Kingsman: The Golden Circle appears in an aspect ratio of approximately 2.39:1 on this 4K UHD Disc. The movie offered a strong presentation.
Sharpness worked fine, as the film usually seemed accurate and well-defined. A few wider shots felt a smidgen soft, but these didn’t become an issue.
I saw no signs of jaggies or moiré effects, and the film lacked edge haloes. Source flaws failed to materialize.
If you suspected Circle would come with the modern standard teal and orange palette, you’ll get what you expected, and these became heavy tints. I’d like to see action flicks dispense with those conceits, but given their restraints, they looked fine here, and HDR added a boost to the tones.
Blacks came across nicely, as dark tones were deep and rich, without any muddiness or problems. In addition, low-light shots gave us smooth, clear visuals.
HDR gave contrast and whites extra punch. All in all, this became a pleasing presentation.
Downconverted to Dolby TrueHD 7.1, I also felt happy with the solid Dolby Atmos soundtrack of Golden Circle. The mix offered plenty of opportunities for lively auditory information, and it took good advantage of these.
From the opening scene on a plane to road chases to gunfire to explosions to other action elements, the mix filled the speakers on a frequent basis. The track placed information in logical spots and blended all the channels in a smooth, compelling manner.
Audio quality was also positive. Music sounded lively and full, while effects delivered accurate material. Those elements showed nice clarity and kick, with tight low-end.
Speech was always distinctive and concise, too. This mix worked well for the film.
How did the 4K UHD compare to the Blu-ray version? The Atmos audio offered a bit more involvement than the BD’s DTS-HD MA track.
Taken from a 2K source, HDR became the biggest improvement here, as colors and blacks got a boost. Sharpness largely felt similar to the Blu-ray, though, and the superior capabilities of 4K made a little softness evident that didn’t seem obvious during the BD. Still, I preferred the 4K’s visuals.
No extras appear on the 4K disc itself, but we get some on the included Blu-ray copy, where the main attraction comes from a nine-part documentary called Inside the Golden Circle.
It fills a total of one hour, 57 minutes, 13 seconds with info from writer/director Matthew Vaughn, editor Eddie Hamilton, production designer Darren Gilford, makeup designer Amanda Knight, hair designer Lisa Tomblin, stunt double Michael Rawlins, special effects supervisor Steven Warner, VFX supervisors Chris Lawrence and Mark Breakspear, CG supervisors Fabio Zangla and Jim McLean, animation supervisor Max Tyrie, compositing supervisor Chris Zeh, capture supervisor Richard Graham, senior VFX supervisor Angus Bickerton, sound supervisor/sound designer Matthew Collinge, co-composer Matthew Margeson, and actors Mark Strong, Halle Berry, Julianne Moore, Colin Firth, Taron Egerton, Edward Holcroft, Channing Tatum, Pedro Pascal and Jeff Bridges.
“Inside” looks at story/characters and challenges related to the creation of a sequel, cast and performances, set design and locations. We also learn about costumes and weapons/gadgets, stunts and action, various effects, editing, music and audio.
With almost two hours at its disposal, “Inside” comes with plenty of breathing room, and it largely uses the space well. While it can seem a bit fluffy at times – usually related to the actors – the show mostly delivers a solid look at the production – especially when we see the ample footage from the set.
Black Cab Chaos: Anatomy of a Killer Chase lasts 12 minutes, 49 seconds and features Vaughn, Holcroft, Bickerton, Warner, Lawrence, Zangla, art director James Morall, and special effects senior technician James Ferguson.
As anticipated, “Chaos” looks at the work done to complete the movie’s opening action sequence. It delivers a fun take on the material.
In addition to two trailers, Kingsman Archives brings us two galleries: “Concept Art” (36 elements) and “Stills” (52). Both offer some good images, though “Concept Art” seems much more engaging.
After the great thrills of the first flick, I hoped Kingsman: The Golden Circle would provide another top-notch action tale. While it doesn’t live up to its predecessor and it sags at times, Circle still works pretty well in its own right. The 4K UHD boasts strong picture and audio along with a fairly good collection of supplements highlighted by a long documentary. Circle turns into a mostly enjoyable adventure.
To rate this film, visit the prior review of KINGSMAN: THE GOLDEN CIRCLE