The Bikeriders 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray Review
Score: 80
from 7 reviewers
Review Date:
The Bikeriders' 4K UHD Blu-ray impresses with stunning visuals and robust Dolby Atmos audio, elevating an intimate yet nostalgic portrayal of motorcycle club history.
Disc Release Date
True 4K
HDR10
Dolby Atmos
Dolby TrueHD
Video: 90
The 4K UHD Blu-ray of 'The Bikeriders' offers a warm and excellent visual experience with a richly detailed 2.39:1 HEVC 4K transfer. HDR10 enhances the slightly muted, vintage color palette, maintaining deep, inky black levels without losing detail. Shot on actual film stock, the image retains an organic texture.
Audio: 92
The 4K UHD Blu-ray of 'The Bikeriders' boasts an impressively balanced Dolby Atmos track with crystal-clear dialogue, robust bass that enhances motorcycle sounds, and immersive surround channels creating a dynamic soundstage, albeit with slightly less aggressive object-based effects than some may prefer.
Extra: 48
The Bikeriders' 4K UHD Blu-ray extras provide a compact but engaging look into the film's development, with highlights including cast insights on character adaptation, a deep dive into the era's authentic production design, and director Jeff Nichols' commentary on transforming a photo book into a cinematic narrative.
Movie: 68
"The Bikeriders" on 4K UHD presents a visually captivating yet episodically disjointed tale, rooted in Danny Lyon's photo book, blending fact and fiction through the lens of 1960s biker culture. With strong performances by Jodie Comer, Austin Butler, and Tom Hardy, Jeff Nichols' direction encapsulates a rebellious era, albeit lacking in sustained dramatic tension.
Video: 90
"The Bikeriders" in 4K UHD Blu Ray offers a visually compelling experience that meticulously simulates the aesthetics of Lyons' photos, reflecting the filmmaker's dedication to authenticity. Shot entirely on actual film stock with Millenium XL2 cameras and Panavision G series lenses, the resulting image possesses an organic texture, adding warmth and richness that might be absent with digital shooting. The color palette leans into earthy tones, with heavy sepia push, evoking a vintage ambiance. You can expect clean and crisp HDR10 visuals, with deep black levels that maintain detail without crush. Skin tones appear natural and healthy, providing a fidelity to the period setting that enhances the nostalgic atmosphere.
The HEVC H.265 encode offers an appealingly sharp and detailed definition, even as it maintains a softer focus for a dated look; close-ups reveal excellent detail in facial features, clothing textures, and intricately crafted vintage bikes. The muted color reproduction underscores the film’s 60s/70s aesthetic while allowing reds and greens to pop in specific scenes. Specular highlights are tight and clean, while contrast and brightness levels are well-balanced. Despite the gritty environments depicted—dark bars and outdoor scenes—the absence of noise or artifacts is noteworthy, contributing to an overall excellent video transfer. The detail in knits, leather jackets, and denim, combined with resolute grain structure, underscores an expertly crafted visual presentation.
While the transfer may appear on the softer side, predominantly by design given diffusion filters or soft focus techniques, "The Bikeriders" in 4K UHD is a visual testament to filmmaker Jeff Nichols' creative vision. The nostalgic haze and rich detail levels offer a visually immersive experience akin to the 1970s cinema it seeks to emulate, ensuring a faithful representation that complements the period story effectively.
Audio: 92
"The Bikeriders" delivers an engaging and robust Dolby Atmos audio experience on its 4K UHD Blu-ray. Dialogue clarity is impeccable, with front and center positioning making the character interactions easily discernible, even amidst busy soundscapes. The low-frequency effects are substantial, capturing the rumbling of motorcycle engines with an immersive presence that is felt as well as heard. The track handles ambient sounds and directional effects seamlessly, from party backgrounds to dynamic bike races, enveloping the listener in a well-crafted sonic environment.
