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Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984)
Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984) poster

Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984)

Adventure, Action • 1h 58m

Director: Steven Spielberg

Best English-friendly release

35mm scan, Blu-ray, DVD or LaserDisc.

Updated 4 months ago

Best video release

Paramount 4K Blu-ray heavily revisionist. Purist option: 35mm scan, Blu-ray, DVD or LaserDisc.


Best audio release

Letterbox LaserDisc 2.0 matrix stereo, DVD 5.1, Blu-ray 5.1

Additional info

The Paramount 4K master is HEAVILY revisionist in that all of the effects and opticals were redone and tweaked with errors and issues. There has been grain management (moments of stagnating grain and haloing) and the encoding isn't great hence the typical Paramount noise in the image. (especially skies) The HDR is a bit bright in the highlights. The Blu-ray is showing its age but does not have any of these digital alterations. It is from the scan done by Laser Pacific and is the highest quality unaltered master we have. The DVD was done by Lowry Digital and had much scrubbing and processing of grain in addition to edge enhancement. The letterbox LaserDisc was the first widescreen release and is very good for its time.
The 4K Blu-ray audio is seemingly an Atmos remix of the 5.1 found on the Blu-ray which itself is very similar to the DVD 5.1. All are presumably based on the 70mm Dolby six track mix. The Atmos is more processed and moves the sound around more so it is inferior to the older 5.1 iterations. On release Temple of Doom had 70mm, 35mm Dolby Stereo and mono mixes. The mono was for 16mm and other outlets and is presumably close to if not a mixdown of the stereo. It is seemingly the last Lucasfilm title that had a mono mix made. The Dolby Stereo is one of the most aggressive matrix mixes ever made and is still a blast to this day on the letterbox LaserDisc release. It is more aggressive than any of the 5.1 discrete versions which is either due to studios taming the audio later or the 35mm mix being handled a bit differently to the 70mm mix. In terms of releases today, the LaserDisc still sounds better than DVD, Blu-ray or 4K Blu-ray because of this factor.

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

UHD tiers

Worse Than BD
Paramount:

Heavily Revisionist Paramount master with redone effects and opticals with errors, HDR issues, lesser encoding, grain management and Atmos remix of existing 5.1 remix.


About the film

After arriving in India, Indiana Jones is asked by a desperate village to find a mystical stone. He agrees – and stumbles upon a secret cult plotting a terrible plan in the catacombs of an ancient palace.

Alternative Titles
Indiana Jones 2

Featured in Unofficial Releases Over Studio Releases

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Director: Antoine Fuqua

Video format: HD Streaming

Best English-Friendly & Video:

HD Streaming with OAR

Best Audio:

Warner Bros DVD

Director: Michael Bay

Video format: HD Streaming

Best English-Friendly & Video:

Disney+ HD Streaming

Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab)

Upcoming Release:

4K possibly teased?

Video Notes:

Disney+ has new master better than Blu-ray

Audio Notes:

Criterion DVD/Disney Blu-ray is missing a line:

Hummel: (line missing)
 
Lou Lindstrom: "Hello Frank. Lou Lindstrom"

Disney+:

Hummel: Hummel.

Lou Lindstrom: "Hello Frank. Lou Lindstrom"

Director: James Cameron

4K · Worse Than BD
Best English-Friendly & Video:

2015 Lionsgate Blu-ray 

Sources: fanrestore.com (opens in a new tab) · originaltrilogy.com (opens in a new tab)

Video Notes:
  • 2015 Lionsgate Blu-ray (but it's missing the extra scenes in the Ultimate Edition)

  • 2017 StudioCanal 4K Blu-ray and subsequent 4K Blu-rays are notorius for being heavily denoised and smoothened. Alternatively, 35mm scans for the theatrical cut is also available.

  • For the Ultimate Edition with the T-1000 searching John's room and the happy future ending, the 2009 Skynet Blu-ray, which is the older pre-2017 transfer, but has DNR.

Best Audio:
  • Original Kodak/ORC CDS mix:  Japan Pioneer DVD in DTS/ac3 5.1

  • Original Dolby Stereo SR: USA Widescreen LaserDisc and others.

