Evans Above

Alfred Hitchcock Presents was a half-hour anthology series that premiered on CBS in 1955 before moving to NBC in 1960. It predated the other legendary anthology series, The Twilight Zone, by five years. Many of the scripts came from previously published sources, including Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine, which started publishing in 1956. Though the master of suspense and his desert dry wit would do the intro and the outro for each episode, he only directed seventeen. The series gave work to many actors from those starting out to household names. Guest performers included Barbara Bel Geddes, Charles Bronson, John Cassavetes, Joseph Cotten, Bette Davis, Bruce Dern, Robert Duvall, Clint Eastwood, Peter Falk, Joan Fontaine, John Forsythe, Cedric Hardwicke, Peter Lawford, Cloris Leachman, Robert Loggia, Peter Lorre, Walter Matthau, Steve McQueen, Audrey Meadows, Vera Miles, Ricardo Montalbán, Roger Moore, Leslie Nielsen, Vincent Price, Claude Rains, Robert Redford, Burt Reynolds, Thelma Ritter, George Segal, Harry Dean Stanton, Dean Stockwell, Jessica Tandy, and Robert Vaughn. Universal Pictures Home Entertainment has just released Alfred Hitchcock Presents: The Legacy Collection on DVD. The 34-disc set contains 263 episodes of the series. The run actually had 268 episodes, so I’m guessing the missing five are due to some arcane licensing issue. Thanks to Allied Vaughn and MovieZyng, I had a chance to take a look at this hefty set.

The episodes are presented in the original 1.33:1 aspect ratio. The series was shot on film, so we get a nice clean black & white DVD presentation. I can already hear one person in the back mumbling, “If it was shot on film, why’s it not on Blu-ray?” Without delving into physical media economics, the short answer is DVD is the cheapest format to produce and, though it’s sad that a legendary show with great scripts and casts isn’t in high demand, this is the format that makes the most sense. I think it’s a really nice video presentation and the fact that fans of the series can get their hands on 263 episodes of it is fantastic.

On the audio side of things, there’s an English Dolby Digital 2.0 mono track. Subtitles are available for English SDH. Dialogue is clear and prioritized in the mix as are effects. Like many shows of the era, the score can sound a little tinny.

The Alfred Hitchcock Presents: The Legacy Collection DVD set is comprised of 34 discs. There is no digital code. There are two special features. “Alfred Hitchcock Presents: A Look Back” features Patricia Hitchcock, Norman Lloyd and Hilton Green discussing the creation and success of the series, while “Fasten Your Seatbelt: The Thrilling Art of Alfred Hitchcock” sees directors John Carpenter, William Friedkin, Martin Scorsese, Eli Roth, and Guillermo del Toro discuss the genius of Hitchcock and his ability to keep an audience in suspense and terror.

The Alfred Hitchcock Presents: The Legacy Collection DVD gives the home entertainment audience 263 episodes of a groundbreaking TV series without facing the whims of a streamer. Is there really much more to say? Recommended.

1953’s The Master of Ballantrae, directed by William Keighley, is loosely based on the 1889 novel by Robert Louis Stevenson. Taking place during the time of the Jacobite Uprising, it sees two Scottish brothers (Errol Flynn and Anthony Steel) fighting over the family land and a woman (Beatrice Campbell). The cast also includes Roger Livesey, Yvonne Furneaux, Felix Aylmer, Mervyn Johns, Charles Goldner, and Ralph Truman. There are a couple of “lasts” attached to the film, as it was the last film Keighley directed before retiring and the last film Flynn made as a contract player for Warner Bros. Warner Archive has now released the film on Blu-ray and thanks to Allied Vaughn and MovieZyng, I had a chance to take a look.

The 1080p AVC encoded digital transfer is presented in a 1.37:1 aspect ratio. Director of Photography Jack Cardiff received wide acclaim for his work with Technicolor and his work here gives us a rich palette that looks gorgeous. This transfer was based off a 4K scan of the original elements and the image is sharp and detailed. Black levels are nice and deep and the transfer is devoid of digital noise or compression artifacts. The transfer maintains a nice filmic grain.

On the audio side of things, the soundtrack is an English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 mono track. Subtitles are available for English SDH. Dialogue and effects are clear in the mix. The score, as with many sources of that age, does come across as a bit tinny.

