Kingdom of Heaven - 20th Anniversary Limited Edition 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray SteelBook

“I’ve seen too much religion in the eyes of murderers.”

There’s been a lot said about Ridley Scott’s Kingdom of Heaven over the last 20 years. I'm not sure my thoughts and feelings about it will matter to many, but I'll give it my best shot. 20 years ago I remember going to the theater with two of my closest friends from college knowing full well it wasn’t Scott’s full vision. Truncated, confusingly edited, void of character, that Theatrical Cut experience was but a mere hint at what was coming. I was enraptured by it, seeing all of the potential that the (then) rumored longer version could yield while my companions could only talk about how nothing made any sense. The film's box office suffered, barely earning back its budget at the global box office.

Thankfully Kingdom of Heaven was made at a time when studios could rely on DVD sales and rentals to make up for their theatrical losses, otherwise we might never have seen the true intended cut on disc. Intricate disc releases with hours of extras were still viewed as an investment in the industry. And so, a year after its theatrical release, we got that longer Director's Cut DVD of Kingdom of Heaven and it was a magnificent piece of work. It’s not just longer, it’s a vastly different and infinitely superior experience. It shouldn’t be considered a loss that the Theatrical Cut has been excommunicated from this new 4K release, there's no reason to ever go back to that version.

Not to make a phallic joke out of such a serious film with such weighty themes and ideas, but there’s something to say about size mattering. This is a long and girthy film and better for it. Beginning with Godfry (Liam Neeson), we see more of the importance and weight of his return to France beyond simply finding his grieving son Balian (Orlando Bloom). We now fully understand Balian (Orlando Bloom) and his melancholy, his relationship with his sadistic brother (Martin Sheen), and his station within the village. On top of all that, through one simple dialog exchange, we understand how a mere blacksmith and silver artisan could become such a capable warrior and defender of an entire city. That’s all within the first twenty minutes of this new cut! 

For 190 minutes (or 194 minutes if you roll with the Roadshow overture and intermission), this longer version raises the stakes merely sampled within that anemic 144-minute Theatrical Cut. We have a greater understanding of Eva Green’s Sibylla and her motivations. Marton Csokas’ Guy de Lusignan is given more time and comes off as far less of a one-dimensional zealot and as more of a delusional narcissist. Through a mask and simple gestures, Edward Norton delivers a magnetic performance as the ill-fated leaper King Baldwin. Delivering my favorite character, David Thewlis is given more time to fully stand as the film's thematic conscience as the mysterious Hospitaller knight. 

As one of my favorite Ridley Scott films, I often cite this Director’s Cut of Kingdom of Heaven as his late-career high mark. He’s made several large-scale films in the last 20 years, but this one feels the most complete and authentically Ridley Scott. I have something of a theory that after the unfortunate death of his brother Tony in 2012, Ridley has gone on some sort of a soul-searching crusade of his own. His films since that tragedy have certainly had broad scope and interesting concepts worth exploring, some have even been excellent in their own ways, like The Martian or The Last Duel. 

However, there’s something about a number of his recent films like Gladiator II, Napoleon, Exodus: Gods and Kings, or even pulpy sci-fi material like Alien: Covenant that feels rushed and without the same level of shrewd introspection that made so many of his previous films feel like unique visions from a master craftsman filmmaker. These films look amazing, are intricately directed, and produced with great ideas exploring interesting themes, but they never come to some sort of definitive statement. Ideas and concepts are raised, but there's little to no payoff. Comparatively, Ridley said plenty and delivered more with Kingdom of Heaven. At nearly 88 years old, Scott is still in the game with one film currently shooting with another three or four in pre-production. He's got a few more grand things to share with us and hopefully, those projects will be fully realized successes.

For a slightly less enthusiastic take, here's our 2006 Blu-ray Review

Vital Disc Stats: The 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray 
Kingdom of Heaven celebrates its 20th Anniversary with a fitting three-disc 4K UHD + two Blu-ray + Digital release from Disney/Sony in an appealingly artful SteelBook. The 4K version is pressed on a BD100 disc, and a remastered 1080p version has a BD50 disc, with another BD50 reserved for the bulk of the bonus features. The discs get their own trays without stacking. The cover art featuring the mask of King Baldwin has nice raised features with Balian’s sword on the back. The discs load to animated main menus with standard navigation options letting you choose between the Roadshow Cut with overture and intermission, or the slightly shorter Director’s Cut that doesn't have those segments. Just an FYI the audio commentaries are exclusive to the Roadshow length.

Like most Ridley Scott films, Kingdom of Heaven has enjoyed a nice life on home video with very respectable A/V presentations. As Ridley’s first film to be fully finished on a digital intermediate, it looked great on DVD and looked impressive on Blu-ray, but now it looks magnificent on 2160p 4K with Dolby Vision and HDR10. I never did get a clear answer about how involved the restoration/remaster work was for this film, but we’re told that the Disney restoration team spent a significant amount of time on it. I don’t know if that means a very careful upscale of the finished 2K digital intermediate assets or if they did even more significant work than that. Regardless, this is a first-rate effort leaving the film looking sharper and more detailed than before. The image also loses a lot of the leftover edge enhancement of past releases. Details are meticulously clean. Fine lines for facial features and the intricate costume design get their full due respect. The film grain is clean without looking too noisy nor does it appear to have been scrubbed away.

I’m especially impressed with the HDR grading for this release. It doesn’t dramatically reinvent the visual appeal but heightens its best assets. From the cold frosty lands of France to the warmer Italian coast, to the sun-drenched deserts, the lighting intricacies and shadows are captured perfectly - especially in the numerous low-light scenes. Colors are robust with plenty of primary pop but not so over-saturated that you should worry about skin tones. Black levels are deep and inky and the sense of depth is immediately notable. 

