Space Jam: A New Legacy 4K Ultra HD Review

THE MOVIE — 2½/5

Plot Synopsis: Superstar LeBron James (as himself) and his young son, Dom (CEDRIC JOE), get trapped in digital space by a rogue AI (DON CHEADLE). To get home safely, LeBron teams up with Bugs Bunny (JEFF BERGMAN), Daffy Duck (ERIC BAUZA) and the rest of the Looney Tunes gang for a high-stakes basketball game against the AI’s digitized champions of the court — a powered-up roster called the Goon Squad.

Quick Hit Review: Space Jam: The New Legacy is pretty much like the first movie, features a superstar basketball player with absolutely no ability to act and zero charisma to make up for it. The story is pretty thin and features plenty of in-studio jokes like featuring the animated Justice League. The animation itself is okay and maybe younger viewers might find it entertaining, but as with the original which I re-watched not long ago, it’s really not all that enjoyable.

SPECIAL FEATURES – 3/5

This release comes with a glossy slip cover and inside is a code for the Digital HD copy.

First Quarter: Game On (7:36) looks at the development of the sequel and LeBron James’s involvement and his love for the first Space Jam. Includes some behind-the-scenes footage.

Second Quarter: Team Work (7:49) is on some of the make-up work bringing iconic Warner characters (like Catwoman, Joker, etc) to life, plus the animated versions of some of the players.

Third Quarter: Out of This World (8:09) looks at the visual effects including motion capture and green screen.

Fourth Quarter: The Looniest (7:08) covers the music and score for the movie.

Last up are five Deleted Scenes (7:38).

4K VIDEO – 5/5, BD VIDEO – 5/5

Warner Bros. releases Space Jam: A New Legacy onto 4K Ultra HD and Blu-ray, presented in the original 1.85 widescreen aspect ratio and a 2160p and 1080p high-definition transfer respectively. As this is a light-hearted, family-oriented film, with cartoon characters (2D and 3D animated), of course this would be bright and look tremendous on either format. Detail is sharp and well defined throughout and there didn’t appear to be any significant flaws nor any obvious signs of banding.

AUDIO – 4½/5

Both the 4K UHD and Blu-ray discs comes equipped with a Dolby Atmos track. This isn’t an amazing sounding lossless track yet still perfectly serviceable for a movie like this. Dialogue does come across with good clarity and there is some modest depth once we get into some game play, along with the music and score, including the opening theme to this film which was not nearly as memorable as the original.

OVERALL — 2¾/5

Overall, Space Jam: A New Legacy isn’t all that good but to be perfectly fair, neither was the 1995 original, though 14/15 year old me probably loved it (don’t have much memory, must’ve been a short-lived love). LeBron James, like Michael Jordan before him, cannot act at all so it can be a bit painful to watch at times, but I assume those in their early teens may find some minor entertainment value.