Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.5
Audio		5.0
Extras		4.5
Overall		4.0

The Piano 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov January 13, 2022

Jane Campion's "The Piano" (1993) arrives on 4K Blu-ray/Blu-ray courtesy of Criterion. The supplemental features on the release include new program with the director; new program with cinematographer Stuart Dryburgh; archival interviews with costumer designer Janet Patterson, production designer Andrew McAlpine, and composer Michael Nyman; short film; vintage trailer; and more. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.

In the United States, Jane Campion's The Piano was initially made available on Blu-ray by Lionsgate Home Entertainment. For an in-depth analysis of the film, please see Jeffrey Kauffman's review of this release here.

The Piano 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Criterion's release of The Piano is a 4K Blu-ray/Blu-ray combo pack. The 4K Blu-ray and Blu-ray offer presentations of the recent 4K restoration of the film.

The following text appears inside the leaflet that is provided with this release:

"This new 4K digital transfer was created in Dolby Vision HDR (high dynamic range) 16-bit 4K resolution on an ARRISCAN film scanner from the original 35mm A/B negatives at Fixafilm in Canbera, Australia. The color grading was supervised and approved by director Jane Campion and director of photography Stuart Dryburgh. A 35mm print from the collection of the Academy Film Archive was used as a color-grading reference. On the 4K Blu-ray disc, the feature is presented in Dolby Vision HDR. On the Blu-ray, it is presented in high-definition SDR (standard dynamic range). The original soundtrack was remastered from the two-inch 24-track magnetic track.

Transfer supervisors: Jane Campion, Stuart Dryburgh.
Colorists: Roman Hankewycz, Joe Gawler/Harbor Picture Company, New York.
Scanning: Peter Richards/Fixafilm."

I viewed the new restoration with with Dolby Vision enabled. The entire film looks very healthy now and boasts an all-around balanced visual appearance that can be quite striking on a larger screen. The outdoor daylight footage, in particular, looks simply terrific. Delineation, clarity, and depth are predictably excellent, fluidity is very strong, too. Some of the biggest improvements, however, are in the color scheme, where there are new and expanded ranges of primaries and supporting nuances. The current color scheme is clearly better than what has been seen on previous home video releases of The Piano. However, I feel that there are a few areas where saturation levels become a tad too strong. One example can be seen around the 0:16:00 mark. (Oddly, in 1080p the same footage actually looks better balanced). Also, there are a few other areas where light cyan-ish hues, which are part of the film's native appearance, become a tad too prominent as well. (See screencapture #11). But the overall technical presentation of the film is still very strong and convincing, so the 4K Blu-ray release clearly represents a massive upgrade in quality. (Note: The 4K Blu-ray disc is Region-Free. However, the Blu-ray disc is Region-A "locked").

The Piano 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (48kHz, 24-bit). Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature.

The 5.1 track is outstanding. There are quite a few sequences where the crashing waves, random nature sounds, and Michael Nyman's soundtrack produces some pretty impressive contrasts. I don't know how this 5.1 track compares to the ones that were present on the more recent releases of The Paino from StudioCanal, but I think that its quality is excellent. There are no technical anomalies to report.

The Piano 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

4K BLU-RAY DISC

• Commentary - in this archival audio commentary, Jane Campion and producer Jan Chapman share plenty of information about the conception of The Piano and its characterizations, the manner in which particular sequences were lensed, the important role of sound and silence, Anna Paquin's performance, what it was like being and shooting in the bush, etc. The commentary was recorded in 2006.

BLU-RAY DISC

• Commentary - in this archival audio commentary, Jane Campion and producer Jan Chapman share plenty of information about the conception of The Piano and its characterizations, the manner in which particular sequences were lensed, the important role of sound and silence, Anna Paquin's performance, what it was like being and shooting in the bush, etc. The commentary was recorded in 2006.

• Jane Campion and Amy Taubin - in this new program, Jane Campion and Amy Taubin discuss the production and success of The Piano. There are some quite interesting comments about the landscape that is seen in the film and the manner in which it affects its atmosphere. The program was produced in 2021. In English, not subtitled. (27 min).

• Inside "The Piano" - this archival program examines the genesis of The Piano. Included in it are clips from interviews with Jane Campion, Holly Hunter, Harvery Keitel, and Sam Neill, amongst others. The program was produced in 1993. In English, not subtitled. (16 min).

• "The Piano": 25 Years On - in this archival program, Jane Campion and producer Jan Chapman recall their collaboration on The Piano. The program was shot in 2018 at Karekare Beach in New Zealand, one of the film's locations. In English, not subtitled. (31 min).

• Holly Hunter - in this archival interview, Holly Hunter discusses her work with Jane Campion during the shooting of The Piano. The interview was conducted by Alicia Malone from FilmStruck in 2018. In English, not subtitled. (24 min).

• Michael Nyman - in this archival interview, composer Michael Nyman recalls his initial impressions of the original screenplay for The Piano and discusses his approach to scoring the film as well as some of the unique challenges he faced. The interview was conducted in 2005. In English, not subtitled. (24 min).

• Stuart Dryburgh - in this exclusive new interview, cinematographer Stuart Dryburgh discusses the visual appearance of The Piano and working relationship with Jane Campion. The interview was conducted in 2021. In English, not subtitled. (10 min).

• Andrew McAlpine - in this exclusive new interview, production designer Andrew McAlpine discusses the unique sets that were created for The Piano. The interview was conducted in 2021. In English, not subtitled. (13 min).

• Janet Patterson - in this archival audio interview, costumer designer Janet Patterson discusses the Victorian-era costumes that are seen in The Piano. The interview was conducted by actor Adam Bowen for the Oral History program at Australia's National Film and Sound Archive in 2015. In English, not subtitled. (18 min).

• Waihoroi Shortland - in this exclusive new interview, Maori actor Waihoroi Shortland discusses his contribution as an adviser on The Piano. The interview was conducted in Auckland, New Zealand in 2021. In English, not subtitled. (15 min).

• The Water Diary (2006) - Jane Campion directed this short film about a child's experience of life during a period of drought. It stars the director's daughter, Alice Englert. In English, not subtitled. (18 min).

• Trailer - an original trailer for The Piano. In English, not subtitled. (3 min).

• Leaflet - an illustrated leaflet featuring critic Carmen Gray's essay "Gothic Gone South" and technical credits.

The Piano 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

I find the visual appearance and some of the ambience of The Piano a lot more attractive than its story, which is probably the main reason why I don't have a very good relationship with it. To be entirely honest, it is just one of those acclaimed films that I find awfully difficult to revisit. This upcoming 4K Blu-ray/Blu-ray combo release introduces an exclusive new 4K restoration of The Piano that was supervised and approved by director Jane Campion and cinematographer Stuart Dryburgh. It is the best presentation of the film to emerge on the home video market to date. RECOMMENDED.