The Dark Crystal: Steelbook Edition - 4K Blu-ray Review

Movie
Rarely do we see multiple 4K releases (outside of simply reprinting discs) for 4K UHD sets these days, let alone having Sony do magnificent jobs only to sell the rights to another boutique studio to release special editions on. Yet here we are with both Dark Crystal and Labyrinth, both of which got fantastic releases from Sony (with Labyrinth getting a 2nd release from Sony in digibook form AND an upgrade to Dolby Vision). Now Shout Studios got the rights to release their own 4K UHD set, releasing separate Wal-Mart exclusive steelbooks as well as broad released special “box o’ swag” editions that are fully decked out with physical extras.

42 years ago, before the time of CGI, we had Jim Hensen. The man has given so much to the world of puppetry and the ability to create fantasy out of nothing but cloth, string and the limited visual effects of the time. Back before the smash hit that was Labyrinth, Jim Henson and Frank Oz got together to make a film that was COMPLETELY devoid of human interaction (ala Labyrinth, Farscape, The Neverending Story etc) and came up with a mystical fantasy world that became known as The Dark Crystal. As a kid I never really noticed the mystical new age underpinnings of balance and homogeneous spirits, as it was just a fun fantasy flick with a slightly scary twist (even at 7 years old it kind of gave me a slight scare). However, as an adult, it’s a more interesting watch, as I dissect the famous “new age” wave of the 1980s that Henson infused into the fantasy genre.

Over a thousand years ago, an unnamed world is split apart due to a magical crystal being cracked in half. Out of the chaos two races emerge. The dark and twisted Skesis, and the mystics. The Skesis take control of the crystal and form a huge oppressive empire, ruling the world as they see fit. There is (like in all these movies) an ancient prophecy about an elf like race, known as the gelflings, bringing a shard of the ancient crystal back and uniting the mystical power, putting an end to their reign once and for all. Fearing the prophecy above all else, the Skesis exterminated the gelfling race, leaving no survivors. Or so they though. Outside of their domain, the mystics live in peace and harmony with nature, and watch over a single lone surviving gelfling named Jen (Jim Henson).

The time has come, as the Skesis emperor is passing away, and the leader of the mystics recognizes that it is his time to leave as well. Imparting on Jen the severity of his task, the mystic head puts the weight of their world on the glefling’s shoulder as he must fulfill the thousand year old prophecy that threatens to topple the entire world unless implemented. With the Skesis learning of his existence, Jen has to dodge the Garthim (the forces of the Skesis), as well as find a connection with ANOTHER gelfling survivor by the name of Kira (Kathryn Mullen), all the while unraveling he mystery of what befell his world centuries ago.

The Dark Crystal is one of those films that people either love, or they hate. Luckily most people really enjoy the Henson flick, and it has become one of my favorite go-to’s for the 80s puppetry watches. I easily put it above The Neverending Story, a film that I felt was a bit TOO dark for the children it targeted. Jim Henson and Frank Oz use a decidedly dark aesthetic to the story, but everything is still kept to a very PG level despite some ominous undertones (such as the Chamberlian getting stripped of his garb). Also, I never really noticed HOW much of a New Age clone the movie really was. Especially as a young boy. Now that I’m older it’s pretty obvious with the idea of the split halves, and balance (something Star Wars also borrowed heavily from when it created the idea for the Force), yet still keeping a children’s fantasy at heart.

The visuals for The Dark Crystal are nothing short of magnificent, and Henson’s use of puppetry is so well done that it holds up even 36 years late. A trait that makes it wonderfully appealing to newcomers, and those who love the nostalgic feel of a generation long gone by. Even though I really adore the film, I have to acknowledge the fact that The Dark Crystal, while good, just doesn’t seem to be able to laud itself as one of the best movies of the 1980s (such as Labyrinth, which followed 4 years later). Maybe it was because of the super dark themes running throughout the film, as good vs. evil is played out on a decidedly adult scale, while a basic child’s cartoon story is on the surface. I remember that many of my friend’s parents in the 80s wouldn’t let them see it because it was deemed to “dark”, and I think that hampered it from being as widely accepted as some of the other films of its time. Luckily, watching as an adult brings a new appreciation for the film, and my enjoyment level has gone up considerably as time has gone by.




