Opera 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray Review

Estimated reading time: 7 minutes

Opera, the 1987 giallo by master of the genre Dario Argento (Deep Red) is arguably his last classic film. The story follows a soprano named Betty (Cristina Marsillach) who is entangled in a series of killing inside an opera house, by a killer who keeps tying her up, tape her eyes open with needles, and forcing her to watch them kill their victims. Inspector Alan Santini (Urbano Barberini) is on the case investing the killings.

For this film Argento musters all the techniques and styles he learned from his previous films like The Bird with the Crystal Plumage or Phenomena. Here, the tropes are scrambled and the linear storytelling at times intruded upon by surreal imagery, like a pulsating brain. It still delivers a rich, slasher-esque mystery that also verges on BDSM at times. The visual aesthetic remains familiarly Argento, with director of photography Ronnie Taylor often saturating the frame in bold colors or using the low camera angles and handheld cameras to convey a sense of kinetic energy and impending doom. Opera may not be on the same level as Argento’s earlier works, but there is a lot here to enjoy and it is certainly a film Argento connoisseurs will enjoy.

The Video

Opera has been newly scanned in 4K from the original camera negatives at Cinecittà. The both the Director’s Cut and the US cut of the film are presented on 4K Ultra HD in a 2.35:1 HEVC 2160p (4K UHD) Dolby Vision encodement. Apart from spots where you can see some source damage like a patch of ‘orange’ distortion that appears in some frames, but overall, this transfer looks good. The grain structure is natural and mostly the image is clean. Detail is nicely extended and shadows are gorgeously nuanced thanks to the Dolby Vision grading, which also provides excellent pop in highlights and vibrancy in the primary colors.

The Audio

Opera is provided with English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1, English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 stereo, Italian DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 stereo and original Cannes English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 mono mixes. The 5.1 mix has a lush sound and offers clear dialogue with good dynamics. The English Cannes mono mix is the lowest quality of all the mixes, with what sounds like a veil over the dialogue and limited dynamics. For me it is a toss-up between the English 5.1 and 2.0 stereo mixes for best sound and also since they sync up with the ADR, which the Italian dub does not.

The Supplements

Severin sent me the standard edition release of Opera, which does not have the Severin online store only slipcover and the limited edition booklet. All other bonus features are the same, including three versions of the film across 1 4K Ultra HD Disc and 2 Blu-ray Discs. There are over 8 hours of bonus features included a cross the three discs.

Bonus Features:

• Commentary with Actress Cristina Marsillach and Ángel Sala, Head of Programming at the Sitges Film Festival (Director’s Cut Only)
• Commentary with Alan Jones, Author of Profondo Argento, and Kim Newman, Author of Anno Dracula (Director’s Cut Only)
• Commentary with Mono Digital’s Nathaniel Thompson and Troy Howarth, Author of Murder by Design: The Unsane Cinema of Dario Argento. (Director’s Cut Only)
• Opera Trailer (1080p; 00:01:49)
• Terror at the Opera Trailer (1080p; 00:01:42)

Blu-ray 1 (Director’s Cut & US Cut/2.35:1):

All of the above bonus features plus:

• The Eyes and the Needles (1080p; 00:22:42) – Interview with co-writer/director/producer Dario Argento
• Arias of Death (1080p; 00:37:24) – Interview with screenwriter Franco Ferrini
• The Eyes of Opera (1080p; 00:19:15) – Interview with actress Cristina Marsillach

Blu-ray 2 (Director’s Cut/1.85:1):

All of the bonus features on the 4K disc, except the trailers, plus:

• Don’t Close Your Eyes (1080p; 00:37:46) – Interview with film historian Fabrizio Spurio
• The Opera and Mr. Jones (1080p; 00:12:42) – Interview with Alan Jones, author of Profondo Argento
• Conducting Dario Argento’s Opera (SD; 00:35:46) – Archival featurette including interviews with Dario Argento, director of photography Ronnie Taylor, actors Daria Nicolodi, Urbano Barberini, FX artist Sergio Stivaletti, and soundtrack composer Claudio Simonetti
• Terror at the Opera (SD; 00:26:36) – Q&A with Dario Argento, Franco Ferrini, and Lamberto Bava at Cinema Farnese (2006)

The Final Assessment

A pure roller-coaster ride of gore, mystery, surrealism and strange twists with magnificent visual style and reined-in by Argento’s strong handle on the giallo genre. Severin’s release is magnificent, offering different cuts of the film and different framings of the director’s cut (Blu-ray only). Once again, Severin has shown a great love for genre films and horror. Recommended.

Opera (Standard Edition) is out on 4K Ultra HD January 28, 2025 from Severin Films

• Rating Certificate: R (for strong terror and violence, and for a scene of sensuality)
• Studios & Distributors: ADC Films | Cecchi Gori Group Tiger Cinematografica | RAI Radiotelevisione Italiana | Severin Films
• Director: Dario Argento
• Written By: Dario Argento | Franco Ferrini
• Run Time: 107 Mins. (Director’s Cut) | 96 Mins. (US Cut)
• Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1 | 1.85:1
• Video Format: HEVC 2160p (4K UHD)
• HDR Format: Dolby Vision (HDR10 Compatible)
• HDR10 Metadata:
  • MaxLL: 1000 nits
  • MaxFALL: 400 nits
  • Max. Luminance: 1000 nits
  • Min. Luminance: 0.0001 nits
• Primary Audio: English DTS-HD MA 5.1
• Secondary Audio: English DTS-HD MA 2.0 Stereo | Italian DTS-HD MA 2.0 Stereo | Cannes English Mono DTS-HD 2.0
• Subtitles: English SDH | English (For Italian Audio) | English SDH (For Cannes English Audio) | English (For Spanish Commentary Audio)
• Street Date: 28 January 2025