One Night in Miami appears in an aspect ratio of approximately 2.39:1 on this Blu-ray Disc. This became an appealing visual presentation.
Sharpness worked fine. A few slightly soft shots appeared, but most of the movie delivered tight, concise images.
The movie lacked shimmering or jaggies, and it failed to suffer from any edge haloes. Print flaws also created no distractions.
Orange/amber dominated the palette, with dollops of teal as well. Though tedious, the colors came across as desired.
Blacks were deep and dense, while low-light shots offered good clarity. The transfer satisfied.
While not as impressive, the movie’s DTS-HD MA 5.1 soundtrack remained suitable for the story. The soundscape tended toward environmental material, and that restricted its scope.
Boxing competitions offered the most immersive material, and a few other segments brought out decent ambience. This was still a mostly low-key experience, though.
Audio quality worked well. Speech seemed natural and distinctive, without edginess or problems.
Music was vivid and vibrant, and effects appeared accurate and clear. Though not dazzling, the soundtrack came across well for the tale at hand.
As we head to extras, we begin with An Essential Collaboration. It runs 29 minutes, 29 seconds and features a discussion from director Regina King and screenwriter Kemp Powers.
Along with critic Gil Robertson, they discuss what brought King to the project and her collaboration with Powers, camerawork, the project’s roots and development, the play and its adaptation for the screen, cast and performances, making the film during a pandemic, and their hopes for the film.
At times, “Collaboration” veers a little too hard toward happy talk. Nonetheless, we get a good collection of insights, so the show merits a look.
Becoming a Director goes for 29 minutes, 46 seconds and features a chat between King and filmmaker Kasi Lemmons. They cover aspects of King’s acting career and her move to the director’s chair as well as aspects of the Miami production.
Because Lemmons also started as an actor and later became a director, this gives her an intriguing connection to King. The pair share an enjoyable and informative conversation.
Another conversation between filmmakers comes via Regina King and Barry Jenkins. It goes for 41 minutes, 52 seconds and includes their thoughts about King’s decision to make Miami and her approach to the material, sets/locations, camerawork, cast and performances, and other production topics.
This becomes another chat with a bit more praise than I’d like but it still seems fun to see King discuss her work with her fellow filmmaker.
Building Characters spans 23 minutes, 57 seconds and features King as well as actors Leslie Odom Jr., Aldis Hodge, Kingsley Ben-Adair and Eli Goree. They talk about their roles and performances in this enjoyable program.
With Sound Design, we get a 24-minute, 11-second piece that features music producer Nick Baxter and rerecording mixer/sound editor Andy Hay and production sound mixer Paul Ledford. As expected, they discuss aspects of the movie’s audio. This becomes an informative reel.
In addition to the film’s trailer, the disc concludes with Making One Night in Miami, a 31-minute, eight-second show that provides info from King, Powers, producer Jody Klein, editor Tariq Anwar, director of photography Tami Reiker, costume designer Francine Jamison-Tanchuck and set decorator Janessa Hitsman.
As implied by that roster, “Making” mainly discusses technical areas. It gets into useful areas and turns into a solid overview.
The set finishes with a booklet with art, credits and an essay from critic Gene Seymour. It winds up the package on a positive note.
Based on real events, One Night in Miami depicts a meeting of Black legends that tantalizes with possibilities. However, the end result feels less than compelling, as it sticks the characters with one-note personalities and tedious monologues. The Blu-ray boasts solid picture and audio as well as a fine collection of bonus materials. While a watchable affair, Miami fails to live up to the potential offered by its concept.