Them! 4K Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		4.5
Audio		5.0
Extras		2.5
Overall		4.5

Them! 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Gordon Douglas's thirty-sixth feature Them! (1954) was covered by Reviewer Emeritus Michael Reuben nearly eleven years ago. Michael evaluated Warner Bros.' BD-25. To read his opinions of the film and analysis of the disc's a/v presentations, please refer to the linked review.

Don't get too close to its mandibles!

Them! 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Scream Factory's two-disc "Collector's Edition" consists of a 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray and regular Blu-ray combo. The standard case is housed with a slipcover. The transfers are struck from a 4K restoration made from the original camera negative. The UHD is encoded with Dolby Vision (HDR10 compatible). I want to address a mystery that has surrounded Them!'s home video history: the film's original theatrical aspect ratio. Michael notes in his review that the picture's intended ratio is 1.75:1. That may be so, but its exhibition ratio is actually 1.66:1. I found an April 1954 review in Variety where a reviewer listed the following at a preview screening: "Aspect ratio: 1.66-1". Because Scream worked from an OCN, those are likely the dimensions of the image.

I own Warner Home Video's 1991 LaserDisc, which is an open-matte presentation. WB's 2015 Blu-ray is taken from an interpositive and presented in 1.78:1. I have included ten screen captures from each of the older transfers to compare to Scream's UHD. The LD provides more headroom in certain shots (see #s 6, 15, and 18). Scream's transfer, which is measured at precisely 1.67:1, delivers a little more information at the bottom compared to the 1.78:1 (cf. #14 to 13, #17 to 16, and #20 to 19). The LD boasts lots of speckles, debris, splotches, and some tramlines. For instance, note the tramline along the left side of the Ellinson Girl's face (#6) and one coming down the middle of the image (#9). The WB and Scream eliminated those. In addition, the LD has a hair sticking out of the gate at the top (#33). The WB and Scream removed it.

I first looked at the 4K and then re-watched the WB Blu-ray. The latter turned out to be a big step down after viewing the UHD. The grayscale is clearly superior on the Scream. The D.V./HDR really enables depth to stand out. Grain on the WB BD is sometimes clustered and appears flat. I compared the grain on Scream's 4K and BD. It's also rather flat looking on the boutique label's Blu-ray but definitely exhibits more depth on the UHD. Black levels and detail are better on the 4K.

The UHD carries a mean video bitrate of 90.8 Mbps while the entire disc boasts an overall bitrate of 94.0 Mbps. On the standard Blu-rays, the encode and compression are superior on the WB BD. The WB BD-25 (feature size: 20.2 GB) employs the MPEG-4 AVC encode and delivers a rough average video bitrate of 27932 kbps. Scream's BD-25 (feature size: 16.7 GB) utlizes the same codec and sports a standard bitrate of 22890 kbps.

Screenshot #s 1-5, 8, 11, 14, 17, 20, 24, 28, 32, 36, & 40 = Scream Factory 2026 4K Ultra HD BD-66 (1.66:1) (downsampled to 1080p)
Screenshot #s 6, 9, 12, 15, 18, 21, 25, 29, 33, & 37 = Warner Home Video 1991 LaserDisc (1.33:1) (upscaled to 720p)
Screenshot #s 7, 10, 13, 16, 19, 22, 26, 30, 34, & 38 = Warner Bros. 2015 BD-25 (from a 2K restoration) (1.78:1)
Screenshot #s 23, 27, 31, 35, & 39 = Scream Factory 2026 BD-25 (from a 4K restoration) (1.66:1)

Scream's discs have seven chapter breaks. The WB Blu-ray has thirty scene selections.

Them! 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Scream has supplied a DTS-HD Master Audio Dual Mono mix (1565 kbps, 16-bit). I compared this track with the digital PCM 2.0 mix on Warners' LD and the DTS-HD Master Audio Single Mono track (1041 kbps, 24-bit) on the 2015 Blu-ray. The original monaural appears as a stereoized version on the LD. I know this because I could occasionally hear f/x on at least one of my surround speakers. While the LD is a stereo remix, the 1.0 mono on the WB BD is clearly derived from that source. Dialogue is audible all throughout but I had difficulty making out all the words since the audio is mixed low on both the LD and initial BD. The propellers on the airplanes have the loudest f/x.

I am very pleased to report that the 2.0 mono on the Scream discs is indeed a remaster! Spoken words are crisp and noticeably more audible. There's no dynamic range on either of the previous mixes but the dynamics on this new release are highly impressive. The giant ants' tree frog sounds shriek highly. Shots from bazookas and explosions emit very strong bass. Bronislau Kaper's dramatic score sounds warm.

Scream's optional English SDH appear in yellow. They deliver an accurate transcription of the film's dialogue and f/x.

Them! 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Bonus materials have been placed on the Blu-ray.

• NEW THEM! Memories: Interview with Actor Richard Bellis (4:57, 1080p) - Bellis remembers when his mother worked at a Hollywood studio and explains how she helped him to get bit parts in '50s movies. He also recalls the scene that he appeared in Them!. Bellis describes Gordon Douglas's method for getting him to cry in a climatic scene. He also has warm words about Sandy Descher. In English, not subtitled.

• NEW Nameless Terror: Featurette on Director Gordon Douglas & THEM! with Writer Courtney Joyner (17:23, 1080p) - Joyner presents on the state of Warner Bros. in the early '50s. He goes over the careers of David Weisbart, Ted Sherdeman, and Gordon Douglas. He talks briefly about such films as Mara Maru (1952), Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye(1950), and Between Midnight and Dawn (1950). In addition, Joyner explains what makes Them! different from Tarantula and other creature features of that era. In English, not subtitled.

• NEW Entering the Atomic Age: Actor James Arness & Them! (9:40, 1080p) - TV writer/producer Rob Word critiques Jim Arness's performance in Them! and delivers an overview of the films he made with John Wayne. He also discusses the performances of James Whitmore and Fess Parker in Them!. In English, not subtitled.

• Behind-the-Scenes Footage (2:51) - a leftover extra from WB's 2003 DVD. This is a brief compilation of BTS takes of the giant ants in Them!. The segments with the helicopters generate matrixed surround effects. Displayed in 1.33:1.

• Theatrical Trailer (3:17, 1080p) - an original trailer for Them! presented in 1.33:1. While it hasn't been restored, the trailer is in good shape.

Them! 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Them! tapped into audiences' all-consuming fear of the atomic bomb probably better than most films of its ilk. Edmund Gwenn, James Whitmore, and James Arness each delivery excellent performances. The Scream Factory package represents a MASSIVE upgrade over prior release. The movie is finally in its proper aspect ratio and looks spotless save for one small tramline I noticed. The lossless mono mix is so much better than the tracks on the LD and previous Blu-ray! Extras are skimpy but that shouldn't make you hesitate in picking this set up. A STRONG RECOMMENDATION!