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Wild Things (1998)
Wild Things (1998) poster
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3.1

Wild Things (1998)

Mystery, Thriller, Drama • 1h 55m

Overview

When teen-socialite Kelly Van Ryan and troubled bad girl Suzie Toller accuse guidance counselor Sam Lombardo of rape, he's suspended by the school, rejected by the town, and fighting to get his life back. One cop suspects conspiracy, but nothing is what it seems...

Director: John McNaughton

Best English-Friendly Release

Best Video Release

Format

UHD Blu-ray

UHD Tiers

Excellent
Arrow:

if compared to Sony's BD

Solid
Arrow:

if compared to Arrow's 2022 BD

Criterion Forum

Review

Picture: 9, Audio: 8, Extras: 7

Length

115 mins

Type

Movie

Last Updated

2 years ago

Contributors

Best English-Friendly Release
Best Video Release
Format
UHD Blu-ray
UHD Tiers
Excellent
Arrow:

if compared to Sony's BD

Solid
Arrow:

if compared to Arrow's 2022 BD

Criterion Forum
Review

Picture: 9, Audio: 8, Extras: 7

Length
115 mins
Type
Movie
Last Updated
2 years ago
Contributors

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Misery poster
UHD Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

UK Arrow 4K Blu-ray

Upcoming Release:

Best Audio:

Nelson Entertainment USA LaserDisc

Additional Info:

The initial release of the Capelight 4K mediabook had some playback issues with Dolby Vision on Panasonic devices due to an encoding error, the HDR10 apparently works fine, see Capelight’s official response here.

Misery poster
UHD Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

UK Arrow 4K Blu-ray

Upcoming Release:

Best Audio:

Nelson Entertainment USA LaserDisc

Additional Info:

The initial release of the Capelight 4K mediabook had some playback issues with Dolby Vision on Panasonic devices due to an encoding error, the HDR10 apparently works fine, see Capelight’s official response here.

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UHD Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

Arrow UK 4K Blu-ray

Best Video:

Arrow UK 4K Blu-ray > Paramount US, same black crush as the US disc but encoded by FiM and very good new supplements

Additional Info:

Paramount US 4K Blu-ray has FEL Dolby Vision 

Arrow UK 4K Blu-ray has MEL Dolby Vision

Best English-Friendly:

Arrow UK 4K Blu-ray

Best Video:

Arrow UK 4K Blu-ray > Paramount US, same black crush as the US disc but encoded by FiM and very good new supplements

Additional Info:

Paramount US 4K Blu-ray has FEL Dolby Vision 

Arrow UK 4K Blu-ray has MEL Dolby Vision

Masters of the Universe poster
UHD Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

US Toy Robot 4K Blu-ray

Upcoming Release:

UK 88 Films 4K Blu-ray in November encoded by FiM

Best Video:

US Toy Robot 4K Blu-ray

Best English-Friendly:

US Toy Robot 4K Blu-ray

Upcoming Release:

UK 88 Films 4K Blu-ray in November encoded by FiM

Best Video:

US Toy Robot 4K Blu-ray

WarGames poster
UHD Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

Germany Capelight 4K Blu-ray

Upcoming Release:

Arrow 4K Blu-ray in November

Best Audio:

5.1 mix: Germany Capelight 4K Blu-ray
Original matrixed Dolby Stereo: MGM NTSC DVD

The 5.1 track sounds very good and is said to be sourced from the original 6-track mix used for 70mm blow-up releases, but there is no conclusive proof of that.

WarGames poster
UHD Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

Germany Capelight 4K Blu-ray

Upcoming Release:

Arrow 4K Blu-ray in November

Best Audio:

5.1 mix: Germany Capelight 4K Blu-ray
Original matrixed Dolby Stereo: MGM NTSC DVD

The 5.1 track sounds very good and is said to be sourced from the original 6-track mix used for 70mm blow-up releases, but there is no conclusive proof of that.

Mr. Nice Guy poster
UHD Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

Arrow 4K Blu-ray

Best Video:

Arrow 4K Blu-ray

Best English-Friendly:

Arrow 4K Blu-ray

Best Video:

Arrow 4K Blu-ray

To Live and Die in L.A. poster
UHD Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

Arrow UK 4K Blu-ray (damage removed, improved color/HDR, and best audio) or Capelight DE 4K Blu-ray (best compression but no damage removal and LaserDisc audio from Arrow)

Best Video:

Arrow UK /Capelight DE 4K Blu-ray  > Kino Lorber US 4K Blu-ray, see caps

Arrow has done additional cleanup work removing nearly all the damage in the transfer. They have massaged the color timing and HDR to try and improve what they could. The Capelight may have better encoding but it does not have these improvements. The Arrow encoding is solid and in motion there are no issues whatsoever. The Kino Lorber release has the damage and other issues plus frequent noise due to the lesser encoding.

Some scenes in the Arrow transfer are better, some are better in the Capelight.

