Raya and the Last Dragon 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray Review

The 4K UHD Blu-ray presentation of "Raya and the Last Dragon" elevates the viewing experience substantially over its Blu-ray counterpart, offering a visually stunning insight into the film’s detailed digital realm. With an up-scaled 3840 x 2160p resolution, the image retains its original widescreen 2.39:1 aspect ratio, enriched with High Dynamic Range (HDR), a Wide Colour Gamut (WCG), and encoded using the HEVC (H.265) codec. This setup ensures viewers are treated to an expanded 10-bit color space where the vibrancy and nuance of the film's palette are more pronounced. Highlights of the HDR grading are noticeable in the more vivid representations of magical elements within the movie, including Sisu's dazzling blue-purple fur and the glowing dragon gem, which both exhibit a significant increase in color intensity and depth.

Despite originating from a 2K digital intermediate and being upsampled to 4K, the enhancements in terms of sharpness and detail vary across different scenes and may not represent a dramatic leap from the Blu-ray version. However, the improvements in color dynamics and saturation bring out the lush environments, character details, and textures with enhanced clarity, maintaining pristine quality without any noticeable source or encode issues. Minor improvements in textural detail can be spotted in certain instances, such as clothing fabric and environmental elements, contributing to a more immersive viewing experience.

The UHD version shines particularly in its HDR execution, showcasing deep and inky black levels that add a pleasing contrast to the more colorful and vibrant parts of the visual spectrum. Every hue and shade is presented with precision, making the film's diverse environments—from verdant landscapes to amber deserts and mystical elements—pop with an intensity that is both beautiful and narratively engaging. Scenes involving magic or the malevolent Druun feature colors that are remarkably vibrant, enhancing the overall visual storytelling. The HEVC encoding handles complex scenes flawlessly, ensuring a clean and artifact-free presentation that celebrates the film's artistic achievements.

The Dolby Atmos track offered with the "Raya and the Last Dragon" 4K UHD Blu-ray presentation delivers a robust auditory experience that, while requiring the customary Disney volume adjustment, becomes thoroughly engaging. The soundtrack leverages the Atmos capability to produce a dynamic and immersive soundscape, skillfully utilizing surround and height channels to envelop the viewer. Atmospheric effects from varied environments, from bustling markets to mystical rainforests, are convincingly rendered, enhancing the sense of immersion. Dialogue maintains clarity and is well-integrated within the mix, ensuring it never gets lost amidst the action. The low-frequency effects are present, providing a solid foundation without overwhelming, while action scenes and score brilliantly exploit the 3D space, placing viewers at the heart of the adventure.

The audio mix is characterized by its active use of the Atmos platform, employing atmospheric sounds, music, and discrete sound effects above the listener to create a tangible level of immersion that aligns seamlessly with on-screen events. Notable instances, such as Raya's pursuit in the film's climactic scenes or the encompassing Druun attack, showcase the mix's capability to bring the entire soundscape to life. Despite not being aggressively mixed, its balanced approach aptly complements the source material, ensuring that each element from dialogue to score is given its due prominence with crystal clear and easy-to-follow vocals.

Conversely, while the Atmos track closely mirrors its DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 counterpart in terms of fluid surround integration and lifelike spatial detail, it does falter slightly in delivering potent low-end impact and maintaining raw volume at standard listening levels. Nevertheless, moments of discrete overhead channel utilization notably enhance the listening experience. Despite these minor caveats, the track is largely successful in delivering a spacious and enveloping soundstage. Enhanced clarity and movement across surround and height channels effectively contribute to an immersive experience, albeit with room for improvement in demo-quality mix expectations. Through comprehensive audio engineering, "Raya and the Last Dragon" achieves a rich sonic journey that faithfully represents its enchanting world.

The "Raya and the Last Dragon" 4K UHD Blu-ray extra features offer a deep dive into the making of this animated masterpiece, focusing on the innovative ways the creative team adapted to the challenges posed by the global pandemic. Through a combination of Zoom interviews, behind-the-scenes footage, and enlightening discussions, viewers gain insight into the movie's production from home, the representation of Southeast Asian culture, and the detailed crafting of its martial arts scenes. Among the highlights are the charming CG-animated short film "Us Again," a virtual roundtable dinner discussion with the cast and crew, and several engaging featurettes on cultural representation, fight choreography, and the animation process. A set of deleted scenes provides additional context and depth to the storytelling. Despite the lack of an audio commentary, these extras successfully showcase the creative resilience and collaborative spirit that brought Kumandra to life.

