Labyrinth:
30th
Anniversary Edition
(1986/Henson/LucasFilm/Sony 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray w/Blu-ray + Blu-ray
DigiPak Versions)
4K
Picture: A- Picture: B+ Sound: B+ Extras: B Film: B
Jim
Henson will always be remembered as not only one a force in the world
of puppetry but as a remarkable filmmaker that was ahead of his time.
This is proven in his two narrative live action films The
Dark Crystal
and Labyrinth,
outside his fantastic work with his own The
Muppets
going back to Sesame
Street,
earlier TV variety show and TV commercial appearances. Starring
David Bowie and Jennifer Connelly, Labyrinth utilizes fantastic
production design, puppetry, costumes, and live action to create a
fantasy world that today would be done with digital creatures and
digital matte paintings but here in done the right way - practically.
A childhood favorite for almost anyone who was a kid in the 1980s
(and fortunately, later), the film lands on Blu-ray looking better
than ever and packed with fantastic bonus features.
Taking
a cue from classic children's stories such as Where
The Wild Things Are
and The
Wizard of Oz,
Jim Henson's 1986 film Labyrinth
(yes, he directed it himself!) tells the story of Sara (Connelly) who
lives in her own imaginary world and is frustrated the burden of
babysitting her small baby brother. While her parents are away one
night, she wishes that her brother would be kidnapped by Goblins -
only to find that in fact he is - when the Goblin King (Bowie) shows
up and transports her to a faraway world where anything is possible.
Once in his fantastical new reality, Sara must solve a complicated
Labyrinth, home to many different creatures that seek to betray her,
and has 13 hours to find her way to the Goblin King's castle to
rescue her baby brother.
Also
in the cast (even if you don't recognize them in their make-up or
outfits depending) are Frank Oz, Kenny Baker, Warwick Davis, Jack
Purvis and various members of the Henson family.
Shot
on 35mm film with real anamorphic, underrated J-D-C Scope lenses
Lucas was happy with on Return
Of The Jedi,
the film was lensed by the incredible Director
of Photography Alex Thompson, B.S.C. (Alien
3,
Year
Of The Dragon,
Ridley Scott's Legend,
Excalibur,
Roeg's Eureka,
Branagh's 70mm Hamlet,
The
Krays).
Sony has gone out of their way to deliver a new Ultra HD master and,
WOW does it look fine. With a great color range and meant for 70mm
blow-up, the
2160p HEVC/H.265, HDR (10; Ultra HD Premium)-enhanced Ultra High
Definition image is an excellent demo for the new format and makes
this easily one of the best-looking back catalog titles around in ANY
format. You have never seen it looking so good and both fans and
novices alive will see exactly what the makers intended to the extent
that this will cause revisionist thinking of the film in its favor.
For Bowie fans, it is a match for all the great Blu-rays of The
Man Who Fell To Earth
(including the stunning, but out of print Criterion edition, though
the Lionsgate Blu-ray issued a bit later (reviewed elsewhere on this
site) has issues) and exclusive Blu-ray of Absolute
Beginners
(Twilight Time) and The
Hunger
(Warner Archive, all reviewed elsewhere on this site) that continues
the stunning streak of Bowie's feature films in HD.
The
4K set and separately sold Blu-ray-only DigiPak with built-in booklet
editions offer that standard Blu-ray in 1080p digital high definition
with the same widescreen aspect ratio that is nothing to dismiss
easily. Though not as stunning as the 4K version, it more than holds
its own in the common HD format and will still surprise those use to
lesser transfers of the film.
Originally
issued sonically at its best in 6-track magnetic stereo (possibly
with Dolby noise reduction, information on this mixed on this at this
time), Sony has gone our of their way and created a new, great
sounding Dolby Atmos 11.1 lossless track that recreates the sonic
70mm experience and then some, available on all versions released
here. One DVD version had poor sound with poor surrounds years ago,
but that is just a bad, distant memory here as the sonics fuse with
the amazing image quality to deliver the fantasy-genre classic like
few have ever experienced it before. The music score by Trevor Jones
(Dark
Crystal,
Excalibur,
Angel
Heart,
Dark
City,
Desperate
Measures,
From
Hell)
also benefits greatly sounding amazing and is now arguably one of the
highest fidelity ways to hear his work in any format, anywhere. Also
included is a lossless Dolby TrueHD 7.1 track and several other 5.1
tracks in various languages.
Special
Features include...
Reordering
Time: Looking Back at Labyrinth
The
Henson Legacy
Remembering
The Goblin King
Labyrinth
anniversary Q and A
Theatrical
Trailer
The
Storytellers: Picture in Picture Track
Commentary
by Conceptual Designer Brain Froud
Making
Of documentary Inside
the Labyrinth
Journey
Through The Kingdom: Kingdom of Characters and The Quest For Goblin
City
Digital
Copy
plus
booklet in the DigiPak version only
This
release is a great treat for fans of the film and a great way to show
it to the new generation. Hope more back catalog releases get this
time of high grade treatment.
-
James Lockhart & Nicholas Sheffo
https://www.facebook.com/jamesharlandlockhartv/
