Yesterday 4K Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		4.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		3.5
Overall		4.0

Yesterday 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

All you need is 4K.

Reviewed by Martin Liebman September 19, 2019

Imagine a world without The Beatles. What would no "Yesterday" mean for "today?" It might not make a lick of difference in the grand scheme of things, but it might make all the difference to one man's heart. That's the story of Director Danny Boyle's heartwarming alternate reality love story Yesterday, a story telling one man's journey to fame and self discovery through the lens of one big hole in the music universe and one gigantic lie eating away at his heart. Boyle builds a well paced story of meaning through music and truth through falsehood when one man finds an end-around to living his dream but coming to realize that he wasn't pursuing the proper goal for his life all along.

Jack Malik (Himesh Patel) stocks shelves by day and daydreams about becoming a famous musician. He believes in himself, and his best friend and manager Ellie Appleton (Lily James) believes in him, too. But nobody else does. Jack feels he’s reached the end of his dream. “It will take a miracle” he says, to become a star. His miracle takes the form of a blackout, a bicycle, and a bus. When a mysterious seconds-long global power outage strikes, he is struck by said bus and might just strike gold as a result. The event lands him in the hospital with a story tell and two missing teeth to prove it. When his friends gift him a new guitar, he plays The Beatles’ “Yesterday” on it, a kind of “thank-you-let’s-break-this-thing-in” intimate little show. They’re mesmerized, and they’ve never heard the song before. And they’ve never heard of The Beatles. Neither has the Internet. Or anyone else in the world. Jack realizes he’s sitting on a goldmine of songs that will undoubtedly propel him to stardom. He’s got the talent to sing them and remembers enough of the lyrics to keep them largely intact. But does he have the musical chops to really pull it off? Can one man replace four? Is it the music that makes an impact, or the person, or persons, performing it?

Jack finally catches a big break, and it might break his heart. And break the illusion. With the burgeoning fame and fortune comes more scrutiny that might unravel his theft or, maybe even worse, make a mockery of everything Beatles, by hook or by crook, and probably both. Worst of all, his newfound stardom might come with a penalty to his heart and to his soul. More powerful than the rise to stardom is Jack’s struggle with the idea that perhaps his future isn’t big crowds and bigger paydays but rather a simpler life with the one he loves. Can he make fortune and glory his new contentment? Is this where he’s supposed to be, destined to be, living a lie to satisfy a hole in his life that might only make a bigger one?

There are some deeper themes to explore. What does it mean to be oneself, and what is the penalty -- not even so much in the world’s eyes but within the mirror of one’s own soul -- for living a lie? Even if living the lie is allowing one to be the person one always dreamed of being, is there a little voice that becomes a shout with every step away from the life where true contentment is to be found? It’s a universal prospect that transcends this story, which is why this story works. It takes the fantastical and the impossible and turns it into a simple question about life and love and purpose and contentment. The film answers it predictably, and correctly, and to satisfaction, thanks in large part to Boyle’s even, soft touch and the quality of the performances that nail both the superficial and innermost struggles and realities that give meaning to the greater story.

Yesterday 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The included screenshots are sourced from a 1080p Blu-ray disc.

Yesterday's 2160p/HDR UHD presentation offers a good, tangible upgrade over the Blu-ray, which is itself of a very high quality. The bar is raised here, expectedly considering the 8K source photography and 4K digital intermediate. The image is appreciably more sharp. Textures are firmed up beyond even what the Blu-ray has too offer, finding more clarity, inherent sharpness, and raw definition on everything from facial hair and pores to pavement and brick walls. Look at a bright outdoor scene in chapter three after Jack is released from the hospital. There's a brick wall that's abundantly detailed even as it's not the scene's focal point and not necessarily intimate to the camera (it's also a tremendous example of the UHD's HDR prowess; more on that in a moment). Another such example comes when Jack arrives in Los Angeles in the 48-minute mark. The terrain around the Hollywood sign finds a fairly significant addition to sharpness and clarity, even, again, as it's hardly in the foreground. The 2160p resolution brings with it a picture that is texturally sured up across the board, one that is cleaner and slicker but more obviously stout and clear.

