Logan Lucky (4K UHD Blu-ray Review)
For the longest time, director Steven Soderbergh has claimed to us that he’s retiring and walking away from filmmaking, only to come back and give us just one more. Or that after this one he’s got this, this and this and then he’ll be done. Well, as someone who’s very much enjoyed the catalog he’s built over the years after breaking out with Sex, Lies and Videotape, I hope he never makes good on his retirement promise. Case in point, his latest film from this past summer, Logan Lucky; a sort of return to his caper films that got explored thoroughly with his wildly popular and iconic Ocean’s Eleven trilogy from the previous decade. You’ll be able to check this one out when it comes to 4K Ultra-HD Blu-ray on November 28th.
Film 
West Virginia family man Jimmy Logan teams up with his one-armed brother Clyde and sister Mellie to steal money from the Charlotte Motor Speedway in North Carolina. Jimmy also recruits demolition expert Joe Bang to help them break into the track’s underground system. Complications arise when a mix-up forces the crew to pull off the heist during a popular NASCAR race while also trying to dodge a relentless FBI agent.
Well, quite simply put; redneck Ocean’s Eleven is what Steven Soderbergh has crafted. And I, for one, couldn’t be more thankful for it. Logan Lucky is truly one of the funniest movies of the year, while also having some rather terrific stakes, dealing in some nice suspense and capturing some moments that wind up being pretty damn touching. It runs the full gamut of being an incredibly enjoyable time at the movies and its hard not to have a smile on your face after sitting through it.
What helps here is a cast that is both a little under the radar and quite stacked. You may know of some of the main players in the film, but a lot of other really familiar faces pop in to round out the cast (Or maybe I had just forgotten seeing people in the trailer). I’m always excited to see Katherine Waterston pop up in movies and such and she has a charming brief scene in here. Seth MacFarlane is quite unrecognizable but hilarious. Hilary Swank pops in to surprise and chew up scenery while also having Macon Blair at her side. And in a fun bit, it was nice to see Jerry from Parks and Recreation have a nice little role in the film.
Our main cast is incredibly game though. Soderbergh once again turns to his current favorite, Channing Tatum, to lead the charge. And, the sooner I can get another buddy or brother movie with he and Adam Driver, the better. Soderbergh has some very humorous and well beat and plodded dialogue that these two and Daniel Craig deliver in spades. This movie had many conversations and and reaction in it that had, I think they call it, “gut busters” where I was belly laughing quite good.
Logan Lucky is one of the year’s very best films and will have you both intrigued, glued and laughing throughout. It never forgets the importance of character and has a wonderful sense of geography throughout its heist at the center of the plot. While Ocean’s was “slick” and “cool” this one is much more goofy and honest. You knew Danny Ocean and company were gonna pull it off, with this one, you’re just waiting to see where in the hell Tatum and company are going to screw it up. It features a lot of the techniques and tropes, but all in all is an enjoyable trip on its own and I may actually prefer it over the Ocean’s movies.
Video 
Encoding: HEVC / H.265
Resolution: 4K (2160p) HDR-10
Aspect Ratio: 2.39:1
Layers: BD-66
Clarity/Detail: Logan Lucky is a nice, but minimal improvement over the Blu-ray. There’s a little bit more detail on it and colors feelt a little better distributed and more saturated. There are moments in here that do looking quite impressive and elite over the standard Blu-ray, but it also has much of it that looks very much the same with maybe a little more crispness and fluidity in the motion. Overall, this is the better image, but its not screaming that its an upgrade.
Depth: There are some good moments here, especially in the mind that have a good depth of field. Some close ups really have a nice separation from a blurry background. Movements are pretty smooth and natural with no distortion from rapid movements/action.
Black Levels: Blacks are deep and really look quite rich in terms of presenting a dark night or a low lit bar. No information is lost and the shading and sharpness feel enhanced. No crushing witnessed.
Color Reproduction: Colors are strong, especially primary ones with yellows and greens sticking out in addition to your typical red. Some shots with colored wiring and a the wall on the track have a bit of pop. In terms of HDR usage on color, the security pad at the race track glows, Channing Tatum has an orange vest and highlighter yellow hat at the begging that really lift off and some little red lights here and there have a linger, but mostly its kept to a more natural look and good saturation.
Flesh Tones: Skin tones are natural and consistent throughout the duration of the film. You’ll get good looks at stubble, tatoos, facial scars, sweat, make-up and lip texture in the image from any given distance.
Noise/Artifacts: I’ve seen a couple reviews that reported some noise in areas, but I didn’t notice anything myself.
Audio
Audio Format(s): English 5.1 DTS-HD MA, English 2.0 for low-level hearing, English 2.0 plus descriptive audio for the visually impaired, French (Canadian) 5.1 DTS-HD MA
Subtitles: English SDH, Spanish, French (Canadian)
Dynamics: I don’t know if its because I’ve been dealing in Atmos tracks quite a bit recently, but Logan Lucky’s 5.1 was just kind of “all right to me”. It does the trick and everything sounds just find. There’s good enough balance (Vocals are a hair lower in the mix), its crisp and the effects have depth, but I felt it was lacking a bit of an “Oompf” to it. I’m probably just being overly picky, as it did the trick and engaged me enough.
Height: N/A
Low Frequency Extension: The bumps come in the songs featured in the soundtrack as well as some engines rev’ing and explosions in the mix.
Surround Sound Presentation: Sound travel is accurate to what’s going on on screen. Rear speakers are not forgotten as they provide some solid ambiance and unique sounds to full create the environments on the screen
Dialogue Reproduction: Dialogue is crisp and clear with good attention to the actors’ diction.
Extras
Logan Lucky comes with the standard Blu-ray edition and an UltraViolet digital copy. Bonus features appear on the standard Blu-ray disc.
Deleted Scenes (HD, 3:53) – “Pro/Con”, “Tap Dancing”
Summary
I loved Logan Lucky, its an insane amount of fun while also fully engaging you in character and the heist at hand. Soderbergh is one of the masters of the heist films and he’s brushed up on his skills here with this. It has an awesome cast as well. This 4K Ultra-HD Blu-ray is the one you want if you’re a fan of it. Its a marginal upgrade from the standard Blu-ray, but its still better. Its really disappointing in the extras department as its just 2 deleted scenes that are just under 4 minutes. But, the movie is terrific and worth it on its own merits alone.