The Master of Ballantrae does not come with a digital code. Extras include two contemporary animated shorts. Bully for Bugs, contains the famous line about making a left turn at Albuquerque and sees him end up in the middle of a bull fight, while Plop Goes the Weasel sees Foghorn Leghorn battling his nemesis, Barnyard Dawg, and a dim-witted weasel. The original theatrical trailer is also included.

While Errol Flynn may not have been at the height of his swashbuckling powers in 1953, The Master of Ballantrae does combine family drama, pirates, and swordplay, with an excellent transfer and Jack Cardiff’s gorgeous cinematography. I think you’ll enjoy it.

CODA, from writer-director Sian Heder, is a remake of the 2014 French-Belgian film La Famille Bélier. It’s an acronym for Child of Deaf Adults and is led by Emilia Jones, who plays Ruby Rossi, an aspiring singer working in her parents’ struggling fishing business while faced with some tough choices about her life. Academy Award winners Marlee Matlin and Troy Kotsur play Ruby’s parents and are joined in the cast by Eugenio Derbez, Ferdia Walsh-Peelo, and Daniel Durant. At the 94th Academy Awards, the film went home with three Oscars: Best Picture, Best Supporting Actor (Kotsur) and Best Adapted Screenplay. Universal has recently released it on 4K and thanks to Allied Vaughn and MovieZyng, I had a chance to take a look.

The 2160p HEVC / H.265 encoded native 4K digital transfer with Dolby Vision and HDR10 is presented in a 1.85:1 aspect ratio. The video presentation is sharp with great detail on the boats and locations, facial features and textiles. Set in a Massachusetts fishing village, CODA is not giving us a palette of popping primaries, but rather the muted tones that suit its setting. The HDR grading adds nice spectral highlights to the sun on the water. I like the look of it.

On the audio side of things, you have the choice of an English Atmos soundtrack that folds back to TrueHD 7.1 There’s also an English Stereo and Descriptive Video track as well as tracks in Spanish. Subtitles are available for English and Spanish as well as English and Spanish SDH. The track is geared towards the front with the heights and surround used sparingly for atmosphere. Subtitles pop up in scenes with deaf actors when American Sign Language is used. Dialogue is clear in the mix.

The CODA 4K does not come with a digital code, nor are there any supplemental materials included on the disc.

The CODA 4K teams a very good ensemble with a great audio and video presentation. Though it’d be nice to see this Oscar winner come with some extras, that doesn’t stop it from being recommended.

After six seasons and two previous movies, the British drama Downton Abbey finally comes to a close with Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale. Universal has just released a 4K of the movie and I had a chance to take a look. I haven’t sat down and watched the previous six seasons and two films (Gasp! Shock!) so until I do this is a technical review from checking out the presentation in various spots throughout the disc. As a transplanted Brit, I will get to watching it fully when I can. This last instalment’s large ensemble is led by Hugh Bonneville, Jim Carter, Michelle Dockery, Paul Giamatti, Elizabeth McGovern, and Penelope Wilton.

The 2160p HEVC / H.265 encoded native 4K digital transfer with Dolby Vision and HDR10 is presented in a 2.39:1 aspect ratio. The to image is beautiful, with detail and clarity in everything from the manor to the costumes to facial features. Black levels are deep, with no loss of detail in shadows and darker scenes. The colour palette is rich displaying reds and golds and everything in between. There is no sign of digital noise or compression artifacts.

On the audio side of things, you have the choice of an English Dolby Atmos track that folds down to Dolby TrueHD 7.1 as well as a French Dolby Digital Plus 7.1 track and a Spanish Dolby Digital 5.1 track. Subtitles are available for English SDH, French and Spanish. The surrounds and the heights immerse you in the estates and its activities. The score is lush and dialogue is clear and centred.

The Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale 4K also comes with a digital code and a Blu-ray, though there is no digital option for the Canadian version. Bonus features include looks at the story’s timeline and the film’s society events with the cast and filmmakers, a look at the authenticity by the crew and historical advisor, a farewell to the fans, a 42 minute grand finale TV special that aired on Peacock, and a commentary by director Simon Curtis and his wife, actress Elizabeth McGovern.

The Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale 4K looks and sounds great and has a nice collection of extras. Fans of the series will want to pick this one up.

