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eXistenZ (1999)
eXistenZ (1999) poster

eXistenZ (1999)

Action, Thriller, Science Fiction • 1h 37m

Director: David Cronenberg

Cast: Jennifer Jason Leigh, Jude Law, Ian Holm, Willem Dafoe, Don McKellar, Callum Keith Rennie, Christopher Eccleston, Sarah Polley, Robert A. Silverman, Kris Lemche, Oscar Hsu, Vik Sahay, Kirsten Johnson, James Kirchner, Balázs Koós, Stephanie Belding, Gerry Quigley

Best English-friendly & video release

Updated 1 year ago


UHD tiers

Excellent
Vinegar Syndrome

About the film

A game designer on the run from assassins must play her latest virtual reality creation with a marketing trainee to determine if the game has been damaged.

More from David Cronenberg

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Director: David Cronenberg

4K · Excellent
Best English-Friendly & Video:

Second Sight 4K Blu-ray

Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab)

Best Audio:

2003 R1 MGM DVD

Director: David Cronenberg

Best English-Friendly & Video:

UK Vertigo 4K Blu-ray

Director: David Cronenberg

Best English-Friendly & Video:

Entertainment One Blu-ray

Director: David Cronenberg

Best English-Friendly & Video:

Sony Blu-ray

Director: David Cronenberg

Best English-Friendly & Video:

UK Entertainment One Blu-ray

Director: David Cronenberg

Best English-Friendly & Video:

Fox/Shout! Factory Blu-ray

Director: David Cronenberg

Best English-Friendly & Video:

Shout! Factory Blu-ray

Director: David Cronenberg

Best English-Friendly & Video:

Shout! Factory 4K Blu-ray

Additional Info:

Arrow, 101 Films, and Ecstasy of Films Blu-rays all have different extras

Director: David Cronenberg

Best English-Friendly & Video:

NSM Records 4K Blu-ray

Additional Info:

Arrow Blu-ray has some exclusive extras

Director: David Cronenberg

Best English-Friendly & Video:

France Metropolitian 4K Blu-ray

Additional Info:

US Sony Blu-ray has exclusive extras

More from Vinegar Syndrome

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Director: Robert Altman

4K · Excellent
Best English-Friendly & Video:

Vinegar Syndrome Cinématographe 4K Blu-ray

Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab) · Blu-ray.com (opens in a new tab)

Video Notes:

Cinematrographe's HDR grading is overcooked, which is a known VinSyn tendency. Additionally, their booklet mis-credits the encode to FiM.

YMMV, but for some, the included BD encoded by Marcus Johnson—ironically may make for a more pleasing experience.

Director: Jonathan Demme

Video format: UHD Blu-ray

Best English-Friendly & Video:

Vinegar Syndrome/Cinématographe 4K

Sources: vitalpassenger.com (opens in a new tab)

Video Notes:

FiM are mistakenly credited, one of the four known instances of this for a Cinématographe title (the other three being Thieves Like Us, Who Killed Teddy Bear?, and The Gambler). 4K encode was done by Vital Passenger.  https://vitalpassenger.com/our-work

Director: Jerry Schatzberg

Best English-Friendly & Video:

Warner Archive Blu-ray

Sources: Blu-ray.com (opens in a new tab)

Director: Lam Nai-choi

Best English-Friendly & Video:

88 Films UK or Vinegar Syndrome US Blu-ray (preference)

Video Notes:

Different color gradings, 88 Films disc is encoded by FiM but Vinegar Syndrome encode (by Marcus Johnson) is more than robust

Audio Notes:

Vinegar Syndrome potentially has better audio than 88 Films, due to VinSyn possibly having EQ'd the audio mix after Fortune Star scanned the track in a way that makes it sound too hot, whereas 88 left it alone without addressing that issue. However, no direct comparisons exist

Director: Hal Needham

4K · Excellent
Best English-Friendly & Video:

Vinegar Syndrome 4K Blu-ray

Upcoming Release:

2026 Vinegar Syndrome 4K Blu-ray, 2025 Umbrella 4K Blu-ray

Director: Trey Parker

Best English-Friendly & Video:

UK Refuse Films or US Vinegar Syndrome Blu-ray

Video Notes:

Both releases have two presentations: sourced from the original Betacam master tapes, and another that uses a filmout of the tapes.

Director: Simon Wincer

Best English-Friendly & Video:

Vinegar Syndrome 4K Blu-ray

Director: Keenen Ivory Wayans

4K · Solid
Best English-Friendly, Video & Audio:

Vinegar Syndrome 4K Blu-ray

Director: William Friedkin

4K · Excellent
Best English-Friendly & Video:

Vinegar Syndrome 4K Blu-ray

Sources: slow.pics (opens in a new tab)

Video Notes:

Vinegar Syndrome 4K Blu-ray see caps

For Blu-ray, UK Second Sight is better than Kino Lorber Blu-ray

Director: Joe Dante

4K · Excellent

More Action on Blu-ray

Director: John Woo

4K · Excellent
Best English-Friendly & Video:

Arrow 4K Blu-ray or Imprint 4K Blu-ray

Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab) · Blu-ray.com (opens in a new tab)

Upcoming Release:

Plaion Germany 4K Blu-ray

Video Notes:

Arrow has a different grade and a better encode than the Shout! Factory, though the difference in either is not major. Imprint release, which leaves Shout! Factory's master and subtitles as is, is encoded by FiM. https://forum.blu-ray.com/showpost.php?p=24473097&postcount=56

Best Audio:

Original mix: Shout! Factory 4K Blu-ray

Alternate mix: Scanbox Nordic PAL DVD

Surround remix: HK Video France 4K Blu-ray (5.0)

Audio Notes:

Original mix: Shout! Factory 4K Blu-ray (similar to Criterion LaserDisc, but less distorted)

Alternate mix: Scanbox Nordic PAL DVD

Surround remix: HK Video France 4K Blu-ray (5.0)

Arrow used the alternate mix, but with extra filtering and lowered dynamic range. The alternate mix has much better fidelity.