The surround channels are actively utilized, immersing viewers in the film’s setting with accurately placed atmospheric sounds and nuanced audio details. While the height channels are employed minimally, focusing mainly on music score enhancement and occasional discrete effects, their subtlety integrates well within the overall mix. The soundtrack's fidelity is commendable, and the bass response adds significant depth to punches, gunshots, and crashes without overpowering other elements.
Although not the most aggressive Dolby Atmos mix available, the audio design demonstrates excellent balance and fidelity. It conveys the gritty essence of the biker culture vividly and enhances the viewing experience without drawing attention away from the narrative. In summary, "The Bikeriders" features a finely balanced and immersive sound mix that stands out for its precision in dialogue reproduction, effective use of surround channels, and solid low-frequency extension.
Extra: 48
The 4K UHD Blu-ray of "The Bikeriders" includes a concise yet insightful collection of extras that supplement the film's narrative and craftsmanship. The feature commentary with writer/director Jeff Nichols provides a deep dive into his adaptation process, including casting decisions and technical aspects. The supplementary features—though brief—offer behind-the-scenes glimpses that enrich the viewer's understanding of both the film and its production era. The highlighted segments consist of interviews with cast members and production team insights, focusing on bringing the book's photographs to life, maintaining period authenticity, and Nichols' directorial approach. This collection serves as an engaging companion to the film, although some may find it somewhat limited in scope.
Extras included in this disc:
- Johnny, Benny, & Kathy: Explore how the cast and production team adapted the book's photographs into a narrative film.
- The Era of The Bikeriders: A look at the authenticity achieved in capturing the look, feel, and sound of the late 1960s Midwest.
- The Filmmaker's Eye: Jeff Nichols: Director Jeff Nichols discusses his vision, stylistic choices, and working with the cast.
- Feature Commentary with Writer/Director Jeff Nichols
Movie: 68
"The Bikeriders," inspired by Danny Lyon's book, presents a semi-documentary style film that encapsulates the rebellious essence of 1960s motorcycle culture. Directed by Jeff Nichols, the narrative predominantly unfolds through the eyes of Kathy (Jodie Comer), who gets drawn into the chaotic world of the Vandals Motorcycle Club via her relationship with Benny (Austin Butler). The film transitions from depicting the early exuberance of club life to its darker evolution into more violent underworld activities, painting a vivid yet somewhat sanitized portrait of this subcultural phenomenon. Tom Hardy excels as Johnny, the tough yet charismatic leader, while Butler’s portrayal of Benny adds nuanced complexity, though he's sometimes overly smooth for the gritty biker ethos.
Maintaining a delicate balance between fact and fiction, "The Bikeriders" meticulously reconstructs key moments from Lyon’s real-life documentation of the Outlaws Motorcycle Club, blending these with fictional narrative elements to form a cohesive story. While Nichols attempts to present a rich, evocative journalistic approach to the subject matter, the film tends to meander, occasionally falling into episodic storytelling that interrupts the flow. Cinematographer Adam Stone’s work shines through, delivering visually striking recreations of Lyon’s photographs, thereby imbuing the film with a strong sense of nostalgia. Yet, despite stellar performances and ambitious direction, the movie lacks the dramatic tension usually associated with biker gang tales, providing a romanticized, almost museum-like glimpse into this turbulent era.
The cast stands out in their roles, particularly Comer who brings a comical yet tragic charm to her character. Hardy convincingly portrays a multifaceted figure grappling with control as the club evolves. However, the character depth for Butler’s Benny and other supporting actors remains superficial, often overshadowed by Comer's compelling performance. While "The Bikeriders" excels in capturing the aesthetic and sentimental aspects of its inspiration, it struggles to fully engage the audience with a gripping narrative, making it a visually appealing yet emotionally restrained cinematic experience.
