South Park Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		1.5
Overall		3.5

South Park Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Justin Dekker July 2, 2024

'South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut 4K' arrives on 4K courtesy of Paramount. Follow the foul-mouthed antics of Cartman, Stan, Kyle, and Kenny as their somewhat innocent adventure of sneaking into an R-rated movie leads to all out war and a showdown with Satan. Released in time for the film's 25th Anniversary, Parker and Stone's creation has lost none of its edge or appeal. The 4K UHD disc features the theatrical version of the film, while the enclosed Blu-ray features the "Sing-A-Long Version", and a small assortment of special features. A slipcover and Digital Code are also included.

It's somewhat difficult to believe that South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut is 25-years-old. In a way, it's even more difficult to believe that the series itself is still going strong since it first debuted in 1997. As a dedicated fan from the moment Cartman dreamt that Scott Baio gave him pink eye, the film was a unique and entertaining experience, allowing for a significantly larger story to be told and affording viewers the opportunity to finally witness the boys' adventures without the ever-present, and sometimes incredibly frequent censorship bleeps that riddled the television broadcasts of the episodes. In my estimation, the film has aged very well. The jokes still land to great effect, and there is precious little material that is so specifically "of the time" so as to confuse or confound younger viewers or those with shorter memories. Musically, the film still shines, offering viewers, though we didn't know it at the time, a preview of the toe-tapping and infectious insanity from the same creative team (with the addition of Robert Lopez) that would deliver the Broadway hit The Book of Mormon onto an unsuspecting world approximately a dozen years later. "Blame Canada", "What Would Brian Boitano Do?", "It's Easy, Mmmkay", and a couple of songs whose names I can't print here are still the excellently crafted earworms they've always been, and it will be some time before they leave my head again.

For a review of the film itself, please follow this link to my colleague Martin Liebman's review of the initial Blu-ray release from 2009.

South Park Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Given the source material and the style of animation Parker and Stone employed for the series and the film, I wasn't expecting a massive upgrade. Nor was I expecting the somewhat mixed bag we received here. First, the good. Textural details found in the stop motion cutout animation's character and environmental elements is improved, as is stability. Black levels look very strong, and fine lines are sharp and precise and don't show significant signs of edge enhancement. Whites can be quite brilliant. In these regards the film has never looked better.

Though I am somewhat indifferent about it considering the aforementioned enhancements, one of the most noticeable things about the 4K presentation is that while the colors are perhaps more saturated, they're also a shade or two darker/deeper. This is instantly noticeable in the trademark and iconic wardrobe worn by our four juvenile lead characters. Cartman's coat and Stan's hat are deeper shades of red and blue, for example. The same holds true for environmental components such as the mountains and houses which also appear darker, and skin tones are impacted as well. One could argue that this slight shift creates a slightly more filmic appearance, but those used to how the series looks from the episodes and more recent specials will likely quickly pick up on the changes. There are a few instances of color instability to contend with as well, and are most dramatically visible with Satan. At times he tends toward bright red, while other times he's a deeper, almost brick red with the changes happening from shot to shot. Some may contend that several of these instances could be due to lighting changes, other color shifts have no such defense. There also appear to be a few shots where the image appears to slightly zoomed-in. The first I noticed was when Sheila Broflovski is part of a split-screen interview with the Canadian Minister of Film. On the 2009 Blu-ray and the one included here, the top portion of the Minister's pants are visible and Mrs. Broflovski's coat extends further below the pockets. Here on the 4K disc, though, the Minister's magenta pants are not visible and Mrs. Broflovski's coat is cut-off at the pockets. There are other instances where this is detectable as well, and while none of the missing information is particularly impactful, it's worth mentioning.

Please note, all included screenshots are sourced from the included 1080p disc.

South Park Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Fans hoping for an audio upgrade to a Dolby Atmos track will be a bit disappointed as South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut 4K utilizes the same English Dolby TrueHD 5.1 audio track that was paired with its previous Blu-ray releases. While it was a solid enough track at the time of its initial Blu- ray release, some fifteen years down the road it feels a bit dated and unambitious. Immersive moments are almost exclusively limited to the big production numbers, which sound as good as they always have, but a more energetic and bass-boosted track would have been appreciated. Outside of the songs, we are left with a decidedly front-heavy presentation that cleanly and consistently delivers dialogue and occasional sound effects. Directionality is solid when such moments arise, but given the nature of the production, opportunities are limited. English SDH, and French subtitles are also available.

South Park Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

The Blu-ray disc houses the "Sing-A-Long" presentation of the feature, which flashes the words to each of the film's songs on the screen in Karaoke- style. Unfortunately, it does not seem that there is a way to turn these subtitles off (see screenshots 10 & 18). All supplemental material is housed on the included 1080p disc and consists of the following:

• 'What Would Brian Boitano Do?' Music Video (2.44) - A punk reading of the song by Parker & Stone's band D.V.D.A. that features footage from the film and of the band.

• Teaser Trailer (0.55)

• Theatrical Trailer #1 (1.32)

• Theatrical Trailer #2 (1.51)

• Feature Commentary - Creators Matt Stone and Trey Parker, along with an assortment of others discuss the origins of the songs, the evolution of the story, their experience at the Academy Awards, and innumerable other topics in this wide-ranging and free-flowing commentary track.

South Park Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

In terms of a 25th Anniversary release, South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut 4K seems to be somewhat of a missed opportunity. While fans will be pleased to finally see the film's 4K presentation, subtle changes which are a departure from the series' established color palette may make it look slightly different than they would expect, though other elements, such as the detail level are modestly but noticeably improved. The recycled audio track, while solid enough, may sound a bit dated to some ears, but most will no doubt be pleased as they dance, laugh and sing along with song after song. Likewise, the decision not to include any new special features is a bit disappointing, as is the fact that the commentary track does not exist on the 4K disc. For diehard "South Parkateers" South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut 4K is easily recommended, but more casual fans may wish to stick with their existing Blu-rays or wait for a sale.