Extras included in this disc:

• An Introduction to Us Again: Director Zach Parrish introduces this engaging short film.
• Us Again: A heartfelt CG short about aging and rejuvenation through dance.
• Taste of Raya: A virtual feast with Kelly Marie Tran and the creative team discussing the film's production.
• Raya: Bringing it Home: Insights into making an animated feature from over 450 homes during the pandemic.
• Martial Artists: Exploration of the martial arts techniques and weapons in the film.
• We Are Kumandra: A look into integrating Southeast Asian culture into the movie's world.
• Outtakes: Enjoyable bloopers from voice recording sessions under unique circumstances.
• Fun Facts & Easter Eggs: Discover hidden details and movie secrets.
• The Story Behind the Storyboard with John Ripa: Insights into the storyboard process and its impact on storytelling.
• Deleted Scenes: Additional content with introductions, offering more depth to Raya's journey.

Raya and the Last Dragon" stands as Disney's ambitious attempt to weave a narrative replete with Southeast Asian cultural inspirations into the fabric of its CG animation legacy. The movie unfolds in the mystic realm of Kumandra, a place once marked by the harmonious coexistence of humans and dragons until malevolent forces disrupted this equilibrium. At its core, the story navigates through the adventures of Raya, a determined warrior set on a quest to find the last dragon and restore harmony. Despite its innovative premise and visually captivating execution, there's a palpable familiarity in its progression—echoing a 'by the numbers' sentiment that underscores its adherence to Disney's tried-and-tested formulae. This approach garners mixed reactions, as it straddles the fine line between embracing tradition and potentially stifling originality.

Visually, the film is a testament to Disney's prowess in digital animation, flaunting meticulously detailed environments and engaging action sequences that push the boundaries of technical achievement. Each frame is a vibrant tapestry that pays homage to the rich cultural heritage it draws from, complemented by character designs that blend animated caricature with an almost lifelike quality. Notably, the fight choreography shines as a highlight, reminiscent of the finesse found in top-tier samurai films, which adds a layer of dynamism and complexity to Raya's journey. However, beneath this exterior allure lies a narrative that often feels formulaic, delivering expected emotional beats and character arcs that, while comforting in their familiarity, leave one yearning for a deeper, more nuanced exploration of its themes.

In balancing its cultural aspirations with storytelling conventions, "Raya and the Last Dragon" navigates through familiar Disney territory while endeavoring to chart a course toward something new. Its presentation—marked by exceptional visuals and high-stakes encounters—ensures an immersive experience, though its adherence to a well-trodden path might mute its potential for groundbreaking narrative innovation. Nonetheless, it stands as a significant addition to Disney's animated canon, notable for its representation and celebration of Southeast Asian culture, even as it grapples with the challenges of delivering novelty within a conventional framework.

Raya and the Last Dragon" emerges as a visually stunning addition to Disney's catalog, skillfully weaving Southeast Asia's rich mythology into an original narrative that captivates with its spectacle, though not without some narrative and character development critiques. The film serves as both a testament to Disney's prowess in animation and storytelling and as a reminder of the studio's occasional overreliance on formulaic elements. The 4K UHD Blu-Ray presentation of this title is commendable, flaunting a video quality that is bright and detailed, enhanced by HDR that vividly brings its colorful world to life, even if it slightly misses reaching the pinnacle of what 4K HDR can offer. The Dolby Atmos audio track amplifies the experience with its immersive soundscapes, showcasing good separation and enveloping the viewer in the film's magical world, albeit with room for improvement in its depth and dynamics.

The special features included in this release, while seeming lean at first glance, present an innovative approach influenced by pandemic-related restrictions, offering a glimpse behind the curtain of this animated marvel's creation that is both enlightening and entertaining. Moreover, the package is applauded for its brilliant video presentation and an auditory experience that, despite some noted limitations, remains thrillingly competent across both UHD and standard Blu-Ray formats.

In conclusion, Disney's 4K UHD release of "Raya and the Last Dragon" stands out as a must-own for enthusiasts and collectors alike, marrying exceptional visual fidelity with a vibrant auditory experience. While it may not achieve the utmost excellence in every technical aspect—most notably in its audio presentation—the release triumphs with its engaging extras and succeeds in delivering a film that is as visually mesmerizing as it is important. With its representation of Southeast Asian culture wrapped in a tale filled with action, emotion, and pivotal messages, this release is yet another jewel in Disney's animated crown, despite some narrative shortcomings discussed among viewers and critics alike.