When we first watch a movie in the cinema, sometimes we just know that it is going to be re-watched countless times in our test room to put the latest AV kit through its paces. We'll be able to quote the dialogue by heart, and time each explosion to the second.
Fede Álvarez's Alien: Romulus is one of those films, immediately dazzling with its brilliant picture and creepy score. We regularly use the 4K Blu-ray disc in our home cinema test room, but there's a limited edition of the film coming out that has caught our eye.
Romulus is getting a limited edition 4K Blu-ray steelbook release that is quite the tempting proposition, featuring bonus behind-the-scenes content and cover art by Matt Ferguson. It will be available on 20 April, and you can pre-order from Amazon or HMV now.
If you're not an avid follower of the Alien franchise, let me fill you in. Set in the far future, the film follows a group of space scavengers who come across terrifying alien life forms on their travels and must fight for survival.
Alien: Romulus is a great test disc, especially when it comes to challenging the picture quality of an OLED TV.
The opening shot of the film features an expansive yet eerie shot of space, with only twinkling stars and an ominous approaching ship interrupting the near-complete blackness. Not all TV screens or projectors manage to reproduce the deep darkness of space in this scene, with many looking more grey than black.
It also challenges a screen to deliver the right amount of detail in the ship's rivets and external shell without looking over-etched or unnatural.
The film is also packed with an assortment of high-contrast images (the external shots of the space station and the planetary ring in particular) that are great for testing your TV’s or projector’s HDR chops.
It will also test your TV’s approach to dark detail, as there are a variety of scenes where characters are talking in hushed tones with minimal lighting. Watch it on a screen with not enough ability to dig up this detail, then their faces will be half-obscured and barely visible.
On the sound front, Benjamin Wallfisch's tense string-heavy score will give you goosebumps with the best audio set-up, especially one with Dolby Atmos support. With the track The Chrysalis, for instance, the pincer-like skittering and dramatic choral accompaniment should surround the listener to an almost uncomfortable degree to create a spine-tingling experience.
If you have yet to watch the film or simply want to own a snazzy steelbook edition, then now is the time.
MORE:
These are the best scenes to test your Dolby Atmos sound system
Check out the best OLED TV
