Inferno appears in an aspect ratio of approximately 1.85:1 on this Blu-ray Disc. The movie came with a positive presentation.
Overall sharpness appeared good. A little softness crept into some interiors, but in general, the image appeared accurate and concise. No signs of jaggies or moiré effects occurred, and I saw neither edge haloes nor print flaws.
To the surprise of no one, Inferno opted for a teal and orange palette. These hues came across as intended, so the choices may have been trite, the disc executed them appropriately. Blacks seemed dark and dense, while shadows looked clear and concise. This was an appealing transfer.
When it came to the film’s DTS-HD MA 5.1 soundtrack, it didn’t dazzle, but it suited the story. This meant the soundscape largely focused on ambience, with some emphasis on trippy flashbacks related to Langdon’s foggy mental condition.
Those moments added some spice to the proceedings, and the occasional action segment also boasted nice involvement. Otherwise, the mix stayed semi-restrained, as it added environmental material without a lot of oomph.
Audio quality satisfied. Speech remained concise and distinctive, while music seemed warm and full. Effects boasted good clarity and impact, with nice low-end as appropriate. Though not a killer mix, the soundtrack fit the tale.
Six featurettes appear here, and these launch with Visions of Hell. In this five-minute, 35-second piece, we hear from director Ron Howard, author Dan Brown, visual effects supervisor Jody Johnson, and actor Tom Hanks.
“Hell” looks at Dante and how his work influenced the film as well as how the movie brings those visions to life. It gives us a quick and semi-superficial overview.
During the 13-minute, 34-second Inferno Around the World, we get notes from Howard, Brown, Hanks, producer Brian Grazer, screenwriter David Koepp, and actors Felicity Jones, Sidse Babett Knudsen, Ana Ularo, Ben Foster, Omar Sy, and Irrfan Khan. This show examines cast, characters and performances. A few interesting tidbits emerge, but most of “World” feels fluffy.
The next three pieces look at characters. We find A Look At Langdon (6:21), This Is Sienna Brooks (5:48) and The Billionaire Villain: Bertrand Zobrist (5:13).
Across these, we locate info from Howard, Hanks, Jones, Foster, Brown, and Koepp. They give us background and notes about Langdon, Brooks and Zobrist. The clips turn out to be more engaging than expected, as they offer useful backstory.
With Ron Howard: A Director’s Journal, we discover a 10-minute, two-second program. In it, we see Howard’s on-set photography and get his observations about the production; Brown throws in a few thoughts as well. Nothing stellar arrives, but Howard gives us a reasonable collection of insights.
Seven Extended and Deleted Scenes fill a total of 27 minutes, 19 seconds. I appreciate the length of the scenes, as they average nearly four minutes apiece – quite long for the average cut sequence.
However, they don’t give us much that seems new or interesting. These tend toward the “extended” side of the street, as most add to existing sequences, and these fail to contribute much to the characters or narrative, though one does hint at a more hopeful romantic future for Langdon.
The disc opens with ads for Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk, Passengers, The Magnificent Seven (2016) and Beyond Valkyrie: Dawn of the Fourth Reich. No trailer for Inferno appears here.
As the newest entry in the Robert Langdon series, Inferno provides decent entertainment. While the movie sputters at times, it usually delivers a fair amount of excitement – even if logic occasionally suffers. The Blu-ray brings us fairly good picture and audio along with a decent array of bonus materials. Inferrno continues its franchise on a moderately positive note.