Universal has just released Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas 25th Anniversary Edition on 4K in time for the holiday season. Directed by Ron Howard, the live-action adaptation of the Christmas classic stars Jim Carrey, Christine Baranski, Jeffrey Tambor, and Taylor Momsen, with narration by Anthony Hopkins. Taking the story to feature length means adding backstory which takes the tight rhythm of the original tale away, but Universal was never going to stuff Jim Carrey into a shorter pic, so here we are.

The 2160p HEVC / H.265 encoded native 4K digital transfer with Dolby Vision and HDR10 is presented in a 1.85:1 aspect ratio. The video presentation has amazing clarity and detail, from the sets to the fabrics, to the amazing facial prosthetics Carrey in working beneath. There are some moments of softness, but they’re not frequent. The colour palette, especially the reds, pop off the screen unless they’re the drab olives that match the Grinch’s mood. It’s a Yuletide colour feast. Black levels are generally quite good, though some darker moments can be a bit murky. The presentation has a pleasing layer of grain and there’s no digital noise or artifacts to write to Santa about.

On the audio side of things, you have the choice of an English Dolby Atmos soundtrack that folds back to Dolby TrueHD 7.1 as well as French, French Canadian, Spanish (Castilian and Latin American), German and Italian DTS 5.1 tracks. Subtitles are available for English SDH, French, French Canadian, Spanish (Castilian and Latin American), German, Italian, Danish, Finnish, Norwegian and Swedish. The surrounds really shine with ambient sounds and the wind in the environment is almost a co-star. The height channels do get some play in various scenes and the low frequency adds some depth to moments as well. Dialogue is always clear and centred.

The Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas 25th Anniversary Edition 4K also comes with a Blu-ray copy and a digital code in the US, though a digital code is not available for the Canadian edition. There’s a new bonus feature for this release, “25 Years Later: The Gift of The Grinch”, that features interviews with Ron Howard, producer Brian Grazer, make-up artist Rick Baker and actress Taylor Momsen and is chock full of anecdotes and info. Legacy bonus materials from previous releases include an audio commentary by Ron Howard, a look at the makeup application and design, pieces on the set decoration, visual effects, the Whovians, a promo focused on Carrey and Howard, deleted scenes, outtakes, a music video and theatrical trailer all presented in standard definition and a 4:3 aspect.

Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas 25th Anniversary Edition 4K upgrades both the audio and video presentations as well as giving us a new retrospective and legacy extras. I do not own the previous releases so can’t say this is a “must upgrade” release, but if it’s a staple of your holiday season, you won’t go wrong picking it up.

Warner Archive has released the Joan Crawford Collection on Blu-ray. This four disc set includes four of the screen legend’s films: 1932’s Grand Hotel, 1939’s The Women, 1947’s Possessed, and 1950’s The Damned Don’t Cry. Thanks to Allied Vaughn Entertainment for letting me review this release and thanks to Canada Post for going on strike just as I was expecting it.

1932’s Grand Hotel, directed by Edmund Goulding, is a star-studded ensemble piece that actually sees Crawford billed third after Greta Garbo and John Barrymore. The interwoven storylines, set in the Grand Hotel in Berlin, also sees screen time for Wallace Beery, Lionel Barrymore, Lewis Stone, and Jean Hersholt. The film is based on Menschen im Hotel by Vicki Baum. It’s in Grand Hotel that Garbo utters the famous line, “I want to be alone.” The film won Best Picture at the Academy Awards.

The 1080p AVC encoded digital transfer is presented in a 1.37:1 aspect ratio. The image has a really nice level of detail, from the textiles to the massive set. The grayscale palette ranges from bright whites to dark inky blacks and everything in-between. The grain is fine and natural. I was really impressed with how this looked.

On the audio side of things, you have the choice of an English DTS-HD Master Audio Mono track as well as French, German, Italian and Spanish (Castellano and Latin American) Doly Digital Mono tracks.. Subtitles are available for English SDH, French, German SDH, Italian SDH, Japanese, Korean, and Spanish (Castellano and Latin American). The dialogue is clear in this mix, but the source materials that were available for this transfer do have some tinniness and hiss to them.

