The Scorpion King 4K Blu-ray delivers stunning video and audio in this fan-pleasing Blu-ray release
In the notorious city of Gomorrah, an evil ruler is determined to lay waste to all the nomadic peoples of the desert. The few remaining tribes, never natural allies, have to unite or perish. Knowing their enemy relies on the visions of a sorcerer, they hire a skilled assassin, Mathayus to eliminate the visionary. After infiltrating the enemy camp, Mathayus discovers that the sorcerer is in fact a beautiful woman. Rather than eliminate her, he takes her deep into the desert badlands, knowing that the ruler's henchman will stop at nothing to rescue her and bring her back. Seriously wounded in the ensuing battle, Mathayus must find the strength to lead his scrappy band of allies back to Gomorrah for a final confrontation.
For more about The Scorpion King 4K and the The Scorpion King 4K Blu-ray release, see the The Scorpion King 4K Blu-ray Review published by Martin Liebman on July 1, 2019 where this Blu-ray release scored 3.5 out of 5.
Universal has released Director Chuck Russell's 2002 Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson-starring franchise starter 'The Scorpion King' to the UHD format.
The new disc, replacing an aging 2008 Blu-ray (included with purchase), includes 2160p/HDR video and DTS:X audio. No new supplements are
included, but the UHD disc does carry over the director commentary.
We learn through narration that, in the time before the pyramids, an evil foe from the East
conquered the ancient world. By 'law of the horde,' the leader of this conquering army
was its strongest warrior, and that warrior is the mighty Memnon (Steven Brand), whose
strength
is complimented by the fortune-telling powers of the beautiful Cassandra (Kelly Hu, 'The Air I Breathe').
To
end his reign of tyranny, a powerful Acadian warrior named Mathayus (Dwayne Johnson, 'Skyscraper') is dispatched to
murder Cassandra, but he is captured and his brothers are killed. In a twist of fate, Cassandra
convinces
the evil and bloodthirsty fiend Memnon to spare Mathayus' life for one day, providing him the
opportunity to escape with a petty criminal, Arpid (Grant Heslov, 'Leatherheads'). Now
seeking vengeance for the death of his brothers, Mathayus travels to the ancient and storied city
of Gomorrah where he will find an ally he didn't expect in his quest to destroy his brothers'
killer, and encounter more allies along the way, including the venerable warrior Balthazar
(Michael
Clarke Duncan, 'Daredevil'). Will
Mathayus and his new allies win the day, or will Memnon vanquish yet another foe on his road to
world domination?
The included screenshots are sourced from a 1080p Blu-ray disc..
The Scorpion King isn't exactly a stunner of a movie from a purely visual perspective. It's mostly made of shades of earthen brown and beige
with sporadic scenes lit warmly by sun or candle inside or under the darkness of the night sky. The film still translates very well to the UHD format and
while it
benefits from the improved resolution and HDR colors it's not colorfully top-tier reference material by its very nature. Of first note is that it looks as if
there's
been a little clean-up work performed, or this is sourced from an entirely different master. On the Blu-ray, there are several black pops and splotches
appearing around the 16:10 mark and some vertical
lines, most noticeable towards the bottom of the screen, in the wider shot to follow. Those are both absent on the UHD. That same shot is,
coincidentally, one of the more dramatic examples of the greatly improved sharpness, bringing the somewhat fuzzy background rocks and flat terrain to
life with astonishing adds to visibility and total clarity, allowing the viewer to get a fuller feel for the lay of the land and catch the stonier sharpness at
work in the foreground and the background. Indeed, the UHD fares best under the bright sun and out in the open, where viewers will spot oftentimes
dramatic increases in visible skin
definition, armor detail, and natural formation clarity. The movie can be tack-sharp but does hold to some of the softness inherent to the film source
around some edges and backgrounds. The image further offers improved compression with reductions or removals of the rather faint, but sometimes
evident, macroblocking that lingers across some of the backdrops on the Blu-ray.
The HDR color enhancements bring the wider color spectrum that obviously can't fundamentally change the barren, earthy tones but that does offer
more precise tonal nuance to rocks, clothes, and sporadic examples of natural greens or more brightly colored fabrics. Blue skies find a notable, but not
always substantially altered, color depth. There's a fairly dramatic toning down of red and warmer pushes on the UHD. It's a less intense image, one
that is brighter (which includes black levels that are deep but not quite so absorbing) and more balanced across those sun-baked earthen hues.
Characters that appeared sunburned in places before now find a more agreeable balance and the great increase to tonal variation and fine-point
nuance helps bring the movie alive even without a significant push of more intense colors.
The track is almost comically amplified. It's fun and robust and has no qualms about throwing anything and everything into, through, and out of every
speaker in the DTS:X Master Audio configuration. The opening scene features bladed weapons hurtling through the air, chandeliers crashing from
above, men tossed here and there, punches landing, swoops swishing, and explosions rocking the listening area. From this scene forward there's no
shortage of
sonic delight, and it's the
same thing for the duration: an exceptional symphony of clanking metal, whooshing arrows, intensely wide music, healthy (but not overpowering)
bass, and seamlessly blended yet still very prominent surround support. Bustling market din in chapter seven is incredibly vibrant and detailed, with
individual sounds clear and audible through the din but also blending other sounds into a symphony of cluttered audio. But the highlight comes in
action, and
there's just no lack of sonic stuff thrown out of the speakers. Detailed, well prioritized, and center-focused dialogue round a fun track into
nearly perfect form.
The Scorpion King's UHD disc carries over the audio commentary track with Director Chuck Russell that was included on the 2008 Blu-ray and
is also present on the bundled Blu-ray, which appears to be identical to the 2008 disc. That means it also carries over the picture-in-picture
behind-the-scenes "U-Control" functionality. No new extras are included on either disc. This release ships with a Movies Anywhere digital copy code. It
also ships with an embossed slipcover.
Overall, this is a very healthy UHD upgrade when compared to a Blu-ray that is more than a decade old and looked fairly good then but pales in
comparison to
this release. Bright daytime scenes fare much better than darker, murkier ones, but viewers will find strong-to-exceptional adds to overall clarity,
sharpness, and color precision. It looks practically brand new in most scenes. HDR colors offer greater tonal intricacies and tone down the more intense
red pushes that are predominant throughout the Blu-ray. Blacks are more balanced as are skin tones. The audio is fun, a bit crude but effective in
throwing sound all over the place with good clarity and definition. The UHD brings no new extras, but fans will find this to be a worthwhile upgrade in
total. Recommended.
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Universal Pictures Home Entertainment will release on 4K Blu-ray Chuck Russell's The Scorpion King (2002), starring Dwayne Johnson, Steven Brand, Michael Clarke Duncan, Kelly Hu, and Bernard Hill. The release will be available for purchase on June 18.
Blu-ray.com and Universal Studios Home Entertainment are offering members the opportunity to win a Blu-ray copy of director Mike Elliott's The Scorpion King 4: Quest for Power (2014), along with the first three films in the series: The Scorpion King, The Scorpion ...
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