Captain Underpants: The First Epic Movie - 4K Blu-ray Review

Movie
I hate to admit this, but as an over 35 year old male, I actually get a kick out of the Captain Underpants series of books by Dav Pikey. Now, I’m not saying that I go out of my way to kick back a few brewskies, take off the work pants and relax with the latest story, but I had a blast reading them to my nephews and niece during babysitting hours back in the early 2000s. They’re cute, witty, and pretty demented from a children’s point of view. I’m not sure what inspired author Dav Pikey to make this bleak world of school where humor isn’t allowed, and teachers and principals are basically monsters, but it certainly makes sense from an elementary students perspective. Back when I was 8 or 9, all teachers were monsters who made me sit inside instead of allowing this ADHD little kid to run around and play outside in nothing but a pair of swim trunks all day. So, while I admit the series is a bit over the top, I kind of get where Pikey is coming from if you think like an 8 year old kid. I was honestly curious how the books would translate to the big screen, and while I wasn’t able to snag a theatrical viewing, I heard nothing but babbling brooks of excitement from the target audience. So, pop in the Blu-ray and what do we get? A zany adventure that captures the essence of the little short novels down the he last detail. It’s cute, it’s fun, it’s not meant to be taken seriously, and adults can actually have a good yuck along with the kids and doesn’t fall into the trap of being “kids ONLY” type of entertainment.

Well, that description from above is EXACTLY the type of school like that George (Kevin Hart) and Harold (Thomas Middleditch) are experiencing today. Their life in school is a bit of a mixed bag, as the two practical jokers and pranksters (along with aspiring comic book artists) get the runaround from the stodgy principal Krupp (Ed Helms) for their efforts. Poor frustrated Krupp KNOWS the boys have pranked the school yet again, but he can’t exactly pin it on them. That is until he uses a specialty nanny cam to catch the boys in the act for their next prank. Gloating over his victory, Krupp vows to split the boys up from their classes, thus ending their collaboration together and ridding the school of their pranks forever. Well, after an unexpected secret hypnotism ring (that George got from a box of cereal) actually WORKS, the boys now have complete control over the principal. One snap of their fingers and he becomes anything they want. A chicken, a box, a dummy, and even Captain Underpants himself (one of their comic book heroes).

Well, the boys decided to have a little fun with “Captain Underpants” and soon have the happy go lucky super hero version of their principal doing everything their way and all is good in school. That is until the new science professor (professor P, played by Nick Kroll) ends up being a psychotic megalomaniac who’s bent on destroying ALL laughter from society. A plan that he intends to unfold using the school of unsuspecting students as his guinea pigs. Naturally George and Harold aren’t exactly thrilled about humor leaving the world, so it’s time for Captain Underpants to come out of the closet and do what he was born to do. Fight crime in nothing but a pair of whitey tighteys!

Captain Underpants: The First Epic Movie is actually a laugh a minute film. The jokes are childish, the humor is riddled with children’s versions of potty humor, and there’s a TON of underwear jokes. You would expect the humor to be eyerolling and painful from that description, but the sheer energy and enthusiasm that the voice actors display in the roles are so infectious and energizing that you can’t help but giggle along with fart jokes like you’re an 8 year old kid with his first whoopy cushion. There’s nothing THAT intelligent about the movie, but it captures the ludicrous nature of the original books quite nicely, and the fun little kids movie is just hard not to get into.

The voice actors really DO sell the movie for you. The jokes are NOT that clever really, but it’s the obvious enthusiasm by all involved that sells it. Kevin Hart is actually really good as George, and its one of his most tame and toned down roles yet (which actually makes him humorous for once) , and Ed Helms is hilarious as Captain Underpants. Nick Kroll is usually a laugh a minute, and here he’s no different as Professor P (his real name of course exploited shamelessly in the film). Honorable mention goes out to Jordan Peele as Melvin, Kristen Schaal as poor Edith, and director David Soren as little Tommy. It’s a well balanced film that is tarted DIRECTLY at that 8-12 year old audience and hits the target quite handily. However, it luckily has the advantage of being accessible to adults as well, and makes for a fun little romp with your kids if you so happen to be above the targeted age bracket.