As far as extras, Grand Hotel comes with a commentary track by film historians Jeffrey Vance and Mark A. Vieira that delves into a great amount of information about the production. There’s also a short “making of” doc, newsreel footage of the film’s premiere at the legendary Grauman’s Chinese Theatre, “Nothing Ever Happens” an almost 19 minute musical parody of the film released in 1933, a cinema snipe that advised patrons to catch Grand Hotel before it left theatres, and trailers for the film and the 1945 remake, “Week-End at the Waldorf.” Note that all of the extras are in standard definition.

Directed by George Cukor, 1939’s comedy-drama The Women stars Norma Shearer, Joan Crawford, Rosalind Russell, Paulette Goddard, Joan Fontaine, Lucile Watson, Mary Boland, Florence Nash, and Virginia Grey. It truly is The Women as every on screen performer from the biggest marquee name to the smallest bit part is female. Crawford plays a shopgirl who’s having an affair with the husband of Norma Shearer’s high society character. The film follows Shearer and her circle of socialite friends as she heads cross-country to Reno to obtain a divorce. This version of the black and white film does contain a six minute fashion show shot in three-strip Technicolor. Cukor said in a later interview that he never liked the inclusion of the colour sequence and some DVD versions of the film replace it with a black and white version which is included on this disc in the bonus features.

The 1080p AVC encoded digital transfer is presented in a 1.37:1 aspect ratio. The source material they found is very good to begin with and the restoration that was done for the Blu-ray’s 2014 standalone release gives us a video presentation with excellent detail over in facial features, textiles and sets. The black levels and grayscale are equally rich. The colour sequence pops with primaries, but is not oversaturated. To my eye, there’s no sign of digital noise and compression artifacts and the presentation retains a nice film grain.

On the audio side of things, you have the choice of an English DTS-HD Master Audio Mono track as well as Spanish (Castilian and Latin) Dolby Digital Mono tracks. Subtitles are available for English SDH, French and Castilian and Latin Spanish. The soundtrack serves both the rapid-fire dialogue and score well and is mostly devoid of some the hisses and pops you find on older soundtracks.

The Women comes with a nice selection of bonus materials. “Another Romance of Celluloid” is composed of two featurettes: “From the Ends of the Earth” is a 1939 promotional short for MGM’s upcoming features that highlights the locales and goods it uses from around the world, while “Hollywood: Style Center of the World” is a 1940 promo piece that suggest that women want to dress like the stars they see on the screen. The disc also includes the colour cartoon short “One Mother’s Family” about a protective hen taking care of her chicks. There’s also the black and white version of the fashion show sequence, a lengthy audio only piece about scoring the movie, and trailers for The Women and the 1956 musical remake, “The Opposite Sex.”

1947’s Possessed, directed by Curtis Bernhardt, has Crawford working opposite Van Heflin and Raymond Massey. Crawford plays an unstable woman obsessed with an ex-lover. The film earned Crawford an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress.

The 1080p AVC encoded digital transfer is presented in a 1.37:1 aspect ratio. The image is beautiful with sharp details and a wonderful grayscale palette that takes us from crisp white to inky blacks. There’s a fine and pleasing grain pattern.

On the audio side of things, the disc comes with a single English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono track. Subtitles are available for English SDH. Dialogue is crisp and clear and the score works well within the dynamic range of the era.

Possessed has a small handful of special features. There’s a commentary from film historian Drew Casper that covers Crawford, film noir and production notes, a piece called “Possessed: The Quintessential Film Noir”, that sees a group of film scholars discuss film noir and detail why they think Possessed is a classic of the genre, and a theatrical trailer.

Finally, the last film in the collection is 1950’s The Damned Don’t Cry. Directed by Vincent Sherman, the film also features David Brian and Steve Cochran. Crawford plays a woman who leaves her small town life behind after the death of her son. Her new life is vastly different as she becomes involved with a gangster, which sets off deadly consequences.

The 1080p AVC encoded digital transfer is presented in a 1.37:1 aspect ratio. The restoration work for this release started with a scan of the original negative that gives us this amazing result. Details on faces, clothes and locations look great and we get crisp whites, inky blacks and everything in-between. It’s a great presentation with no signs of digital noise or compression artifacts.

On the audio side of things, there’s an English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mon track. Subtitles are available for English SDH. Dialogue is overall clean and clear, though there is the occasional moment of pops and hiss. The score sounds good and gives us the right film noir atmosphere.

