HBO’s fourth and apparently final season of Westworld has arrived on 4K UHD Blu-ray, looking and sounding as good as previous seasons.
The Production: 3.5/5
**Warning: This review contains spoilers**
All hell broke loose at the end of the third season (just as it did at the end of each prior season), with hosts and guests fighting to the death in the “real” world. As season four opens, many years have apparently passed, as host copy Charlotte Hale (Tessa Thompson) has taken control of Delos and imprisoned William (Ed Harris), replacing him with a host clone. The real world has now become the host’s amusement park, treating the humans in much the same way the hosts were treated at Westworld. Maeve (Thandiwe Newton) is hiding off the grid in a remote cabin in the woods, until she makes a nearly fatal mistake, trying to find out what Charlotte is up to, which exposes her to a group of assassins. She escapes to the city and finds human Caleb (Aaron Paul), who has settled down after the war with a wife and child. Maeve and Caleb begin a journey to hopefully take down Charlotte once and for all, but they are thwarted by Charlotte. Still with me? This is where the season settles back into its mind-bending timeshifts, with the audience never fully sure where in the timeline they are. Delores (Evan Rachel Wood) is back, but her name is Charlotte now, working for a video game entertainment company in Manhattan, writing storylines and creating characters that are vaguely familiar, but she has a stalker who, before taking his own life, accuses her of ruining his life. Bernard (Jeffrey Wright) and Stubbs (Luke Hemsworth) are back after Bernard has been running through all possible outcomes to his current timeline in an order to save the world.
I will say this, that season four, subtitled The Choice, is a slight improvement over the way too bleak previous season (that is not to say that this season isn’t bleak – it certainly is), as it does inject a bit more dark humor with help from Bernard, Stubbs, and Maeve. Showrunners Lisa Joy and Jonathan Nolan, though, still seem to revel in keeping their audience confused, even more so than in previous seasons, finally making some sense halfway through the second-to-last episode leading to the somewhat satisfying finale, which ends in a slight cliffhanger that shouldn’t anger too many fans now that Warner Brothers Discovery, the parent company of HBO, have not only decided to cancel the series but also remove it from the HBO Max streaming service.
Video: 3.5/5
3D Rating: NA
The fourth season of Westworld was photographed on 35mm film stock and completed as a 4K digital intermediate in the 1.78:1 aspect ratio (with some sequences in 2.39:1). Warner’s UHD release features a 2160p HEVC-encoded transfer that includes both Dolby Vision and HDR10 high dynamic range. There is a noticeable improvement in contrast, fine detail, and color control on the UHD discs when compared to the included Blu-ray editions. Contrast is also better controlled on the UHD version, providing deeper blacks that retain distinct shadow details during many of the darker nighttime sequences.
Audio: 5/5
As was the case with previous season releases of the series, only the UHD version contains a Dolby Atmos soundtrack that also includes a Dolby TrueHD 7.1 compatible core. The Blu-ray, unfortunately, contains a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track that still sounds very good, but this is not typical of other Warner releases that have duplicated the Atmos track on both UHD and Blu-ray. The Dolby Atmos, when played back in a 5.1.2 configuration, offers a more pronounced low end while opening up the soundstage with additional height channels that allow for more precise placement of audio, such as transport vehicles, swarms of house flies, and various instruments in the show’s score.
Special Features: 3/5
The special features can be found on both the UHD and Blu-ray editions.
Disc One
Creating Westworld’s Reality (1080p): Brief behind the scenes featurettes for each episode included on this disc – The Auguries (5:45), Well Enough Alone (5:27) and Années Folles (6:16).
Disc Two
Creating Westworld’s Reality (1080p): Brief behind the scenes featurettes for each episode included on this disc – Generation Loss (4:56), Zhuangzi (5:11) and Fidelity (4:44).
Disc Three
Creating Westworld’s Reality (1080p): Brief behind the scenes featurettes for each episode included on this disc – Metanoia (4:22) and Que Será, Será (5:03).
Westworld on the Road (1080p; 16:47): A look at the many locations used in filming this fourth season.
Westworld: An Exploration of Humanity (1080p; 14:42): The cast and showrunners discuss the narrative challenges and opportunities a dual-reality creates.
Westworld’s Temperance: A Set Tour (1080p; 5:39): Set Decorator Jules Ochipinti and Production Designer Jon Carlos walk us through the re-invention of the town of Temperance, now updated to the Roaring 20s. Unfortunately, this featurette suffers from a bad frame rate conversion from 30 to 24, creating a micro stutter effect.
Digital Copy: An insert contains a code to redeem an HD digital copy of the fourth season on Vudu.
Overall: 4/5
Currently, the only way to view the series Westworld is to purchase each season individually on Blu-ray, UHD, or Digital HD. Season Four is a slight improvement over the previous season, and UHD is definitely the best format to watch it on.
Westworld: The Complete Fourth Season (4K UHD/Blu-…
$27.59 $26.90
Todd Erwin has been a reviewer at Home Theater Forum since 2008. His love of movies began as a young child, first showing Super 8 movies in his backyard during the summer to friends and neighbors at age 10. He also received his first movie camera that year, a hand-crank Wollensak 8mm with three fixed lenses. In 1980, he graduated to "talkies" with his award-winning short The Ape-Man, followed by the cult favorite The Adventures of Terrific Man two years later. Other films include Myth or Fact: The Talbert Terror and Warren's Revenge (which is currently being restored). In addition to movie reviews, Todd has written many articles for Home Theater Forum centering mostly on streaming as well as an occasional hardware review, is the host of his own video podcast Streaming News & Views on YouTube and is a frequent guest on the Home Theater United podcast.
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