Rating summary
| Movie |  | 4.0 |
| Video |  | 0.0 |
| Audio |  | 4.5 |
| Extras |  | 3.0 |
| Overall | | 4.0 |
The Departed 4K Blu-ray Movie Review
Now shipping up to Boston (or anywhere else.)
Reviewed by Randy Miller III April 18, 2024
Released alongside the standard UHD
edition next week, Warner Bros. also offers Martin Scorsese's 2006 crime drama The Departed as a 4K Steelbook variant. Featuring the
same new 2160p/HDR transfer and a small collection of extras (including a new retrospective featurette with the director), this is a solid catalog
upgrade for a film that helped launch the Blu-ray format in its very first year. The only differences here are packaging and about five extra bucks.
For a synopsis and critique of the main feature, I'll refer you all the way back to Greg Maltz's 2007 review of WB's still fairly new
Blu-ray. (My recent review of the
standard UHD edition also offers a few
thoughts by yours truly.) Please note that neither the standard 4K or this Steelbook include a Blu-ray copy of
The Departed, remastered or
recycled.
The Departed 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality
For my thoughts on the film's new 2160p/HDR10 transfer, see my review of WB's standard UHD edition.
The Departed 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality
While The Departed's new master may wring slightly more sonic juice from its source elements, the UHD's DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio mix feels
overwhelmingly similar in tone and intensity to the older Blu-ray's lossless PCM 5.1 counterpart. A full Dolby Atmos remix might have been fun to hear too... but given the studio's
questionable track record for catalog releases, I'm more than happy with the original. (And no unnecessary Dolby Digital 5.1 track this time!)
Optional English and Spanish dubs and subtitles are also offered. Sorry, 22.8% of Canada -- no French this time.
The Departed 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras
This one-disc release ships in a matte-finish Steelbook with much darker cover design elements than than wide-release UHD, though both share a
similar style and unceremoniously exclude Marky Mark. The back cover depicts a few rats as seen in the film's infamous final frames, and the interior
splash image features all four main players as seen on the new menu interface (screenshot #10). It's a decent-looking Steelbook, but more creativity
would've been nice.
On-disc bonus features are identical to the standard UHD edition.
The Departed 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation
It may or not be a great film, but Martin Scorsese's The Departed is at least a very good film with plenty of character-driven
intrigue, all-in performances by a stacked cast, and many of the famed director's (and his editor's) most familiar touches. I like it well enough while
still not putting The Departed on the top shelf alongside his best-remembered films, but it's certainly nice to finally have on UHD. Warner
Bros.' 4K edition offers a solid amount of support including a fine new transfer and decent extras, and this Steelbook variant will certainly tempt
packaging collectors too.
