Assassin's Creed 4K Blu-ray delivers stunning video and reference-quality audio in this fan-pleasing Blu-ray release
When Callum Lynch explores the memories of his ancestor Aguilar and gains the skills of a Master Assassin, he discovers he is a descendant of the secret Assassins society.
For more about Assassin's Creed 4K and the Assassin's Creed 4K Blu-ray release, see Assassin's Creed 4K Blu-ray Review published by Jeffrey Kauffman on March 22, 2017 where this Blu-ray release scored 3.0 out of 5.
The Assassin's Creed videogame franchise offered a "tease" of sorts for a potential feature film when Ubisoft released Assassin's Creed: Lineage several years ago. Now that potential is a reality
with the release in what is obviously meant to launch a new franchise, Assassin's Creed. Fox has released both 2D and 3D versions of the film
(see below). How does this 4K UHD version compare?
For my thoughts on the film in its 2D and 3D iterations, please click on the following review links:
Note: The included screenshots are sourced from a 1080p Blu-ray disc and do not reflect either the UHD or the 3D presentations. Watch for 4K
screenshots at a later date.
Assassin's Creed is presented on 4K UHD courtesy of 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment with a 2160p transfer in 2.39:1. Wow! What a
difference higher resolution and (I suspect even more) HDR can make! Watching Assassin's Creed in its 4K UHD version is often a manifestly
different experience than the one I described in the above linked reviews, for shadow detail is considerably better revealed, making this film's
many dark scenes much more evident. It's obvious from the get go within the cloistered confines of the cathedral (or whatever it is) where
Aguilar is inducted into the Assassins, where all sorts of facial features that aren't that noticeable in the 1080p version are now at least slightly more on
display. The range of tones in the sometimes aggressive color grading is also improved, giving a really beautiful honeyed edge to some of the sepia-esque
material. The biggest uptick in detail levels to my eyes often took place in the Animus room. In the 1080p versions, the darkness of the room combined
with rampant CGI, including the "bleeding" effects which wash big black clouds over the proceedings, made for a pretty murky viewing experience.
There's real detail to be seen now, even when Cal is backlit effulgently. Fine detail is often exceptional even in the heavily graded sequences, notably a lot
of the "blue" material (in the contemporary time frame), where elements like Cal's beard stubble have a new, almost palpable, precision.
This is the first Fox 4K UHD disc I've reviewed where I encountered pretty significant handshake issues at bootup. It took me several tries to get a
picture, though audio was always working correctly.
I gave top marks to the 1080p Blu-rays' DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 tracks, but I have to say if we had a higher score than 5 available, I'd probably up this
4K UHD's Dolby Atmos score a click or two. There's all sorts of great new spatial placement on display, beginning with the swirling sound effects that
begin even before the imagery does. The kind of hokey segues involving the bird now have a really great sounding new energy, with wonderful discrete
placement of the bird's calls combined with a rush of sweeping panning effects. The high tech sounds of the Animus lab also are much more resonant
and seem to hover in midair at times. One of the biggest surprises for me was with regard to Jed Kurzel's score, which pulses with a new immediacy and
which I actually enjoyed more in this version than on the 1080p versions.
Note: Because Fox evidently wants you to have to check as many individual reviews as possible (that's a joke, kind of), the audio specs on this
4K UHD disc are different than either the 2D Blu-ray or the 3D Blu-ray. The specs above are exclusive to the 4K UHD disc. For the specs on the other
two discs (which are different between themselves), see the above linked reviews.
The 4K UHD disc has no supplemental material. The 1080p Blu-ray included in this package contains the same supplementary material outlined in the
2D Blu-ray review, linked above.
Assassin's Creed never quite achieves the gravitas it's obviously aiming for, but this 4K UHD version offers some stunning visuals and
(perhaps even more so) audio. If you're a fan of the games and curious about the film, I'd recommend going for this version if you have the home
theater equipment to support it.
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