Audio Notes:

Differences of mixes on various releases: see thread and more info here.

Additional Info:

2017 Blu-ray (which has the DNRed transfer), the 2009 Skynet Edition Blu-ray, and the 2000 Ultimate Edition DVD have exclusive extras. The 2003 Extreme Edition DVD has some exclusive easter eggs.

Directors: Bill Roberts & Paul Satterfield & Wilfred Jackson & Ben Sharpsteen & James Algar & T. Hee & Hamilton Luske & Samuel Armstrong & Jim Handley & Norman Ferguson & David Hand & Ford Beebe Jr.

Best English-Friendly & Video:

Censored: 2010 Disney Blu-ray
Uncensored: 35mm Scan

Sources: caps-a-holic (opens in a new tab)

Video Notes:

See caps of Blu-ray vs DVD

Best Audio:

1991 CAV LaserDisc

Audio Notes:
  • 1991 CAV LaserDisc includes an approximation of the original Fantasound mix in Dolby Surround using the surviving magnetic mixdown, using Stokowski's original mixing notes as a reference. Original aggressive pans and dynamic range are left in tact.

  • The 2000 DVD uses this same mix in discrete 5.0, but with some unnecessary dynamic range compression + a redub of all Deems Taylor audio with Corey Burton.

  • The 7.1 mix on the 2010 Blu-ray sounds poor, having been hit with excessive noise reduction, dynamic range compression, original aggressive pans no longer in tact, and the channel usage no longer resembles Stokowski's original intended sound design. 

Director: James Cameron

4K · Worse Than BD
Best English-Friendly:

2013 MGM Blu-ray, or 4K Blu-ray if you MUST have the mono mix, 1997 Image DVD/2001 MGM DVD for a purist version with original colors and the international mono mix

Sources: vimeo.com (opens in a new tab) · facebook.com (opens in a new tab)

Upcoming Release:

Capelight 4K Steelbook and Mediabook announced for 2026

Best Video:

2013 MGM Blu-ray for non AI transfer, 1997 Image DVD/2001 MGM DVD for a purist version with original colors and the international mono mix

Best Audio:

1991 Image Entertainment LaserDisc for the US mono mix, 2001 MGM DVD for the International mono mix

Audio Notes:

Comparison between the US and International mixes: https://vimeo.com/246332731

Additional Info:

The 4K Blu-Ray and the 2001 MGM DVD have exclusive extras.

Director: Peter Faiman

Best English-Friendly & Video:

Australia Cut: Australia Fox DVD

International Cut: Paramount Blu-ray

Encore Cut: Germany Winkler Film 4K Blu-ray, censored but good encoding

Sources: movie-censorship.com (opens in a new tab)

Upcoming Release:

US Paramount 4K Blu-ray, is the International US Cut and not the Encore Cut

Best Audio:

Australia Cut: Laserdisc

Additional Info:

The film exists in three versions:
- the original Australian cut (~104 minutes at 24fps/~100 minutes at 25fps);
- the American/international version (~98 minutes at 24fps/~94 minutes at 25fps) trimming some exposition in the Outback first half of the film and some shorter extensions of a few seconds in the New York section, altering some of the dialogue – including censoring a "fuck" to "screw" – but featuring one additional dialogue extension not in the Australian version (a comparison of the two cuts can be found at Movie Censorship);
- the Australian Encore Cut (~95 minutes at 24fps/~91 minutes at 25fps) which uses the international version source so it already has those alterations but also removes approximately three minutes consisting of parts of two scenes featuring Mick grabbing the crotch of a cross-dressing prostitute and a later sequence when he does the same thing at a party to a woman with a deep voice (a comparison of the international version and the Encore Cut can be found at Movie Censorship).

