ADDITION: Universal 4K UHD (September 2020): Universal transferred Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho to 4K UHD as part of their The Alfred Hitchcock Classics Collection which includes Psycho, Rear Window, Vertigo and The Birds - all on separate 4K UHD discs. Four Blu-rays are included. These 4K UHD transfers feature HDR described as "4K Ultra HD is the ultimate movie watching experience. 4K Ultra HD features the combination of 4K resolution for four times sharper picture than HD, the color brilliance of High Dynamic Range (HDR) with immersive audio delivering a multidimensional sound experience." These utilize HDR10 not Dolby Vision on BD 100 (triple layered discs). This contains two versions of the film:

PSYCHO UNCUT: The extended version of the movie as seen in theaters in 1960 is exactly as intended by Alfred Hitchcock and now available with additional footage for the first time ever.

PSYCHO: The most widely seen version of the movie was edited for content and subsequently used for TV broadcasts, theatrical re-releases and home entertainment over the last 60 years.

Psycho image - there are a group who were unhappy with the 2012 Universal Blu-ray transfer feeling it looked waxy and lacked grain texture. This is true, and we failed to note that 8 years ago... but the 4K UHD has drastically corrected that transfer flaw. In a huge way.

As the theatrical re-release and 'uncut' versions are seamlessly-branched there is no difference in the quality between the cuts. This 4K UHD improvement over past digital editions is readily apparent but can appears subtle in just how much better it is. The grain is wonderful to behold - we can see with the value of side-by-side comparisons. Yes, I didn't see these textures in 1080P and to quote above: "Hitchcock deliberately wanted "Psycho" to look like a cheap exploitation film. He shot it not with his usual expensive feature crew (which had just finished "North by Northwest") but with the crew he used for his television show. He filmed in black and white. Long passages contained no dialogue. His budget, $800,000, was cheap even by 1960 standards". Contrast layering is adept - the overall image, like the rest of the 4K set is dark-ish, which I perceive to be more authentic. I greatly prefer this to a brightened image (which seem to be all previous digital editions!). There is also a slight amount of additional information in the frame. This is the second best looking transfer of The Alfred Hitchcock Classics Collection 4K UHD in my opinion - as authentic as its going to get - and probably the most improved considering the previous DNR-ish HD transfer.

It is likely that the monitor you are seeing this review is not an HDR-compatible display (High Dynamic Range) or Dolby Vision, where each pixel can be assigned with a wider and notably granular range of color and light. Our capture software if simulating the HDR (in a uniform manner) for standard monitors. This should make it easier for us to review more 4K UHD titles in the future and give you a decent idea of its attributes on your system. So our captures may not support the exact same colors (coolness of skin tones, brighter or darker hues etc.) as the 4K system at your home. But the framing, detail, grain texture support etc. are, generally, not effected by this simulation representation.

NOTE: 60 more more full resolution (3840 X 2160) 4K UHD captures, in lossless PNG format, for Patrons are available HERE.

We have reviewed the following 4K UHD packages to date: Spartacus (software uniformly simulated HDR), Jaws (software uniformly simulated HDR), The Invisible Man, (software uniformly simulated HDR), Steven Spielberg's War of the Worlds (software uniformly simulated HDR), Lucio Fulci's 1979 Zombie  (software uniformly simulated HDR),, 2004's Van Helsining (software uniformly simulated HDR),  The Shallows (software uniformly simulated HDR), The Bridge on the River Kwai (software uniformly simulated HDR), The Deer Hunter (software uniformly simulated HDR),  The Elephant Man (software uniformly simulated HDR), A Quiet Place (software uniformly simulated HDR), Easy Rider (software uniformly simulated HDR), Suspiria (software uniformly simulated HDR), Pan's Labyrinth (software uniformly simulated HDR),  The Wizard of Oz, (software uniformly simulated HDR), The Shining, (software uniformly simulated HDR), Batman Returns (software uniformly simulated HDR), Don't Look Now (software uniformly simulated HDR), The Man Who Killed Killed and then The Bigfoot  (software uniformly simulated HDR),,  Bram Stoker's Dracula (software uniformly simulated HDR), Lucy (software uniformly simulated HDR), They Live (software uniformly simulated HDR),  Shutter Island (software uniformly simulated HDR),  The Matrix (software uniformly simulated HDR), Alien (software uniformly simulated HDR), Toy Story (software uniformly simulated HDR),  A Few Good Men (software uniformly simulated HDR),  2001: A Space Odyssey (HDR caps udated), Schindler's List (simulated HDR), The Neon Demon (No HDR), Dawn of the Dead (No HDR), Saving Private Ryan (simulated HDR and 'raw' captures), Suspiria (No HDR), The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (No HDR), The Big Lebowski, and I Am Legend (simulated and 'raw' HDR captures).

