Westworld appears in an aspect ratio of approximately 2.40:1 on this Blu-ray Disc. The transfer seemed competent, though it showed its age.
A fair amount of variance came here, as the image could look pretty good at times and fairly drab at others. This meant sharpness seemed up and down, with some well-defined elements and plenty that lacked clear delineation.
I saw no issues with jagged edges or shimmering, and the image lacked edge haloes. Print flaws also failed to materialize here.
The film’s palette tended toward a rustic brown feel that suited the largely Western motif. The colors didn’t pop, but they seemed adequate.
Blacks were acceptably deep, though they could seem somewhat inky at times. Shadows followed suit, as low-light situations tended to come across as a bit murky. This wasn’t a bad image, but its inconsistencies created frustration.
As for the film’s DTS-HD MA 5.1 soundtrack, it also appeared erratic, but it leaned toward the good side of that equation. The soundscape focused on the front and displayed nice stereo presence for music.
Effects seemed less consistent, as they occasionally broadened to the side and rear speakers in a vivid manner. We also got occasional instances of localized speech.
However, some scenes felt closer to monaural. This meant the soundscape usually offered reasonable breadth but it varied somewhat.
Audio quality seemed dated but acceptable. Despite occasional edginess, speech was fairly natural, and I detected no issues with intelligibility.
Effects appeared similarly restricted, and they could be a bit distorted at times, but they usually appeared reasonably clear. Music fared best, as the score sounded full and rich. Given the movie’s vintage, this felt like a “B” soundtrack.
A few extras round out the disc, and the prime attraction comes from Beyond Westworld, a 1980 TV pilot. It runs 47 minutes, 52 seconds and gives us a look at the theme park after the robots malfunction. The series only lasted a handful of episodes, and I can see why, as the pilot isn’t very good.
In addition to the film’s trailer, we find a vintage featurette called On Location. It fills nine minutes, seven seconds and offers a few notes from writer/director Michael Crichton and actors Richard Benjamin and Yul Brynner. Despite a few good behind the scenes shots, this mostly becomes promotional fluff.
Despite an inspired premise, Westworld sputters too much of the time. The movie fails to develop its themes and characters in a satisfying manner, as it dallies too much and wastes a lot of its limited length. The Blu-ray provides pretty good audio along with mediocre visuals and a few bonus features. The film winds up as an erratic disappointment.