The special features include a commentary by director and Crawford collaborator Vincent Sherman, who was 98 when he recorded it. “The Crawford Formula: Real and Reel” features interviews with filmmakers and historians on Crawford’s life and careeer. There’s an hour-long radio broadcast of The Screen Director’s Playhouse which stars Crawford and Frank Lovejoy. Finally, there’s the theatrical trailer.

The Joan Crawford Collection Blu-ray contains four films that serve as a great introduction to the screen legend’s career. All of the included discs look and sound great, and there’s a nice selection of extras. Definitely think about adding this to your film library.

Film Masters presents The Strange Woman on Blu-ray in a limited edition version as part of its Archive Collection. The 1946 historical melodrama was directed by Edgar G. Ulmer and stars Hedy Lamarr, George Sanders, and Louis Hayward. Lamarr plays Jenny Hager, a woman who’s as evil and manipulative as she is beautiful. Set in the 1800s, Hager sees nothing wrong using men to achieve her goals of wealth and security even if lives are lost or ruined along the way. Think of it as a Civil War noir. Thanks to Allied Vaughn Entertainment for making this review possible.

The 1080p AVC encoded digital transfer is presented in a 1.33:1 aspect ratio. The restoration of this film looks excellent. It’s a public domain film and has been around online and on various DVDs for years, but here the print has been cleaned up and any old film damage is practically non-existent. The detail and clarity is stunning, from the fabrics and set pieces to the facial features or a glint of light off a wine glass. There’s very little film grain present, except intermittently partway through the film, which suggests that DNR was used but it’s done with a light hand so I find the people never appear waxy.

On the audio side of things, you have the choice of an English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 soundtrack and a commentary track by Professor Bernard M. Prokop. Subtitles are available for English SDH and there’s also a commentary subtitle track. Once again, Film Masters does an excellent job with the soundtrack. Dialogue is clear and the score by Carmen Dragon sounds good too on a soundtrack absent of his and crackle.

The Blu-ray of The Strange Woman, as mentioned, comes with a commentary track by Bernard M. Prokop, who is also the author of the booklet that is found in the case. The booklet delves into the moral character of Jenny as well as the history of Hedy Lamarr. Besides the commentary and booklet, the disc contains no other extras.

In The Strange Woman, Hedy Lamarr gives us an amazing character portrayal as Jenny Hager. This Film Masters Archive Collection Limited edition provides us with a great audio and video restoration and an informative booklet and is a worthy addition to your library.

Thankfully the Canada Post strike moved from a national one to a series of rotating strikes, so my Blu-ray review copy of Sherlock Holmes’ Fatal Hour finally arrived after a few weeks of delay. This Film Masters release, also known as The Sleeping Cardinal in the UK, is a 1931 mystery directed by Leslie S. Hiscott, the co-founder of Twickenham Studios, and starred Arthur Wontner as the titular detective. Wontner would play Holmes in a series of mysteries between 1931 and 1937. Ian Fleming – the Australian actor, not the British writer – played Watson. Holmes and Watson are called in to investigate diplomatic attaché Ronnie Adair’s involvement in transporting counterfeit money, a case that takes leads them to Professor Moriarty. Thanks to Allied Vaughn Entertainment for making this review possible.

The 1080p AVC encoded digital transfer is presented in a 1.33:1 aspect ratio. The HD restoration has done a good job of cleaning the source material up, with only a few scratches here and there. Though there is a heavy film grain, the amount of detail on textiles, facial features and sets is amazing. It’s always great to see films be given this loving treatment.

On the audio side of things, the release has an English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 soundtrack. English subtitles are also available. The dialogue is clear and hiss and crackle is not evident.

This Film Masters Archive Collection release does not contain any supplemental materials.

I’m always pleased when we see a piece of film history given the restoration treatment. Sherlock Holmes’ Fatal Hour has a very solid audio and video presentation and will add nicely to your Holmes library.

Robot Chicken is an adult-themed stop-motion series created by Seth Green and Matthew Senreich. It ran for 11 seasons on the Cartoon Network’s Adult Swim programming block starting in 2005. After the run of 20 episode 12 minute seasons, they produced a series of longer format specials. The episodes lampooned pop culture in rapid fire sketches, while the specials would focus on particular franchises like Star Wars, DC Comics and The Walking Dead. The voice cast was chock full of celebrity cameos, which added to the fun. Warner Brothers Discovery Home Entertainment has just released Robot Chicken: The Complete Series on DVD and I had a chance to take a look. The WB likes disclaimers, so here goes: Though Warner Brothers provided me with a copy of this release to review, the thoughts and opinions below are mine.