Best Audio:

Original matrixed Dolby Stereo: Arrow  4K Blu-ray or Image Entertainment LaserDisc
(Arrow is a port of the LaserDisc track, see spectrograms) This track has the best fidelity of any release but does have some channel bleeding baked in. The 2017 2.0 on the Arrow and Shout! Factory Blu-rays was the Dolby Stereo original mix without channel bleeding but that had heavy noise reduction resulting in a very flat and underwhelming presentation. The surround winds up being lessened as well due to the processing. It's a tough choice between the two but the Image LaserDisc audio wins out because it hasn't been messed with and the impact is so unrestrained that no other version hits in the same way.

Capelight and old Arrow Blu-ray included the original stereo mix, but with excessive noise reduction rendering it much less detailed. Kino Lorber only included a painfully defective 2.0 track sourced from somewhere with limited fidelity, volume spikes and screechy high end which frequently ruins the music. The 5.1 remix on most modern release is a processed version that does not sound as good as it once did.

The best and most accurate of the 5.1 mixes is the original version from the 2003 Special Edition DVD in lossy AC3 form.

The best source for the commentaries are from the 2003 Special Edition DVD.

Best English-Friendly:

Arrow UK 4K Blu-ray (damage removed, improved color/HDR, and best audio) or Capelight DE 4K Blu-ray (best compression but no damage removal and LaserDisc audio from Arrow)

Best Video:

Arrow UK /Capelight DE 4K Blu-ray  > Kino Lorber US 4K Blu-ray, see caps

Arrow has done additional cleanup work removing nearly all the damage in the transfer. They have massaged the color timing and HDR to try and improve what they could. The Capelight may have better encoding but it does not have these improvements. The Arrow encoding is solid and in motion there are no issues whatsoever. The Kino Lorber release has the damage and other issues plus frequent noise due to the lesser encoding.

Some scenes in the Arrow transfer are better, some are better in the Capelight.

Best Audio:

Original matrixed Dolby Stereo: Arrow  4K Blu-ray or Image Entertainment LaserDisc
(Arrow is a port of the LaserDisc track, see spectrograms) This track has the best fidelity of any release but does have some channel bleeding baked in. The 2017 2.0 on the Arrow and Shout! Factory Blu-rays was the Dolby Stereo original mix without channel bleeding but that had heavy noise reduction resulting in a very flat and underwhelming presentation. The surround winds up being lessened as well due to the processing. It's a tough choice between the two but the Image LaserDisc audio wins out because it hasn't been messed with and the impact is so unrestrained that no other version hits in the same way.

Capelight and old Arrow Blu-ray included the original stereo mix, but with excessive noise reduction rendering it much less detailed. Kino Lorber only included a painfully defective 2.0 track sourced from somewhere with limited fidelity, volume spikes and screechy high end which frequently ruins the music. The 5.1 remix on most modern release is a processed version that does not sound as good as it once did.

The best and most accurate of the 5.1 mixes is the original version from the 2003 Special Edition DVD in lossy AC3 form.

The best source for the commentaries are from the 2003 Special Edition DVD.

Hold Back the Dawn poster
1080p Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

Arrow Blu-ray

Best Video:

Arrow Blu-ray

Best English-Friendly:

Arrow Blu-ray

Best Video:

Arrow Blu-ray

The Silence of the Lambs poster
UHD Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

Arrow 4K Blu-ray

Upcoming Release:

Criterion 4K Blu-ray scheduled for October 2026 release

Best Audio:

1991 Orion LaserDisc vs 2024 Arrow 4K Blu-ray

Additional Info:

Criterion Blu-ray has exclusive extras

Best English-Friendly:

Arrow 4K Blu-ray

Upcoming Release:

Criterion 4K Blu-ray scheduled for October 2026 release

Best Audio:

1991 Orion LaserDisc vs 2024 Arrow 4K Blu-ray

Additional Info:

Criterion Blu-ray has exclusive extras

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UHD Blu-ray
Best Video:

Arrow 4K Blu-ray

Best Audio:

Arrow 4K Blu-ray

Additional Info:

Arrow includes the original Dolby Stereo mix in a matrixed stereo form, as well as a discrete 4.0 track.

Best Video:

Arrow 4K Blu-ray

Best Audio:

Arrow 4K Blu-ray

Additional Info:

Arrow includes the original Dolby Stereo mix in a matrixed stereo form, as well as a discrete 4.0 track.

Troy poster
UHD Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

Arrow 4K Blu-ray

Best Video:

Arrow 4K Blu-ray Both cuts are excellent in 4K. See caps

Best Audio:

Director's cut: 2007 WB Blu-rayArrow is a lossy transcode with dynamics compression.
2007 BD's AC-3 track with dynamic range compression enabled is nearly identical to Arrow's, see comparison

Theatrical cut is fine.

Troy poster
UHD Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

Arrow 4K Blu-ray

Best Video:

Arrow 4K Blu-ray Both cuts are excellent in 4K. See caps

Best Audio:

Director's cut: 2007 WB Blu-rayArrow is a lossy transcode with dynamics compression.
2007 BD's AC-3 track with dynamic range compression enabled is nearly identical to Arrow's, see comparison

Theatrical cut is fine.

