The Piano 4K Blu-ray (4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray) (original) (raw)

4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray Criterion | 1993 | 121 min | Not rated | Jan 25, 2022

| | | VideoCodec: HEVC / H.265 (76.38 Mbps)Resolution: Native 4K (2160p)HDR: Dolby Vision, HDR10Aspect ratio: 1.85:1Original aspect ratio: 1.85:1 AudioEnglish: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (48kHz, 24-bit) English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (48kHz, 24-bit) (less) Subtitles English SDH English SDH (less) Discs4K Ultra HDBlu-ray DiscTwo-disc set (1 BD-100, 1 BD-50) PackagingInner printLeaflet/foldoutPlayback4K Blu-ray: Region free2K Blu-ray: Region A (locked) | | PriceList price: $49.95Amazon: $26.84 (Save 46%) New from: $26.84 (Save 46%) In Stock, FREE shipping Movie rating 272 ratings. **81%**popularity | | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |

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The Piano 4K

(1993)

The Piano 4K Blu-ray delivers stunning video and reference-quality audio in this excellent Blu-ray release

In 1851, Ada, a mute Scotswoman, travels to colonial New Zealand to wed a man she does not know, with her precocious daughter Flora and beloved piano in tow. When her cold and practical husband, the landowner Stewart, refuses to transport the piano to their rural home, Ada hesitantly agrees to a sexual relationship with a neighbor, the intense George, in order to retrieve and gain access to the instrument.

For more about The Piano 4K and the The Piano 4K Blu-ray release, see the The Piano 4K Blu-ray Review published by Dr. Svet Atanasov on January 13, 2022 where this Blu-ray release scored 4.0 out of 5.

Director: Jane Campion
Writer: Jane Campion
Starring: Holly Hunter

, Harvey Keitel, Sam Neill, Anna Paquin, Genevi�ve Lemon, Cliff Curtis
Producers: Jan Chapman, Mark Turnbull

» See full cast & crew

The Piano 4K Blu-ray Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov, January 13, 2022

Jane Campion's "The Piano" (1993) arrives on 4K Blu-ray/Blu-ray courtesy of Criterion. The supplemental features on the release include new program with the director; new program with cinematographer Stuart Dryburgh; archival interviews with costumer designer Janet Patterson, production designer Andrew McAlpine, and composer Michael Nyman; short film; vintage trailer; and more. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.

In the United States, Jane Campion's The Piano was initially made available on Blu-ray by Lionsgate Home Entertainment. For an in-depth analysis of the film, please see Jeffrey Kauffman's review of this release here.

The Piano 4K Blu-ray, Video Quality 4K

1080p

Criterion's release of The Piano is a 4K Blu-ray/Blu-ray combo pack. The 4K Blu-ray and Blu-ray offer presentations of the recent 4K restoration of the film.

The following text appears inside the leaflet that is provided with this release:

"This new 4K digital transfer was created in Dolby Vision HDR (high dynamic range) 16-bit 4K resolution on an ARRISCAN film scanner from the original 35mm A/B negatives at Fixafilm in Canbera, Australia. The color grading was supervised and approved by director Jane Campion and director of photography Stuart Dryburgh. A 35mm print from the collection of the Academy Film Archive was used as a color-grading reference. On the 4K Blu-ray disc, the feature is presented in Dolby Vision HDR. On the Blu-ray, it is presented in high-definition SDR (standard dynamic range). The original soundtrack was remastered from the two-inch 24-track magnetic track.

Transfer supervisors: Jane Campion, Stuart Dryburgh.
Colorists: Roman Hankewycz, Joe Gawler/Harbor Picture Company, New York.
Scanning: Peter Richards/Fixafilm."