Imprint presumably used the Shout! Factory original mix and left it as is, though no official confirmation.

Additional Info:

Arrow has a much better translation.

Arrow LE has the Taiwan Extended Cut which will not be present on the standard edition. However, Imprint is FiM and has its own archival extras not present on the Arrow.

Director: Buster Keaton

Best English-Friendly:

Kino Lorber new Seven Chances / Sherlock Jr. Blu-ray?

Sources: slow.pics (opens in a new tab)

Upcoming Release:

MoC 4K Blu-ray late 2027

Video Notes:

Lobster Films (Kino Lorber?) > Cohen/Eureka https://slow.pics/c/3KWXoMyR The new Kino Lorber's Seven Chances / Sherlock Jr. might be using the same restoration as Lobster Films

Director: Sam Peckinpah

4K · Excellent
Best English-Friendly:

Criterion 4K Blu-ray or Germany Plaion Blu-ray or WB DVD depending on the cut.

Best Video:

First Preview (Turner): Germany Plaion Blu-ray

Second Preview (Final Preview): Germany Plaion Blu-ray

Theatrical: Criterion 4K Blu-ray

2005 Cut: WB DVD

2024 Cut: Criterion 4K Blu-ray

Video Notes:

Director: Roland Emmerich

4K · Solid
Best English-Friendly, Video & Audio:

Sony 4K Blu-ray

Director: George Lucas

Video format: UHD Blu-ray

Best English-Friendly & Video:

OG: "4K77" or "D+77" on high seas.

Special Edition: "4K97_IV" or "D+97_IV" on high seas.

Upcoming Release:

2027 Original Trilogy restoration/50th anniversary rerelease clips leaked plus release confirmed

Best Audio:

OG: LaserDisc audio is the best option for the Dolby Stereo mixes (and usually included in fan restorations). There are 16mm/TV rips of the mono mixes.

Special Edition: Cinema DTS or 1997 LaserDisc for the Special Edition.

Director: John G. Avildsen

4K · Excellent
Best English-Friendly & Video:

Sony 4K Blu-ray

Best Audio:

Original Stereo mix: Columbia Pictures LaserDisc, Sony 4K Blu-ray 

5.1 remix: Sony 4K Blu-ray, Sony Blu-ray 

Dolby Atmos remix: Sony 4K Blu-ray 

Director: John G. Avildsen

4K · Excellent
Best English-Friendly & Video:

Sony 4K Blu-ray

Best Audio:

Original Stereo mix: Columbia Pictures LaserDisc, Sony 4K Blu-ray 

5.1 remix: Sony 4K Blu-ray, Sony Blu-ray 

Dolby Atmos remix: Sony 4K Blu-ray 

Director: Michael Anderson

Best English-Friendly & Video:

Warner Bros Blu-ray

Upcoming Release:

Arrow 4K Blu-ray scheduled for Dec 2026 release

Director: Steven Spielberg

4K · Solid
Best English-Friendly:

Paramount 4K Blu-ray Purist choice: Blu-ray

Sources: YouTube (opens in a new tab)

Best Video:

Paramount 4K Blu-ray new improved master with color grading and slight issues. Blu-ray is old master with original color grading

Best Audio:

Blu-ray 5.1

Additional Info:

The Paramount 4K Blu-ray has a much better new scan that removes the original extremely dated color grading. This is an improvement on one hand but a definite revisionist change on the other. There is the expected grain management and slight HDR issues in addition to encoding quirks from Paramount. It is a giant improvement over the original Blu-ray but the color change and other issues means that the Blu-ray is one to keep for purists to have the as-is original iteration of the film's presentation. Audio wise the film has been remixed into Atmos but it merely seems like a slightly tweaked and frankly tamed version of the original 5.1. Of the two I prefer the Blu-ray 5.1. The original Blu-ray was Dolby TrueHD and the reissue Blu-ray in the four film Blu-ray collection boxset was DTS-HDMA.

DFIC extensive review: https://youtu.be/evsrJOTIjdA?si=wtdWGxZBfhPYTIeW

Director: Richard Lester

4K · Excellent
Best English-Friendly, Video & Audio:

Criterion 4K Blu-ray

Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab) · slow.pics (opens in a new tab)

Video Notes:

StudioCanal's 4K release is similar in encode quality, but has significant glitches in multiple frames. See comparisons 9-16 here: https://slow.pics/c/YkSVb3Ey

Audio Notes:

The pitch of the StudioCanal 4K's English audio is too high

Additional Info:

Criterion has more extras than StudioCanal.

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vanshady

· last reviewed 1 year ago

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