Team America: World Police (2004) 4K Blu-ray Review

5

Animators turned directors Matt Parker and Trey Stone had long been agent provocateurs courtesy of the success of South Park, but by 2004, they were ready to take things to a whole new level of outrage. Produced in part as a response to world events at the turn of the new millennium, in addition to the announcement that a big-budget film version of the classic TV series Thunderbirds would eschew marionettes in favor of live-action, Team America: World Police was intended to outrage both sides of politics - a feat the duo were able to achieve with ease.

When North Korean leader Kim Jong Il (voiced by Trey Parker) threatens the safety of the free world, the international counter-terrorism group 'Team America' recruits former Broadway actor Gary Johnston (also (voiced by Trey Parker) to help infiltrate the terrorist network. However, Team America's predilection for causing more damage than it prevents might mean they cannot protect anyone - even themselves.

Twenty years on from its original release and viewed aside from the vortex of hype and outrage, Team America: World Police holds up very well indeed. While some political references might require a Google and some of the jokes wouldn't be appropriate for today's more precious sensibilities, there are some genuinely well-crafted songs, more subtle adult humor, and a very high level of production design under its surface.

Notably, the 4K disc provides a native 4K restoration of the original theatrical version of the film, with the unrated longer cut provided on the pack-in Blu-ray disc in 1080p high definition. Some may be disappointed by the technical limitations of the more eyebrow-raising cut, but I think the right choice has been made.

Video transfer

Team America: World Police is presented in its original aspect ratio of 2.39:1 in the Rec. 2020 color space. It is finished with Dolby Vision and HDR-10 formats and encoded with AVC H.265 compression.

For the film's 4K debut, Paramount struck a brand new master from the original 35mm camera negative, which totally outperforms the previous HD version.

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From the opening sequence, the quality of this transfer is immediately evident, with a sharp and detailed image that impresses. Unlike its red-tinted predecessor, the more balanced color grading offered here is a welcome refreshment, as is the complete absence of film artifacts that previously marred the image.

Overall, this is a superb remaster that's so clear you can see the strings on the puppets (that's a bad joke, folks!).

5

Audio transfer

Team America: World Police is presented in 5.1 surround, encoded with the DTS-HD Master Audio codec.

Migrated over from its original theatrical and DVD release, the track hasn't had any new sweetening or up-mixing to modern formats, but based on what we have here, I don't think too many people will object. This is a fine soundtrack that does everything expected of it, with tight responsiveness and plenty of impressive directional effects. Owing to the limited dexterity of the marionettes, audio sync is occasionally questionable - but that's certainly no fault of the disc.

5

Overall, this is a pleasant, occasionally impressive experience that probably won't ever be bested.

Bonus materials

Unfortunately, the opportunity hasn't been taken to produce any contemporary bonus features to explore the film's legacy better, but at least we do have a preservation of all the bonus features from the original DVD release in 2004.

5

Of the approximately 90 minutes of video-based features, package highlights include 6 minutes of roughly assembled Deleted/Extended Scenes and Outtakes, the original four-minute long Puppet Test, which demonstrate how difficult production would ultimately prove to be, and the Up Close with Kim Jong-Il featurette, which spends a bit more with the fan-favorite caricature of the former North Korean dictator.