Trolls Band Together (Sing Along Edition) 4K Ultra HD

In "Trolls Band Together," after two films of true friendship and relentless flirting, Poppy (Anna Kendrick) and Branch (Justin Timberlake) are now officially, finally, a couple! As they grow closer, Poppy discovers that Branch has a secret past. He was once part of her favorite boyband phenomenon, BroZone, with his four brothers: Floyd (Troye Sivan), John Dory (Eric André), Spruce (Daveed Diggs) and Clay (Kid Cudi). BroZone disbanded when Branch was still a baby, as did the family, and Branch hasn't seen his brothers since. But when Branch's bro Floyd is kidnapped for his musical talents by a pair of nefarious pop-star villains––Velvet (Amy Schumer) and Veneer (Andrew Rannells) –– Branch and Poppy embark on a harrowing and emotional journey to reunite the other brothers and rescue Floyd from a fate even worse than pop-culture obscurity. )Gary Reber)

Both the theatrical version (01:31:29) and the Sing-Along version (01:31:28) are available in 4K. Special features include commentary with Producer Gina Shay, Co-Director Tim Heitz, Head of Story Colin Jack, Production Designer Ruben Perez Reynoso and Visual Effects Supervisor Marc J. Scott; seven feaaturettes "It Takes Three" (HD 03:55), "Fun In The Recording Booth" (HD 03:49), "HI, HI, HI" (HD 03:27), "Building The Band" (HD 12:36), "Together Again" (HD 02:38), "Animating Trolls" (HD 04:22), "How To Draw" (HD 23:09) and "How To Hug Time Bracelets" (HD 02:34); three deleted scenes with intro by Head of Story Colin Jack (HD 04:52) and a Movies Anywhere digital copy.

The 2.39:1 2160p HEVC/H.265 4K Ultra HD Dolby Vision/HDR10 picture, reviewed on a VIZIO Quantum X P85QX-JI UHD/HDR display, was animated digitally and sourced from a 2K (not 4K) master Digital Intermediate format. As the 2K Digital Intermediate has been upconverted to 2160p, there is no real gain in native resolution. As with the previous "Trolls," the picture uses incredibly well stop-motion scrapbook animation, along with conventional animation. The imagery is wonderfully colorful, with fully saturated primary and pastel hues. As before, it seems, every imaginable color and shade comprises the palette. Pinks, greens, blues, and reds pop from the screen. The numerous characters are really cleverly depicted with incredible intricate features. HDR contrast is excellent, with deep blacks and dark shadows, as well as bright highlights and nuanced colors that pop. The wide color gamut is amazingly nuanced in a spectrum of hues. Resolution is superb, with fine detail throughout. The trolls from the various tribes are distinctly rendered with fuzzy felt-like textures and earthy environments such as a pool noodle jungle and ocean. As before, this is a very colorful picture that should be a thrill for the younger ones, with fascinating characters and incredibly vivid colors throughout. (Gary Reber)

The Dolby Atmos/Dolby TrueHD 7.1-channel soundtrack delivers, as with previous releases, a dynamic presence with wonderful sound effects, often enhanced with deep bass. Atmospherics are often credibly nuanced as well as Foley sound effects. There is a lot of singing and dancing throughout, which is nicely enveloping throughout the soundfield. The music, which is the main sound element, occupies a very wide soundstage and extends aggressively to the surrounds, all four of them, for a wonderfully holosonic® soundfield. The songs and singing are wonderful in terms of musical delivery and fidelity. ADR dialogue is intelligible and at times directionalized. The soundstage is large and extends aggressively to the surrounds for a wonderfully spatially dimensional presentation.

The Immersive Sound element is comprised of subtle orchestral extension to the height layer, which is ineffective, sans the numerous sound effects heard on the previous Trolls 4K Ultra HD release. There were far more opportunities that were ignored, such as the various music genre numbers presented at ear-level but not at the height layer, to really deliver top-end goodness.

This is a really fun holosonic® presentation with quality fidelity and dynamic punch. (Gary Reber)