Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.5
Audio		5.0
Extras		2.0
Overall		4.0

RED 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman August 29, 2017

Lionsgate has had a somewhat peculiar release strategy with 4K UHD product, and that tendency is continuing with a number of catalog releases, including this one, that are coming out over the next few weeks. All three Lionsgate catalog offerings receiving 4K UHD upgrades with a September 5 street date were shot on film, leading to some interesting differences in their 4K presentations, and all three have been granted Dolby Atmos upgrades in the sound department. All three also feature Dolby Vision (though I personally don't yet have the proper equipment to comment on that).

Red's wonderfully manic tendencies are probably already well known to those considering this new 4K UHD version. For those who haven't yet seen the film, my colleague Martin Liebman has a thorough assessment of the story in his RED Blu-ray review.

RED 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Note: The included screenshots are sourced from a 1080p Blu-ray disc. Watch for 4K screenshots at a later date.

Red is presented on 4K UHD courtesy of Lionsgate Films with a 2160p transfer in 2.40:1. As I mentioned in the introductory paragraph above, all three of the September 5 4K UHD releases coming from Lionsgate were shot on film, and with the additional fact that all three were finished at 2K DIs, one might reasonably expect at least similar looking transfers, at least within the context of whatever visuals each individual film provides. One of the most interesting things for me watching 4K UHD discs, though, has been grain resolution. Grain just generally looks different to me in 4K, and I can't say I'm always convinced by how organic it looks. There's a lot to like about this 4K UHD upgrade of Red (some of which I'll detail in a moment), but from virtually the first moment of this new version, there are unignorable swarms of pretty noisy looking grain, especially in brighter lighting conditions and when there are lighter backgrounds. The first shot of Bruce Willis rising from his bed is an early example, with an almost insect like assortment of black spots climbing up the wall behind him. This same sort of thing can be seen later in the sequence in the shopping mall (notably another quite brightly lit scene that features a lot of white or lighter colored walls in the background). Other moments have a much more organic looking grainfield, perhaps ironically often in scenes that aren't quite as brightly lit. It's this inconsistency that has led me to downgrade my 4K video score a bit from the two other releases Lionsgate is offering on September 5.

In terms of detail levels and palette reproduction, things are a good deal more consistent and appealing. There's a noticeable uptick in fine detail levels especially, with elements like the fur collar Mary Louise Parker wears in a late sequence looking much more palpable than on the 1080p Blu- ray version. Expected elements like facial pores or (sorry, with this cast) wrinkles are also much better defined, but even textures on things like brick walls are more precise looking in this version. The palette is kind of unusual looking at times in this 4K UHD version, with a slightly desaturated ambience some of the time that preserves individual pops of color within a generally tamped down frame. Things look just slightly cooler to my eyes a lot of the time, with things like the blue walls of Willis' home taking on more of a grayish appearance. Some especially vivid hues, like the gorgeous blue topcoat Morgan Freeman wears in one sequence, really have noticeably richer saturation in the 4K UHD version.

As I seem to be prone to experiencing, I noticed some slight judder in lateral pans, as in the opening credits sequence that segues between Willis' home environment and Parker's initial work situation.

RED 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Marty gave top marks to Red's Blu-ray DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track, and as someone who's owned the Blu-ray myself since it was first release, I agree with his assessment (though in my tendency toward curmudgeonliness, I may have only scored the Blu-ray at 4.5). One way or the other, the 4K UHD disc's upgrade to Dolby Atmos is one of its most winning features. While things start off relatively subtly, with the sweet interchanges between Bruce Willis' and Mary Louise Parker's characters, there are even noticeable new placement (often midair) of effects in the (Parker) office environment. It takes a while for Red to get to its "good bits" (sonically speaking), but once the action elements of the film kick in, no holds are barred and the track becomes a virtual onslaught of surround activity, with great panning effects, thundering LFE and great bursts of energy courtesy of things like car crashes or gunfire. Even relatively mundane sound effects like Willis pounding a punching bag near the beginning of the film or footsteps on tile resonate with unusual clarity and precision, but when the film's sound design goes for the gusto, the Atmos track offers sterling fidelity, impeccable dynamic range and spot on fidelity.

RED 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

As with its September 5 sibling The Cabin in the Woods 4K, Red's 4K UHD disc ports over some but not all of the supplements Marty details in his RED Blu-ray review. The Commentary and Deleted Scenes are included, along with a Theatrical Trailer. All of the supplements mentioned by Marty are of course available on the 1080p Blu-ray also included with this release.

RED 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

I had a blast (not necessarily due to this film's explosive soundtrack) revisiting Red for this 4K UHD review. As Marty mentions in his RED Blu-ray review, while the film has a few pacing issues, the go for broke storytelling style combined with one of the most marvelously enjoyable casts (of any age) imaginable make this film both funny and often quite suspenseful. It's fun to see Willis actually seeming to have fun in a role, something that divorces him from some of his more mannered tics, and I have to say for me personally Malkovich is just the comedic highlight of the film, perfectly depicting a man whose paranoia doesn't mean people aren't out to get him. The rest of the supporting cast is filled to the brim with fantastic turns from everyone including Dame Helen Mirren and Morgan Freeman. Cameos (or quasi cameos) from the likes of Ernest Borgnine also add a certain nostalgic flair to the proceedings. I personally found this 4K UHD the least appealing from a visual standpoint of the three Lionsgate is releasing on September 5 due to some fairly noisy looking grain that crops up in brighter scenes. Otherwise, there's the same general uptick in detail levels seen in other 2K DI upgrades, and there's no doubt that the Dolby Atmos track is a definite improvement over an already excellent track on the 1080p Blu-ray disc.