Starship Troopers: Traitor of Mars appears in an aspect ratio of approximately 1.78:1 on this 4K UHD Disc. This was a decent but erratic presentation.
Overall sharpness seemed good. A little softness crept into some interiors, but the majority of the film offered concise visuals. I saw no moiré effects, but jaggies could interfere at times. Neither edge haloes nor source flaws marred the proceedings.
Colors tended toward a grungy green feel as well as the expected red/orange of Mars. This meant the hues didn’t exactly leap off the screen, but the disc reproduced them in an accurate manner.
Blacks were dark and dense, while low-light shots boasted solid clarity. Overall, this was an image that often worked fine but the occasional softness and jagged edges made it a “B-“.
Downconverted to Dolby TrueHD 7.1, the film’s Dolby Atmos soundtrack offered a good kick in the pants. The movie offered a lot of battle sequences, and those used the speakers to create a vivid, impactful sense of the material. Bugs, ships and various military weapons broadened around the room to create a vivid setting for the material.
Audio quality worked well, as speech remained natural and concise. Music was bold and bright, while effects appeared accurate and robust, with nice low-end response. The soundtrack added life to the tale.
How did the 4K UHD release compare to the Blu-ray version? The Atmos audio was more involving and engaging, while visuals seemed tighter and more dynamic, though it suffered from the same issues as the Blu-ray. Still, the 4K offered the superior version of the film.
The package also provides a Blu-ray copy of Traitor, and that’s where almost all the extras reside. The two-part A Look Inside fills a total of 16 minutes, three seconds with info from directors Masaru Matsumoto and Shinji Aramaki, effects supervisor Takuya Kiyozuka, animation supervisor Hiroshi Takeuchi, background and props supervisor Masamitsu Tasaki, rigging supervisor/crowds supervisor Toshihiko Masaki, character and props supervisor Seiji Tayama, concept designer Shinji Usui, and producers Max Nishi and Joseph Chou.
“Look” examines design, effects and animation, story/characters, and cast. The technical side works better, as those notes offer depth. The parts about story and characters tend to be bland.
Under Expanding the Universe, we get three clips: “20 Years and Counting” (6:27), “Continuing the Universe” (3:35) and “Traitor of Mars” (6:45). Across these, we hear from writer Ed Neumeier and actor Casper Van Dien.
“Universe” covers aspects of the first film and the sequels as well as elements of Traitor. Neumeier and Van Dien throw out a handful of interesting observations but the featurettes lack a lot of real impact.
One Deleted Scene lasts 44 seconds. It shows a flirty sequence between Johnny and Carmen. It adds nothing.
A Gallery presents 34 screens of concept art. It delivers a pretty good collection.
Two minor 4K UHD exclusives appear. Moments
provides a sampling of movie scenes that cover “Johnny Rico”, “Dizzy Flores”, “Sky Marshall Amy Snapp” and “Action Sequences”.