Rating:

Rated PG for mild rude humor throughout




Video:

UHD titles in the animated world have been problematic. Not because UHD poses some problem in some innate way, but because most of the titles that I’ve viewed don’t show much (if any) improvement over the Blu-rays that have been their counterparts. Sometimes it’s because the Blu-ray is sooooooo good as it is that the animation can’t see much improvement, and other times it is due to extenuating circumstances. Well, the 4K UHD transfer is not going to be night and day better than the Blu-ray, but it does actually show a very nice uptick in quality from the 1080p disc. Colors are more vibrant and the use of HDR allows for the already pulsating color spectrum to become even more vibrant and visceral. Little details in the classrooms are more readily apparent, and the overall image clarity appears to be crisper and cleaner looking. Again, this is not a giant leap forward, but the visuals do benefit quite nicely from the 4K advantages and is easily the superior looking picture.







Audio:

The 7.1 DTS-HD MA track was about as perfect as you can get on Blu-ray, but the Dolby Atmos track on the 4K disc is just perfecter (yes, that’s a term I just made up). The tracks are very similar, but the Atmos ability gives the track a little more variation in the way the surrounds play with experience ,and the end battle allows the overheads to bring in some more immersive shots that give the track a very slight edge over the 7.1 mix. Both tracks are incredibly close to each other and amazing experiences , with great bass that hits hard and deep, but isn’t overbearing. And the surrounds are always active with the cackling of children, or the smashing sounds of glass as Captain Underpants throws himself out of a window. Voices are distinct and clear, and are balanced evenly with a nice spacious dynamic range to play with. A great audio experience and a treat to listen to.







Extras:

• Featurettes:
  • The Really Cool Adventures of Captain Underpants Motion Comic
  • The Captain Underpants Guide to Being a Hero
  • The Professor Poopypants (Totally Original and Supercool) Guide to Being a Villain
  • Kevin Hart and Ed Helms Surprise Fans
  • Lunch Lady PSA with Kristen Schaal
  • Sock Puppets Real Stars

• Deleted Scenes

• Lyric Videos:
  • Captain Underpants Theme by “Weird Al” Yankovic
  • "A Friend Like You" by Andy Grammer

• Tighty-Whitey Q&A with the Stars - Part 1 and Part 2

• Gallery
  • Comic Book Covers
  • The Art of DreamWorks CAPTAIN UNDERPANTS: THE FIRST EPIC MOVIE

Captain Underpants is actually a whole lot of fun to watch, even for an adult. The juvenile humor is made palatable by the bubbling energy and fantastic voice acting of all involved, and my now young nephews (who I’m just introducing to the older novels I read their siblings back in 2002-2006) are begging for me to show it to them again. So we can comfortably say the movie hit its mark. Audio and video are nothing short of stunning and the extras quite decent for modern new releases. I had a blast with it I heartily recommend it for a fun watch if you have the kiddy winks over (or maybe just by yourself if you’ve got an open mind!). As for choosing between 4K and the Blu-ray, I would lean towards the 4K. It will include the Blu-ray in the combo pack, and the uptick in visual quality is worth it alone, and the Atmos track slightly edges out the 7.1 mix. Go for it!




Technical Specifications:

Starring: Kevin Hart, Nick Kroll, Ed Helms, Thomas Middleditch
Directed by: David Soren
Written by: Nicholas Stoller (Screenplay), Dav Pikey (Novels)
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 HEVC
Audio: English Dolby Atmos (Dolby TrueHD 7.1 core), Spanish, French DD 5.1
Studio: Fox
Rated: PG
Runtime: 89 Minutes
Blu-ray Release Date: September 12th, 2017

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• Michael Scott
• May 11, 2017