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    • BLU-RAY REVIEW

    Swing Kids

    Featured In Issue 241, July 2019

    Picture4.5
    Sound4.5
    WSR Score5
    Basic Information on new release titles is posted as soon as titles are announced. Once reviewed, additional data is added to the database.
    (Studio/Distributor):
    Well Go USA
    (Catalog Number):
    WGU031108B
    (MPAA Rating):
    Not Rated
    (Rating Reason):
    (Retail Price):
    $29.98
    (Disc Type):
    Single Side, Dual Layer (BD-25)
    (Widescreen Edition):
    Yes
    (Full Screen Edition):
    (Running Time In Minutes):
    133
    (Color Type):
    Color With B/W Sequences
    (Chaptered/Scene Access):
    Yes
    (Closed Captioned):
    Yes
    (Regional Coding):
    A
    (Theatrical Year):
    (Theatrical Release):
    Yes
    (Direct-To-Video Release):
    No
    (Disc Release Date):
    6/18/2019
    (THX® Digitally Mastered):
    (Director):
    Kang Hyoung-Chul
    (Screenplay/Written By):
    (Story):
    (Music):
    (Director Of Photography):
    (Production Designer):
    (Visual Effects):
    (Costume Designer):
    (Editor):
    (Supervising Sound Editors):
    (Re-Recording Mixers):
    (Executive Producers):
    (Co-Producers):
    (Producers):
    (Academy Awards):
    (Principal Photography):
    (Theatrical Aspect Ratio):
    (Measured Disc Aspect Ratio):
    (Disc Soundtrack):
    DTS HD Lossless 5.1
    (Theatrical Sound):
    (Theatrical Re-Issue Soundtrack):
    (DTS Bit Rate):
    (Dolby Digital Bit Rate):
    (Additional Languages):
    (Subtitles):

    Set in the Geoje prison camp during the Korean War, the "Swing Kids" narrative follows the energetic North Korean soldier Rho Ki-soo (Kyung-soo) who discovers a deep desire to perform as a tap dancer after crossing paths with a dancer and officer from Broadway, Jackson (Grimes). Forming a group alongside Yang Pan-rae (Hye-su), Ro Ki-soo yearns to find out the location of his wife Xiao Fang (Min-Ho), a beautiful dancer herself who is limited in her movements due to angina. (Gary Reber)

    Special features include trailers and upfront previews.

    The 2.39:1 1080p AVC picture, reviewed on a Sony Bravia Z9D 4K Ultra HD HDR display, upconverted to 2160p with greater resolution and luminance, was photographed digitally using the Arri Alexa camera system and sourced from a 2K master Digital Intermediate format. This is a terrific-looking picture with an appealing color palette. The setting is a POW camp that exhibits earthy hues accentuated with strong primaries. Fleshtonrs are naturally rendered throughout. Contrast is excellent. Black levels are deep and shadow delineation is revealing. Natural lighting makes for an engaging presentation. Resolution is revealing of fine detail in the objects within the structures of the POW camp, facial features, hair, skin pores, clothing, tap shoes, etc. Even in the dimly lit interior scenes, detail is well represented. The Merry Christmas scene is spectacular. This is a wonderful picture that is captivating throughout. (Gary Reber)

    The DTS-HD Master Audio™ 5.1-channel soundtrack delivers a boisterous-sounding mixture of classic swing era music and tap dancing as well as POW mayhem. The main soundtrack is credited as in Korean, and there is English dialogue as well, spoken by the Americans who oversee the POWs. The optional English subtitles only translate the Korean sections and offer nothing during the English language moments. The music is powerful, dynamic, and spatially dimensional with an aggressive presence in the surround channels, which intensifies the entire soundfield. Atmospherics and Foley sound effects are realistic throughout. Dialogue is clean sounding, but at times can be a bit challenging to decipher in the English portions. There are occasional bursts of LFE due to elements like gunfire, but generally this track is very reserved. Dynamic range and fidelity are terrific. This is a great attention-grabbing soundtrack that is well crafted and very diverse in its presentation. (Gary Reber)

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