Tuesday, April 30, 2024

THE OCEAN’S TRILOGY (2001-2007) (WBDHE 4K UHD Review)



THE OCEAN’S TRILOGY (2001-2007) 
4K Ultra HD + Digital

Label: WBDHE 
Region Code: Region-Free
Rating: PG-13 
Duration:116 minutes, 125 minutes, 122 minutes
Audio: English DTS-HD MA 5.1 with Optional English Subtitles 
Video: HDR10 2160p 4K Ultra HD Widescreen (2.39:1) 
Director: Steven Soderberg 
Cast: George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Matt Damon, Julia Roberts, Andy Garcia

Synopsis: The trilogy of beloved crime heist films – Ocean’s Eleven, Ocean’s Twelve, and Ocean’s Thirteen - from Academy Award winning director Steven Soderbergh and starring George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Matt Damon, and Andy Garcia. Inspired by and based on the 1960 heist film Ocean's 11, the three films are directed by Soderbergh from screenplays by Ted Griffin, George Nolfi, and Brian Koppelman & David Levien.

Ocean’s 11 (2001)
Danny Ocean (George Clooney) likes taking chances. All he asks is that his handpicked squad of ten grifters and cons play the game like they have nothing to lose. If all goes right, the payoff will be a fat $150 million. Ocean’s 11, in alphabetical order, stars George Clooney, Matt Damon, Andy Garcia, Brad Pitt and Julia Roberts. Casey Affleck, Scott Caan, Elliott Gould, Bernie Mac and Carl Reiner also star.

Ocean’s 12 (2004)
They’re back. And then some. Twelve is the new eleven when Danny Ocean and pals return in a sequel to the cool caper that saw them pull off a $150 million heist. But $150 million doesn’t go as far as it used to. It’s time to pull off another stunner of a plan. Exciting locations include Amsterdam, Paris and Rome.Ocean’s 12 stars George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Matt Damon, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Andy Garcia, Don Ch eadle, Bernie Mac and Julia Roberts.

Ocean’s 13 (2007)
Danny Ocean rounds up the boys for the most dazzling heist yet, after casino owner Willy Bank (Al Pacino) double-crosses one of the eleven, Reuben Tishkoff (Elliott Gould).
George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Matt Damon and more reteam with director Steven Soderbergh for a split-second caper that stacks the deck with wit, style and cool. 
Ocean’s 13 stars George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Matt Damon, Andy Garcia, Don Cheadle, Bernie Mac, Ellen Barkin and Al Pacino. Rounding out the ensemble cast are Casey Affleck, Scott Caan, Eddie Jemison, Shaobo Qin with Carl Reiner and Elliott Gould.

No real review for the individual flicks other than to say the first one is a stone-cold casino-heist classic, it has an amazing cast and is superbly crafted with stylish visuals and a swank casino-caper soundtrack, it;s a 10 out of 10 in by book. The sequels are lesser in my opinion but are still star-studded, high-gloss caper flicks, but they become a bit bloated, a bit too self-referential, but still dynamite entertainment and worth owning if you dig heist flicks.   

Audio/Video: All three of the Ocean's flicks arrive on 4K Ultra HD with brand new 4K remasters completed at Warner Bros. Discovery’s Motion Picture Imaging (MPI) with the participation of director Steven Soderbergh. Honestly, I have not rewatched these, at least the first two that I caught at the cinema, since I last saw them at the cinema, having never owned them on DVD, Blu-ray or even having re-watched them on any streaming service in the interim. They are presented here on three separate discs in 2160p UHD with HDR10 enhanced color-grading, framed in 2.39:1 widescreen. To put it simply, all three films look absolutely stunning in 4K UHD. The sources are immaculate, grain is lush and finely resolved, and the colors are well-saturated, actually luminescent. Fine detail and textures are quite wonderful as well, stubble and skin pores are crisp and clean, and that HDR color-grading really brings the colors to life. Blacks are deep and inky with pleasing shadow detail throughout, enhancing contrast and just wowing me scene after scene. This is a reference quality visual presentation that highlights Soderberg's stylish and lushly detailed cinematography. 

The restored DTS-HD MA 5.1 was overseen by original re-recording sound mixer and sound editor Larry Blake. While there is no Atmos remix it should be noted that previous Blu-ray editions only sported lossy Dolby Digital mixes, and while I don;t have those to compare to the audio mixes on these three casino-capers are a knockout. Dialogue is crisp and clean, effects are delivered with precision and the soundtracks by composer David Holmes (Out of Sight) are the epitome of cool, full or swank and swagger and they've never sounded better or more dynamic that with these gorgeous 4ka releases. 

Onto the extras, having never owned the Blu-rays I do not know this for certain, but after doing some research it looks to me like all the archival extras have been carried over for this set, and no new extras have been commissioned.  These include commentaries, deleted scenes, making of featurettes, and quite a bit more. It;s a well-stocked set.

The three-disc UHD release arrives in a standard black keepcase with a flipper tray housing the three discs. We get a single-sided sleeve of artwork, the same key artwork is also featured on the slipcover, which has embossed highlights and a metallic finish. Tucked away inside is a redemption code for digital copies of the flicks in 4K UHD, the extras were available via Movies Anywhere but not through Vudu.  

Special Features: 
Ocean’s Eleven

- Audio Commentary with director Steven Soderbergh and screenwriter Ted Griffin
- Audio Commentary with actors Matt Damon, Andy Garcia, and Brad Pitt
- Are You In or Out?: The Making of Ocean's Eleven (28:10)
- Pros and Cons: Inside Ocean's Outfit (13:02)
- The Style of Steal (10:49)
- The Look of the Con (9:40)
- Original Ocean's, Original Cool (13:59)
Ocean’s Twelve
- Audio Commentary with director Steven Soderbergh and screenwriter George Nolfi
- Ready, Jet Set, Go: The Making of Ocean's Twelve (25:39)
- HBO First Look: Twelve is the New Eleven (13:02)
- 18 Deleted Scenes (28:19)
Ocean’s Thirteen
- Audio Commentary with director Steven Soderbergh and writers Brian Koppelman & David Levin
- Third's a Charm: The Making of Ocean's Thirteen (29:46)
- Ahab with a Piggyback: The Means & Machines of Ocean's (9:03)
- Jerry Weintraub Walk and Talk (2:25)
- Masters of the Heist (44:02)
- 4 Deleted Scenes (4:35)