Hmm... So I tried ordering the steelbook off Amazon US, because even with shipping and import charges it works out cheaper than the UK release, and the UK release is over two months away. The item shipped but for some reason was returned to Amazon before it even made it out of the country, with the reason given that it was "undeliverable". Anyone know what's up with that? Never had that happen ordering from Amazon US or JP before.

 

C19 lockdowns. Where you refunded?

 

No refund yet no. I don't think it's actually arrived to their warehouse yet, the tracking on my order history just states it's undeliverable and being returned to Amazon by the postal service. I tried their customer services and the person I spoke to could only tell me the original expected delivery date for next week and didn't know anything about it being returned or why. They just said if it doesn't arrive and a refund isn't automatically given then I should get in touch again then. Guess I'll just wait and see but I'm curious if I placed the order again would it be the same outcome or was this some random occurrence.

 

My copy, ordered from amazon america, arrived in Japan today, a week early.

I was a vocal skeptic at first, thinking I JUST bought this thing in beautiful HD in a steelbook like 5 years ago....I'm not doing it again.

But I caved.

(I've already said I only watch 4:3 so I won't open that can of worms again.)

First I put in the 30th BD and watched just the Unicron eating Lithone scene. (God, those poor little Lithonian kids....still gets me all these years later...laughing one minute.....digested the next. Brutal!)

OK...looks damn good.

So I stopped it and popped the new disc in, 4:3.

Oh my god, even the DEG and Sunbow logos looked better than I've ever seen them in my life.

I have, without exaggeration, seen this movie more than any other movie in my life. And in these first few minutes I was seeing details I've never seen before. How in the hell is that possible??

Man......believe the hype. This is the real deal. I can't freaking believe how good this looks. I thought we reached max fidelity five years ago but this is blowing it outta the water.



And I haven't even SEEN the 4K version cause I don't have a 4K TV. Maybe my brain isn't ready for that.

No regrets.....buy this one people, even if you already have a STACK of this movie in various formats like most of us do!!

 

After watching the side by side comparisons, I think I kinda have to buy this. It just looks so much sharper & vibrant.

 

just be sure guys. the 4k basically looks like crap compared to the bluray disc...or it is just me?

i have watched both and the br disc just looked like a much better picture to me. the 4k has nice moments every now and then but the picture does not look great to me.

im watching this on 75" 4k setup as well.

if this isnt the norm please let me know as i night have recieved a shit disc.

 

They are digital copies, so all should be identical. If you had a shit disc it probably wouldn't play at all or would freeze up at certain points where the disc was unreadable.

I don't have a 4K player so I cannot currently watch the 4K version but have seen the screen shots and quite frankly am not convinced it's that much better than the blu-ray we got 5 years ago. My biggest gripe is the lack of a 4K fullframe version though. We already got a fullframe blu-ray so it is redundant.

 

Do you have a 4K Blu-Ray player? If there was something wrong with the disc, it simply wouldn't play. It can't be that there is something with it that would affect image quality. The screenshots of the 4K look better than anything we got before, so it's likely the image settings then of your television then I would say.

 

yeah my setup is tip top 4k hdr and i watch a ton of shit in 4k or not. this isnt the first trip down the 4k route

i even updated the old xbox to give it ago. because i thought my panasonic player was the issue.

i guess my issues are with the 4k transfer. i feel it is definitely a step down from the blu-ray disc.

it has really high moments that shine and then there are other parts that make you gringe like this hotrod scene.

*also, the board pixelated my gifs a little. but it did not blur or grain that hotrod scene. that is how it looks in 4k*

 

the hot rod scene always looked bad (blurry) It’s an issue with how they did the reflection with the cell layering creating a ghosting effect

you also have to contend with resolution, hdr and color gamut shifts showing more detail than was ever intended originally when getting in to these types of older releases being thrown on to the 4K upgrade path.

 

Yeah that Hot Rod scene has always looked like that on every release of the film, Blu-ray included. Its an animation error where they blurred the scene while his reflection in the water remains clear. That scene will never look any better no matter the format.

As always there's subjectives involved with whether you prefer the overall transfer, but based on all the comparisons posted in this thread alone I don't see how anyone can say the 4K transfer is objectively worse than the Blu-ray  

 

I wasn't happy with the blu-ray disc. It was not widescreen as I hoped and I cannot watch the 4K disc. I returned it to Amazon and bought the HD digital version from Prime Video for $10. That's the version I wanted good enough for me.

 

Just finished watching it for the first time….all I can say is avoid this if you’re prone to photo sensitivity problems. That opening in hdr with unicron destroying the planet is one of the most eye fatiguing things I have ever watched

 

Is your TV calibrated or at least in Cinema mode instead of torch mode? I find most people leave their TV at the factory default setting (AKA torch mode) which is way too bright and sharp for home use. It’s meant to attract buyers in a brightly lit store. Apologies if you are well aware of this already!

I use a JVC projector in my theatre room and it’s not nearly as bright as an LCD or OLED TV but it still hurts my eyes sometimes in HDR mode. And I am using the calibrated mode. So it very well could be that some movies in HDR are just way too bright. Especially in a light controlled room.

 

I got the 4k steelbook and watched the full frame BD that came with it.
I am not a videophile. Take this with a grain of salt.

I feel the picture quality is 20% "better". It seems more vibrant and the colors are richer.
Dark grey seems more close to black. See Megatron's "undies"
The glowing effects (Matrix energy, laser blasts, lightsabers, green energy during the birth of Galvatron" look stunning and is easily the most improved visual aspect.

The sound is the same as the 2016. Its clear with very minmal rear output.
The subwoofer low frequency is very understated imo with the exception of Unicron saying "welcome Megatron"

The extras are a mix of the Sony 2006 DVD and the Shout Facotry 2016 BD.
The Death of Op and Q/A featurettes and the commentary are from 2006.
The 46 min documentary is from 2016.
The fully new extras are acoustic performances of "TheTouch" and "Dare" by Stan Bush and an art gallery of the new release artwork by Matt Ferguson.

The steelbook comes with screencaps of the movie on card. Cute but not something I will ever look at again.
I wish the hubs were on different sides of the inside. Be careful when taking the "lower disc" out.

Overall 8.5/10

IF you have only a DVD/VHS of the film, even the 2021 BD is a huge upgrade.
IF you have the 2016 Shout BD, its a tougher call.
Even though I don't have a 4k player, Im glad I have the disk so i dont have to buy it again.

 

Mine should be shipping from Amazon soon. Can't wait!

 

Another review

The Digital Bits.

 

Epic!

 

I just logged in at Zavvi to see what the expected delivery date is for my copy... The end of October...!  

 

Today is the release date for the Standard release in 4K UHD and regular Blu-Ray