The first four seasons are presented in the show’s original 4:3 aspect ratio, switching to 16:9 for the following seasons. Before we are drowned in the chorus of “Why no Blu-ray? Why no 4K?”, remember that DVD is still the best selling video format (and cheapest to manufacture) and for a franchise that WB would consider niche, DVD is what they’re willing to risk. If it sells like hotcakes – do hotcakes sell like crazy? – we might see a Blu-ray in the future, but don’t bet the house on it. As it is, the animation looks pretty good on the DVD format and has a clean presentation and good colours.

On the audio side of things, seasons 1-4 and some of the specials have an English Stereo soundtrack, while seasons 5-11 and the later specials have a Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack. Subtitles are available for English SDH for some of the seasons, while French and Spanish appear for season 2. Again, the niche aspect of this release probably accounts for the spotty subtitle accessibility. Dialogue is clear and there are some ambient effects throughout.

Press releases for the Robot Chicken: The Complete Series DVD trumpet that it contains 228 episodes. Unless I’m wrong, I count 220 regular episodes (11 seasons times 20) plus 9 specials, but maybe the WB got tired of counting. :) The set arrives in one of those thick, chunky DVD cases with the 24 discs stacked two to a spindle. This makes opening the case extra fun as invariably multiple discs have come loose and will find their way to the floor if you’re not careful. Seasons 1-7 contain a plethora of extras: deleted scenes, animatics, promos, behind-the-scenes material, and commentaries. Seasons 8-11 are devoid of extras, while the specials discs only contain one extra. A 20th anniversary mockumentary entitled “The Undercurrent Chronicles: Robot Chicken: The Career Killer.”

if you love the subversive (yet at the same time, oddly affectionate) skewering of pop culture that this series is known for then the Robot Chicken: The Complete Series DVD is a great way to own the show and not be subject to the whims of a streaming service. Recommended.

Writer/director Dean DeBlois returns to do a live action adaptation of his 2010 film How to Train Your Dragon. The Viking village of Berk, led by Stoick (Gerard Butler, reprising his role from the animated film), has been under attack by dragons for years. As Stoick heads off with his men to attack the dragons’ lair, he enrols his awkward son, Hiccup (Mason Thames), in a dragon fighting class with Astrid (Nico Parker) and other young Vikings. When events lead Hiccup to form a bond with Toothless, an injured dragon, he begins to see that all they believe about their foe might not be what it seems. The movie, which also stars Gabriel Howell, Julian Dennison, Bronwyn James, Harry Trevaldwyn, Peter Serafinowicz, and Nick Frost, has just been released by Universal on 4K and I had a chance to take a look.

The 2160p HEVC / H.265 encoded native 4K digital transfer with Dolby Vision and HDR10 is presented in a 2.39:1 aspect ratio with some scenes in 1.90:1. The video presentation is full of clarity and detail. The colour palette leans heavy on the earthy tones of the Viking world, so when we do get richer hues like fiery reds and blues, they really pop. For the most part black levels are inky and deep and there’s no loss of detail in the film’s darker scenes.

On the audio side of things, you have the choice of an English Dolby Atmos track that folds back to Dolby TrueHD 7.1. French and Spanish Dolby Digital Plus 7.1 tracks are also available. Subtitles are available for English SDH, French and Spanish. The surrounds are put to good use with effects, whether it’s the ambient sounds of the Viking world or the soaring of dragons in flight. The subwoofer adds extra power to action scenes and John Powell’s score is served well by the mix, adding emotional heft to the storyline. Dialogue is always clear in the mix.

The How to Train Your Dragon 4K also includes a Blu-ray and a digital copy, though once again, a digital code is not available on the Canadian version I was sent for review. Extras include deleted scenes, a gag reel, a lengthy 45 minute doc on the making of the film, a look at creating the Viking village of Berk, pieces on costume design and the friendship between Hiccup and Toothless, a test version of Hiccup and Toothless’ first flight, and a feature commentary by writer/director Dean DeBlois.

The How to Train Your Dragon 4K combines great sound and visuals and a nice selection of extras in this live action retelling of the tale. New and old fans of the franchise will enjoy this release.

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