Another nice thing to say is that the included Blu-ray has also been remastered. It too is an impressive option for 1080p collectors. It’s certainly cleaner and sharper looking than the past Blu-ray releases, but because the entire 190-minute Director’s Cut is stuffed down to a single BD50 disc. And without HDR, it just doesn’t come to as vivid life as the 4K version.

Not content with a resolution and HDR upgrade, Kingdom of Heaven enjoys a beautifully intricate Atmos audio mix. What I love to hear is that it’s clear that time and effort were made to fully optimize this track. Elements weren’t shoved into the height channels to use them arbitrarily. From each location to the next, inside or outdoors, there’s reason for the height channels to come to life just as there’s motivation for the base channels to do their work. From the whipping cold snowy winds to the birds of the forests to raging storms to the amazing battle sequences, this Atmos track is a fully immersive experience. Obviously the busier the scene the more attentive the channel usage is through the soundscape, but even in the quietest moments, imaging is well applied to maintain space and dimension. Dialog is never lost in the shuffle and Harry Gregson-William’s amazing score comes through strong and secure. LFE has a strong presence, notably with any kind of impact from horse hooves to shields and weapons smashing, to the heavy bombardments during the siege of Jerusalem. The included Blu-ray offers the solid DTS-HD MA 5.1 track of old, but flipping discs, the differences between the two are immediately noticeable. The 5.1 is good for what it accomplishes, but comparatively, it feels rather blunt and heavy-handed. The new Atmos does what a great Atmos track should do and deliver a nuanced immersive experience instead of just extra noise.

On the bonus features front, there is an incredible wealth of content to dive through. All of this material is archival dating back to that splendid Director’s Cut DVD set. There’s nothing new to report for this stash of extras, which is perfectly okay to be honest because if you’ve ever gone through the three commentaries and the hours upon hours of documentaries and featurettes, there’s really nothing left to say about this film. As far as content that’s not here, the Theatrical Cut specific text track is absent, because that cut is just not offered. Honestly not a huge loss there. The two A&E documentaries from the old Theatrical Cut DVD and the Ultimate Edition Blu-ray from 2014 weren’t carried over for this round and that’s a small bummer, but given they probably would need to have had their license extended, the cost/value ratio might not have equaled out. So if you’re an extras completionist, hold onto the old DVD or 2014 Blu-ray. Regardless of any small omissions, this is an exhaustive set of extras to digest and will keep you busy long after the show is over. You've got nearly ten hours of content alone just for the commentaries! 

4K UHD Disc / 1080p Blu-ray Disc

• Ridley Scott Introduction (SD 1:01)
• Audio Commentary (Roadshow Version Only) featuring Ridley Scott, William Monahan, and Orlando Bloom
• Audio Commentary (Roadshow Version Only) featuring Liusa Ellzey, Wesley Sewell, and Adam Somner
• Audio Commentary (Roadshow Version Only) featuring Dody Dorn 
• The Engineers Guide (Roadshow Version Only)

Bonus Blu-ray Disc

• The Path to Redemption Documentary: (6 Parts - 2:21:49)
• Good Intentions: Development
• Faith and Courage: Pre-Production
• The Pilgrimage Begins: Production - Spain
• Into the Promised Land: Production - Morocco
• The Burning Bush: Post-Production
• Sins and Absolution: Release
• Production Sequence:
• Development - 
• Tripoli Overview 
• Early Draft Screenplay by William Monahan
• Story Notes
• Location Scout Gallery
• Pre-Production - 
• Cast Rehearsals (SD 13:23)
• Ridleygrams
• Colors of the Crusade (SD 32:14)
• Costume Design Gallery
• Production Design Primer (SD 6:52)
• Production Design Gallery
• Production - 
• Creative Accuracy: The Scholars Speak (SD 26:38)
• Unholy War: Mounting the Siege (SD 17:04)
• Storyboard Galleries
• Unit Photography Gallery
• Post Production - 
• Deleted and Extedned Scenes w/ Optional Commentary (SD 30:09)
• Sound Design Suite:
• Sample With Multiple Audio Tracks (SD 3:03)
• Craft Grid - 
• Dialog Editing (SD 3:26)
• ADR (SD 5:27)
• Foley (SD 7:26)
• Sound FX Editing (SD 4:55)
• Final Mix (SD 3:40)  
• Visual Effects Breakdowns (SD 21:53)
• Release and Director’s Cut - 
• Press Junket Walkthrough (SD 6:17)
• World Premioeres: London, New York, Tokyo (SD 3:41) 
• Special Shoot Gallery
• Poster Explorations
• Trailers & TV Spots (HD/SD) 
• Paradise Found: Creating the Director’s Cut (SD 8:29)
• Director’s Cut Credits
• Archive:
• Interactive Production Grid (SD 1:23:45)
• Ridley Scott Creating Worlds (SD 2:37)
• Production Featurette (SD 2:18)
• Wardrobe Featurette (SD 2:12)
• Orlando Bloom: The Adventure of a Lifetime (SD 2:11)

Kingdom of Heaven is one of my favorite films. I knew from the first theatrical viewing that the compromised edit was just a glimmer of Scott’s true intentions. The Director’s Cut is simply a revelation. It’s not just adding length it’s adding plot depth and character development expanding the scale of the film into a truly epic undertaking. 20 years later, this film has lost none of its potency and remains one of Scott's great accomplishments. Now the film is looking and sounding better than ever before with this exceptional Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos A/V presentation. It’s just about as close to perfect as this title can get. Capping off this release is the expansive bonus features package. I fondly remember spending days going through the commentaries and documentaries back in my college years and revisiting a number of these segments is a thrill. Simply put, I can’t imagine a better 4K release of Kingdom of Heaven. Must Own