Total: 80
"The Bikeriders" arrives on 4K UHD Blu-ray with a strong technical presentation and a star-studded cast that includes Austin Butler, Jodie Comer, and Tom Hardy. Directed by Jeff Nichols and based on Danny Lyon's 1968 photo book, the film offers a nostalgic look at the formation and evolution of motorcycle clubs. While it may lack the dramatic intensity of other crime dramas, "The Bikeriders" excels in capturing a bygone era's essence with its stylized visuals and evocative storytelling. The Dolby Atmos track enhances the immersion, providing a rich audio experience that complements the film's aesthetic.
The film is more of a chronicle than a gripping narrative, delving into the lives and lifestyles of its colorful characters. Its romantic portrayal might temper some of the grittier aspects of motorcycle club history, making it more accessible to a broader audience while losing some traction for those seeking high-octane drama. The performances, particularly by Comer, stand out and help elevate the material. Universal's disc offers a beautiful 4K HDR10 presentation, making it an ideal way to experience the film's carefully crafted ambiance.
At the end of the day, "The Bikeriders" is a good look at bike club history. It doesn’t go over the top with the criminality like the '80s and '90s were famous for, but instead looks back on the formation of the clubs with a sense of loving nostalgia. Covering up some of the more sordid elements of the clubs, but still making it known that they weren’t exactly reputable people. Universal’s 4K UHD disc looks and sounds great, with a wonderfully stylized look that really fits the motif of the book AND the subject matter. Definitely check it out if you’re a fan of slow-burn dramas and classic bikes in general.
Recommendation: Solid Watch
AV Nirvana review by Michael ScottRead review here
Video: 90
While there is some VERY distinct stylization going on here, the detail levels are generally fantastic, with excellent facial and clothing details, with only a few small instances (usually dark shots inside...
Audio: 100
Fidelity in the surround channels is amazing, with the humming and roaring of the bikes encompassing the listening station, but also a nuanced sense of immersion with the background yelling, rumbling and...
Extras: 50
Hear from the cast and producing team on how they took the personalities and environments from a book of photographs and brought a narrative to the big screen....
Movie: 70
Nichols paints the film as a sort of love story between Kathy and Benny, using it as a jumping point for the viewer to get immersed in the world of the Vandals, and follow him through the events that leads...
Total: 70
Universal’s 4K UHD disc looks and sounds great, with a wonderfully stylized look that really fits the motif of the book AND the subject matter....
Blu-ray.com review by Justin DekkerRead review here
Video: 100
While much of the film is rather dingy and drab, it also allows greens and reds to pop nicely, especially pool tables and an all-important red dress....
Audio: 100
Critical to the audio presentation is a substantial bass presence that allows the rumbling procession of motorcycles to felt as well as heard, and adds the needed depth to sound effects like punches, crashes,...
Extras: 60
Feature Commentary with Writer/Director Jeff Nichols - Over the film's runtime, Nichols discusses his love of the book that serves as inspiration for the project, his reason for selecting Kathy (Jodie...
Movie: 70
Many of the monologues that characters deliver in the film are derived from Lyon's taped interviews, oftentimes with little or no editing, though sometimes for the sake of the story they are assigned to...
Total: 70
While lacking dramatic tension and significant forward momentum, the picture does an admirable job of bringing Danny Lyon's book to life as it recreates and documents the lives and the lifestyle of the...
Blu-ray Authority review by Matt BrightonRead review here
Video: 90
Given my disassociation with the world of motorcycles, I’ve often wondered how (and, more the point, why) they dress the way they do....
Audio: 100
Granted, there’s more to it than that, but I was pretty impressed at how amazingly good some of the scenes sounded....
Extras: 50
We hear from the cast and producing team on how they took the personalities and environments from a book of photographs and brought a narrative to the big screen....
Movie: 0
This site has opened my eyes to all kinds of films and ones that I’d likely, naturally, gravitate away from....
Total: 60
Universal’s disc, as per usual, both looks and sounds good and it’s got enough extras to warrant a purchase....
High-Def DigestRead review here
Video: 80
Although looking somewhat muted and restrained for keeping with the '60s and '70s aesthetic, the HDR10 presentation comes with a strong contrast and brightness balance, supplying the visuals with clean,...
