'Se7en' 4K UHD Has Some Goods in the Box
I need a new TV. When I got mine, 1080p was the maximum resolution a consumer television's resolution could go. Now, some televisions can reach 8K resolutions, dwarfing my tiny cabinet television, which frankly needs to go. So, what the heck does any of this have to do with Se7ev? It's that my TV is no good for it, and if you don't have the latest hookups like I do, you may be in for a disappointment too.
My home theater is ancient and doesn't support DTS HD. The surround sound dream that is on my old Se7en 2 Disc Platinum DVD is replaced with a two-channel snoozefest. What good is my 5.1 surround sound if newer movies aren't compatible with my original setup? On my TV, Se7en is wildly underexposed to the point where I'm squinting to see characters' faces in certain scenes, whereas, in the DVD, everything appears crystal clear even if it is simply an upres of a 720 by 480 image. To give this product a fairer review, I'd like to view it on a long overdue newer television, opposite of the one I have that's also permanently stained from a baby's hail mary pass of milk.
One quality I liked (mostly) in this 3840 by 2160 beefed-up medium of Se7ev is the color correction wasn't invasive. One reason I will never buy Star Wars on Blu-Ray is because of how atrocious its color correction is. The grays are no longer gray. They're dark blue. Why is the interior of the Death Star so freaking blue?! There are some moments in Se7en where the color wheels are doing a bit too much turning where walls that were of a white or orange hue are dark green. It's like Detective Mills and Somerset are in the Matrix in some shots.
Why do current-day color corrections do this? Is AI doing some of the human's work? It seems that way on certain shots where I know the subjects weren't that underexposed, and the contrast wasn't so severe. But again, my Dadgum TV doesn't have high dynamic ratio compatibility. It stinks for me, but it may be fun for you.
Minus a presentation I don't have the proper setup for (yet), how are the special features? They're not bad. There are four commentaries featuring Director David Fincher, Brad Pitt, Morgan Freeman, and others involved in the film. There are also extra scenes and alternate endings, a look into the production design, and how the opening title was made. At least this 4K, unlike so many others, has the same extra features as its DVD counterpart, preserving history as it should.
If you love Se7en and have the newest 4K television with a DTS-HD 5.1 surround home theater, you might be in for a more delightful treat than I had. I miss the old DVD. It had cool menu animations, and the cover art looked like John Doe's journal. For the 4K, the box folds out like a portfolio of shots from the movie. If there's one major annoyance, it's with the box itself. They make it close to impossible to remove the disc without getting your fingerprints on it. The disc is fitted in its cardboard casing with limited protection. That's asking for your disc to be damaged. With some cool cover art, an updated look to match today's technology, and all of the old DVD extras preserved, the 4K edition of Se7en is probably the most pristine way to see one of the best thrillers of the nineties out there.
Se7en 4K UDH Blue Ray is available to purchase today
