Blu-ray Screen Comparisons: INFERNAL AFFAIRS II and III
Reviewing Criterion’s restorations of the sequels against their earlier Hong Kong editions
This article contains several comparisons which contrast the older MediaAsia (Hong Kong) Blu-ray transfers with the new Criterion restoration. The frames aren’t necessarily exact matches, but should give a solid indication of the visual differences.
Criterion’s new edition of The Infernal Affairs Trilogy was released on November 15.
This article continues our comparisons of Criterion’s new Infernal Affairs box set against the popular Hong Kong release. Criterion’s transfer of Infernal Affairs (the first film) proved to be a huge improvement.
The sequels aren’t as dramatic of an improvement and are similar to each other in their presentation. While the clarity is still much better on these newer discs (higher depth of resolution, less compression), the overall look of Criterion’s Internal Affairs II and III has color timing that runs a little hot and a little bright — a slightly less “natural” palette than the older edition. Both films are presented slightly taller image area than the Hong Kong release (a very minor difference).
Infernal Affairs II
Infernal Affairs III
A/V Out.
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Except where noted, all 16:9 screen images in this review are direct captures from the disc(s) in question with no editing applied, but may have compression or resizing inherent to file formats and Medium’s image system.