I viewed the new restoration with with Dolby Vision enabled. The entire film looks very healthy now and boasts an all-around balanced visual appearance that can be quite striking on a larger screen. The outdoor daylight footage, in particular, looks simply terrific. Delineation, clarity, and depth are predictably excellent, fluidity is very strong, too. Some of the biggest improvements, however, are in the color scheme, where there are new and expanded ranges of primaries and supporting nuances. The current color scheme is clearly better than what has been seen on previous home video releases of The Piano. However, I feel that there are a few areas where saturation levels become a tad too strong. One example can be seen around the 0:16:00 mark. (Oddly, in 1080p the same footage actually looks better balanced). Also, there are a few other areas where light cyan-ish hues, which are part of the film's native appearance, become a tad too prominent as well. (See screencapture #11). But the overall technical presentation of the film is still very strong and convincing, so the 4K Blu-ray release clearly represents a massive upgrade in quality. (Note: The 4K Blu-ray disc is Region-Free. However, the Blu-ray disc is Region-A "locked").

The Piano 4K Blu-ray, Audio Quality

There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (48kHz, 24-bit). Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature.

The 5.1 track is outstanding. There are quite a few sequences where the crashing waves, random nature sounds, and Michael Nyman's soundtrack produces some pretty impressive contrasts. I don't know how this 5.1 track compares to the ones that were present on the more recent releases of The Paino from StudioCanal, but I think that its quality is excellent. There are no technical anomalies to report.

The Piano 4K Blu-ray, Special Features and Extras

4K BLU-RAY DISC

• Commentary - in this archival audio commentary, Jane Campion and producer Jan Chapman share plenty of information about the conception of The Piano and its characterizations, the manner in which particular sequences were lensed, the important role of sound and silence, Anna Paquin's performance, what it was like being and shooting in the bush, etc. The commentary was recorded in 2006.

BLU-RAY DISC

• Commentary - in this archival audio commentary, Jane Campion and producer Jan Chapman share plenty of information about the conception of The Piano and its characterizations, the manner in which particular sequences were lensed, the important role of sound and silence, Anna Paquin's performance, what it was like being and shooting in the bush, etc. The commentary was recorded in 2006.
• Jane Campion and Amy Taubin - in this new program, Jane Campion and Amy Taubin discuss the production and success of The Piano. There are some quite interesting comments about the landscape that is seen in the film and the manner in which it affects its atmosphere. The program was produced in 2021. In English, not subtitled. (27 min).
• Inside "The Piano" - this archival program examines the genesis of The Piano. Included in it are clips from interviews with Jane Campion, Holly Hunter, Harvery Keitel, and Sam Neill, amongst others. The program was produced in 1993. In English, not subtitled. (16 min).
• "The Piano": 25 Years On - in this archival program, Jane Campion and producer Jan Chapman recall their collaboration on The Piano. The program was shot in 2018 at Karekare Beach in New Zealand, one of the film's locations. In English, not subtitled. (31 min).
• Holly Hunter - in this archival interview, Holly Hunter discusses her work with Jane Campion during the shooting of The Piano. The interview was conducted by Alicia Malone from FilmStruck in 2018. In English, not subtitled. (24 min).
• Michael Nyman - in this archival interview, composer Michael Nyman recalls his initial impressions of the original screenplay for The Piano and discusses his approach to scoring the film as well as some of the unique challenges he faced. The interview was conducted in 2005. In English, not subtitled. (24 min).
• Stuart Dryburgh - in this exclusive new interview, cinematographer Stuart Dryburgh discusses the visual appearance of The Piano and working relationship with Jane Campion. The interview was conducted in 2021. In English, not subtitled. (10 min).
• Andrew McAlpine - in this exclusive new interview, production designer Andrew McAlpine discusses the unique sets that were created for The Piano. The interview was conducted in 2021. In English, not subtitled. (13 min).
• Janet Patterson - in this archival audio interview, costumer designer Janet Patterson discusses the Victorian-era costumes that are seen in The Piano. The interview was conducted by actor Adam Bowen for the Oral History program at Australia's National Film and Sound Archive in 2015. In English, not subtitled. (18 min).
• Waihoroi Shortland - in this exclusive new interview, Maori actor Waihoroi Shortland discusses his contribution as an adviser on The Piano. The interview was conducted in Auckland, New Zealand in 2021. In English, not subtitled. (15 min).
• The Water Diary (2006) - Jane Campion directed this short film about a child's experience of life during a period of drought. It stars the director's daughter, Alice Englert. In English, not subtitled. (18 min).
• Trailer - an original trailer for The Piano. In English, not subtitled. (3 min).
• Leaflet - an illustrated leaflet featuring critic Carmen Gray's essay "Gothic Gone South" and technical credits.

