BETTER THAN THE CRITERION? | DR. STRANGELOVE 4K ULTRAHD BLU-RAY REVIEW

[@EpicB787Animations]

Dr. Jeff or How I Learned To Stop Streaming and Love the Disc.

[@JeffRauseo]

I like it. New channel name

[@PurpleStormProductions]

Goated comment

[@TheKibbles2005]

Great review, Jeff! I hope you do a Parasite and Three Flavours Cornetto trilogy (Shaun of the Dead/HotFuzz/World’s End) 4K review some time!

[@harrisonmetcalf3184]

It's annoying they don't release the Columbia classics individually

[@myfasmarine]

They probably will. But they invested in this box set so they probably want to make their money on that first.

[@ChrisPeteG]

Considering that the Box Set has them all in it, already in their own individual standard 4K cases....I would say it is almost a 100% certainty that within a year or so these titles will be put on shelves as stand-alone releases....matching their cases found in this box perfectly.

[@nosuchthing8]

@@ChrisPeteG never double dip! Unless you release movies. Haha.

[@ChrisPeteG]

@@nosuchthing8 I was just saying that for anyone who doesn't get this set....they will likely put these out as individual releases in the future. They are already putting the discs in their own cases IN this set. So production wise, they are already producing "ready made" versions of these movies, good to go for individual releases. They just have to do more printings and throw these solo releases onto the shelves.

[@nosuchthing8]

@@ChrisPeteG thank you sir

[@GA-1st]

Excellent review. That was very helpful. Thank you.

[@anthonysanimationtalkextra9345]

I bought the Criterion one brand new a while back but it didn’t contain the booklet! Shattered!

[@Trojan0304]

Thanks, not enough to retire my Crit

[@javyrod]

@jeff , hey buddy I just received an extra copy of The Great Escape from criterion that I would like to send you but I would need an address to send it

[@JeffRauseo]

Wow cool! Send me an email - [e-mail]

[@ElliotCoen]

I'll always love the packaging of the Criterion release

[@kiellivancleef5278]

you ain't lying bout that...because presentation is everything

[@aaronmiller2020]

Hello Elliot

[@SamLovesMovies25]

In directly comparing high-quality screenshots of the same shot from each disc, I think the 4K edition looks ever so *slightly* sharper, and with notably better contrast. It just goes to show that Criterion really needs to go into 4K...

[@KennyoftheReds]

I’m gonna stick with my Criterion collection because of the packaging.

[@ShanghaiRooster]

That Sony slipcase looks more like one of those cheapo DVD reissues of old movies! Can't see why they didn't use the original artwork used on the case inlay on the slipcase too. I guess that's what happens when your art director prizes uniformity of design across a package over good design. 😉

[@chrisjfox8715]

Swap it

[@bigjohn8470]

Gayest comment ever.

[@jeffreymcquillen1208]

I hope at some point that Sony will release all those titles in the box set as individual releases.

[@olabandola100]

One thing that's good is that the Criterion Collection is only available in the states (region locked). Us Europeans will be able to actually buy the 4K release.

[@geoff9279]

store.hmv.com/store/film-tv/blu-ray/dr-strangelove-the-criterion-collection

[@ShanghaiRooster]

As geoff 9 has stated, the Criterion release is available on Region B also. Please check out the BFI website for a full listing of available Criterion region B releases.

[@PeterKoperdan]

Color saturation of a black and white movie "is better"? 🤔

[@Martini_Mcfly]

Will need to judge this one for myself for sure. Larger format displays will probably show a bigger difference. That said, I'd sell my soul if Criterion would get into the 4k game.

[@BlueBallofFur]

Did you sell your soul?

[@Martini_Mcfly]

@@BlueBallofFur I am now one with the dark lord. 😂😂

[@domcoke]

One of the reasons that Dr Strangelove isn't benefitting much in terms of detail on the 4K release is because original negative was destroyed, and so they are only able to scan from prints. This limits the amount of resolution one can truly gain from a 4k scan. Without the ability to go back to the original camera negative, which will contain more detail, and finer grain, there's only so much you can do. Whereas other titles in the Columbia set are able to scan from their negative.

[@TheDarkeststar91]

I recommend you look up the KZbin channel of Mike Verta who is a Star Wars superfan who has developed a process to restore a movie just from combining multiple prints of the film. It's fascinating what can be done if you take enough time and have enough good sources to pull from. His Star Wars remaster is better looking than the actual restorations.