Director: George Cukor

Best English-Friendly & Video:

Theatrical cut / Roadshow cut: 35mm scans

Restored cut: WB Blu-ray

Director: Joel Schumacher

Video format: HD Streaming

Best English-Friendly & Video:

Disney+ is Streaming in HD with OAR

Or Disney/Touchstone DVD

Best Audio:

Disney/Touchstone DVD DTS 5.1

Director: Michael Apted

Video format: HD Streaming

Best English-Friendly & Video:

Starz is Streaming in HD with OAR

Or Sony Special Edition DVD

Director: Michael Mann

4K · Disappointing
Best English-Friendly & Video:

Theatrical Cut: Old Warner Bros DVD or fan restoration

Revised Cut: 2012 Japan Blu-ray

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

Video Notes:

Theatrical Cut: Old Warner Bros DVD or fan restoration

Revised Cut: 2012 Japan Blu-ray for less revisionist colors, 2022 Disney 4K Blu-ray is controversially regraded and too dark overall.

Best Audio:

LaserDisc 2.0 (restores censored dialog). Comparison of 5.1 mixes
For the 5.1: LaserDisc AC3 vs US DVD AC3 vs Japan DVD DTS

More from Steven Spielberg

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Director: Steven Spielberg

Best English-Friendly & Video:

US Paramount Blu-ray

Upcoming Release:

Paramount 4K Blu-ray Dec 15th

Video Notes:

US Paramount Blu-ray > International WB Blu-ray

Director: Steven Spielberg

4K · Worse Than BD
Best English-Friendly & Video:

2015 Universal Blu-ray

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

Video Notes:

The new Universal 4K is AI upscaled https://slow.pics/c/5jD2BjKT and sharpened, see discussion on BR https://forum.blu-ray.com/showthread.php?t=377660&page=9

Director: Steven Spielberg

4K · Solid
Best English-Friendly & Video:

Universal 4K Blu-ray

Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab)

Best Audio:

1995/1997 MCA LaserDisc

Director: Steven Spielberg

4K · Worse Than BD
Best English-Friendly & Video:

35mm/70mm scan, Japan WOWOW Broadcast version, letterbox LaserDisc or DVD for purist version, Paramount 4K Blu-ray heavily revisionist

Sources: fanrestore.com (opens in a new tab) · YouTube (opens in a new tab)

Best Audio:

1992 LaserDisc Dolby Surround, DVD 5.1 (70mm mix), 1991 Japan LaserDisc PCM (Dolby Stereo home version)

Additional Info:

The Paramount 4K master is HEAVILY revisionist in that all of the effects and opticals were redone and tweaked with errors and issues. There has been grain management (moments of stagnating grain and haloing) and the encoding isn't great hence the typical Paramount noise in the image. (especially skies) The HDR is a bit bright in the highlights. The color timing and Atmos remix are thankfully taming the excessively overdone terrible Blu-ray in those areas but neither is fully accurate. The Atmos remix sounds lifeless and essentially tames the crazy LFE of the Blu-ray remix that never stopped while also spreading the sound around overhead. The music is absolutely lifeless here. If it weren't for the visual changes it might be possible to regrade the picture master and just live with the encoding noise. As it is, purists will want the LaserDisc, DVD or Japan WOWOW broadcast of the Laser Pacific master which is the same master used for the awful Blu-ray just without the hideous color grading applied.
The DVD was handled by Lowry Digital and is overscrubbed like crazy plus had all sorts of DVD era edge enhancement and other issues. It instigated the digital changes of the boulder rod and snake reflection removals. The ONLY widescreen versions of the film without ANY changes are the 1992 LaserDisc and the 1999 final release VHS.