The HDR color spectrum brings new vitality to the image. Skin tones are more dynamic, whites are more impressively crisp and bright (that aforementioned Hollywood sign), natural greens sparkle with added depth, and blue skies kick into another gear of gorgeousness. Clothes, environmental details, and all variety of colors throughout the film, including bright stage lights, are deeper yet more intense and brilliant at the same time. Across the board and in every scene, from bright sunshine to deep and dark night skies, from warmly lit interiors to harsh stadium lighting, there's nothing the HDR color spectrum doesn't improve upon. Just as impressive, the little bit of banding seen in the Blu-ray is largely eliminated on the UHD (see a background wall on the right hand side off the screen at the 54:47 mark) and the worst offending scenes for noise (a nighttime car interior dialogue at the 1:24:00 mark) are better managed, though noise is certainly far from eliminated. This is easily the best way to experience Yesterday in the home.

Yesterday 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Yesterday's Dolby Atmos soundtrack is well rounded. The track is balanced and beautifully engineered, amplifying its musical scenes as needed and allowing drama, romance, and character to dominate the track in the more sonically subtle moments. To be sure, music is the highlight, both in small and intimate acoustic sessions and particularly late in the film when Jack plays to a couple of very large crowds. Those large-scale concert scenes deliver prodigious sonic excitement, great instrumental detail, hardcore intensity, and plenty of crowd fill. Surrounds are used extensively but with carefully attuned balance, ditto the subwoofer channel. The Atmos channels carry a good bit of fill, both in support of music and environmental details alike. One of the Atmos highlights is something simple, a press conference in chapter 16 when microphone reverb commands the stage with a well rounded top end component. But the track is always aware of the scene and its sonic needs and never fails to indulge and engage as necessary. Dialogue is clear, well prioritized, and center-grounded for the duration.

Yesterday 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Yesterday's UHD disc contains a commentary track, several featurettes, deleted scenes, and more. A Blu-ray copy of the film and a Movies Anywhere digital copy code are included with purchase. This release ships with an embossed slipcover.

• Alternate Ending (2160p/SDR, 3:10).
• Deleted Scenes (2160p/SDR, 23:42 total runtime): Included are Late for School, Nutters Italian Ice Cream, Sortisimus, Moscow Audience, Alexa, A Gonk, W Hotel, Jack Calls Ellie, Corden & Roxanne, Hilary in the Mirror, Nick and Carol, and Hazel's Selfie.
• Live at Abbey Road Studios (2160p/SDR, 9:51 total runtime): Himesh Patel performances of "Yesterday," "I Want to Hold Your Hand," and "Let It Be."
• Alternate Opening (2160p/SDR, 4:47).
• Gag Reel (2160p/SDR, 2:04): Humorous moments from the shoot.
• A Talented Duo (2160p/SDR, 3:25): A look at the collaboration between Writer Richard Curtis and Director Danny Boyle.
• Playing for Real (2160p/SDR, 5:35): Casting the film and exploring the qualities the actors brought to the story, including Patel's work in learning to sing and play the songs and recording his performances live.
• Soul Mates (2160p/SDR, 4:47): A closer look at the relationship between Jack and Ellie.
• Ed Sheeran: From Stadium to Screen (2160p/SDR, 3:09): A quick look at Ed Sheeran's part in the film.
• Agent of Comedy: Kate McKinnon (2160p/SDR, 3:17): In brief examination of McKinnon's character and performance.
• A Conversation with Richard & Ed (2160p/SDR, 3:22): The scriptwriter and the musician talk Yesterday.
• Audio Commentary: Director Danny Boyle and Writer/Producer Richard Curtis dissect the film in more detail than is possible in the terse video-based supplements explored above.

Yesterday 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

In Yesterday, The Beatles aren't the only thing that's been forgotten. In Jack's new world, there is no Coca-Cola and no cigarettes. People must be healthier, even if their ears are weeping and don't know it. Danny Boyle, one of the most reliable filmmakers working today, has struck gold again with Yesterday. It's in many ways a glorified Hallmark movie, a simple yet sincere Romance about living in truth not so much to the world but to oneself. It strings together a few laughs and an honest love story within the larger picture of burgeoning fame and a couple of under explored, but ultimately tangential to the theme, Sci-Fi concepts. It's a great little movie that has earned a well-rounded UHD. Picture and sound qualities are strong and the supplemental package is fairly thorough. Very highly recommended.