Wonders of the Arctic 4K + 3D Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		0.5
Overall		3.0

Wonders of the Arctic 4K + 3D Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman September 15, 2016

If you’re like I am, chances are you have at least one friend or relative whose nonstop global travels and subsequent postings about said travels to various social media outlets lead to what I have jokingly branded as Facebook or Instagram Envy™. One of my nieces lives in London and hops off to various exotic locales at the drop of a veritable hat (bowler?), and her feed on various social media sites is like something out of a travel magazine. More casual friends have flooded my social media feed with unbelievable pictures and videos from places as farflung as a mountaintop monastery in Tibet to the outback of Australia and virtually every place in between. Except—I have yet to have one friend or relative get even close to either one of our planet’s poles, and I don’t think I’ve ever heard of a friend having one of their friends or relatives trek to either of our global great white beyonds, either. That said, films like Antarctica: A Year on Ice and now Wonders of the Arctic make it clear that not only do people visit there, there are actually bonafide residents. That said, as Antarctica: A Year on the Ice makes clear, there is no “native” population there and even “residents” are visitors, more or less, just for various lengths of time. That situation is somewhat different in the Arctic, where the native Inuit attempt to deal with 21st century issues with a perhaps atavistic mindset. As with many of the relatively brief nature themed documentaries that have populated IMAX and other large format venues, Wonders of the Arctic ping pongs between several “personal” stories while doling out copious information about the environment of this mysterious region of Earth, and one of those stories is of an Inuit named Illcook. Both Victor Garber’s narration as well as voiceover by another featured individual, a scientist named Shari, talk about the Inuit’s ability to “weather whisper”, in a manner of speaking, meaning that some Inuit individuals are so attuned to the natural world that they can predict the weather with astonishing accuracy. That ability has been thrown at least somewhat asunder by the climatic changes the Arctic (and indeed the planet as a whole) have been experiencing, and that plays into one of Wonders of the Arctic’s throughlines. Scenic in an awesomely barren sort of way, Wonders of the Arctic manages to present what is in essence an environmental warning video without letting things feel like too much a screed.

Ironically, one of the reasons Wonders of the Arctic may not seem like the cinematic equivalent of someone on their soapbox is because of the glut of interwoven “personal” stories, both human and other species, that this documentary details, in what kind of amounts to the IMAX version of ADHD. What’s a little frustrating about all of this is that a really fascinating documentary probably could have been woven out of folks like Illcook and the whole Inuit culture. Instead we get passing glances at several characters and concepts, but Wonders of the Arctic never really pauses long enough on any one item to fully resonate.

The stories of Shari and Illcook come together in what would seem to be Wonder of the Arctic’s main thrust, that the ice field is changing in some pretty drastic ways. There’s some really interesting footage documenting the way the scientists (along with Inuit elders) are measuring the thickness of the ice shelf. That segues fairly naturally into yet another vignette, this time about an ice breaker who has encountered perhaps encouragingly hard straits of ice to actually break through. Their “progress” of 400 yards in five days and their utter isolation may remind some of the trials and tribulations of Shackleton.

The problem is, virtually as soon as one of these stories is introduced, Wonders of the Arctic is off to explore something else. It may be at least tangentially related to what’s come before (and truthfully the segues here are generally well handled), but those looking for in depth analysis of anything would probably do better to sit down and spend some time with an Inuit “ice talker”. Wonders of the Arctic is scenic in the extreme, and has a glut of transitorily fascinating material, but the catch there is exactly how transitory it all is.

Wonders of the Arctic 4K + 3D Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Note: The included screenshots are sourced from a 1080p Blu-ray disc. Watch for 4K screenshots at a later date.