Audio wise, Raiders is EXTREMELY complex. Like the Star Wars trilogy it had three specific release mixes with variations and differences plus a fourth mix that was not used. The mono mix had unique bits and has never been officially released though you can hear bits of it on the 2003 bonus DVD and in the Raiders in Concert live symphony performances. The Dolby Stereo is roughly what was used on all pre-widescreen editions on VHS, Beta and LaserDisc in the 80's. The best iteration of that is the 1991 Japan LaserDisc reissue with PCM digital sound. This iteration is more of a home version as it doesn't really have much surround. Yet it retains dynamic range unlike the 1985 home video remix of Star Wars' Dolby Stereo track. The 70mm Dolby six track magnetic audio was supposedly used in making the excellent sounding 5.1 made for the DVD release. Before the release the film was mixed in the very short lived VistaSonic process which was Paramount backed. This was dropped very last minute as the system had tons of playback issues and the film was apparently hastily remixed in Dolby formats. When the first letterboxed transfer showed up on the 1992 Paramount LaserDisc release all of a sudden the Dolby Surround encoded matrix track it contained is without question the best sounding mix of Raiders you can find anywhere. It is more aggressive than the Dolby Stereo, more punchy than the DVD 5.1 and even contains a unique different sound effect which indicates it is clearly a different mix. It is unknown if this is the abandoned VistaSonic mix or a new quiet Dolby Surround home mix akin to the 1993 Star Wars Definitive Collection remix. To this day, the LaserDisc Dolby surround is the best sounding version of Raiders you are likely ever to hear. Even though it isn't discrete.
The Blu-ray remix though supervised by Ben Burtt went overboard on making everything aggressive and modernized. The LFE is virtually nonstop even in dialogue scenes. It is a textbook case of revisionist audio desecration. The 4K Blu-ray Atmos merely tames the LFE and reduces impact even more by moving around more elements and adding more processing. Both of these remixes are a crime.

DFIC extensive review: https://youtu.be/evsrJOTIjdA

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: Steven Spielberg

Video format: UHD Blu-ray

4K · Worse Than BD
Best English-Friendly:

35mm scan, Blu-ray, DVD or LaserDisc

Sources: YouTube (opens in a new tab)

Best Video:

Paramount 4K Blu-ray heavily revisionist. Purist option: 35mm scan, Blu-ray, DVD or LaserDisc

Best Audio:

LaserDisc 2.0 matrix stereo, DVD 5.1, Blu-ray 5.1

Additional Info:

The Paramount 4K master is HEAVILY revisionist in that all of the effects and opticals were redone and tweaked with errors and issues. There has been grain management (moments of stagnating grain and haloing) and the encoding isn't great hence the typical Paramount noise in the image. (especially skies) The HDR is a bit bright in the highlights. The Blu-ray is showing its age but does not have any of these digital alterations. It is from the scan done by Laser Pacific and is the highest quality unaltered master we have. The DVD was done by Lowry Digital and had much scrubbing and processing of grain in addition to edge enhancement. The letterbox LaserDisc was the first widescreen release and is very good for its time. There was also a rare SVHS release using the letterbox LaserDisc master.
The 4K Blu-ray audio is seemingly an Atmos remix of the 5.1 found on the Blu-ray which itself is very similar to the DVD 5.1. All are presumably based on the 70mm Dolby six track mix. The Atmos is more processed and moves the sound around more so it is inferior to the older 5.1 iterations. On release, Last Crusade had Dolby 70mm with stereo surrounds, Dolby Stereo SR for 35mm and was mixed in a THX sound theater to ensure the ultimate in technical quality in 1989. The DVD was supposedly made from the 70mm mix and the Blu-ray 5.1 seems to bring that into lossless. This is unconfirmed but each seems to be a healthy and accurate version of the original audio. However, the LaserDisc despite only having matrix PCM stereo is punchier and livelier as a listening experience. Despite not being discrete it arguably sounds better than the 5.1 versions. Some who remember seeing each of the original release versions claim to remember the 35mm Dolby DR as sounding better than the 70mm Dolby.  This is a case where both sound great and it's up to fans to decide which they prefer. Both are essential for any Indy collection and the LaserDisc is very cheap. The VHS hifi seems to be the same 2.0 matrix with format differences so it can also be compared against the DVD and Blu-ray 5.1 versions.

