The Creator was released in physical media formats including 4k Blu-ray, Blu-ray, and DVD on December 12, 2023. The film premiered in theaters in the US on September 29 and has earned $99M at the worldwide box office.
We’ve already reviewed the digital presentation of The Creator (released Nov. 14, 2023), which streams/downloads in 4k with Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos audio. The 4k Blu-ray offers Atmos, but the HDR spec is limited to HDR10, something not uncommon with Disney/20th Century Studios disc releases.
Movie
The Creator is a pioneering film from Director Gareth Edwards that will change the way many films are made in the coming years. By combining the use of small full-frame prosumer digital cameras with an “embedded” style of shooting scenes, the production was able to work with a limited footprint (and hence, budget). Later the footage was combined with computer-generated imagery to put the story in the future.
Written by Edwards and Chris Weitz, The Creator envisions Los Angeles decimated by AI, and the following war between Western countries who want to remove AI and New Asia who continue to embrace AI. Jump over to the streaming review of The Creator for more about the movie and how it was made.
Video
On 4k Blu-ray Disc the video plays in 4k (2160p) with HDR10 High Dynamic Range at 2.76:1 aspect ratio (which will display black bars on the top and bottom of a 16×19 display). The Creator has an interesting quality to it. We know it’s digital, yet the image has almost film quality to it, revealing a pattern of grain that contributes to its organic quality.
The imagery is certainly sharp, use of shallow depth of field creates a nice bokeh effect in many shots, and the color depth is good. It’s not a super bright or colorful film, but one with a more earthy palette and natural colors.
The movie was reviewed on several screens and larger the image got the better it looked. Take for instance the shots of NOMAD at night. The earth below and details of the ship render nicely on large screens. On smaller screens, those details just tend to get crunched. IMHO the movie was made for the “big screen” so watching it on anything less just seems to diminish the impact of its visual strengths.
Audio
On the 4k Blu-ray and Digital 4k (where available), the soundtrack is offered in Dolby Atmos object-based audio that places effects across the 3-dimensional sound stage. The battle scenes are clearly the most immersive moments, delivering a good dynamic range of low and high frequencies through explosions and gunfire. The music composition by Hans Zimmer really takes the film to another level, giving the film a more polished quality than what might have been expected from the video image.
Bonus Features
The Blu-ray Discs and Digital purchase (where available) include a 55-minute bonus feature that offers a behind-the-scenes view of the unconventional film production, from the way it was shot in an almost documentary style to the way the artificial elements were made look real through the VFX that pulls the final image all together.
Summary
For the sci-fi fan, those who liked Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, and anyone into filmmaking, The Creator is a must-see in theaters and at home. The movie envisions a future in which AI goes wrong, and questions who is at fault, humans or the artificial intelligence created by humans, for the destruction caused. The video has a novel quality to it that enhances the story. And, the audio offers an excellent immersive experience on Atmos systems.
Scores
Movie
3.5/5
Video
4.5/5
Audio
5/5
Bonus Features
4/5
