Where the Crawdads Sing appears in an aspect ratio of 2.40:1 on this Blu-ray Disc. The visuals held up well.
Sharpness looked appropriate. Delineation remained satisfying, so the image seemed accurate and concise, with only a bit of softness during occasional interiors.
No issues with jaggies or shimmering occurred, and I saw no edge haloes. Source flaws also remained absent.
In terms of colors, the movie opted for amber and teal, though it kept these subdued, so they didn’t go crazy. The low-key palette seemed satisfactory.
Blacks were pretty dark and tight, and low-light shots displayed reasonable clarity, though I thought they could be a smidgen murky at times. Overall, the visuals appeared positive.
I wouldn’t anticipate fireworks from the audio for a character piece like Sing, and its DTS-HD MA 5.1 track gave me the expected subdued affair. Music became the most prominent aspect of the soundfield, as the score used the five channels fairly well.
Effects had less to do. Ambience ruled the day, so not much more gave the track pop.
This seemed appropriate, though, as the flick didn’t come with obvious opportunities for sonic sizzle. Aspects of the marsh added some zing, but those didn’t seem especially memorable.
Audio quality appeared fine. Music was full and rich, while effects came across with appropriate accuracy, even if they lacked much punch due to a lack of ambition.
Speech came across as distinctive and concise. Nothing here excelled but the soundtrack fit the material.
As we move to extras, Adapting a Phenomenon runs nine minutes, 35 seconds. It boasts comments from producers Lauren Neustadter and Reese Witherspoon, novelist Delia Owens, 3000 Pictures president Elizabeth Gabler, director Olivia Newman, screenwriter Lucy Alibar, and actors Daisy Edgar-Jones, David Straithairn, Sterling Macer, Jr., Taylor John Smith, Michael Hyatt and Harris Dickinson.
“Phenomenon” looks at the novel’s move to the screen as well as casting and Newman’s work. Some insights emerge but a lot of the show feels fluffy.
Creating the World goes for six minutes, 10 seconds and involves Witherspoon, Newman, Edgar-Jones, Owens, Neustadter, Dickinson, Smith, Hyatt, director of photography Polly Morgan, production designer Sue Chan, art director Kirby Feagan, executive producers Betsy Danbury and Rhonda Fehr, location assistant Steven Charpentier, and actor Garret Dillahunt.
“World” examines sets and locations along with period details. Expect a mix of happy talk and good notes about the topics.
With Women In Focus, we get a five-minute, 46-second show that features Gabler, Owens, Edgar-Jones, Witherspoon, Neustadter, Newman, Hyatt, Alibar, Feagan and costume designer Mirren Gordon-Crozier.
“Focus” discusses the heavily female nature of the movie’s crew. It tends toward a lot of self-praise and little more.
14 Deleted Scenes occupy a total of 17 minutes, 57 seconds. Most of these concentrate on added character moments, with some emphasis on young Kya.
None of them add anything of particular value. Sing already runs too long – and seems too dull – so an extended version would feel even less engaging.
A Lyric Video for “Carolina” by Taylor Swift runs two minutes, 55 seconds. It shows sepia-tinted shots from the movie as the movie and lyrics run over the footage. The song seems dreary and the video bores.
The disc opens with ads for Little Women (2019), A Journal for Jordan, Father Stu and The Woman King. No trailer for Sing appears here.
Though it uses the backdrop of a thriller, Where the Crawdads Sing mostly delivers sappy melodrama. Despite some potentially intriguing twists, the movie feels trite and devoid of any drama or creativity. The Blu-ray boasts very good picture as well as appropriate audio and a mix of bonus materials. Expect a dull and tedious character piece.