Blade: 4K UHD Review

Before the Marvel Cinematic Universe took over the world with the release of 2008’s Iron Man, there were a handful of hugely successful films (both critically and financially) featuring Marvel characters in the late 90’s/early 2000’s. Of course, there was Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man series as well as the first few X-Men features. However, just a couple years before those, there was 1998’s Blade which remains one of the best non-MCU Marvel films to date. This week we see the release of Blade on 4K UHD and it is an absolutely, superb looking release. (Hopefully, a 4K of Blade II will follow in-the-near future).

Wesley Snipes was perfectly cast as Blade, the vampire hunter who was half-human and half-vampire. For those unfamiliar with the film or the Marvel character’s origins. Blade’s mother was bitten by a vampire while she was pregnant with him. She did not survive the attack but her unborn child did. However, this gave Blade a vampire’s strength, without being vulnerable to silver, garlic, and sunlight. Blade still has-to-deal with a thirst for blood, but each day he injects himself with a serum that suppresses that need.

Blade was raised by Whistler (Kris Kristofferson), a vampire hunter who lost his family to a vampire drifter. With the help of a recently infected hematologist named Karen (N’Bushe Wright), Blade hunts down the vampire Deacon Frost (Stephen Dorff), who plans to resurrect a vampire god that would give him the power to rule the human race.

Blade was written by David S. Goyer, who would go on to write Batman Begins, Man of Steel and much more. What’s surprising is that the film was a huge hit that spawned two sequels. However, the first film’s director Stephen Norrington, only directed two films after Blade. One of them being the massive box-office dud, The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen.

Blade is full of pulse-pounding action and there is almost never a dull moment. It is also a beautifully looking film with a killer soundtrack, and this is where the 4K release shines. The Dolby Vision HDR makes everything you love about Blade, stand out. His pitch-black armor and of course his gas guzzling car. The blacks are as deep and rich as they need to be. The deep red of the blood (lots of blood) just flows across the screen. Same goes for the darker textures of Frost’s modern designed lair. The film has never looked better. With Dolby Atmos, the techno soundtrack is glorious. Most notably in the opening night club sequence and Blade’s takedown of Frosts army in the final act.  If you love Blade and have 4K setup, I highly recommend grabbing this release.

As for the bonus content, nothing new has been added. The following features have been ported over from the Blu-ray release which is also included.

Bonus Features:

• Commentary with Wesley Snipes, Stephen Dorff, David S. Goyer, Theo Van De Sande, Kirk M. Petruccelli & Peter Frankfurt
• Isolated score with commentary by composer Mark Isham

By: Marc Ferman