[@domcoke]

@@TheDarkeststar91 Thanks. I'm aware of the Star Wars restoration efforts from prints. It's simply not true to say that those restorations are better than the recent 4k ones. A print, as per my original point, will never offer the same resolution - even given the DNR that they added to them to clean up excessive grain, or match poor CGI. I have seen videos of various amateur restoration attempts on Star Wars, and simply put: they're really not that great. And they reinforce my original point... a print is poor substitute for the original negative - even if you do somewhat ruin things by adding DNR.

[@TheDarkeststar91]

@@domcoke The restoration I was pointing towards has a collection of about 20 source prints, 3-4 used at any one time to pull the best version of each frame together. This restoration is based on original scans of different prints that have been natively transferred to 4k from the theatrical prints. While yes, half the point of the video is the restorer Mike Verta trying to bring attention to what he's done to Disney in the hopes they will give him access to the original negatives, the other half is comparing how the restoration he has done often has more detail, color and clarity than the official 4k releases. There are scenes that look better than they ever have, even compared to the official Disney releases. I say all this just essentially to bring up the point that a damaged original print doesn't doom all future restorations/remasters. If someone down the line wanted to do the painstaking restoration work ala Verta's method for Dr. Strangelove, it's possible a better complete print of the film is out there for us to view via pooling various film prints instead of just upconverting the same scan for 20+ years.

[@domcoke]

@@TheDarkeststar91 Sorry, but I simply don't accept, upon my own inspection, that these restorations look better than the 4k releases. They don't. Film prints, especially ones that are decades old, don't have the level of detail that negatives do. I'm not sure how many times I can make this point. Restorers are well aware of the need to collate different sources, so Verta is simply doing what experienced restorers do every day of the week. Often official restorations are a mixture of sources. But my point STILL stands, that the reason why Dr Strangelove is somewhat limited, in terms of detail, is because it's a 2nd generation source. As are the Star Wars prints.

[@domcoke]

@@TheDarkeststar91 An exemplar of this point re source generations, is when you look at old films with lots of dissolves... the spliced negative has sections in it that have been optically duped in order to creative the ins and outs of dissolves. You can clearly see a drop in resolution on the in and out shot of a dissolve. And this is just one generation down the line. A good example of this is It's A Wonderful Life. The in/out shots of dissolves have a softened look - the grain is softer. And this is basically what you're looking at with Dr. Strangelove - if you look at the grain, it's quite soft, poorly resolved. If it were from the original camera negative, this grain would be much sharper, and the image overall more detailed.

[@akajkyt]

I like watching your videos, Kubrick is my favorite filmmaker of all time, so obviously I love this film. I’m commenting this before seeing which one is better, but I doubt I’d go any other direction than the Criterion which is the next criterion I’d like to buy. Now I’ll watch the video 😊

[@garrettbays6942]

The 4K UHD is now available separately, but I will stick with my Criterion release.

[@cap.haddock4017]

Usually the Criterion releases are locked region A discs. And Sony is most of the time regionfree. Is the Columbia boxset regionfree?

[@austinwilliams8635]

All 4K releases are region free anyways

[@TrueRandomization]

I like movies that offer English subtitles, in case I miss a word.

[@colinmatzkows5839]

I own the steelbook version of Dr. Strangelove.

[@LILGHETTI]

Great review Jeff! It's sad that Kubrick is not around to see his movies in 4K glory!!

[@applescruff1969]

I took the 4K disc and put it in the Criterion packaging. Win-Win. Lol.

[@MikeSW]

My interest in the Columbia box set comes down to... 1. Dr. Strangelove 2. Lawrence of Arabia 3. Mr. Smith (as a curiosity) I've caught bits and pieces of Ghandi, League and Maguire - never took to them. With Dr. Strangelove being a negligible upgrade over the Criterion release, I'm gonna pass on the set and just hold out hope for a standalone release of Lawrence of Arabia in the future. Appreciate the vid!

[@shanerollins3736]

I think the adoration for Gandhi goes back to the Oscars. If not for Gandhi, ET would’ve probably won everything, and the Academy pretty much started dickriding this movie because showering praise and Oscars on a historical epic would have been more palatable in the old guard’s eyes then awarding Best Picture to ET. While nowhere as controversial as Dances With Wolves/Goodfellas was, it’s still the reason why Gandhi won tons of awards and is frankly forgotten today while ET is beloved with not as many Oscars to show for it.

