X2: X-Men United 4K Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.5
Audio		5.0
Extras		0.5
Overall		4.0

X2: X-Men United 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman September 24, 2018

Note: This 4K UHD version of the film is available as part of X-Men Trilogy 4K.

Perhaps surprisingly, given how frequently my review queue has recently been filled with 4K UHD releases that are at least tangentially tied to promotional efforts for some upcoming film (e.g., Halloween 4K ), there don’t appear to be any new X-Men movies on the horizon until 2019, when both Dark Phoenix and The New Mutants are slated to debut. With eleven films thus far in the expanding X-Men franchise, and with much of the oxygen for the series given over to Logan and Deadpool 2, at least for the last couple of years, it’s actually kind of refreshing to revisit the first three films and marvel (pun unavoidable if unintended) at the complex stories the initial trilogy tell, all while introducing an almost ungainly number of characters, most of whom are finely drawn and almost instantly distinctive. These new 4K UHD presentations all offer at least subtle upticks in detail and palette nuance, but some curmudgeons may be at least slightly disappointed that there are no “new, improved” audio options available. For those who like to stay ensconced on their home theater couches and not have to change discs, some may also find the fact the the 4K UHD discs only offer the commentary tracks as supplements may be at least a bit of a downside as well.

For those wanting to reacquaint themselves with the plot dynamics of X2: X-Men United, I refer you to my colleague Martin Liebman's X2: X-Men United Blu-ray review of the original 1080p Blu-ray version. Note that the 1080p video and audio scores are ported over from Marty's review of the original Blu-ray release.

X2: X-Men United 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Note: Screenshots are sourced from the 1080p Blu-ray.

X2: X-Men United is presented on 4K UHD courtesy of 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment with a 2160p transfer in 2.39:1. While reportedy given a new 4K scan, detail and fine detail aren't quite at the levels seen in the 4K scan of the first X-Men film. There are also step ups in grain thickness throughout all three films in this series, with X-Men 4K having what to my eyes was the finest looking grain field, and with X2: X-Men United exhibiting a somewhat coarser if still natural looking grain field from the first "real" sequence in the White House. Grain is extremely noticeable and some may feel slightly noisy looking in some of the snow strewn scenes, where the white backgrounds probably tend to make it even more prevalent seeming. Interestingly, at least some of the CGI, as in the "mists" and "cosmic doin's" of the opening narration are at least somewhat more detailed looking than in the 1080p version. As with the first film in 4K UHD, while there is some really appealing uptick in fine detail levels (the patterns on Alan Cumming's face is just one notable example), it's the palette that may strike some as providing the most "new, improved" impact. The burnished interiors of Charles' mansion acquire a new luster in this presentation, with some really appealing golden honey tones, and some of the reds during a Professor X telepathy sequence are also more vividly suffused in this version. One thing I noticed in watching the film for the first time in many years is how the cool blues and grays of the first film still inhabit the first half to two thirds of this film, but that slowly greens begin to intrude, and the kind of weirdly alien looking tones in several underground lairs feature some really interesting, almost yellowish, highlights in this version. There are a couple of noticeably ragged looking moments of CGI, two involving a dam that will play a tangential part in the story. The first appearance of the dam is in a sequence introducing Wolverine, and even in the background it looks like a not very well done matte painting. The final scene of the film, which features the dam in a bit of a state of disrepair (yes, that's a joke) is almost shockingly soft and artificial looking, something that the increased resolution of the 4K UHD disc only tends to point up.

X2: X-Men United 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

This release contains the same excellent DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track from the original 1080p Blu-ray release which Marty assessed in his X2: X-Men United Blu-ray review. As excellent as this track undeniably is, as I mentioned in the X-Men 4K Blu-ray review, audiophiles like yours truly may still be wondering what an upgraded Dolby Atmos or DTS:X mix might have added to the proceedings.

X2: X-Men United 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Only the Commentary by Bryan Singer and Tom Sigel has been ported over to the 4K UHD disc.

X2: X-Men United 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

X2: X-Men United started a rather nice trend in at least some corners of this franchise where second "at bats" came pretty darned close to matching the efforts of the first outing (as in the case of Deadpool 2). This 4K UHD version provides another nice uptick in video quality, even if it's arguably just a tad less well defined than the results seen in the first film. As with the other two films in this new 4K UHD package, audio has not been upgraded, but is still excellent, and only the commentary track is provided on the 4K UHD disc as a supplement.