described here as one the "very last concerts of Queen 'raw'" (whatever that may mean), the Live Aid performance has entered the annals of history as one of the most legendary live concerts of all time. Unfortunately, this particular effort was not filmed in 35mm and it, along with some rehearsal footage, may not offer the most compelling video quality (in either 1080 or 4K UHD).

Rock Montreal Track Listing:

1. Intro
2. We Will Rock You (fast)
3. Let Me Entertain You
4. Play The Game
5. Somebody To Love
6. Killer Queen
7. I'm In Love With My Car
8. Get Down Make Love
9. Save Me
10. Now I'm Here
11. Dragon Attack
12. Now I'm Here (reprise)
13. Love Of My Life
14. Under Pressure
15. Keep Yourself Alive
16. Drum & Timpani Solo
17. Guitar Solo
18. Crazy Little Thing Called Love
19. Jailhouse Rock
20. Bohemian Rhapsody
21. Tie Your Mother Down
22. Another One Bites The Dust
23. Sheer Heart Attack
24. We Will Rock You
25. We Are The Champions
26. God Save The Queen

Live Aid Track Listing

1. Intro
2. Bohemian Rhapsody
3. Radio Ga Ga
4. Ay-Oh
5. Hammer to Fall
6. Crazy Little Thing Called Love
7. We Will Rock You
8. We Are the Champions
9. Is This the World We Created. . ?

Queen Rock Montreal & Live Aid 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Note: Screenshots are sourced from Mercury Studios' standalone 1080 release of this title. This package does not include any 1080 discs, and so the 2K video score above has been intentionally left blank.

Queen: Rock Montreal + Live Aid is (are?) presented in 4K UHD courtesy of Mercury Studios with HEVC / H.265 encoded 2160p transfers in a variety of aspect ratios. Rock Montreal is offered in 1.85:1 on Disc Two and 1.33:1 on Disc One, while the Live Aid video is upscaled and in 1.33:1. I've only included 1.85:1 screenshots from Rock Montreal in this review, but there are a number of other screenshots in both aspect ratios and from both concerts (and rehearsal) available to see in the Queen Rock Montreal & Live Aid Blu-ray review of Mercury's 1080 release of this title. Probably stating the obvious, but Rock Montreal clearly benefits most from the 4K UHD upgrade, and rather interestingly in that regard, Mercury offers both HDR and SDR versions of the concert in both aspect ratios. While detail levels are at least marginally improved in this resolution, some of the grittiness and downright intermittent splotchiness of the grain can also be somewhat exacerbated in this resolution. As with the 1080 version, grain can ebb and flow at times, and some sections look slightly filtered. I found by far the biggest difference in all of the resolutions and various options to be switching between HDR and SDR on this 4K disc. The uptick in contrast in HDR is really almost kind of gobsmacking and is noticeable from the get go in terms of the blacks behind the opening credits, but the entire palette is almost vibrationally alive with HDR and kind of wan and lackluster in SDR, even given the improvements in general suffusion and detail levels seen in 4K. The upscaled material is not particularly helped by the increased resolution on these two discs and in fact some may actually prefer the upscaled look on Mercury's 1080 release to the appearance on these 4K UHD discs. As with my 1080 review, I'm kind of splitting the difference in terms of my "general" video score above. The Rock Montreal presentation is certainly at the 4.5 or above range, while the upscaled material may struggle to even find a solid 3.0 footing. The disc comes with some "technical viewing suggestions", as follows:

To view this Blu-ray as intended it is recommended turning off any settings on your TV that may add extra sharpening, motion compensation or picture enhancement.

The insert booklet also contains some "fine print" called a "4K Technical Advisory", as follows:

Disc 1 features the full frame version of the Montreal concert, as it was originally intended to be viewed at the time of filming.

If your television can display HDR, please select the HDR option, as it will maximize the detail of this concert.

The SDR option is optimized for peak viewing on TVs that do not display HDR images.

Disc 2 features the Widescreen version of the concert, with both the HDR and SDR option available.

Queen Rock Montreal & Live Aid 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Queen: Rock Montreal + Live Aid feature Dolby Atmos, DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and LPCM 2.0 audio options, and you can't really go wrong with any of them, though those wanting a huge difference between the Atmos and DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 tracks may notice a lack of clear verticality other than the overwhelming crowd noises at times. Both surround tracks offer really good immersion, again stemming at least in part from the waves of audience reactions, but also with appealing spaciousness in terms of the actual music. There's some surprising dynamic range given the energy of both performances. Rock Montreal may arguably offer just a bit better overall recording quality than Live Aid, probably due to the exigencies of those performance venues. The LPCM 2.0 track is very appealing one way or the other, and as I so often do, I actually preferred its forward mixing of the vocals, which perhaps offers a somewhat more focused offering of tunes like Bohemian Rhapsody. Optional subtitles in a variety of languages are available.

Queen Rock Montreal & Live Aid 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Montreal Commentary with Brian May and Roger Taylor is accessible under the Audio Options Menu on both Discs.

Additionally, a nicely appointed insert booklet contains a ton of pictures, credits and technical information. I will say Mercury did not design the packaging very well. A rather flimsy cardboard sleeve encloses both discs, which are supposedly slipped inside little "chevron" slits on the inside. Unsurprisingly, both my 4K and 1080 review copies arrived with neither disc still in its appointed place.

Queen Rock Montreal & Live Aid 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Queen continues to be "relevant" to this day, despite the vagaries of the rock and/or pop music machines, and the concerts seen here offer abundant proof as to why. This 4K release offers at least incremental improvement in detail levels, but may offer the most noticeable differences with HDR. With allowances made for upscaled video, technical merits are solid. Highly recommended.