[@TomlinsonHolman52583]

@Films At Home - Which version has a better, more pronounced grain field? Thanks for the video!

[@ilkhanipourk]

My appreciation for the quality of the Criterion Collection releases grows daily! I too won't retire my Criterion.

[@qGeometer]

But it’s all the same master, even Criterion straight up ported Sony’s earlier BR transfer (which actually had a stronger encode). For the 4K they just made a new UHD encode from exactly the same master with HDR added in. Which means while there is no way the UHD will look any worse that the CC release, there is also not much to give the UHD a different radical new look either as the increased encode resolution and HDR is all that’s added, the 4K master is exactly the same one as from the late 2000s

[@SeroTyler]

The slow build to them putting out a Kubrick box set to replace my horribly dated WB blu ray set continues...

[@maxpower78-15]

Hdr for a black and white film?

[@lllULTIMATEMASTERlll]

Disappointing. I thought the Criterion disc was just ok. Not impressed by it.

[@JulesFox]

As usual, excellent review. I do have a small issue with referring to colour, on a B&W movie. Maybe consider how to describe the picture depth, resolution and gray-scale on black and white movies? Your doing awesome work.

[@charlesm.9858]

They need to bring back THX Certified on these discs again!!!

[@lamecasuelas2]

I miss the callibration menú on the THX discs

[@MikeSmith-rh5gc]

I miss the big loud deep opening on THX discs. Make your hair vibrate

[@JimAllder11]

Thanks for this!

[@Meat_and_Potatoes]

This has nothing to do with anything, but I've always loved the aspect of this movie is that's it's called "Dr. Strangelove" yet the title character doesn't come on screen nor gets a mention until almost, what, the last thirty minutes? I kinda like that.

[@keithm4953]

I'll end up with both too, interesting that they added a new special feature to the 4K. Criterion's Silence of the Lambs may be my all time favorite Blu-ray; it feels like I'm watching actual film!

[@jabm5238]

gonna be tough for Hitchcock's black and white classics to benefit from 4K HDR upgrades like strangelove

[@dan_hitchman007]

That's not true. HDR gives you a greater latitude on home video to see more of what a negative had to offer than ever before. It's a Wonderful Life is great on 4k Blu-ray.

[@LaughMuBai]

Criterion!

[@nisancashi2241]

just wondering is Star Wars The Skywalker Saga boxset worth getting on 4k

[@dan_hitchman007]

Not really. Look up the Harmy Despecialized Editions or the 4k77, 4k80, and 4k83 fan restorations of the theatrical versions.

[@shanerollins3736]

Depends. I say absolutely not. 1, 4, 5, and 6 are edited mercilessly. ANH even had another edit done to Han shot first just for this release. Why someone hasn’t gotten a uncut print and just made a bootleg Blu or 4K is beyond me. You’ll either think the edited Star Wars Blu-ray and 4K is the best thing ever or the worst, and I’m in the camp that says it’s the worst. Sorry to be a buzzkill but I’m not gonna lie to you:(

[@cameronvandrie2248]

i wish criterion did international shipping

[@shanerollins3736]

Your best bet would be to find someone in another country and do a trade. I’m probably going to wind up importing a lot of 4Ks from Europe, including several that legally can’t be sold or shipped to the US (rights issues), and I’ll probably have to ship them to someone (or even have them pay for them, if the sites don’t accept my payment), and then we each mail our items to each other. Also, American Criterion releases are region-locked, the DVDs are all Region 1 and the Blu-rays are all Region A. I think the UK Criterions Blus are Region B locked too.

[@nosuchthing8]

This channel is one of my favorite new channels sir! Hopefully some prince with a lot of cash will donate to your channel. Maybe make it easier to donate? Many people plan on getting discs and such for xmas, because many of us plan on getting ready for a covid christmas. Remind us to donate

[@JeffRauseo]

You can donate here: PayPal.me/filmsathome

[@tangesyukon1569]

Not gonna comment on this particular release but unfortunately Criterion PQ is below subpar compared to some BFI or other GB releases. Just look at The Wages Of Fear for example. They might have been the standard in pq during the last decade but those times are gone.