Audio: 80
A few understated atmospherics occasionally travel overhead and into the surrounds, but the best moments come from scenes involving motorcycles as the loud rumbling engines echo all around the listener...
Extras: 20
Audio Commentary with writer and director Jeff Nichols sharing his thoughts on the overall production, from adapting the book and casting to some of the technical aspects Johnny, Benny, & Kathy (HD, 5...
Movie: 60
It's stuck somewhere between the filmmakers' aspirations to ostensively romanticize the rise and fall of the Vandals Motorcycle Club, a fictionalized version of the real-life Outlaws Motorcycle Club depicted...
Total: 80
Loosely inspired by Danny Lyon's 1968 photo book, Jeff Nichols' adaptation The Bikeriders makes for an intriguing watch, mainly for the impressive production design and outstanding performances that belong...
Home Theater Forum review by Timothy ERead review here
Video: 100
Audio: 90
Extras: 60
Movie: 70
Total: 70
AVSForum review by Ralph PottsRead review here
Video: 78
In looking at the opening moments the first thing that struck me was that there wasn't an appreciable uptick in sharpness and detail compared to the Blu-ray....
Audio: 76
In listening to the Dolby Atmos mix I found it to be of the less aggressive variety, which considering the source material, was a bit disappointing....
Extras: 70
Hear from the cast and producing team on how they took the personalities and environments from a book of photographs and brought a narrative to the big screen....
Movie: 60
Much like the country around it, the club begins to evolve, transforming from a gathering place for local outsiders into a dangerous underworld of violence, forcing Benny to choose between Kathy and his...
Total: 71
Ralph Potts AVS Forum Blu-ray Reviews Reference Review System: JVC DLA-NZ7 4K Ultra High-Definition Laser Front Projector (Calibrated with Calman color calibration software and Portrait Displays C6 HDR2000...
Why So Blu?Read review here
Video: 100
There is a big push for primary colors, so don’t go into the film looking for popping color – expect it to look excellent though!Flesh Tones: People look great in the transfer....
Audio: 100
Low-Frequency Extension: Motorcycles, explosions, gunshots and needle drops all build a beautiful bass presentation for the listener....
Extras: 30
Hear from the cast and producing team on how they took the personalities and environments from a book of photographs and brought a narrative to the big screen....
Movie: 80
Much like the country around it, the club begins to evolve, transforming from a gathering place for local outsiders into a dangerous underworld of violence, forcing Benny to choose between Kathy and his...
Total: 80
This for me was a treat, with a gorgeous looking film that took its time to tell a simple story of a time long gone and an era which does come back to us from time to time, but never this simply done....
Director: Jeff Nichols
Actors: Austin Butler, Jodie Comer, Tom Hardy
PlotIn a gritty Midwestern town during the 1960s, a tight-knit motorcycle club emerges from the fringes of society. Led by the charismatic and volatile Benny, the club offers camaraderie and rebellion to its dedicated members, who are drawn to the freedom and brotherhood that the biker lifestyle represents. Among them is Kathy, a fiercely independent woman who finds herself caught between the allure of the open road and the responsibilities of her own tumultuous personal life. The story delves into her evolving relationship with Benny, as well as her observations on the shifting dynamics within the club as they face internal and external threats.
As the club's reputation grows, so does the scrutiny from law enforcement and rival gangs. Tensions escalate as loyalties are tested, leading to a series of confrontations that challenge the very fabric of their brotherhood. Relationships are strained, and members are forced to reckon with the consequences of their choices. Through a blend of intense camaraderie and personal reflection, the narrative explores themes of identity, family, and the cost of living on the edge. In an era marked by change and upheaval, the club members must navigate their paths through loyalty, betrayal, and the ever-present lure of freedom on two wheels.
Writers: Jeff Nichols, Danny Lyon
Release Date: 21 Jun 2024
Runtime: 116 min
Rating: R
Country: United States
Language: English