Overview: The Bikeriders captures a rebellious time in America when the culture and people were changing. After a chance encounter at a local bar, strong-willed Kathy (Jodie Comer) is inextricably drawn to Benny (Austin Butler), the newest member of Midwestern motorcycle club, the Vandals led by the enigmatic Johnny (Tom Hardy).

Much like the country around it, the club begins to evolve, transforming from a gathering place for local outsiders into a dangerous underworld of violence, forcing Benny to choose between Kathy and his loyalty to the club.

4K UHD Blu-ray Verdict: Warner Bros. Entertainment is expanding their 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray catalog offerings this month with the release of the new blockbuster The Bikeriders (4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray + Digital) in the expansive 4K Ultra HD video format this August 13th, 2024.

For my money, this Bikeriders (4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray + Digital) sharpness takes a fairly large step forward from others in their 4K Ultra HD catalog and even comes with HDR (High Dynamic Range) for the complete 4K Ultra HD experience, of course.

So, what we have is The Bikeriders presented to us as a two-disc with a 4K UHD + Blu-ray + sheet for a Digital HD Copy. Other stand out points you should know are: Codec: HEVC / H.265, Resolution: Native 4K (2160p), HDR: HDR10 and Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1.

Featuring Dolby Vision and HDR10 for brighter, deeper, and way more lifelike colors, as with most all 4K UHDs, everything that we watch features these qualities - but somehow, this film gloriously shines within them all.

Noticeably crisp with the overall clarity receiving an obvious boost here on this release, what is more is that it is enjoyably noticeable. For as well as some new nuances to the somewhat drab palette courtesy of Dolby Vision, we also get to witness sudden bright pops of color, which makes the eyes draw in, for sure.

In particular, one scene (amongst many) that stood out for me was the Take The Jacket Off Scene, where set in a dingy bar, Butler is told he cannot wear his biking colors inside, and what follows, well, I won’t give it away, but it is just so well lit for where it is that along with Hardy out there doing his best Brando, the film just glides sumptuously along.

As for the audio, well we get the choice of: English: Dolby Atmos, English: Dolby TrueHD 7.1 (48kHz, 24-bit) and Audio descriptive.

Overall, this is a very strong 4K HDR Blu-ray presentation, and, for the most part, the audio track remains fairly similar to its DTS-HD counterpart; with much of the action occupying the surrounds with outstanding directionality and placement where effects flawlessly pan between the sides and rears.

As for the film itself, well, in 1960’s America, Kathy (Jodie Comer) is a young woman trapped in a relationship that’s growing increasingly volatile. She starts to get noticed by Benny (Austin Butler), a young buck hoping to make it big in The Vandals, a notorious biker gang, led by Johnny (Tom Hardy), a cool, calculated character who sees promise in Benny.

When Kathy and Benny become an item, his commitment to her and his loyalties to The Vandals become dangerously inter-wined, coming to a head when young buck, Sonny (Norman Reedus) offers some credible rivalry with his gang, The Renegades.

The biker gang has always held a magnetic sway with that contingent of movie-goers that relate to the appeal of belonging to a gang, most notably the 1969 film Easy Rider, and various other incarnations over the years. With The Bikeriders, writer/director Jeff Nichols, attempts to compartmentalize the format into an autobiographical, true life account of life in that world, taken from true life accounts from the 50’s/60’s period. An idea with great potential, that sadly (and although it does hold your attention in check), never feels fully realized here.

Comer’s strong, improvised Brooklyn accent over the voiceovers, combined with the oldies 50’s/60’s soundtrack and the freeze frame interludes, give the film a Goodfellas-lite kind of feel, albeit switched from the Italian mafia to a biker gang, but with the same basic set up and characters.

Performances wise, Butler has presence as the dreamboat young pretender, while Hardy manages his trademark intense persona, as the mean, moody head boy, while fellow big screen tough guy Michael Shannon makes a surprise return in a lesser role as a grizzled old timer, whose brain’s so fried he no longer makes any sense.

There’s an all star cast in dynamic, promising roles. But while there’s enough to make you care about these characters and their outcomes, all-together it’s ultimately a definite workmanlike effort that doesn’t really offer anything surprising or new.

That said, as personally, I enjoyed it as a home theater, 4K cinematic experience immensely, The Bikeriders totally hit the mark for me. It manages to be extremely entertaining without ever skimping on the characters or it’s heavy themes.

Furthermore, it tackles such an interesting era in history and one that has now left me with a real itch for more movies about this period of time in our lives that I never actually bore witness to myself.

The Bikeriders 4K UHD Disc includes the following special features:

Johnny, Benny & Kathy
The Era of The Bikeriders
Feature Commentary with Writer/Director Jeff Nichols
And More!