The included Blu-rays for Rear Window, Vertigo and The Birds are the exact same transfers as the 2012 edition - and actually have those VoB / M2TS file dates - see HERE. But Psycho is different with a new transfer (since it includes the 'Uncut' version), also on the included Blu-ray, which has the same menu style of the 4K UHD discs (see below).

Universal's 4K UHD makes an error that purists won't likely forgive too easily. The Universal defaults to a newly conceived DTS-HD Master audio 7.1 track (24-bit) that is pretty impressive with rain, shower and other less-prevalent (and new?) effects extending to the rears and producing and immersive soundstage for home theatre adopters... it's just not the mono purists crave. Unfortunately, the dual-channel mono track option is simply a downmix of that remix. This is particularly frustrating as it would have seemed easy to author it on and let the consumer decide. Gee.  There are also two foreign language DUBs. The iconic score is by the incomparable Bernard Herrmann (Blue Denim, Beneath the 12-Mile Reef, Cape Fear, The Magnificent Ambersons, Taxi Driver, The Wrong Man, The Seventh Voyage of Sinbad, Mysterious Island, Jason and the Argonauts, Obsession, Hangover Square, etc. etc.) is brilliant here - frequently subtle and pulsing (all strings!)  sound - flawless in both lossless audio selections. There are subtitle options including English SDH, French Canadian, and Latin American Spanish and as with all 4K UHD discs, this Universal package is Region 'Free' (included Blu-rays too!) playable worldwide. 

Universal has made a statement: "Universal Pictures Home Entertainment (UPHE) has identified an issue with the home entertainment releases of Psycho - 60th Anniversary Edition and The Alfred Hitchcock Classics Collection, that specifically impacts copies of Psycho’s Blu-ray and 4K UHD versions made available on September 8, 2020. The initial run of the film’s Blu-ray and 4K UHD discs produced inadvertently omitted Psycho’s original 1960 mono track. UPHE’s goal is to always deliver the best possible product to its consumers. To that end, a replacement program is being established in the U.S. and Canada to ensure that those who have purchased this recent release of Psycho on Blu-ray or 4K UHD receive a corrected disc. To receive an updated Psycho disc, please visit the UPHE Support website or directly email HERE.”

Universal's 4K UHD disc has the same supplements as seen on most of the past digital discs and the last Blu-ray (see our review HERE.) The Blu-ray carries over all the extras - which are are endless - all repeated from previous releases like the feature-length audio commentary with Stephen Rebello (Author of “Alfred Hitchcock and the Making of Psycho”) to the video piece: Psycho Sound - a never-before-seen piece that looks at the re-mastering process required to create a surround mix from the original mono elements using Audionamix technology (Universal process.) Highlights include the previously included The Shower Scene: a look at the impact of music on the infamous “shower scene,” Hitchcock/Truffaut Interviews: excerpts from a 1962 audio interview with Alfred Hitchcock, Storyboards by Saul Bass with much as part of the 26-chapter 'Making of Psycho’. Very thorough - nice to have them all here together.

Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho is groundbreaking with elements from horror to Film Noir, and is many fans favorite from 'The Master'. The 4K UHD is a revelation for video purists (grain, grain, grain), but not audio purists (the missing original mono.) It's still a must-own and will, also, make it's way to our Desert Island selection in the next update. Along with absent mono, is the frustrating packaging (cardboard sleeves where you must slide the, tightly held, discs out) making this set exasperating for some... but, in my opinion, the value outweighs the flaws. I have had to eject and wipe the discs over a dozen times - I will be moving them to my own, homemade, standard packaging. If you intend on watching them a lot (you will!,) I suggest doing similar. The Alfred Hitchcock Classics Collection 4K UHD is, without a doubt, a must own. It's imperfections seem inconsequential when you simply watch the four films in all their 2160 glory. This is the leading contender for 'Package of the Year' in our 2020 year-end poll - only 3 months away! 

Gary Tooze