8.3 | / 10 |
Users | 4.0 | |
Reviewer | 4.5 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
Sci-Fi | 100% |
Mystery | 23% |
Western | 14% |
Drama | Insignificant |
Video codec: HEVC / H.265
Video resolution: 4K (2160p)
Aspect ratio: 2.39:1, 1.78:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.78:1
English: Dolby Atmos
English: Dolby TrueHD 7.1 (48kHz, 24-bit)
French: Dolby Digital 5.1
German: Dolby Digital 5.1
English SDH, French, German SDH, Spanish, Cantonese, Danish, Dutch, Finnish, Korean, Norwegian, Swedish
Blu-ray Disc
Six-disc set (6 BDs)
Digital copy
4K Ultra HD
Region A, B (C untested)
Movie | 4.5 | |
Video | 5.0 | |
Audio | 5.0 | |
Extras | 3.0 | |
Overall | 4.5 |
What's in a name? Fans of Peter Pan author J.M. Barrie may
be acquainted with
another of Barrie’s stage successes which went on to enjoy several film (and television) adaptations, The Admirable Crichton. What some may not know is that
there was an actual, honest to goodness real life person who had earned that nickname centuries before the Barrie play co-opted it. James
Crichton was a 16th century genius whose interests were so varied and far reaching that they became the stuff of legend even before he
was murdered (possibly by the son of his patron) at the tender age of 22. For those of you who put stock in things like surnames, another
Crichton, Michael, would seem to be a spiritual if not actual relative of James, since Michael, too, was a genius with interests that spanned a huge
gamut of subjects and whose multimedia achievements would certainly qualify as being admirable. Among Crichton’s protean accomplishments
were any number of novels that combined science fact with science fiction, often in
a context of mystery and intrigue, including such well remembered works as The Andromeda Strain, The Terminal
Man, and probably most famously
Jurassic Park. Crichton’s overwhelming
success with The Andromeda Strain most likely helped grease the wheels for a rather audacious debut as a writer and director for film
with
Westworld in 1973, in a story that actually presaged at least
some salient plot points of Jurassic Park, including a high tech amusement emporium where technology most definitely goes awry.
Westworld was followed three years later by Futureworld
(which did not have the imprimatur of Crichton). Though few may remember it, this HBO Westworld was not the first television
adaptation and/or continuation of the stories told in Westworld and Futureworld, as there was a very short lived
television series called Beyond Westworld which ran for only three episodes on CBS in 1980 before it was quickly canceled (kind of
incredibly,
Warner Archive has released Beyond
Westworld: The Complete Series on DVD).
For those interested in our coverage of previous seasons, please click on the following links:
Westworld: Season One Blu-ray review
Westworld: Season One 4K Blu-ray review
Westworld: Season Two Blu-ray review
Westworld: Season Two 4K Blu-ray review
Note: Screenshots are sourced from 1080 Blu-ray discs.
Westworld Season Three: The New World is presented in 4K UHD courtesy of HBO and Warner Brothers Home Entertainment with a 2160p
transfer (mostly) in 1.78:1 (as mentioned above, some moments, often involving Maeve, shift into a 2.39:1 aspect ratio). While the
majority of this season was shot on good old fashioned film, location shooting in nighttime or dimly lit environments necessitated some digital capture
this year, as is mentioned in
this interview
with cinematographer Paul Cameron I found while doing background research for this review. The upgrade in detail and some of the new highlights
courtesy of Dolby Vision make this another outstanding 4K UHD presentation for this frequently luxe looking series. Fine detail enjoys a measurable
uptick, including everything from the animated interstitials detailing things like "divergence", which now have an almost granular precision, or more
practical elements, like the baroque stonework in the village in the World War II sequences. There are all sorts of standout examples of increased fine
detail, including mundane items like the pattern on the thermal undershirt Bernard wears to the intricate patterns of windows on some of the futuristic
skyscrapers. Seemingly mundane items like the "pearls" that play such an important part in the story also have a much more palpable
looking texture with the increased resolution of this presentation. HDR is rather expressive as well, and that extends not just to the blue, green and
teal tones that I mentioned in our Westworld: Season
Three Blu-ray review of the 1080 version, but also quite noticeably in some of the white and beige material that's so prevalent in some of the
Delos scenes featuring Charlotte. Grain is typically very finely resolved, but can be more noticeable against brighter skies. There is some occasional
crush in the darkest moments, with an early example being the black dress Dolores wears in the opening episode's pre-credits sequence, which tends to
become one with the nighttime backgrounds in a couple of shots.
Westworld Season Three: The New World takes the 1080 presentation's already excellent DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track and literally elevates it with this version's Dolby Atmos rendering. Engagement of the Atmos channels is nicely consistent, and in fact it seems that many episodes have been designed to open with overhead effects. There are some expected uses, as in some of the World War II material, where sounds of overhead flights are noticeable (including what sounds like an anachronistic helicopter rotor). But there are some other rather cool uses, including some of the maybe, maybe not voices William is maybe, maybe not hallucinating, or even a nice opening that sees Charlotte attempting to deliver a message during a maelstrom. The use of "airpods" to transport people also provide both overhead activity and some well rendered panning effects. LFE is nicely mixed with the underscore at times to offer some subliminal angst. Dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly throughout. When various episodes veer into non-English territory, subtitles appear automatically, but there are optional English subtitles (in addition to other languages) available for the presentation as a whole.
Both the 4K UHD and 1080 discs in this package sport the same supplements:
Disc One
- Parce Domine (1080p; 6:36)
- The Winter Line (1080p; 7:18)
- The Absence of Field (1080p; 6:05)
- Genre (1080p; 3:54)
- Decoherence (1080p; 4:48)
- Evan Rachel Wood and Aaron Paul - Analysis (1080p; 3:46)
- Evan Rachel Wood and Aaron Paul - Who Said It? (1080p; 3:43)
- Thandie Newton and Tessa Thompson - Analysis (1080p; 3:22)
- Thandie Newton and Tessa Thompson - Who Said It? (1080p; 2:57)
- Passed Pawn (1080p; 4:09)
- Crisis Theory (1080p; 9:03)
Westworld continues to surprise, and if this season doesn't quite have the mindbending qualities of the second season, it's still a multilayered trek through both reality and illusion, with a nice helping of metaphysics as everything from consciousness to predestination gets explored. Performances continue to be involving, and the series has one of the more elegant aesthetic sensibilities of anything on either broadcast or cable television right now. This 4K UHD presentation ups the ante in both the video and audio departments, while also offering the same supplements that are on the (also included) 1080 discs. Highly recommended.
2016
2016
2016
2016
with Ready Player One Movie Money
2016
2016-2022
2018
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2018
with Bonus Disc
2018
2018
2018
2020
2020
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2022
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2011
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2010
2015
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15th Anniversary Edition
2002
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2018
2023
10th Anniversary Edition
2009
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2014
1973