My face is as blue as those stupid aliens from Avatar I’ve written so many times about the LG G3 OLED TV at this point. But there's a good reason for that. It’s a transformatively good TV owing to its brightness-boosting Micro Lens Array panel, and quite honestly the single best piece of technology I’ve ever purchased.
While it’s an amazing television to play the best PS5 games on, the most viewing pleasure I’ve eked out of my G3 has come from watching 4K Blu-ray movies. Below, I’ll run you through what I consider to be the best-looking Ultra HD discs I’ve watched on my LG OLED. Though a couple of them are far from great movies, every film below looks glorious in 4K.
Blade Runner 2049
How this movie flopped at the box office, I’ll never know. Even by Denis Villeneuve’s sky-high standards, Blade Runner 2049 is one hell of a movie. It also looks astonishing, in large part thanks to the remarkable cinematography of Roger Deakins. The scenes set in a futuristic, ruined Las Vegas look particularly vivid in what’s easily one of the most incredible 4K Blu-rays my eyes have ever clocked.
Godzilla vs. Kong
Look, I’m not going to try and convince you Godzilla vs. Kong is a great movie, but it is a lot of silly fun. It’s also a fantastic looking 4K Blu-ray that squeezes more out of my Philips Hue Gradient lightstrip than any other film I can think of — the third act, neon-bathed fight between The Big G and the giant gorilla in Hong Kong puts on quite the light show. This is simply a gorgeous movie that shines in 4K while also shaming the CG of Marvel’s output over the past few years.
Drive
Forget Barbie, this is the best movie Ryan Gosling has ever starred in. And it ain’t close. Nicolas Winding Refn’s classy action drama essentially turns Canada’s hunkiest export into The Man with No Name behind a wheel. Few films have captured just how magical Los Angeles can look at night better than Drive, and this 4K transfer is close to immaculate. I love this movie so much, I went out of my way to visit the real-life grocery store in Echo Park that briefly features in the film the first time I visited Tinseltown. Yes, clearly I’m slightly unhinged.
The Jungle Book
While the standard Blu-ray looks fantastic, the Ultra HD version takes things to another eye-arousing level. This is probably the most gorgeous 4K Blu-ray movie I’ve ever watched, which is not a statement I make lightly. Even though it’s now almost a decade-old, the visual effects in this live-action remake remain remarkable. Idris Elba’s Shere Khan is a photo-realistic work of art, and the tigerish cherry atop an deliciously good-looking Sundae. Also, watching Christopher Walken play a gigantic orangutan is something your eyes need to witness ASAP.
The Lord of the Rings Trilogy
For my money, The Fellowship of the Ring is the greatest movie ever made. My favorite part of the year comes along at precisely 10:35 p.m. every Christmas Day when I sit down to watch all 228 minutes of the extended version — I should have said “slightly unhinged night owl” earlier. The 2001 masterpiece and its two sequels look amazing, with director Peter Jackson personally overseeing the 4K restoration work on each movie, which includes subtle tweaking of crucial CGI shots. As I mentioned up top, the one trilogy to rule them all is on sale at the moment, and while still expensive, I can’t think of many better ways to fill roughly 900 minutes of your precious time.
Avengers: Endgame
It’s hardly a shocker that one of the highest-grossing movies of all time looks pretty darn good on 4K Blu-ray. The most fan-pleasing MCU film is also the best-looking, and considering what’s come since, 2019 feels like a lifetime ago. The closing chapter of Phase Three of Marvel’s Cinematic Universe is the last movie in the franchise with CGI that doesn’t stink the joint out. The extraordinary closing battle between all the heroes vs Thanos looks incredible in 4K on my LG G3 OLED.
Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom
I’ve described this before as “the best looking 4K Blu-ray is definitely not the movie you’re expecting”, and I stand by that statement. Fallen Kingdom is nowhere close to being as good as Spielberg’s landmark blockbuster, Jurassic Park. Yet it’s one seriously alluring 4K Blu-ray. The transfer on this 2018 dino smash hit is incredibly clean, with the scenes filmed at Hawaii's Kualoa Ranch popping in particular. This sequel also wisely leans into animatronics once more, honoring the legacy of the legendary Stan Winston in a scene involving the T.rex’s scar-covered hide that looks particularly detailed in 4K.
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