The Mummy 4K (1999) Ultra HD 2160p REMUX

A full-scale re-imagining of Universal Pictures' seminal 1932 film, The Mummy is a rousing, humorous, suspenseful and horrifying epic about an expedition of treasure-seeking explorers in the Sahara Desert in 1925. Stumbling upon an ancient tomb, the hunters unwittingly set loose a 3,000-year-old legacy of terror, which is embodied in the vengeful reincarnation of an Egyptian priest who had been sentenced to an eternity as one of the living dead.

The Mummy 4K (1999) Ultra HD 2160p REMUX Reviews
Well, it's never good when a portion of a review need be prefaced with so many disclaimers, but sadly that's the case with The Mummy, and somehow it's not surprising that it's all in reference to a Universal catalogue release. The full set's packaging problems are well documented, both on the Blu-ray.com forums as well as in the review of the larger box set in which this release may be found. It's doubly frustrating considering Universal's track record of somewhat shoddy catalogue releases and checkered recent history with UHD presentations (including audio problems on Fast & Furious 6 and Furious 7 and the Bourne debacle) and considering that this is actually a really nice UHD release. The movie was shot on film back in 1999. Grain retention is continuous, a little sharp, but the end result is a very pleasing film-quality presentation that appears to suffer from no, or at least no serious, noise reduction. A few inherently softer shots are scattered throughout as well, but these are few and rarely distracting from the image's otherwise excellent credentials.

Detailing is absolutely superb. The image has a nice dimensionality about it, whether deep in various old Egypt lairs or up on the bright, sun-scorched surfaces. Regal, ornate ancient Egyptian attire sparkles, and it's home to plenty of easily identifiable textures. Long-buried structures show plenty of natural roughness on rock columns and the numerous hieroglyphics depicted on them. On the surface, and in the film's "present day," there's no shortage of abundantly complex, easy-come textures. Faces are home to naturally occurring pores and lines and show solid definition. The landscape is texturally alive, with sandy terrain, jagged rocks, and roughhewn stone work revealing plenty of rich, tactile surface detail that the 4K presentation showcases with marvelous clarity. The image's sharpness is never in doubt. It's structurally robust and very handsome. And compared to the previous Blu-ray, there's no question that this UHD absolutely blows it away at every turn. It's not even close.

The HDR-enhanced color palette is excellent, one of the best uses of it yet. The movie is very golden-shiny in its open, contrasted against (would be) deep shadow backgrounds, which are, as is so often the case with UHD, more washed out than they should be. After the open, the movie takes on a very earthy palette, featuring a near endless supply of sun-scorched desert terrains and shades-of-beige rocky and stone locations. Many of the clothes, too, take on that same adventurous desert spirit and are comprised of shades of brown, beige, tan, white...anything that more or less blends in. Robust primaries are hard to come by. The colors are much firmer here than they are on the Blu-ray, in no way "altered" to a significant degree but showing more depth, nuance, and vitality without sacrificing an inch of integrity. With the increased sharpness and filmic texturing, this is easily, far-and-away, the most definitive home video presentation of The Mummy yet. In terms of pure leaps over a previously released Blu-ray, this may be the best yet.
The Mummy has been upgraded to a DTS:X Master Audio soundtrack, and the results are very impressive (again with the caveat of the missing 20 minutes in the middle). The top layer isn't utilized to the fullest extent possible, but there are certainly a few occasions, particularly during chaotic action scenes, whether on the surface or in more densely packed tombs, that take advantage. Blowing wind and sandstorms are the most obvious; such elements power through, and above, the stage, with strong definition and energy. The overhead component isn't excessively pronounced, but it blends in well with the rest of the material. Reverberations and the like in more confined spaces allow for a greater sense of place as sound reverberates about the stage and the overheads help to more accurately recreate the environments. General action makes use of the top end, too, such as flying airplanes or pitch battles or any time the villain spews various stuff at the heroes. Gunfire and other bits of action madness are punchy and spread out along the stage, certainly not the most thunderous ever but, mixed with all the other things happening, makes for a nice, frenzied listening experience. Music never misses a beat, or a speaker, for that matter, spewing out with expert clarity throughout the range (including a healthy low end) and saturating the stage with seamless ease. Dialogue is clear and detailed with natural front-center placement and flawless prioritization.