Rating:

Rated PG the MPAA




4K Video: Video:

Honestly I’m not sure that Shout Studios has done much to this one, as Sony is notorious for licensing out an already approved master and the labels simply printing them and doing their own encode from the master. And this seems to be the case here as well. It looks eerily similar to the 2018 Sony 4K disc, with just an addition of Dolby Vision added. And much like MOST of Sony Dolby Vision upgrades, the differences are extremely subtle. A bit better black level replication, some minor color upgrades here or there. Like the old disc, this new encode has limitations as it was show using a very rough and grainy 35mm film stock source back in the 80.s It’s raw, has some soft spots, but overall looks fantastic and very organic looking. Colors are rich and vibrant, with the outdoor daylight shots and purple and gold highlights from the Skeksis showing up nicely. It’s not going to blow you away or make you throw out the 2018 Sony disc, but I feel there’s some subtle alterations add some minor enhancements to the image quality.






Audio:

The audio track seems to be a direct port of the 2018 disc, giving us the same solid sounding Dolby Atmos track that really elevated the old 5.1 mix from the 2009 Blu-ray. The jump is noticeable, but not wildly shocking as well, as The Dark Crystal is just one of those films that doesn’t show THAT much improvement by having Atmos overheads. In fact, I’d say it’s much more of 7.1 track than anything, but I will agree that the 5.1 track from the Blu-ray is easily outclassed by this new mix. The Atmos mix is just fuller and richer, with a wider sound stage and a few cool uses of the overheads (such as when rocks fall). Vocals are crisp and clean in the front of the room, and the LFE adds a good bit of weight throughout the movie.











Extras:

4K UHD
• NEW Fan Event Q&A with Lisa Henson
• Audio Commentary with conceptual designer Brian Froud

Blu-ray
• The Myth, Magic and Henson Legacy: Go behind the scenes of this iconic film with stories from Lisa Henson and Toby Froud.
• Deleted Scenes
• Commentary with Brian Froud
• Picture-in-Picture Storyboard Track
• Original Skeksis Language Scenes with Introduction by Screenwriter David Odell
• The World of The Dark Crystal Documentary
• Reflections of The Dark Crystal: "Light on the Path of Creation" & "Shard of Illusion"
• Photo Galleries
• Theatrical Teaser & Trailer













As is the case with all of these re-releases, the question is going to come down to “do I need to buy this or not?”. And like usual, that answer is going to be tricky. These steelbooks are geared towards a very specific type of collector, and they know that. The general release box o’ swag is even more specialized for people who like those massive boxes on their shelf *cough...me*cough, but there’s also the question of video and audio and on disc extras as well. As you can tell, Shout Studios got their own encode going, but the video differences are a very subtle upgrade (albeit I sometimes feel that there is more noise) and the audio pretty much identical. On disc extras are only 1-2 tiny additions, so it’s really going to be a situation where you’ve never bought the disc before on 4K OR whether you’re a collector. These walmart steelbooks are going to tickle the fancy of quite a few steelbook collectors, and since it’s a very similar disc to the 2018 4k UHD from Sony, I can at least give comfort in that it won’t be any worse audio/video wise. For those who have the Sony 4K and aren’t really sensitive to packaging, I’d simply say “keep what ya got”. But for those who don’t’ have ANY of the 3 4K releases (this, the Sony release, or the massive boxet) than it’s “pick which fits your fancy, they’re all great”. At the end of the day, this is a great Henson production from a bygone era with multiple price points releases that is going to appeal to SOMEONE. Definitely check it out.


Technical Specifications:

Starring: Jim Hensen, Frank Oz, Kathryn Mullen
Directed by: Jim Henson, Frank Oz
Written by: David Odell (Story), Jim Henson (Screenplay)
Aspect Ratio: 2.39:1 HEVC
Audio: English: Dolby Atmos (Dolby TrueHD 7.1 Core), English DTS-HD MA 2.0, French, Spanish DD 5.1
Subtitles: English SDH, French, Spanish
Studio: Sony
Rated: PG
Runtime: 93 minutes
Blu-Ray Release Date: November 19th, 2024