Video Quality
Video Quality
King Kong's UHD release offers a substantial upgrade over the previously released VC-1 encoded Blu-ray, even as the UHD is not perfect and has likely been sourced from a 2K digital intermediate. The movie occasionally struggles to maintain an organic, filmic, natural look, partly due, it seems, to various visual effects shots and inserts that show their inherent weakness on the format. There's a certain artificiality to parts of the movie, particularly around those digital backgrounds. Closer, real textures sometimes suffer, too, but to a much lesser degree, with a sense of flatness and smoothness that often gives way to a much sharper presentation. The increase in sharpness and clarity over the Blu-ray is remarkable. There's a richness to complexity that's never apparent on the Blu-ray. Every element -- skin, period clothes, physical props -- reveal a high level of enhanced clarity beyond the 1080p image. It's a remarkable boost, for the most part, particularly once one gets beyond that artificiality that hangs over various scenes. The level of increase in clarity is often breathtaking. HDR color improvements are obvious as well. Greater color distinction and vividness are obvious from the get-go. Shading and saturation are much more fluid, highlights are more precise, and transitional nuance is greatly improved, particularly in many of the first act's more amber-influenced scenes. Jungle greens are not quite so brilliant but they are more lively and more richly saturated. Backs -- Kong fur or shadow detail on some of the darker terrain in the movie -- are much more firm and stable. Flesh tones are fuller and much better defined. this is a substantial improvement over the Blu-ray. Note that the review score for the Blu-ray dates back many years and is from a different reviewer. A lower numerical score for the UHD is not an error but rather an unavoidable limitation of the scoring system. Credit: blu-ray.com