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1080p Blu-ray
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1080p Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

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1080p Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

Kino Lorber Blu-ray

Best Video:

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1080p Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

Kino Lorber Blu-ray

Best Video:

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UHD Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

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Best Video:

StudioCanal 4K Blu-ray > Criterion 4K Blu-ray

StudioCanal 4K Blu-ray is encoded by FiM and doesn’t have the low-pass filter the Criterion 4K Blu-ray has.

Best Audio:

Criterion 4K Blu-ray is closer to the original DVDs than the 2015 Criterion release, not sure about whether the StudioCanal 4K is like the Criterion 4K/original DVD

Additional Info:

Criterion 4K Blu-ray has FEL Dolby Vision, StudioCanal 4K Blu-ray has MEL

Best English-Friendly:

StudioCanal 4K Blu-ray

Best Video:

StudioCanal 4K Blu-ray > Criterion 4K Blu-ray

StudioCanal 4K Blu-ray is encoded by FiM and doesn’t have the low-pass filter the Criterion 4K Blu-ray has.

Best Audio:

Criterion 4K Blu-ray is closer to the original DVDs than the 2015 Criterion release, not sure about whether the StudioCanal 4K is like the Criterion 4K/original DVD

Additional Info:

Criterion 4K Blu-ray has FEL Dolby Vision, StudioCanal 4K Blu-ray has MEL

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1080p Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

Indicator Blu-ray

Best Video:

While no comparison is available Indicator Blu-ray is most likely better than Mill Creek Blu-ray

Best English-Friendly:

Indicator Blu-ray

Best Video:

While no comparison is available Indicator Blu-ray is most likely better than Mill Creek Blu-ray

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1080p Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

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Best Video:

Kino Lorber Philo Vance Collection Blu-ray

Best English-Friendly:

Kino Lorber Philo Vance Collection Blu-ray

Best Video:

Kino Lorber Philo Vance Collection Blu-ray

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UHD Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

Radiance 4K Blu-ray

Best Video:

Radiance 4K Blu-ray, though note its different color grading from the IP-sourced but poorly compressed Fun City Editions US Blu-ray (caps)

Best Audio:

Judging from spectrograms at https://forum.blu-ray.com/showpost.php?p=23933756&postcount=57Fun City Editions US Blu-ray appears to have marginally less filtering than Radiance 4K Blu-ray (whose padded 16-bit depth is a non-issue). There are also loudness differences, though it's unclear whether dynamic range also differs. Caveat: need to A/B both tracks to confirm, but no one has posted actual A/B impressions.

Cutter's Way poster
UHD Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

Radiance 4K Blu-ray

Best Video:

Radiance 4K Blu-ray, though note its different color grading from the IP-sourced but poorly compressed Fun City Editions US Blu-ray (caps)

Best Audio:

Judging from spectrograms at https://forum.blu-ray.com/showpost.php?p=23933756&postcount=57Fun City Editions US Blu-ray appears to have marginally less filtering than Radiance 4K Blu-ray (whose padded 16-bit depth is a non-issue). There are also loudness differences, though it's unclear whether dynamic range also differs. Caveat: need to A/B both tracks to confirm, but no one has posted actual A/B impressions.

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UHD Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

Canada Elevation 4K Blu-ray

Best Video:

Canada Elevation 4K Blu-ray > US A24 comparisons

Best Audio:

US A24 4K Blu-ray

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UHD Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

Canada Elevation 4K Blu-ray

Best Video:

Canada Elevation 4K Blu-ray > US A24 comparisons

Best Audio:

US A24 4K Blu-ray

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1080p Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

Original miniseries cut: WB LaserDisc
Movie re-edit: WB Blu-ray

Best Video:

Original miniseries cut: WB LaserDisc
Movie re-edit: WB Blu-ray

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1080p Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

Original miniseries cut: WB LaserDisc
Movie re-edit: WB Blu-ray

Best Video:

Original miniseries cut: WB LaserDisc
Movie re-edit: WB Blu-ray

The Ringer poster
1080p Blu-ray
Best Video:

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Best Audio:

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Both DVD and BD use the same transfer. Blu-ray is more cleaned up (hiss, clicks, pops) but loses detail in quiet moments due to noise gating and sounds less natural throughout.

The Ringer poster
1080p Blu-ray
Best Video:

Kino Lorber US Blu-ray - Brit Noir: Collection I set

Best Audio:

Network UK PAL DVD

Both DVD and BD use the same transfer. Blu-ray is more cleaned up (hiss, clicks, pops) but loses detail in quiet moments due to noise gating and sounds less natural throughout.

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UHD Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

Universal 4K Blu-ray

Best Audio:

Universal Blu-ray

Best English-Friendly:

Universal 4K Blu-ray

Best Audio:

Universal Blu-ray

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Wild Things (1998) backdrop