The Life Of Chuck

"The Life Of Chuck" is a life-affirming, genre-bending story about three chapters in the life of an ordinary man named Charles Krantz. Based o a Stephen King short story. (Gary Reber)

Special features include commentary with Writer/Director Mike Flanagan; four featurettes: "The Making Of The Life Of Chuck" (HD 17:31), "On-Set Interview With Tom Hiddleton" (HD 14:19), "On-Set Interview With Chiwetel Ejiofor" (HD 10:09) and "On-Set Interview With Mark Hamill" (HD 08:45), teaser and trailer.

The 1.85:1/2.00:1/2.39:1 1080p picture, reviewed on a VIZIO Quantum X P85QX-JI UHD/HDR display, was photographed digitally using the Arri Alexa 35 camera system and sourced from a 4K master Digital Intermediate format. Picture quality is superb, in all three Acts. The color palette is warm and rich with nicely saturated hues. Everything looks realistic with accurate colors throughout. Flesh tones are natural. Contrast is excellent. Blacks appear naturally deep. Shadow delineation is revealing of shadows, White levels appear natural, both in exterior scenes and in interiors. At times, such as in Act Three, the visual are impressively dynamic such as during the night sky collapse. This is a well-crafted visual experience exhibits realism throughout. There is a 4K Ultra HD edition available but not sent for review. (Gary Reber)

The DTS=HD Master Audio 5.1-channel soundtrack delivers a realistic sonic experience throughout. In Act Three, the sound progresses to aggressive dynamics as the man-made and natural environment slowly collapses. Sound effects are intense with support from powerful deep bass, especially when delivered by .1 LFE channel, as in the end of the earth and universe. In Act Two, the sound is largely centered on the character Taylor Frank (The Pocket Queen) playing a drum kit on a city plaza with Chuck and a looker-on dancing to the beat, The sound of the drum kit is dynamic and tight with excellent fidelity. In Act One, the sound is driven by atmospherics with the occasional intense eerie sound effect. There is a lot of music and dances with young Chuck developing his love of music and dance. Throughout, atmospherics sound realistic, such as a water fountain array in the middle of a man-made lake within the city. Surround envelopment fills the sound field with discrete directionality at times. The Newton Brothers score is nicely recorded with a wide soundstage and extension to the surrounds. Throughout, dialogue is intelligible but forward sounding and wanting n spatial integration due to largely ADR or body mics. Nick Offerman's narration is positioned perfectly with a foward presence, Overall, this is a very satisfying holosonic® soundtrack that is well-crafted. .