A Few Words About A few words about…™ Forrest Gump — in 4k UHD Blu-ray (1 Viewer)

[Robert Harris]

I don't believe that FG is a prime candidate for 4k.

Regardless, it looks fine for what it is.

The problems are probably based more upon expectations, than reality.

 

[B-ROLL]

Many dupes cut in.

Give that man a Dr Pepper !

 

[OliverK]

FORREST GUMP has a lot of "hidden" CGI shots, which were likely no more than 2K resolution, so I wonder if that's the reason for the "inconsistencies" we're seeing. The increase in detail in so many of the 4K screenshots is significant, so I don't see why they would use "selective DNR" on only some shots of the film for this release. More likely, those "degrained" shots were CGI and were possibly degrained way-back in 1994 during the original post-production.

Vincent

If you look here you can see plenty of grain in the Blu-ray but it is all gone in the UHD version:

https://www.caps-a-holic.com/c.php?...967&d2=11966&s1=118122&s2=118099&l=0&i=7&go=1

I would like to think that this was one of the first titles that Paramount brought to UHD and that they have not redone their early work in so far as that they stayed with choices that were made some years ago regarding DNR and how to handle film grain.

Releases like Braveheart and the first two Mission Impossible movies seem to confirm that there is hope that future film based releases will handled more carefully.

 

[PMF]

Not by any means am I reading anything about the Forrest Gump 4K that makes it a deal breaker.
But, I am curious, is the accompanying Blu-Ray the same transfer from the Sapphire Series?
If not, I wonder how things play out when the new 4K scan is seen as a BD up-rezzed?

 

[Wayne_j]

Looking at the screencaps it is clear that the UHD version does have much improved detail while having less grain. Maybe the existing blu-ray was a scan of an interpositive and not of the original negative? That could account for the lessened amount of grain in the new version.

 

[Lord Dalek]

I seem to recall there was a lot of criticism at the time about Paramount recycling an older scan for that blu-ray. That opens the door to MPEG noise masquerading as "grain".

 

[Vincent_P]

If you look here you can see plenty of grain in the Blu-ray but it is all gone in the UHD version:

https://www.caps-a-holic.com/c.php?...967&d2=11966&s1=118122&s2=118099&l=0&i=7&go=1

I would like to think that this was one of the first titles that Paramount brought to UHD and that they have not redone their early work in so far as that they stayed with choices that were made some years ago regarding DNR and how to handle film grain.

Releases like Braveheart and the first two Mission Impossible movies seem to confirm that there is hope that future film based releases will handled more carefully.

The very shot you link shows significantly more detail in the 4K UHD screencap, so I don't know what you're point is. I'll take actual detail over the clumpy looking "grain" on the Blu-ray screen-grab any day.

Vincent

 

[Vincent_P]

Looking at the screencaps it is clear that the UHD version does have much improved detail while having less grain. Maybe the existing blu-ray was a scan of an interpositive and not of the original negative? That could account for the lessened amount of grain in the new version.

NO! CLEARLY IT'S DNR!!!



Vincent

 

[Dave H]

The increase in detail in so many of the 4K screenshots is significant, so I don't see why they would use "selective DNR" on only some shots of the film for this release.

Vincent

Grease (another Paramount title) seemed to have some scenes with virtually no grain where as others were fine.

I probably will buy FG on UHD BD at some point - but will probably wait for a Black Friday type of deal. I bought and watched the Blu-ray (which seemed reasonably solid - and consistent - from a PQ standpoint) earlier this year and I'm not ready to watch it again for a while.

 

[OliverK]

The very shot you link shows significantly more detail in the 4K UHD screencap, so I don't know what you're point is. I'll take actual detail over the clumpy looking "grain" on the Blu-ray screen-grab any day.

Vincent

I did not say that there was not more detail in the UHD version. If that is the only criteria we are looking at there certainly is technology that helps to extract all film grain from every frame of Forrest Gump on UHD and still retain more detail than there is in the Blu-ray but it does not have to be grain or detail, we can obviously have both.

So my point is that there was grain before and indeed it was not looking that great. This is where a UHD usually can improve upon a Blu-ray release, like for example here in Mission: Impossible 2:

https://www.caps-a-holic.com/c.php?...055&d2=12054&s1=119097&s2=119094&l=0&i=6&go=1

More detail and nicer looking grain, I'll take that

 

[PMF]

Well, split-hairs aside; I've found it encouraging to see Paramount's recent output and activity.
Hoping to see more.

 

[Vincent_P]

Grease (another Paramount title) seemed to have some scenes with virtually no grain where as others were fine.

I probably will buy FG on UHD BD at some point - but will probably wait for a Black Friday type of deal. I bought and watched the Blu-ray (which seemed reasonably solid - and consistent - from a PQ standpoint) earlier this year and I'm not ready to watch it again for a while.

Grain structure can/usually does vary from shot-to-shot in the same film based on lighting, some shots possibly being "pushed" at the lab, etc. Going to IP/IN/release-print can "smooth out" and normalize the grain structure, but going back to the original negative doesn't allow for that, so you'll now see the grain variances more clearly from a new OCN 4K scan. And not to mention, anamorphic 35mm is generally a 'fine grained' shooting format to begin with due to the size of the negative. A "lack of grain" does not necessarily mean DNR. Some films are just inherently very finely grained and you won't see much grain in a video transfer.

Vincent

 

[Felix Martinez]

Wow, I just saw this and I thought it was a HUGE upgrade over the blu-ray. Viewed on Sony 350 4K (non-hdr) projector, 92 inch screen, Oppo 203.

 

[Big Gay Andy]

If I may pose a content-related rather than technology-related question, how many of you Forrest Gump fans realized that Jenny died of AIDS?

 

[Wayne_j]

That's what I always thought.

 

[PMF]

If I may pose a content-related rather than technology-related question, how many of you Forrest Gump fans realized that Jenny died of AIDS?

I realized it on the first viewing of its initial theatrical run. Why? Is there someone out there who didn't?

 

[CarlosMeat]

If I may pose a content-related rather than technology-related question, how many of you Forrest Gump fans realized that Jenny died of AIDS?

Yea ,same here that's what I thought was the way it was presented. Her lifestyle and age etc all indicated that that is what it was.

 

[Lord Dalek]

If I may pose a content-related rather than technology-related question, how many of you Forrest Gump fans realized that Jenny died of AIDS?

...I thought that was obvious.

 

[PMF]

It was obvious. But maybe the poster is younger; and as the decades go by, this fact of Jenny may play out as something more subtle, as the film grows older.

 

[Jason_V]

If I may pose a content-related rather than technology-related question, how many of you Forrest Gump fans realized that Jenny died of AIDS?

I don't know if I knew it the first viewing-I was about 13 years old-but got it loud and clear as I got older.