The Scorpion King 4K Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		2.0
Overall		3.5

The Scorpion King 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Universal has released Director Chuck Russell's 2002 Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson-starring franchise starter 'The Scorpion King' to the UHD format. The new disc, replacing an aging 2008 Blu-ray (included with purchase), includes 2160p/HDR video and DTS:X audio. No new supplements are included, but the UHD disc does carry over the director commentary.

The Scorpion King 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The included screenshots are sourced from a 1080p Blu-ray disc..

The Scorpion King isn't exactly a stunner of a movie from a purely visual perspective. It's mostly made of shades of earthen brown and beige with sporadic scenes lit warmly by sun or candle inside or under the darkness of the night sky. The film still translates very well to the UHD format and while it benefits from the improved resolution and HDR colors it's not colorfully top-tier reference material by its very nature. Of first note is that it looks as if there's been a little clean-up work performed, or this is sourced from an entirely different master. On the Blu-ray, there are several black pops and splotches appearing around the 16:10 mark and some vertical lines, most noticeable towards the bottom of the screen, in the wider shot to follow. Those are both absent on the UHD. That same shot is, coincidentally, one of the more dramatic examples of the greatly improved sharpness, bringing the somewhat fuzzy background rocks and flat terrain to life with astonishing adds to visibility and total clarity, allowing the viewer to get a fuller feel for the lay of the land and catch the stonier sharpness at work in the foreground and the background. Indeed, the UHD fares best under the bright sun and out in the open, where viewers will spot oftentimes dramatic increases in visible skin definition, armor detail, and natural formation clarity. The movie can be tack-sharp but does hold to some of the softness inherent to the film source around some edges and backgrounds. The image further offers improved compression with reductions or removals of the rather faint, but sometimes evident, macroblocking that lingers across some of the backdrops on the Blu-ray.

The HDR color enhancements bring the wider color spectrum that obviously can't fundamentally change the barren, earthy tones but that does offer more precise tonal nuance to rocks, clothes, and sporadic examples of natural greens or more brightly colored fabrics. Blue skies find a notable, but not always substantially altered, color depth. There's a fairly dramatic toning down of red and warmer pushes on the UHD. It's a less intense image, one that is brighter (which includes black levels that are deep but not quite so absorbing) and more balanced across those sun-baked earthen hues. Characters that appeared sunburned in places before now find a more agreeable balance and the great increase to tonal variation and fine-point nuance helps bring the movie alive even without a significant push of more intense colors.

The Scorpion King 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The track is almost comically amplified. It's fun and robust and has no qualms about throwing anything and everything into, through, and out of every speaker in the DTS:X Master Audio configuration. The opening scene features bladed weapons hurtling through the air, chandeliers crashing from above, men tossed here and there, punches landing, swoops swishing, and explosions rocking the listening area. From this scene forward there's no shortage of sonic delight, and it's the same thing for the duration: an exceptional symphony of clanking metal, whooshing arrows, intensely wide music, healthy (but not overpowering) bass, and seamlessly blended yet still very prominent surround support. Bustling market din in chapter seven is incredibly vibrant and detailed, with individual sounds clear and audible through the din but also blending other sounds into a symphony of cluttered audio. But the highlight comes in action, and there's just no lack of sonic stuff thrown out of the speakers. Detailed, well prioritized, and center-focused dialogue round a fun track into nearly perfect form.

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

The Scorpion King's UHD disc carries over the audio commentary track with Director Chuck Russell that was included on the 2008 Blu-ray and is also present on the bundled Blu-ray, which appears to be identical to the 2008 disc. That means it also carries over the picture-in-picture behind-the-scenes "U-Control" functionality. No new extras are included on either disc. This release ships with a Movies Anywhere digital copy code. It also ships with an embossed slipcover.

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

Overall, this is a very healthy UHD upgrade when compared to a Blu-ray that is more than a decade old and looked fairly good then but pales in comparison to this release. Bright daytime scenes fare much better than darker, murkier ones, but viewers will find strong-to-exceptional adds to overall clarity, sharpness, and color precision. It looks practically brand new in most scenes. HDR colors offer greater tonal intricacies and tone down the more intense red pushes that are predominant throughout the Blu-ray. Blacks are more balanced as are skin tones. The audio is fun, a bit crude but effective in throwing sound all over the place with good clarity and definition. The UHD brings no new extras, but fans will find this to be a worthwhile upgrade in total. Recommended.