The Cabin in the Woods 4K Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.5
Audio		5.0
Extras		2.5
Overall		4.0

The Cabin in the Woods 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

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).

The Cabin in the Woods 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.

The Cabin in the Woods is presented on 4K UHD courtesy of Lionsgate Films with a 2160p transfer in 2.40:1. Shot on film and finished at a 2K DI, The Cabin in the Woods offers noticeable if sometimes fairly subtle upticks in detail levels, sometimes kind of unexpectedly, as in the kind of viscous texture of the liquid underlying the very first credits sequence. Reds are especially vivid throughout this presentation courtesy of HDR, and there are some interesting new yellowish tones when the cabin is first spotted. There's a lot of fairly dark material scattered throughout the film, and while grain resolves naturally even in these darker moments, blacks looked a bit on the milky side to me. Shadow definition is at least incrementally increased in the 4K UHD presentation. Fine detail is often excellent in close-ups, and the CGI (especially in the endgame) looks surprisingly sharp and well detailed throughout.

The Cabin in the Woods 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

I gave The Cabin in the Woods' Blu-ray DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 track top marks in my review, and that excellence is only elevated (quite literally at times, given the overhead sonics) in the 4K UHD's nicely immersive Dolby Atmos track. As I mentioned in the The Cabin in the Woods Blu-ray review, when the startle effect and main title appear in the middle of a seemingly comic office scene, it's clear the sound design is going to be an extremely energetic affair, and with the added impact of the Atmos channels, things zoom through and over the general soundstage with enjoyable consistency. There is regular discrete placement of effects, including new midair renderings once things start to go haywire at the cabin, and everything is rendered with crystal clear fidelity and superb dynamic range. The film's manic final sequences provide a near glut of surround activity.

The Cabin in the Woods 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Almost all of the supplements detailed in our The Cabin in the Woods Blu-ray review are ported over to the 4K UHD disc. Only the PiP It's Not What You Think is absent, though it is of course available on the standard 1080p Blu-ray disc included with this release.

The Cabin in the Woods 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

The Cabin in the Woods is an extremely playful (if bloody) romp through several horror movie tropes, albeit replete with a meta aspect that will play especially well for genre aficionados. This 4K UHD version's strongest new aspect may be the Dolby Atmos audio, though there are improvements in the video presentation as well.