[wp-review id=”85167″]

In New Orleans, Michelle has packed up her stuff and is leaving her fiancé. After a while, she has to stop for gas and she gets a little uncomfortable from someone there who is sitting in their vehicle the dark. Freaked out she leaves and gets a call from her ex-fiancé, Ben. As she hangs up, she is sideswiped and everything goes black.

She wakes up to an empty room, an IV in her arm, a leg brace, and she is chained to the wall. A man named Howard comes in with food and explains that she was in an accident, he found her in shock, and that’s why she has the IV. She’s safe and they are in an underground bunker because there has been some sort of attack outside so she can’t leave.
 
10 CLOVERFIELD LANE is the directorial debut of Dan Trachtenberg. He has done a few shorts and an episode of BLACK MIRROR. In this, he makes a movie that has one set space and that’s part of what makes it work. Things are evidently uncomfortable with one shared feeling from the cast: what is happening above ground?
 
Cast
John Goodman – Howard Stambler
Mary Elizabeth Winstead – Michelle
John Gallagher Jr. – Emmett DeWitt
Bradley Cooper – Ben (voice)
Suzanne Cryer – Leslie
 

VIDEO QUALITY:

4k UHD
The video is a 2160p HEVC presentation that has a clarity in the format. With plenty of close-ups, the images are crisp and you can make out every facial line. On all three of the characters, you can see the toll that the stress of the situation is taking on them. There is also someone with very good practical makeup on that’s sickening in a good way because its is gross and way too realistic. The coloring is subtle and, while in the bunker, you get the sense that things are taking place where there is no natural light. This is where the Dolby Vision kicks in and you get some deep blacks that, in turn, create some excellent contrasting.

Blu-ray 
The transfer is a 1080p AVC presentation that, for the most part, has a lot of positives. Like the 4k version, the images are highly detailed. There isn’t much in the way of grain but it doesn’t have that “fake” look that you sometimes get from a film shot digitally. The coloring levels are low until the movie moves into the bunker and the blues begin to stand out. The walls look worn in Michelle’s room but nice in the rest due to aesthetics being as big a priority to Howard as clean air, entertainment, and other survival basics. You can see this in the transfer. In the lower lit scenes and definitely where there is smoke, there is a little bit of pixelation but we are talking miniscule.

AUDIO QUALITY:

4k UHD Blu-ray 
The audio is a Dolby Atmos mix that defaults to a lossless Dolby TrueHD 7.1 mix depending on your equipment. This mix utilizes the overhead speakers to get the most out of the experience with strong sound effects when needed. This happens in a couple of key scenes and gives a claustrophobic feel. The voices are clear and come from the front speakers nicely. The Bear McCreary score sounds amazing and sets the tone of the film. The songs from the jukebox also sound incredible such as during the montage with “I Think We’re Alone Now” playing. The LFEs are powerful and hit hard when there are explosions of ground shaking moments.

SUPPLEMENTS & PACKAGING

-Audio Commentary: Director Dan Trachtenberg and Producer J.J. Abrams.

-CLOVERFIELD Too: This featurette has the cast and crew talking about the movie as well as the production.

-Bunker Mentality: The short extras are all about the bunker set.

-Duck and Cover: This talks about the shower curtain duck from the movie.

-Spin-Off: This is a cool featurette about creating the practical and CG effects for the car scenes.

-Kelvin Optical: This featurette is a look at a section of Bad Robot.

-Fine Tuned: The looks at the music and how it is used in the movie.

-End of Story
 
Disc Details
2-disc set w/ 1 4k UHD and 1 Blu-ray
Digital copy
 
Running Time
104 mins
 
Edition Ratings
Rated PG-13
 
Region Coding
Region Free
 
4k UHD
Video Resolution
2160p HEVC/H.265
HDR: Dolby Vision and HDR10
Aspect ratio: 2.40:1
 
Audio Mixes
English Dolby Atmos
English Dolby TrueHD 7.1
French Dolby Digital 5.1
Spanish Dolby Digital 5.1
Portuguese Dolby Digital 5.1
German Dolby Digital 5.1
Japanese Dolby Digital 5.1
 
Subtitles
English
English SDH
French
German
Japanese
Portuguese
Spanish
Danish
Dutch
Finnish
Norwegian
Swedish
 
Blu-ray
Video Resolution
1080p AVC MPEG-4
Aspect ratio: 2.40:1

Audio Mixes
English Dolby Atmos
English Dolby TrueHD 7.1
Spanish Dolby Digital 5.1
French Dolby Digital 5.1
Portuguese Dolby Digital 5.1
 
Subtitles
English
English SDH
French
Portuguese
Spanish

THE BOTTOM LINE:

10 CLOVERFIELD LANE was not what I was expecting considering the way that the plot of the first movie went down. I think this was the same feeling that most got from this because the movie was shrouded in secrecy until the release. The movie has always sounded excellent because the Blu-ray is the same as the initial release a couple of years ago. The 4k UHD has improved some of the detailing and colors to the point of making the 4k an upgrade. The extras are good but I would’ve liked a little more about the background of the characters. This is an enjoyable movie for the both the sci-fi fans and those looking for a thriller. I definitely recommend picking this up and adding it to your collection.