The Piano 4K Blu-ray, Overall Score and Recommendation

I find the visual appearance and some of the ambience of The Piano a lot more attractive than its story, which is probably the main reason why I don't have a very good relationship with it. To be entirely honest, it is just one of those acclaimed films that I find awfully difficult to revisit. This upcoming 4K Blu-ray/Blu-ray combo release introduces an exclusive new 4K restoration of The Piano that was supervised and approved by director Jane Campion and cinematographer Stuart Dryburgh. It is the best presentation of the film to emerge on the home video market to date. RECOMMENDED.

The Piano: Other Editions

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The Piano 4K Blu-ray, News and Updates

• The Piano 4K Blu-ray

- July 30, 2022

StudioCanal will release on 4K Blu-ray Jane Campion's The Piano (1993), starring Holly Hunter, Harvey Keitel, Sam Neill, Anna Paquin, and Genevi�ve Lemon. The release is scheduled to arrive on the market on September 5.

• This Week on Blu-ray: January 24-30 - January 24, 2022

For the week of January 24th, The Criterion Collection will bring The Piano to 4K UHD. Other releases include a 4K UHD release for The Lover from MPI Home Video, Alfred Hitchcock's Stage Fright (1950) from Warner Archive Collection, Sleep from Arrow Video and a ...

• Criterion Announces January Titles - October 15, 2021

The Criterion Collection has announced its January batch of 4K Blu-ray and Blu-ray releases. They are: The Celebration (1998), Dick Johnson Is Dead (2020), A Hard Day's Night (1964), The Piano (1993), and Time (2020).

» Show more related news posts for The Piano 4K Blu-ray

Movie Discussions

| | Topic | Replies | Last post | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ------- | ------------ | | • They Shot the Piano Player | Fernando Trueba & Javier Mariscal | 4 | Jan 08, 2024 | | • The Piano Lesson | 0 | Apr 13, 2023 |

4K Ultra HD

International 4K Ultra HD

| | Topic | Replies | Last post | | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ------- | ------------ | | • The Piano 4K UHD (Studio Canal) | 52 | Sep 02, 2024 | | • Shoot the Piano Player (1960) 4K UHD | 16 | Dec 05, 2024 | | • The Piano 4K UHD StudioCanal | 4 | May 20, 2022 |

North America Blu-ray Discussions

| | Topic | Replies | Last post | | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ | ------- | ------------ | | • The Piano (1993) (Official Thread) | 82 | Jan 26, 2021 | | • The Piano (1993) (Official Thread) | 0 | Oct 15, 2021 | | • The Piano Teacher (2001) | 68 | Dec 27, 2023 | | • The Piano 1993 (Australian Release) | 5 | Oct 16, 2022 |

International Blu-ray Discussions

| | Topic | Replies | Last post | | | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ------------ | ------------ | | | • The Piano (1993) Jan 20th 2014 (Official Thread) | 56 | Oct 31, 2014 | | | • The Piano (Jane Campion) (Official Thread) | 43 | Mar 11, 2019 | | | • The Piano (25th Anniversary Edition) - July 16, 20... (Official Thread) | 29 | Dec 13, 2021 | | | • The Piano (Jane Campion) | 20 | May 10, 2013 | | • The Piano 1993 (Australian Release) | 5 | Oct 16, 2022 | | | | • The Piano Forest (Piano no Mori) | 0 | Jan 24, 2012 |

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