Stranger Things: Season 1 Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		5.0
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		0.0
Overall		4.0

Stranger Things: Season 1 Blu-ray Movie Review

Better Things on TV there may not be.

Reviewed by Martin Liebman October 23, 2017

Stranger Things is an amazing show in a Twin Peaks meets something like The Thing and The Evil Dead (both of which have posters featured prominently in the show) meets Super 8 meets Insidious with a decidedly Spielberg flair and flavor. It's not easy to describe beyond calling it a beautifully assembled, instantly absorbing, and extraordinarily engaging collage of classic movie elements in a convincingly 80s period. It's also overflowing with twists and turns, new ideas, fantastic narrative execution, an engaging and unique character roster, exceptional acting, a frightening central plot, and endless mystery.

Hawkins, Indiana is a typical Midwestern town circa November 1983. The only thing of note that really separates it from any other like place on the map is a secret government laboratory nestled deep in the woods beyond the town proper. One night and following a game of Dungeons & Dragons, a group of friends -- Will (Noah Schnapp), Mike (Finn Wolfhard), Dustin (Gaten Matarazzo), and Lucas (Caleb McLaughlin) -- heads home, but Will finds himself pursued, corned, and taken by a mysterious and frightening nonhuman entity. News of his disappearance quickly spreads around town. His mother Joyce (Winona Ryder) panics, and her older son, Jonathan (Charlie Heaton), must become her rock while working diligently to find his brother. Meanwhile, the town's police chief, Jim Hopper (David Harbour), becomes strangely obsessed with discovering the boy's whereabouts, propelled by his own emotionally dark past. As Joyce comes to believe that her son is still alive and that she is in unconventional communication with him, Mike, Dustin, and Lucas stumble upon a mysterious girl with a nearly shaved head they come to know as "Eleven" (Millie Bobby Brown), who has recently escaped from a secret government facility where she was a supernatural prodigy of a man she calls "Papa" (Matthew Modine). Meanwhile, Mike's older sister, the straight-laced Nancy (Natalia Dyer), is drawn to bad boy Steve Harrington (Joe Keery) but quickly finds herself playing a key role in discovering the strange things happening in and around Hawkins.

It's not until the beginning of episode three that the show finally offers up its first major hint as to what it is that's happening to Will and in and around Hawkins, and Stranger Things is one quick and wild ride from there. The show begins brilliantly, captivating by way of its authentic period look and feel as well as in the depth and effortlessness of character depiction, the immediacy of its building action, and the thoroughness with which it begins painting its portrait of terror, doubt, friendship, family, and a whole lot more within the structure of its complex but harmoniously presented moving parts. The show is very sure of itself at every turn, even as it treks down a dark, obtuse path that deals not only in general oddities but a much more sinister gaze into black ops, shadow government, MKUltra kind of stuff that puts a believable conspiratorial spin on what's happening. Show creators Matt and Ross Duffer have created an expansive world in a small town with deadly and far-reaching consequences for all who do or suddenly call Hawkins home.

Stranger Things spends most of its time in its present day, but it does fill in a number of character backstories through the use of well timed, brief, and very effective character flashbacks that often in some way parallel current happenings or, just as critical, shape a character so as to better define their motivations in any given scenario. The show offers multiple perspectives through the eyes of a number of primary characters who see their world differently but gradually, and on different time frames and by different motivating and eye-opening circumstances, become attuned to the same truths that hide in the shadows around them. That includes the trio of boys (and Mike in particular), Eleven, Nancy, Joyce, Jonathan, and Chief Hopper. The boys show a childlike enthusiasm in the search for their friend but are forced to grow up rather fast as they find themselves ever deeper in not just the hunt, but in their understanding of the reality in which they quickly find themselves. Eleven's backstory is, of course, the most complex and the one that is least explored through dialogue; she's a quiet character whose actions, both in the present and in flashback past, do speak louder than words. Joyce is quick to come to terms with the truth that something is off and that her son may not be dead or even locked away in some tangible, real place. Jonathan's path to discovery is perhaps the most considered as he's torn between a number of extenuating circumstances while dealing with his overwhelmed and seemingly increasingly crazy mother. Nancy's path towards truth may be the most winding and unexpected. Chief Hopper's dark past and cold determination to get to the bottom of the Byers case makes him the season's most interesting character.