This two disc version of Wonders of the Arctic contains a 4K UHD disc offering Wonders of the Arctic with an HEVC / H.265 encoded 2160p transfer in 1.85:1, and another standard Blu-ray disc offering AVC (2D) and MVC (3D) encoded 1080p transfers in 1.85:1 (some brief sequences are in other aspect ratios, including some that look like they were sourced from a GoPro or similar device that an anamorphically stretched). This continues the rather interesting marketing approach Shout! Factory has employed with several previous 4K UHD releases, including Flight of the Butterflies 4K + 3D, Humpback Whales 4K + 3D, Journey to Space 4K + 3D and The Last Reef: Cities Beneath the Sea 4K + 3D.

As with Shout!'s other 4K UHD releases, it's possible to watch Wonders of the Arctic in either HDR or SDR, and for me personally, this was one of the most potent if subtle examples of what the difference in dynamic range really means for 4K viewers. As should probably be expected, vast swaths of this documentary feature landscapes that are made almost entirely out of a range of white tones, and while not jaw droppingly different, the HDR viewing experience reveals better nuances and overall fuller gamut of hues, offering at times minute, incremental differences that are somewhat less apparent in the SDR version. Perhaps just a little surprisingly, given the crystal clear ambience of similar sequences in both The Last Reef: Cities Beneath the Sea 4K + 3D and Humpback Whales 4K + 3D, the underwater photography here is just slightly murky looking at times, with less pleasing detail levels than the bulk of the rest of this piece. Some minor and transitory banding are noticeable in the one extended underwater sequence that comes later in the documentary, and the added darkness adds a dusting of noise.

The above water sequences offer some stunning depth of field, though with such vast white spaces, there's a certain homogeneity to what's on view. The best fine detail offerings tend to come from close-ups that offer good looks at some of the furry outfits various people are wearing or even some of the textures on the devices they use to measure the ice shelf. Colors are rather bold when there are colors in this mostly white enterprise. The almost shocking red of the ice breaker in the sequence devoted to it is one of the better examples of vivid saturation in the entire documentary.

Probably due to the fact that there simply isn't much differentiation between foreground and background due to the sameness of the landscape and its tonal similarities, the 3D presentation here struggles to achieve significant, or least consistent, dimensionality. The best depth is achieved when there's a clear foreground element (typically something above and apart from the snowy, icy landscapes) that gives a reference point from which depth can be determined. In those moments, the presentation does offer some nice if hardly overwhelming 3D effects, but this is not a real 3D showcase.

Wonders of the Arctic 4K + 3D Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Wonders of the Arctic features a Dolby Atmos mix (with a Dolby TrueHD 7.1 core) that achieves most of its surround activity courtesy of the typically engaging and diverse score, as well as occasionally evocative sound effects. There's a nice diversity to the music here, with more "rootsy" sounds competing with some traditional symphonic elements. There are occasional fun bouts of low frequency exchanges in the score, as in some kind of funny low brass "farts" during the ice breaker sequence. While subtle, there's appealing spaciousness to effects like the sled dogs howling in the distance as the scientists finagle with their equipment. Otherwise, things are fairly front and center in this mix, with both Victor Garber's narration and other voiceover elements well prioritized and always easy to hear.

For the record, the 4K UHD disc features a French DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track, while its 1080p Blu-ray counterpart offers a French Dolby Digital 5.1 mix. As with previous Shout! releases, a "hidden" English Dolby Digital 5.1 track is accessed for those attempting to watch the 3D version on their PS3.

Wonders of the Arctic 4K + 3D Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Fednav Corporate Promotional Video (1080p; 2:13) is (lest you not "get" the euphemism) a commercial.

Additionally, Trailers for other Shout! releases of IMAX (or other large format) releases are included.

Wonders of the Arctic 4K + 3D Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

One the many vignettes in Wonders of the Arctic actually started to remind me of Ice Road Truckers, which may give at least some indication of how far flung the various story elements in this somewhat unfocused large format nature documentary are. This is another unbelievably scenic achievement, but one which I repeatedly wished would have stopped for a moment on any given story rather than continuing on to the next one, probably nowhere more so than with regard to the Inuit elders, who deserve a documentary of their own. Technical merits are strong, and with caveats noted, Wonders of the Arctic comes Recommended.