UHD Review A Few Words About A few words about...™ - True Lies -- in 4k UHD (2 Viewers)

[Robert Harris]

Over four decades James Cameron has "only" directed about a dozen films. Far fewer than John Ford. But all of these had the complication of sound.

Disney (bless their souls) is about to release three that fans have been craving since the days of the mutoscope - so it seems.

Aliens (1986), The Abyss (1989) and True Lies (1994) are being released as a trio, and just in time for Easter.

The final of the three is True Lies, a Bond-like fan favorite that has lost none of its charm over three decades. It's all action, with a bit of humor, all the time.

Shot 35 and blown up to 70, the visuals of the new 4k UHD are absolutely not what the film was upon release, but the secret sauce works, and allows a presentation that appears far better than it might without it.

A small, intimate production - it was shot over 213 days on a 115 million dollar budget. And every dollar shows not only on screen, but on the new 4k.

You're going to want a copy of this one.


Image – 10 (Dolby Vision)

Audio – 10 (Dolby Atmos)

Pass / Fail – Pass

Plays nicely with projectors - Yes

Makes use of and works well in 4k - 8

Upgrade from Mutosocpe - Why not?

Worth your attention - 9

Slipcover rating - 4

Highly Recommended

RAH



Thank you for supporting HTF when you preorder using the link below. As an Amazon Associate HTF earns from qualifying purchases. If you are using an adblocker you will not see link.

https://www.amazon.com/True-Lies-UH...s-tv&sprefix=true+lies+4k,movies-tv,68&sr=1-1

 

[TonyD]

I guess this is the best we will ever get so if you want it this is it.

 

[Nelson Au]

To quote Clint Eastwood, “I had to look it up”.

Mutoscope: (image from Wikipedia)

 

[lark144]

To quote Clint Eastwood, “I had to look it up”.

Mutoscope: (image from Wikipedia)
View attachment 215542

I believe Jamie Lee Curtis, the co-star of TRUE LIES also says, "I looked it up", in A FISH CALLED WANDA.

 

[sbjork]

To quote Clint Eastwood, “I had to look it up”.

Mutoscope: (image from Wikipedia)
View attachment 215542

Sidebar, but as delivered by Eastwood, that's one of the greatest double-edged sword insults of all time. He's being self-deprecating, but using that deprecation as a way to take a snide shot at her. He just nailed his delivery on that one.

Back to your regular scheduled Jim Cameron review...

 

[bujaki]

To quote Clint Eastwood, “I had to look it up”.

Mutoscope: (image from Wikipedia)
View attachment 215542

I've viewed several short films in these machines at the Packard Campus of the Library of Congress.

 

[lark144]

I've viewed several short films in these machines at the Packard Campus of the Library of Congress.

When I was a kid, they had them in an arcade at Sylvan Beach. As I recall, there was quite a pronounced flicker.

 

[bujaki]

When I was a kid, they had them in an arcade at Sylvan Beach. As I recall, there was quite a pronounced flicker.

Hence FLICKERS.

 

[RBailey]

A small, intimate production

I almost did the "Danny Thomas Spit Take" when I read this.
Robert, You're the best!

 

[lark144]

I almost did the "Danny Thomas Spit Take" when I read this.
Robert, You're the best!

A funny line, considering the schedule and budget, but compared to TITANIC & AVATAR which followed, TRUE LIES is quite modest and intimate.

 

[Nelson Au]

Apologies to Mr. Harris that my Eastwood quote sidelined the thread. I am amused that so many people knew the reference. Stephen, you are right that Eastwood’s delivery was spot on in what he was saying. Mark, I’ve not seen A Fish Called Wanda since the theatrical screening, so I have no recollection!

I recently watched True Lies via streaming not knowing this 4K release was actually going to happen. It looked so much better than the DVD. So I’m very much looking forward to this new release.

 

[Tom St Jones]

To quote Clint Eastwood, “I had to look it up”.

Mutoscope: (image from Wikipedia)
View attachment 215542

Looks like a miniature water tower (w/ an unusually-shaped top) from a '70s Godzilla film

 

[Robert Crawford]

Getting this thread back on topic, I can't wait to receive my preorder of True Lies. I've refrain from purchasing the digital because of my preorder.

 

[OliverK]

Over four decades James Cameron has "only" directed about a dozen films. Far fewer than John Ford. But all of these had the complication of sound.

Disney (bless their souls) is about to release three that fans have been craving since the days of the mutoscope - so it seems.

Aliens (1986), The Abyss (1989) and True Lies (1994) are being released as a trio, and just in time for Easter.

The final of the three is True Lies, a Bond-like fan favorite that has lost none of its charm over three decades. It's all action, with a bit of humor, all the time.

Shot 35 and blown up to 70, the visuals of the new 4k UHD are absolutely not what the film was upon release, but the secret sauce works, and allows a presentation that appears far better than it might without it.

