ADDITION: Warner 4K UHD (October 2020): The 3840 X 2160 resolution is a marked improvement over the paler Blu-ray from way back in 2007. Full Metal Jacket has always looked a little 'clouded' with plenty of smoky battle sequences and muted contrast... till now. The 4K really brings out army greens - denser and far richer - as are all colors - fires are blazing with penetrating orange, yellows and reds. The HDR is not overwhelming but blues, and some browns, dominate the indoor scenes of the barracks (notably 'The Head'.) These colors are accurate to how it looks on my two UHD systems. The overall hue is a darker one with cooler flesh tones and higher clarity. It has grain textures that can be inconsistent in a few sequences but I suspect this is a strong replication of the theatrical. I loved the fine grain. Regardless of any bitching about the colors, it looks significantly superior to all digital editions to date. I was impressed if not overwhelmed.   

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: 44 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: Psycho (software uniformly simulated HDR), The Birds(software uniformly simulated HDR), Rear Window (software uniformly simulated HDR), Vertigo (software uniformly simulated HDR),  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).

This audio is not in Dolby Atmos but rather a DTS-HD Master in 5.1 surround at only 16-bit and a lossy mono English option for purists. Although the score is credited to Vivian Kubrick (as Abigail Mead) it comprises a series of era songs like Johnny Wright's Hello Vietnam, Nancy Sinatra's These Boots Are Made For Walkin', Sam the Sham and The Pharaohs'
Wooly Bully, The Dixie Cups 'Chapel Of Love', Surfin' Bird performed by The Trashmen, The Rolling Stones' Paint It, Black, the memorable Mickey Mouse Club March plus The Marines Hymn music of Jacques Offenbach from "Geneviève de Brabant" and, of course, "This is my rifle, this is my gun...". There are multiple optional DUBs and subtitles including English and as with all 4K UHD discs, this is Region 'Free' - playable worldwide. 

The Warner 4K UHD offers the same extras as the 2007 Blu-ray (which is also included - see VOB files HERE.) This includes the commentary by Adam Baldwin (Animal Mother), Vincent D'onofrio (Private Pyle), Lee Ermey (Gunnery Sergeant Hartman), and Screenwriter/Author Jay Cocks and the 1/2 hour video piece - Full Metal Jacket: Between Good and Evil. Plus there is a trailer.

Funny, even not being 'masterpiece-level' Kubrick - Full Metal Jacket is definitely on the very short list of the best, and most impacting, Vietnam films ever made. The molding of 'Marines' is dissected in Kubrick's cold, direct, unnerving fashion with an almost humorous precursors - eventually pulling no punches and creating some of his most memorable 3/4 hour of cinema in the process. While not as overwhelming in 4K UHD as The Shining and 2001: A Space Odyssey this is still a huge improvement over Blu-ray and especially DVD. It's Stanley Kubrick... and I was (again) deeply moved seeing in 3840 X 2160 resolution. A fascinating experience - notable R. Lee Ermey - that is a must-own in the best format your system enables. Strongly recommended!   

Gary Tooze