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

Director: Steven Spielberg

4K · Solid
Best English-Friendly & Video:

Universal 4K Blu-ray Trilogy Steelbook 2025

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

Video Notes:

But has more DNR than old 4K

But has more DNR than old 4K

https://forum.blu-ray.com/showpost.php?p=23286334&postcount=7340

Director: Steven Spielberg

4K · Disappointing
Best English-Friendly & Video:

"Director's Cut" (Theatrical cut with minor changes): Universal 4K Blu-ray

Theatrical Cut: VHS

TV Cut: Fan restoration

Best Audio:

1993 MCA LaserDisc (with EQ adjusted)

Director: Steven Spielberg

4K · Solid

Director: Steven Spielberg

Best English-Friendly & Video:

Sony 4K Blu-ray

Best Audio:

US Columbia Tri-Star Video LaserDisc [70606]

More from Paramount

See more →

Director: Alex Proyas

Best English-Friendly & Video:

Paramount 4K Blu-ray (30th anniv.)

Director: Tony Scott

Best English-Friendly & Video:

Paramount 4K Blu-ray

Best Audio:

70mm 6-track mix in 5.1: Paramount THX LaserDisc

Dolby Stereo mix in 2.0: Paramount THX LaserDisc

Additional Info:

The 70mm 6-track mix has a higher bitrate on the Paramount 1998 DVD, but is more limited than on the THX LaserDisc The Paramount 1998 DVD also has open matte versions in fullscreen 1.33:1 and widescreen 2.00:1 instead of the theatrical aspect ratio of 2.39:1, but the 2.00:1 widescreen presentation is non-anamorphic. The THX LaserDisc is available in both fullscreen 1.33:1 and widescreen 2.00:1 variants.

Director: Terrence Malick

4K · Excellent
Best English-Friendly & Video:

Criterion 4K Blu-ray

Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab)

Video Notes:

Lovely underlying remaster by Criterion and Resillion but encode is sadly low-pass filtered by Pixelogic, and even then, the encode is still less than ideal. Still easily obliterates any prior disc release, but certainly wouldn't hurt to have a UK or German label take a crack at this same master.

Best Audio:

1999 Paramount DVD

Director: M. Night Shyamalan

Best English-Friendly & Video:

2D version: Paramount Blu-ray

3D version: Paramount 3D Blu-ray

Upcoming Release:

Paramount 4K Blu-ray on October 26 2026

Director: Billy Wilder

4K · Solid
Best English-Friendly:

Paramount 4K Blu-ray or Blu-ray

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

Video Notes:

Paramount 4K Blu-ray. See caps
HDR/grading: nice, but some blown out
Encoding: inconsistent, smeared motion
DNR: inconsistent, frozen
Old Paramount Blu-ray is arguably a solid alternative choice

Best Audio:

Paramount 4K Blu-ray mono

Audio Notes:

Paramount 4K Blu-ray mono is different version of the Blu-ray mono from the same old 2000 DVD transfer.

Additional Info:

The 5.1 remix on the 4K Blu-ray is an appalling remix done by going wild with artificially generated stems from Park Road Post who were given the surviving mono to separate. The experience is jarring and fidelity to original mix in terms of level balance, directionality and impact is nonexistent. Not only does this sound painfully weird, but the Paramount mixers then did whatever they wanted in terms of LFE, sound pans and effect changes.
The original mono mix was not restored and still needs it badly. The 4K master is filled with frozen grain examples coming and going plus some HDR issues in addition to the usual Paramount problems. It is simultaneously better and worse than the Blu-ray master.

Director: Robert Altman

Best English-Friendly & Video:

Paramount Blu-ray

Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab)

Upcoming Release:

Criterion 4K Blu-ray scheduled for Dec 2026 release

Director: Richard Linklater

4K · Solid

Sources: caps-a-holic (opens in a new tab)

Additional Info:

Germany Blu-ray has English audio 

Germany Blu-ray is part of a 3-film box set like the Criterion but by StudioCanal 

Director: Michael Bay

Best English-Friendly & Video:

Original AR: Paramount 4K Blu-ray

IMAX AR: Paramount 3D Blu-ray

Director: Stanley Donen

Best English-Friendly & Video:

Paramount Blu-ray

Director: Trey Parker

Best English-Friendly, Video & Audio:

Paramount Blu-ray

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· last reviewed 4 months ago

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