Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull appears in an aspect ratio of approximately 2.35:1 on this 4K UHD Disc. Virtually no concerns occurred during this excellent Dolby Vision presentation.
Sharpness looked positive. No softness created concerns, so the movie boasted strong clarity and delineation.
No issues with jaggies or moiré effects occurred, and edge haloes remained absent. As for print flaws, they stayed away here, as I noticed no signs of any defects in this clean and distinctive image.
Colors looked solid. The movie varied between amber and teal and didn’t present the world’s broadest palette, but it included a good enough range of hues that consistently came across as tight and vibrant. HDR contributed nice emphasis and punch to the tones.
Black levels seemed deep and dense, and low-light shots demonstrated fine clarity and never became too thick. HDR brought added range and power to contrast and whites. I found nothing about which I could complain as I watched the consistently positive visual presentation of Skull.
Downconverted to Dolby TrueHD 7.1, the Dolby Atmos soundtrack of Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull seemed very good. The mix offered a broad and engaging experience. Music showed nice delineation and spread, and the effects created a good sense of atmosphere.
Effects seemed appropriately placed and blended together smoothly. Those elements moved cleanly across the channels to demonstrate a fine feeling of place.
Surround usage was strong. Quite a lot of information – from bullets to explosions to vehicles to spooky skull effects -–popped up from the rear, and the back speakers acted as an active aspect of the mix. The track didn’t often dazzle and present a stunning surround mix, but it provided a consistently engaging affair.
Audio quality appeared fine. Speech was distinct and concise, and I noticed no issues connected to intelligibility or edginess. Music was fairly vibrant and dynamic, as the disc displayed the score with vivacity and solid clarity.
Effects were clean and rich, and they never suffered from any signs of distortion or other problems. Bass response was deep and firm and brought good punch to the package. I liked this track quite a lot and thought it merited an “A“.
Note that this 2023 4K UHD release of Skull simply reissues the 2021 disc. That one came only as part of a four-movie collection, and this acts as the film’s second 4K UHD solo release. 2022 also brought a steelbook edition.
Because it came as part of that five-disc/four-movie collection, almost no extras show up on the Skull platter itself. We get both a teaser and a trailer.
Initially I didn’t give the Temple 4K UHD a grade for extras because it existed in that collection. However, since this platter stands on its own, I awarded a “D-“ to represent that you get almost no supplements here.
After 19 years out of cinemas, could the return of Indiana Jones live up to expectations? I think it could have done so, but it didn’t. Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull provides an amiable and occasionally exciting affair, but it’s not one that matches up particularly well with its three predecessors.
The 4K UHD brings us strong picture and audio. While not a great adventure, Skull still can be fun, and the disc makes it look and sound terrific. This acts as a quality rendition of the film, though fans who want to experience movie-related bonus features will need to get the boxed set.
To rate this film visit the DVD review of KINGDOM OF THE CRYSTAL SKULL
