The Bikeriders appears in an aspect ratio of 2.39:1 on this 4K UHD Disc. The movie came with a generally appealing presentation, though not a stellar one.
Overall delineation worked well. A smattering of slightly soft wider shots emerged but these remained in the minority.
No issues with jagged edges or shimmering occurred, and I saw no edge haloes. Print flaws failed to manifest.
Despite the film’s period setting, Bikeriders opted for Hollywood Standard Teal and Amber/Orange. Tedious as these choices may seem, the disc reproduced them well and HDR added some impact to the tones.
Blacks appeared dark and tight, but shadows seemed a bit heavy. This meant low-light shots could feel a little too dark.
At least contrast worked fine and whites got punch from HDR. Outside of the dimness of some scenes, I felt pleased with this image.
Downconverted to Dolby TrueHD 7.1, the film’s Dolby Atmos soundtrack came with more zing than I anticipated. This occurred mainly via the manner which motorcycles roared around the room.
That may not sound like a recipe for a great soundfield, but given how many scenes involved bikes, this factor turned prominent. Other violent sequences used the spectrum well, and music spread nicely.
Audio quality appeared fine. Because a lot of the music came from old recordings, these components could vary, but score and songs usually sounded positive.
Dialogue became concise and crisp, while effects brought fine range, with deep low-end. This turned into a better than anticipated soundtrack.
How did the 4K UHD compare to the movie's Blu-ray version? Both came with identical audio.
The UHD's image brought mild improvements in terms of delineation and colors but it also looked darker. Despite those superior elements, I probably preferred the Blu-ray just because the UHD could seem so murky at times.
When we go to extras, we begin with an audio commentary from writer/director Jeff Nichols. He provides a running, screen-specific look at the source and its adaptation, story/characters, cast and performances, costumes, vehicles and period details, music, photography, action, effects and related topics.
Nichols makes this an informative track. Even though we get a bit too much dead space, he touches on a useful array of topics and does so in a concise and engaging manner.
We also find three featurettes, and Johnny, Benny and Kathy spans four minutes, 56 seconds. It offers info from Nichols, producers Sarah Green and Brian Kavanaugh-Jones, dialogue coach Victoria Hanlin, and actors Austin Butler, Jodie Comer, and Mike Faist.
The reel covers the source and its adaptation as well as story/characters and cast/performances. It comes with a few decent notes but it largely feels fluffy.
The Era of The Bikeriders goes for three minutes, 22 seconds. Here we hear from Butler, Nichols, Comer, Kavanaugh-Jones, Green, stunt coordinator Jeff Milburn, costume designer Erin Benach,
and actors Karl Glusman, Emory Cohen, Beau Knapp, Boyd Holbrook, Damon Herriman and Toby Wallace.
We learn about costumes, hair, bikes and period details. It brings another mix of happy talk and production elements.
Finally, The Filmmaker’s Eye occupies two minutes, 57 seconds. It involves Nichols, Green, Comer, Butler, Faist and Glusman.
“Eye” focuses on Nichols’ approach to the project. Unsurprisingly, we get praise for the director along with a few insights.
The set also includes a Blu-ray copy of the film. It comes with the same extras as the 4K UHD.
As a look at a motorcycle gang, The Bikeriders does enough to keep the viewer with it. However, it lacks real depth or momentum and suffers from a few too many self-inflicted wounds. The 4K UHD comes with largely good but too dark picture and quality audio as well as a smattering of supplements. Expect a watchable but unremarkable drama.
