6.8 | / 10 |
Users | 4.5 | |
Reviewer | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
With the emergence of the world's first mutant, Apocalypse, the X-Men must unite to defeat his extinction level plan.
Starring: James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, Jennifer Lawrence, Nicholas Hoult, Oscar IsaacAction | 100% |
Adventure | 92% |
Sci-Fi | 78% |
Comic book | 70% |
Fantasy | 69% |
Supernatural | 3% |
Period | 2% |
Video codec: MPEG-4 MVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.40:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1
Spanish: Dolby Digital 5.1
French: DTS 5.1
Portuguese: Dolby Digital 5.1
Russian: DTS 5.1
Ukrainian: Dolby Digital 5.1
English SDH, French, Portuguese, Spanish, Danish, Finnish, Latvian, Lithuanian, Norwegian, Russian, Swedish, Ukrainian
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Two-disc set (2 BDs)
UV digital copy
Blu-ray 3D
Slipcover in original pressing
Region A, B (C untested)
Movie | 3.5 | |
Video | 5.0 | |
Audio | 5.0 | |
Extras | 3.5 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
Does it even matter anymore which timeline, arc and/or universe X-Men: Apocalypse is a part of? In a franchise so stuffed to its gills with characters, individual storylines, ping ponging eras and actual completely different outcomes for various characters (depending on which timeline is being detailed), it may simply not be feasible any longer to try to get everything to make “sense”. That may be one reason why parts of X- Men: Apocalypse seem almost like yet another reboot of The Mummy (maybe with just a hint of Darth Vader thrown in for good measure), with an ancient Egyptian mutant resurrected in the 1980s and havoc of course therefore being wreaked. X-Men: Apocalypse had its own “end of the world” (or at least end of the franchise) traumas when it was released to critical assessment that was less uniformly enthusiastic than many of the previous X-Men films had enjoyed, and at least part of that reaction may be due to the fact that at this point in the franchise’s history, there are so many competing stories that watching any given X-Men outing is like experiencing the cinematic equivalent of ADHD. Despite that somewhat frayed ambience, there’s no denying that X-Men: Apocalypse has a lot of exciting elements, and it’s also clear that director Bryan Singer has lost none of his passion for the franchise, one he’s credited with resuscitating with X-Men: Days of Future Past. And in fact X- Men: Apocalypse can be seen as a sequel of sorts to that film, using its story set in the 1970s as the background for events that take place around a decade later. Before that can happen, though, the film indulges in some Egyptology, with a prelude that introduces this film’s arch- villain, the supposed “Patient Zero” of mutant-dom, En Sabah Nur (Oscar Isaac), a superpowered baddie who has all sorts of special talents, but who is nonetheless unable to attain immortality, something which forces him to transfer his consciousness into new, younger bodies at regular intervals. Such a ritual is in process as the film begins, but evidently the rank and file Egyptians, or at least a renegade group of them, are having none of it, and they attempt to interrupt the transfer before it’s complete. That leaves an apparently moribund En Sabah Nur buried in the wreckage of a pyramid that experiences an implosion worthy of a Las Vegas hotel being decimated to make room for something grander. Of course, En Sabah Nur isn’t quite dead yet (to purloin a phrase), and his “awakening” several millennia later is a major spark setting the end of the world conflagrations aflame as the film continues.
X-Men: Apocalypse 3D is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment with an MVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.40:1. This package also comes with a standard 2D Blu-ray, and for my thoughts on the "flat" presentation I refer you to our X-Men: Apocalypse Blu-ray review. The IMDb lists this as having been natively shot in 3D at a 6K source resolution with Red Cameras, though their data is a bit unclear as to whether this was finished at a 2K or 4K DI (two listings are there). One way or the other, this is one of the clearest and most convincing 3D SFX spectaculars in recent memory, one which may not provide totally consistent dimensionality (more about that in a moment), but which nonetheless often hits things out of the ballpark (and directly at the viewer's nose, so to speak). Even the boot menu on the disc has some fun 3D effects, but as soon as the film proper segues to Ancient Egypt, it's clear that dimensional planes are well defined and the depth within the frame is frequently very remarkable. However (and this is a fairly minor however), there are moments even from this first sequence, where things look strangely flat, if only in passing. A couple of the exterior shots of the pyramid (to cite just one example) might just as well be in 2D for all the depth they offer. The credits sequence, with its telescoping, kaleidoscopic trip through a kind of wending portal, is also a riot of dimensional depth. For those who like things protruding out of the screen, there are a number of standout (no pun intended) moments, some of which involve the jet our heroes employ but which can just as often be something a bit less showy like the debris Erik sends into a whirlwind through his "gravitational experiments". The film's pretty aggressive color grading and some lengthy darker segments tend to work against the perception of depth, but even here smart placement of foreground objects can clearly delineate spatial planes and give at least a semblance of visual immersion.
X-Men: Apocalypse features a boisterous DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 track that provides consistent immersion and some knockout sound effects
marauding through the side and rear channels. This tendency is on display from the first sequence, where the magical transfusion of consciousness is
attended by some cool panning noises, and then the calamitous destruction of the pyramid features an onslaught of LFE. The low end on this track is
repeatedly quite impressive, especially in some of the "magnetic" effects that Erik displays. Big set pieces that include the X-Men's jet offer great
swooping pans with some very forceful low end. (There are actually some very fun panning noises in the whirlwind opening credits sequence as well.)
Dialogue is very cleanly rendered and always well prioritized, even in noisy sequences that offer a glut of sound effects.
Note: As tends to be the case with Fox 3D/2D combo packs, the audio and subtitle specs are not the same on the 3D and 2D discs. The specs
above reference the 3D disc. For the options on the 2D disc, please see that review (linked above in the video section).
Note: All of the supplements are on the 2D Blu-ray disc. The 3D Blu-ray disc has no supplemental material.
- Concept Art
- Unit Photography
In any other franchise, X-Men: Apocalypse 3D might have been better appreciated for juggling so many storylines and characters, but the irony is that Singer set such an incredibly high bar for himself with Days of Future Past that this film was perhaps fated to appear less fulfilling. Still, even with its haphazard careening from character to character and plot point to plot point, there's a lot of exciting action going on, even if there's a similar lack of emotional tether to much of anything. Technical merits are first rate, the 3D is often stellar, and the supplements, while not overwhelmingly bounteous, are enjoyable as well. Recommended.
2016
2016
2016
Limited Edition
2016
2016
+Fandango Cash & Exclusive Decal
2016
Icons
2016
Deadpool Photobomb Series
2016
Deadpool Photobomb Sleeve
2016
The Rogue Cut
2014
2011
Cinematic Universe Edition
2019
Cinematic Universe Edition
2016
2013
2015
Cinematic Universe Edition
2017
Cinematic Universe Edition
2018
2019
2021
2017
15th Anniversary Edition
2004
Icons
2000
Extended TV Cut & Special Edition
1978
2013
2015
2007
2016
2018
Cinematic Universe Edition
2012