[@JayStein777]

This was so hard for me, but I went with the 4k from Sony (you can buy it individually for $17.99). Does this mean that The CC lost the rights to this? If so when I have extra money I may pick up the CC release as well.

[@timothymathetes]

Dude...beard though...wow. is it as uncomfortable as it looks?

[@portland-182]

Can you explain color grading on a black and white film a bit more???

[@JeffRauseo]

It’s mostly contrast right. Color grading is maybe the wrong term. It’s all about black and white levels

[@portland-182]

@@JeffRauseo Isn't that what HDR is doing?

[@JeffRauseo]

portland 182 well yes. And HDR is part of the grading. You have to color grade for HDR

[@portland-182]

@@JeffRauseo Isn't that the 'Wider Color Gamut', that the color grading is for, which is seperate from HDR? Any chance of a video to clear this up?

[@micgauth]

thanks for the review. how does the Blu-ray version from Sony compare to the Criterion? is it the same scan and looks exactly the same? I have the Kubrick box set and always wondered if it looked the same or Criterion was somehow better.

[@nathanwelton1385]

Hey man, again love the content, Just got the 4k Edition of Suspiria. Whats your thoughts on theater picture mode vs say standard? I understand with every tv settings vart slightly but was curious on your take. Keep up the excellent work as well 👍🎞

[@peterproductions5015]

I’m praying that it will get an individual release, if not, I’ll happily grab the Criterion, maybe even Barry Lyndon.

[@Wildcat-ih9zi]

Thank you for this comparison. Am only interested in LoA and possible upgrade of Dr. Strangelove from the Columbia set. Already own and love the Criterion Strangelove so I will patiently wait for LoA 4k standalone release (which hopefully doesn't take years).

[@jeanp.5929]

I just checked Amazon and the movie is $17.60 for an individual release, but it's the 4K version.

[@jeanp.5929]

I finally watched this movie and I must say, it's amazing. The movie was well written and in Stanley Kubrick fashion, the movie was well executed. Plus, I like watching these old movie (in 4K HDR for the most part) because I get to see history. I get to see what was trending back in the days. For Dr. Strangelove, it was the threat of a nuclear war. And the pilot riding the bomb in the end reminded me of a Simpson's episode where Homer was doing the exact same thing but I can't remember the exact episode since I haven't kept up The Simpsons since 2012. For AV, it was a very sharp movie. Although it had a very gritty tone to it. When it comes to the HDR, I didn't really notice much of a difference from SDR. I'm very sure there's a difference but I watch the movie one day and had my tv on the HDR preset but when I went to watch it the next day, I didn't realize I had the movie on an SDR preset and I didn't even notice a difference. I guess I'm biased against black and white movies. I still think HDR is really meant for colorful movies though.

[@edwardbarr1533]

I am so pleased to have found your wonderful videos at last a series for the serious cinephile,rather than the actioneer nonsense. Please continue the excellent work

[@LucaDickson]

thanks

[@MrEdWeirdoShow]

Great video. But Jeff, please update description area links like that blu-ray player one. It should link to modern day 4K compatible info. (Kinda tough to play 4k discs on an old blu-ray player.)

[@JeffRauseo]

MrEdWeirdoShow you can swap the filters at the top. But not everyone is doing 4K yet

[@christianallen3832]

Awesome video! Love the comparison

[@Missionmedia2022]

The beard grows on !!!!

[@randysalsman6992]

The only way there would be a sizable difference would be if you were projecting it on like a 200 inch screen, then you'd most definitely want to go with the 4K. How many people have that size a screen is a different matter all together. I have a killer home theater setup myself but because I'm lacking on space in my room I had to go with a 92 inch projector screen, I could go with a 100 inch but it would just give me complications with getting it mounted and the speakers so I just stick with the 92.

[@donniehuynh2391]

I own the Criterion edition on DVD.

[@dan_hitchman007]

Then get the 4k edition.

[@Thecatdrums3]

I’m so glad to hear that the 4K has all the extras the criterion release has and the picture quality is better. As soon as they release the 4K stand alone I’m buying it. If this box set was just Gandhi and Lawrence of Arabia plus Dr. Strangelove I’d buy it right now. Hate Jerry Maguire so that is what’s making me wait. Sony really shot themselves including that flick. All the extra booklets and packaging is great from criterion but just like the synapse films and blue underground 4K releases I will be fine without the booklets as long as all the on disc content is potted over since the 4K is so much better visually. Thanks for the review and I can’t wait for this to be release alone.