Stranger Things: Season 1 Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Stranger Things was shot at a resolution of 6K, finished at 4K, and was reportedly available on Netflix at 4K, but the studio, in its first Blu-ray release, has opted to offer no UHD. Fortunately, the 1080p Blu-ray is spectacular. Though photographed on video, the show enjoys a fairly convincing filmic texturing. Details are wonderful, capturing the complex essences of various 80's-style homes, cars, clothes, and various odds and ends with ease. Clothing close-ups are perhaps the most revealing. Hopper's police shirt offers incredible fabric density and detail, with patches and pressed lines as tactile and clear as the format allows. Will's makeshift fort in the woods, seen in only a couple of key moments, is a treasure trove of mix and match textural brilliance. Even in darker places and sequences, which are many -- whether in the spartan government lab, woodland areas, lower-light basements -- the image never struggles to present a solidly detailed and tangible world. Black levels, absolutely critical to the show's viability, are fantastically deep and true with only occasional and brief pushes to mild murkiness. Colors are gorgeously saturated and intense, whether large swaths or finer, smaller, but critical colors, like the Byers family telephone that plays a key role earlier in the season. Skin tones appear natural. The opening titles show some intentional speckling, but the image proper is very clean and robust. Though a UHD would have been a most welcome release, Netflix has certainly hit a home run with its 1080p presentation.

Stranger Things: Season 1 Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Stranger Things would have benefited from an Atmos sound mix; right off the bat in episode one the opportunity for a strong overhead component presents itself, as do many more throughout the season. Nevertheless, the included Dolby TrueHD 5.1 lossless soundtrack makes for a very strong presentation on its own merits and capably fills the stage with the show's rich, layered, and often aggressive sound elements. The track presents a number of engaging and environmentally complimenting atmospherics, whether immersive chatter and din at school, distant cries for Will as search teams look for him in the woods, or general woodland atmospherics. Cars zoom through the stage on numerous occasions, rain and thunder saturate at times, and action scenes deliver satisfactorily potent gunfire and immersive chaos that fully engages the subwoofer and the surrounds. Music is fantastic, particularly the John Carpenter-inspired electronic main title theme. Spacing and surround implementation are both fantastic, as is fidelity. A positive usage of dialogue reverberation kicks off episode six. There is a very cool discrete walkie-talkie sound effect 18 minutes into episode seven, and later in that same episode voices encircle the listener with precision movement around the stage. General dialogue is clear and well prioritized with natural front-center positioning.

Stranger Things: Season 1 Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Stranger Things contains no supplemental content, but it does begin with a forced five-minute preview for Stranger Things' second season and Marvel's The Defenders, which is really disappointing not only that they cannot be skipped by fast-forward, chapter forward, or the menu buttons, but because it assumes people sitting down to watch season one want a preview for season two. Some viewers will be coming in blind and not be familiar with the show and not want to see that much of season two ahead of season one. And it's just bad taste to force previews every time a disc is inserted without the option to skip (the discs do have a "resume playback" feature that at least bypasses the ads if the disc is put in the same player). Bad move, Netflix. Worse, there's no supplemental content of any kind on either of the Blu-ray discs, and the studio has opted not to offer a digital copy version for those who would like to watch it on-the-go and who don't subscribe to Netflix.

Now, onto what Netflix did right: the packaging. The studio has released the set, which is currently exclusive to Target, in a package that mimics VHS. It's something Sony recently did with 976-EVIL, though on a much smaller and simpler scale. This one goes full-bore, including the VHS slip box (complete with edges made to appear tattered) and a VHS cassette-styled case inside. To hold the two Blu-ray discs and pair of DVDs that are included, the mock cassette is understandably bigger than a VHS tape. A few pictures (with Stranger Things put up against two films this reviewer would love to see on Blu-ray at some point) are included at the end of the "Screenshots" tab to offer a better idea of the size, both of the tape and of the box proper against a regular VHS and a Disney clamshell. The Blu-ray discs are immediately accessible, staggered, and are easily removable from a foam padding. The DVDs are housed underneath, and on the other side of the "lid" that separates them from the Blu-ray discs is artwork from the show. A poster is also included, folded and placed in a pocket inside the box. The "VHS tape" opens by way of a flap where the the head of the VHS tape would be, and it easily seals shut with a positive magnetic feel.

Stranger Things: Season 1 Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Stranger Things is a modern classic, a quintessential retro show, an homage to so much moviemaking magic, a perfect assemblage of the best parts of so many concepts. A great score, exceptionally conceived characters, wonderful acting, plenty of intrigue, lighting-quick pacing, balanced scares, infectious humor...the show has it all. Season one runs a tidy eight episodes, its Blu-ray (featureless though it may be) boasts tip-top video and audio and awesome packaging, and beyond the shock and amazement and satisfaction and unadulterated childlike enthusiasm for the show, one's first thought upon finishing up season one will inevitably be when is Netflix bringing season two to Blu-ray? Stranger Things earns my highest recommendation.