The Tiger: An Old Hunter's Tale Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.5
Extras		0.5
Overall		3.0

The Tiger: An Old Hunter's Tale Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman May 1, 2020

The Tiger tells a rather straightforward story on one level as it documents the potential extinction of a breed of tigers, but it's the symbolism in this film which may be both its greatest asset as well as its greatest liability. This is a visually arresting film that probably strives a bit too obviously to offer meanings that may resonate a bit better with the film's native Korean audiences. Westerners can still enjoy the scenery, though, even if it's sometimes filled with a marauding tiger or two.

The Tiger was released some time ago on Blu-ray for the North American market, and for those wanting more of a plot recap, I refer you to my The Tiger Blu-ray review. That review can also provide a good resource for comparisons of screenshots, technical information and supplemental material.

The Tiger: An Old Hunter's Tale Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The Tiger is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Eureka! Entertainment with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.39:1. This presentation is very much in line with the release for the North American market, with generally excellent detail levels and some nice fine detail in the many close-ups. That said, this presentation was a bit less pleasing to me, with occasional compression issues that show up in some darker scenes, where splotchiness or even near pixellation can momentarily intrude, typically in the corners of the frame. My score is 4.25.

The Tiger: An Old Hunter's Tale Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

This disc's DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 sounded very like the track on the Blu-ray release for the North American market, with occasional bursts of energy, but good general immersion granted courtesy of a glut of ambient environmental effects. All dialogue is presented cleanly and clearly throughout this problem free track.

The Tiger: An Old Hunter's Tale Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Teaser Trailer (HD; 00:30)


• Theatrical Trailer (HD; 1:24)

The Tiger: An Old Hunter's Tale Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

If The Tiger had trusted its audience enough to simply present its rather riveting focal story, the "meta" aspects probably would have been just as apparent, at least for those prone to look for them. But this film is often almost pushy in how it wants to inject symbolism into the story, and the result is often overwrought feeling. Still, this film is a really ravishing (if at times disturbing) viewing experience, and that core story is riveting. Technical merits are generally solid, and with caveats noted, The Tiger comes Recommended.