Jaws 50th Anniversary 4K Ultra HD

"Jaws" celebrates its 45th anniversary in this limited edition release. Steven Spielberg's triple Academy Award®-winning "Jaws" succeeded in instilling a very real terror of sharks in all those who saw the film. The story picks up after the grisly remains of a young woman, the victim of a shark attack, are discovered on the shores of vacation mecca, Amity Island. The police chief (Scheider) wants the beaches closed, but it's Fourth of July weekend with thousands of paying guests in town. After two others suffer the same fate as the young woman, the chief teams up with a cocky, marine biologist (Dreyfuss) and a seasoned (lemon pepper, perhaps?) shark hunter (Shaw) to destroy the killer 25-foot great white. Based on the book by Peter Benchley. (Gary Reber)

Special features include deleted scenes and outtakes from the set (SD 13:33); "The Making Of Jaws" (SD 02:02:48); "The Shark Is Still Working: The Impact & Legacy Of Jaws" (SD 01:41:21); "Jaws: The Restoration" (HD 08:28); "From The Set" (SD 08:56); theatrical trailer; Jaws Archives, which includes storyboards (SD 29:45), production photos (SD 48:34), "Marketing Jaws" (SD 09:20), and "Jaws Phenomenon" (SD 10:08); "Jaws @ 50: The Definitive Inside Story" (HD 01:28:04) and a Movies Anywhere digital code..

The 2.36:1 2160p HEVC/H.265 Ultra HD HDR10+/HDR10 picture, reviewed on a VIZIO Quantum X P85QX-JI UHD/HDR display, was digitally remastered and fully restored from the 35 mm original film elements as part of Universal's ongoing 100th Anniversary celebration. This 4K Ultra HD is sourced from a previous restoration performed in conjunction with Steven Spielberg and the Amblin Entertainment post-production team. According to the studio, as much of the original negative element as possible was used in the restoration, as well as a process to remove as many scratches and other artifacts as possible. Grain is very fine throughout, giving the presentation a cinematic texturing. The wider color gamut exhibits perfectly natural hues and accurate flesh tones with every tonal parameter amplified. Blue skies are intense and underneath everything looks perfectly natural and realistic. Hue intensities are never exaggerated, but their textural depth is enhanced. Blue water and skies appear nicely saturated. HDR contrast is excellent and exhibits deep blacks and revealing shadow delineation. Whites, which are prominent around the seaside town, are nicely illuminated. The imagery has never been as impressively sharp and clear as exhibited in this 4K Ultra HD edition. Objects, clothing, and facial features reveal fine detail and textural nuances. WOW! segments are from 45:26 to 50:22, 01:19:40 to 01:21:30, and 01:56:24 to 01:58:18. This re-released 4K Ultra HD edition establishes the reference marker as the best that the film has ever been presented to home-viewing audiences. (Gary Reber)

The repurposed Dolby Atmos/Dolby TrueHD 7.1-channel soundtrack has been sourced from a previous Blu-ray's repurposed DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1-channel mix. The result is an impressive sound field experience that is multi-dimensional throughout. The screen soundstage, in particular, consistently spans the three channels. Sound effects enhance the improved dimension, clarity, and dynamics –– just listen to the gunshots as the shark is finally killed. Atmospherics include seaside and beach ambience with festive visitors and swimmers. This is clearly not one of the mono-centric remastered soundtracks with minor dimensional enhancement. Dynamics are satisfying and do not sound overly compressed, considering the film's age. John Williams' signature music score has been incorporated in its stereophonic glory with an aggressive extension to the surrounds, and its multidimensional presence with low-end augmentation adds significantly to the intended visceral effect. The audio tends to be balanced toward the screen with generally subtle envelopment for the most part, but the added dimensionality of the four extra channels, at times significantly enhances the enveloping holosonic® quality of the sound field. Deep bass is effectively incorporated, which magnifies the sense of fear, suspense, and urgency conveyed by the story.

The Immersive Sound element is comprised of the prominent John Williams' score, though sporadic, extended to the height layer. The brief sound of an overhead helicopter is heard at 57:09. At 58:24 the view is looking up below to swimmers paddling and splashing in the water with the sound of strong bubbling water. Two other instances occur at 01:44:14 of water disturbance with the shark attacking the boat and at 01:52:59 with the shark cage lowered in the ocean and the sound of crashes as the shark attacks the cage. Finally, the shark is blown up with an explosion at 02:00:22. There were numerous scenes which could have benefited from a treatment of the height layer that were left untouched.

Though aged, fidelity often is satisfying. Intelligibility of dialogue is never an issue (but Quint's thick accent requires close attention), and the dialogue production, often ADR produced, is satisfying, given the limitations of the original soundtrack. Purists will rejoice with the inclusion of the DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 original monaural track, but the sporadic extension of ear-level channels do add to the overall satisfaction. This is a tremendously satisfying holosonic soundtrack presentation that delivers the sense of fear of the ocean. (Gary Reber)