A small, intimate production - it was shot over 213 days on a 115 million dollar budget. And every dollar shows not only on screen, but on the new 4k.

You're going to want a copy of this one.


Image – 10 (Dolby Vision)

Audio – 10 (Dolby Atmos)

Pass / Fail – Pass

Plays nicely with projectors - Yes

Makes use of and works well in 4k - 8

Upgrade from Mutosocpe - Why not?

Worth your attention - 9

Slipcover rating - 4

Highly Recommended

RAH



Thank you for supporting HTF when you preorder using the link below. As an Amazon Associate HTF earns from qualifying purchases. If you are using an adblocker you will not see link.

https://www.amazon.com/True-Lies-UHD-Arnold-Schwarzenegger/dp/B0CSZD4N61/ref=sr_1_1?crid=12JC0JI80OIF1&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.oWyuWdFGQt6evFTWhoSFPpX6VyC63ykUc0lH-q8woHFEfb1fAlXT52ASyRKpk0DqsRkFo4U2sSveztaOZWHgZR9lMa_uksgRf_Bb9fa6OXRZeR1PbjNhTsQNxUaoBoxGZytTQNktWehAk1Yfj_p9WXbqLn0HYlidSOUPb-w4-M2oeNN38LTmGy3pWJUffOeR5lw9zfjB9ctsHylb8UgPhyiHPBvVfG2gMfQnWgsb410.6Jshjo8OXCdVSYfWddw7lRqjoOyfeHE1sW3QfaF6P6A&dib_tag=se&keywords=true+lies+4k&qid=1709876764&s=movies-tv&sprefix=true+lies+4k,movies-tv,68&sr=1-1

How can this approach to releasing True Lies result in a simple 10 out of 10?

Sorry but that just doesn't look right to me - without some qualifier next to that image score it looks just like an excellent regular release when in fact it is a complete departure from what it meant to even try and produce a proper release that has respect for its origins.

Again I will not debate if this approach to releasing movies is right or wrong but it would really help if the rating would not make these releases seem as if they were produced to previous standards and therefore comparable with regular releases when instead they inhabit their own category.

 

[Robert Harris]

How can this approach to releasing True Lies result in a simple 10 out of 10?

Sorry but that just doesn't look right to me - without some qualifier next to that image score it looks just like an excellent regular release when in fact it is a complete departure from what it meant to even try and produce a proper release that has respect for its origins.

Again I will not debate if this approach to releasing movies is right or wrong but it would really help if the rating would not make these releases seem as if they were produced to previous standards and therefore comparable with regular releases when instead they inhabit their own category.

I believe I made it known via text that the imagery had been digitally altered.

Have you seen the new 4k disc? It sounds as if you don’t like what you’re seeing.

 

[sbjork]

Ratings scales are always subjective and always will be, but to be as consistent as possible, you need to rate things in absolute terms rather than relative ones. If these new 4K transfers look fantastic but are significant alterations from the original look, then it's perfectly appropriate to give them high marks but note the caveats in the text of the review. If you ding the rating on purely punitive terms since alterations were made, but the transfer still looks fantastic, it makes the numbers even less consistently reliable than they already are.

In other words, put more faith in what people like RAH have to say rather than worrying about exact numbers in a necessarily oversimplified ratings system.

 

[OliverK]

I believe I made it known via text that the imagery had been digitally altered.

Have you seen the new 4k disc? It sounds as if you don’t like what you’re seeing.

Yes you have but the casual reader afflicted with a short attention span may invariably skip to the ratings.

Maybe you could think of some clever moniker where you give a rating that indicates how much a release succeeds in looking like film or something similar. So as an example:

True Lies:
video: 10
replicates original look: 1

My Fair Lady:
video: 10
replicates original look: 10

Maybe there are other ways but imo there should be some indicator in the rating / numerical section that indicates this is something different.

I have not yet seen the disc as its release is more than a month away over here so I will have to wait.
But finally I managed to check out Titanic which is said to be the best example of this new processing and I can see what people like about it. It just isn't something that I like even when it works well - there just is a latent perception of everything being too good to be true or from time to time really artificial to use a nice word.

So I decided to stick to the Blu-ray that thankfully is excellent and shows what would also have been possible for True Lies.

 

[Bartman]

This is a comic book style flick, not a cinematic work of art, it has dated badly. I saw a previous HD stream a few years ago, it was full of artifacts, so this 4K sounds like a big improvement. We can now look forward to posts, complaining about this disc & reminiscing its theatrical look, for the next 25 years (yawn!). I doubt I'll bother streaming it, I'm done!!

 

[Keith Cobby]

Thanks for the review. This has been a long time coming, it's the best it will look, and I look forward to owning it.

 

[jayembee]

Frankly, True Lies is the only Cameron film I've seen -- seen them all minus Piranha II: The Spawning and Aliens of the Deep -- that I didn't care for. On the other hand, because of that, I've never tried to (re-)watch it since its original theatrical release. I suppose I should give it another try.