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Horizon: An American Saga - Chapter 1 (2024)
Horizon: An American Saga - Chapter 1 (2024) poster

Horizon: An American Saga - Chapter 1 (2024)

Western, Drama • 3h 2m

Director: Kevin Costner

Cast: Kevin Costner, Sienna Miller, Sam Worthington, Jena Malone, Abbey Lee, Michael Rooker, Danny Huston, Luke Wilson, Ella Hunt, Tatanka Means, Owen Crow Shoe, Jeff Fahey, Tom Payne, Jamie Campbell Bower, Michael Angarano, Georgia MacPhail, Giovanni Ribisi, Will Patton, Jim Lau, Isabelle Fuhrman, Tim Guinee, Colin Cunningham, Scott Haze, Douglas Smith, Alejandro Edda, Wasé Chief, Angus Macfadyen, Jon Beavers, Etienne Kellici, Bodhi Okuma Linton, Gregory Cruz, Joe Burns, James Russo, David O'Hara, Chris Conner, Leroy Silva, Dale Dickey, Larry Bagby, James Landry Hébert, Claudia Conner, Daniel Link, Hayes Costner, Roger Ivens, Charles Halford, Whitney Palmer, Austin R. Grant, Bryan Hisey, Ariel Llinas, Raynor Scheine, Lindsay Foster, Cici Lau, Antonio D. Charity, Adriane McLean, John Coinman, Cleo Eringer-Parker, Nyla Eringer-Parker, Aidan McCann, Dawn Lura, Teyton Allan Colbert, Derek Hinkey, H. Jack Williams, Fiyero Barehand, Boo Arnold, Tiger Curran, Brandon Shaffer, Moimoi Gilmore, Phoebe Ho, Amos Little, Ave Solvei, Todd Allen, Keegan Perez, Hallie Purser, Naomi Winders, Elizabeth Dennehy, Austin Archer, Dalton Baker, Chase Ramsey, Michael Todd Behrens, John Melo, Sarah Shippobotham, Aaron Bruderer, Steve Redd, William McAllister, Liam Bradford, Zachary Hokeah, Samuel Gray, Duane Stephens, Michael Anthony Christian, Stephen Robert Schultz, Tice O. Guymon, Joseph Williams, Dustyn Horse, Ryan Swanson, Hy Woong

Best video release

Updated 1 year ago


UHD tiers


About the film

Follow the story of how the Old West was won—and lost—through the blood, sweat and tears of many. Spanning 15 years before, during and following the Civil War from 1859 to 1874, embark on an emotional journey across a country at war with itself, experienced through the lens of families, friends and foes all attempting to discover what it truly means to be the United States of America.

Alternative Titles
Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter I

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Director: Kevin Costner

Upcoming Release:

4K restoration of the extended cut to be screened in Locarno Film Festival

Video Notes:

PQ looks the same for all BDs, but only Shout! Factory/Australia Via Vision Blu-ray/Germany Kinowelt Anniversary Blu-ray has both theatrical and extended cut

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Director: Ridley Scott

4K · Solid
Best Video:

Final Cut: WB 4K Blu-ray (Caveat: No Dolby Vision from Streaming)

Other Cuts: WB Blu-ray

Workprint: WB 30th Anniversary Blu-ray Set for a better AVC encode

Best Audio:

1982 Theatrical Mix: Embassy Video releases, HD-DVD for the 70mm 6-track mix

International Cut Dolby Stereo: Criterion Collection LaserDisc, HD-DVD for the 70mm 6-track mix

1992 Director's Cut Dolby Stereo: WB CAV LaserDisc 2.0 PCM-best fidelity of any mix, HD-DVD for the 70mm 6-track mix

Workprint: WB 30th Anniversary Blu-ray Set DTS-HD MA 5.1

2007 Final Cut remix: Blu-ray Dolby TrueHD 5.1

Additional Info:

WB 4K Blu-ray only has Final Cut and contains a bad Atmos remix with new sound effects. Original Final Cut mix was removed.

