Escape from L.A. (1996)
Action, Adventure, Science Fiction, Thriller • 1h 41m
Director: John Carpenter
Cast: Kurt Russell, Stacy Keach, Steve Buscemi, A. J. Langer, Bruce Campbell, Pam Grier, Peter Fonda, Georges Corraface, Robert Carradine, Michelle Forbes, Valeria Golino, Leland Orser, Jeff Imada, Al Leong, James Lew, Breckin Meyer, Ina Romeo, Peter Jason, Jordan Baker, Caroleen Feeney, Paul Bartel, Shelly Desai, Julien Cesario, Cliff Robertson, Thomas Rosales Jr., John Koyama, Leo Lee, Stuart Quan, Wyatt Russell, Jamie Lee Curtis
Best English-friendly & video release · updated 1 year ago
UHD tiers
Overview
Into the 9.6-quaked Los Angeles of 2013 comes Snake Plissken. His job: wade through L.A.'s ruined landmarks to retrieve a doomsday device.
Director: John Carpenter
Sony 4K Blu-ray or Carlotta 4K Blu-ray (FiM encode)
Sony 4K Blu-ray and France Carlotta 4K Blu-ray (FiM encode) are similar
Director: John Carpenter
Sources: blog.sporv.com (opens in a new tab)
1997? Signature Collection LD
Good: 2017 Arrow and 2016 Shout! Factory Blu-ray have the original audio options.
the only track on Universal 4K, which is in DTS:X, has a mixing error of around 6dB too low on side channels, otherwise very similar to other 5.1 mixes.
Director: John Carpenter
UK Arrow 4K Blu-ray possibly teased?
Director: John Carpenter
Video format: UHD Blu-ray
Sources: Blu-ray.com (opens in a new tab)
Fabulous Films 4K Blu-ray, some caps
Director: John Carpenter
Sony Columbia Classics Vol 4 4K Blu-ray
Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab)
Sony Columbia Classics Vol 4 4K Blu-ray (review)
Italy Koch Media Blu-ray is not stretched compared to US Shout! Factory and UK Arrow Blu-rays
As for the color grade, unsure whether the Italy or US/UK Blu-ray is more accurate to the theatrical colors.
Shout! Factory Blu-ray has the most extras with a lossless isolated score
> Shout! Factory 4K Blu-ray > StudioCanal 4K Blu-ray (Shout! Factory has Dolby Vision while Eagle Pictures doesn't)
2.0: Shout! Factory
> StudioCanal. Italy Eagle Pictures doesn't have it.
Shout! Factory Blu-ray has slightly less rolloff of the higher frequencies
Video format: UHD Blu-ray
Sources: Blu-ray.com (opens in a new tab)
Shout! Factory releasing 4k soon https://www.blu-ray.com/news/?id=32091
Director: John Carpenter
Shout! Factory 4K Blu-ray is a strong upgrade in PQ compared to a poor old Blu-ray
Shout! Factory 4K Blu-ray sound was improved compared to the old mixes.
Director: Terrence Malick
Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab)
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.
Director: Peter Faiman
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)
US Paramount 4K Blu-ray, is the International US Cut and not the Encore Cut
Australia Cut: Laserdisc
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).
3D version: Paramount 3D Blu-ray
Paramount 4K Blu-ray on October 26 2026
Director: Billy Wilder
Sources: slow.pics (opens in a new tab)
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
Paramount 4K Blu-ray mono
Paramount 4K Blu-ray mono is different version of the Blu-ray mono from the same old 2000 DVD transfer.
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
Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab)
Criterion 4K Blu-ray scheduled for Dec 2026 release
Director: Richard Linklater
Sources: caps-a-holic (opens in a new tab)
Original AR: Paramount 4K Blu-ray
IMAX AR: Paramount 3D Blu-ray
Directors: Arturo Perez Jr. & Samantha Jayne
More Action on Blu-ray
Director: Rose Glass
Director: Michael B. Jordan
Caveat: No IMAX expanded aspect ratio
Director: James Gunn
Commentary is only on Streaming
Director: Anthony Mann
Video format: 1080p Blu-ray
Olive Blu-ray
Barebones Olive BD of a Paramount HD master. Visually it's solid overall with some moments of great clarity, primarily in the big outdoor and aviation sequences. Otherwise it shows its age.
Director: John Woo
Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab)
review: Disk Kino
better encoding, some shots are better on Shout! Factory, others on Arrow
Shout! Factory/Arrow 4K Blu-ray has the original mono
Director: Michael Mann
Director: Guillermo del Toro
WB 4K Blu-ray teased by Guillermo Del Toro
CA Alliance Blu-ray or dutch Blu-ray are the same masters but have additional sharpening.
The original DVD has an isolated score and a exclusive easter egg
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