They’re doing a lot of events for the 50th anniversary of The Rocky Horror Picture Show. You can meet many of the cast on tour or attend screenings. But the occasion also warranted a 4K UHD release.
So the 1975 movie now has pure black screens for the lips singing, the dark and stormy night, and the corners of the mansion, Dr Scott (Jonathan Adams)’s office and Frank-N-Furter (Tim Curry)’s elevator. The dinner scene boasts deep shadows too.
The mansion gets more colorful the longer Brad (Barry Bostwick) and Janet (Susan Sarandon) stay. The blue atrium for the “Time Warp” leads to the red and pink laboratory for Rocky (Peter Hinwood)’s unveiling. The bedroom scenes are under red tents and the final floor show is against a bright lavender curtain.
Atmos is a huge sound improvement. Even the 35th anniversary Blu-ray was still mono. So the songs just sound fuller now with a few noteworthy rear surround effects:
Cymbals on “Science Fiction Double Feature”
Strings on “Dammit Janet”
Choral backup on “There’s a Light” and “Hot Patootie”
Horns on “Time Warp” and “Patootie”
The only new bonus feature is a trivia track with some new quotes reflecting on the phenomenon scattered in. But previous extras have been thorough with Richard O’Brien and Patricia Quinn commentary, live performance features and one suggested callback track.