[@jessyrai260]

I wonder what easy rider would be like🤔

[@dan_hitchman007]

You can import the 4k Blu-ray. Sony only released it overseas for now. It looks excellent.

[@shanerollins3736]

I heard that Easy Rider was a standard Blu with a 4K digital code. Is that true?

[@skisky3]

Hi jeff whats your favorite scenes from the dark knight?it's one of your favorite movies right?

[@erikhughes8412]

Do you not understand the difference between 4k and UHD? They are BOTH re-mastered in 4k, but you can't make a movie shot on film higher definition than the way it was originally filmed. If you try, it fundamentally changes it - it's like colorization.

[@thomaspearson6215]

can i ask, is there any movies that you think should not be upgraded ? if they have upgraded a movie to dvd which enhanced the picture quality but still could possibly want a few extra tweaks which would bring it up to todays standard. do you not think that some earlier movie look better with a few marks or grain , just like listening to a record with a bit of crackling hear and there , it shows it's age gives it that nostalgic feel .

[@Thecatdrums3]

Having a damaged print is not a mark of quality. Fixing damage is better because it shows the film as it was intended to be seen. Compare jaws 4K to the vhs and laserdisc is completely different because they fixed all the problems that happened to the negative. Film degrades over time and seeing a film print is great but damage doesn’t add to a films viewing it removes from it. Grain on the other hand is meant to be seen and should be present in anything that isn’t 70mm or IMAX that have almost no grain.

[@Thecatdrums3]

Also being a record collector and audiophile you don’t want cracks in your record. Analog audio is vastly superior to anything digital and sound have some lower hiss if anything but pops and cracks mean you got a bad pressing and you should probably as for a new copy. Vinyl records should not have pops and cracks in it. That’s just the same as a lazy blu-ray or DNR on a film.

[@natemekis3959]

I’ll wait for the 8k

[@ironmantooltime]

I'm going out on a limb here and saying Dr strangelove would be pointless in 4k 😎

[@JeffRauseo]

That would be incorrect. The fact we have a 4K scan is what makes this look so good.

[@ironmantooltime]

@@JeffRauseo OK but the bluray is just fine as u yourself said (albeit a Criterion). Suggests the real 4k additional is very limited 🙂

[@lucalone]

it is sad that masterpieces like lolita and dr. strangelove were made in black & white....

[@JeffRauseo]

Why? That makes them unique.

[@lucalone]

@@JeffRauseo they would look even better in color!!

[@dan_hitchman007]

@@lucalone Not really. The lighting must be more intense with color filmstock. Black and White film allows for a deeper contrast between shadow and light. Film noir would look like crap in color.

[@shanerollins3736]

@@lucalone You tell em, Ted Turner!

[@MikeSmith-rh5gc]

Couldn’t imagine it in color. Just like Psycho or the beginning and end of Wizard of Oz

[@jimcameron1234]

Never liked or cared about this Stanley Kubrick movie his worst movie unlike all his masterpiece movies

[@austinwilliams8635]

Have you seen Fear and Desire? That film sucks.

[@pastelitasdelflan]

@@austinwilliams8635 : Fear and Desire was student work, and as I recall, Kubrick tried to find all the prints and destroy them. Oddly, though, that movie it still better than most of what I see at my local cineplex.

[@dan_hitchman007]

You don't have a dark sense of humor. Dr. Strangelove is an amazing piece of black comedy.

[@shanerollins3736]

Everyone has movies of Kubrick’s that they don’t like. Mine is Eyes Wide Shut. Love Lolita, Dr. Strangelove, 2001, A Clockwork Orange, Barry Lyndon, The Shining, and Full Metal Jacket, and I thought Eyes Wide Shut sucked. I’ll eventually give it another chance, probably when I buy either the standalone Blu or one of the umpteen Kubrick Blu-ray box sets, but currently it isn’t one of my favorites. :/

[@lewisjames4268]

Don’t review League of their own and Jerry Maguire. No one gives a crap

[@MikeSmith-rh5gc]

I love League of their Own. I don’t own it, but whenever it’s on, I’ll watch it. It’s a feel good movie. Even if it does have Madonna and Rosie in it