Director: Quentin Tarantino

4K · Excellent
Best Video:

2025 Taiwan Deltamac 4K Blu-ray

Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab)

Video Notes:

2025 Taiwan Deltamac 4K Blu-ray > US Paramount 4K Blu-ray (Taiwan 4K Blu-ray is not low passed as the US 4K Blu-ray and has better grain and fine detail retention)

Best Audio:

Matrixed Dolby Stereo: 1995 Miramax LaserDisc 2.0

Original 5.1 Discrete Mix: 2012 Japan Warner Bros Blu-ray, 1996 Criterion LaserDisc, 2002 2-Disc Collector’s Edition DVD

5.1 DTS Mix: 1997 Miramax LaserDisc, 2002 2-Disc Collector’s Edition DVD

Director: Steve Gordon

Best Video:

WB Blu-ray

Director: Alfred Hitchcock

Video format: UHD Blu-ray

4K · Solid
Best Video:

WB 4K

Sources: YouTube (opens in a new tab)

Video Notes:

An undeniably significant improvement from the BD yet still severely flawed. See DFIC's review.

Best Audio:

1984 MGM Hi-Fi VHS

Director: Frank Darabont

4K · Solid
Best Video:

2021 WB 4K Blu-ray

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

Best Audio:

2008 US Blu-ray 5.1

Audio Notes:

(the 2021 4K's 5.1 was flawed, with unnecessary bad tweaking)

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:

Directors: Ernest B. Schoedsack & Merian C. Cooper

Best Video:

WB Blu-ray

Director: Orson Welles

4K · Excellent
Best English-Friendly:

WB 4K Blu-ray

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

Best Video:

WB Europe 4K Blu-ray

Video Notes:

WB Europe 4K Blu-ray slightly better encoding than Criterion (caveat: missing Criterion extras)

Director: Sylvester Stallone

4K · Excellent
Best Video:

Warner Bros 2024 Ultimate Knockout Collection 4K Blu-ray/ Warner Bros 2023 Knockout Collection 4K Blu-ray (replacement disc)

Additional Info:

All foreign language tracks were pitched too low, replacement disc and Ultimate Knockout Collection disc fixed the error. 

The Steelbook and UK standard edition are the same disc as the 2023 knockout collection. 

Director: Sylvester Stallone

4K · Excellent
Best Video:

2024 Ultimate Knockout Collection Warner Bros 4K Blu-ray Box Set 

Video Notes:

2024 Ultimate Knockout Collection Warner Bros 4K Blu-ray Box Set > 2023 Knockout Collection 4K Blu-ray

2023 disc has a brief moment where the aspect ratio changes from 1.85:1 to 1.78:1, 2024 release fixed the error

Additional Info:

Both cuts of the movie are on the same disc and don’t appear to be seamlessly branched. 

The Steelbook and UK standard edition are the same disc as the 2023 knockout collection.

More Western on Blu-ray

Director: Anthony Mann

Best Video:

Kino Lorber Blu-ray reissue (4K restoration)

Video Notes:

Massive picture upgrade as the 4K restoration addresses the massive color fringing that has plagued all previous dated masters. Oddly the titles are a different color now.

Additional Info:

4K restoration is a gigantic and essential picture upgrade but only available on the Kino Blu-ray reissue. No UHD has been made or announced by anyone. 

Director: Anthony Mann

Best Video & Audio:

Eureka MoC Blu-ray

Additional Info:

The film only exists in MGM letterbox masters and the HD version upgrades the DVD presentation. Sadly the film still needs a modern restoration and a better audio source. The master holds up very well today regardless and has a very natural appearance. The Eureka BD is far superior to the Kino Lorber in encode and extras making it easily the only version to consider.

Director: Anthony Mann

4K · Solid
Best English-Friendly:

Criterion 4K Blu-ray, Universal 2008 DVD

Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab)

Best Audio:

2008 Universal DVD mono

Audio Notes:

The mono on the Criterion is severely filtered resulting in it sounding incredibly muffled. It is nearly as filtered as the 2003 original Universal DVD which had extreme filtering and sounds horribly thin. The 2008 DVD remaster and original LaserDisc analog mastering are mostly left alone. The original LD master is from a worn element but otherwise sounds very natural. The 2008 DVD is the highest quality version we have without the heavy filtering and the defects of the LD master. It isn't perfect but easily the best of the main four sources by a dramatic margin. 

Additional Info:

The existing 4K SDR restoration looks excellent, but the Criterion extras are limited and disappointing. The classic Stewart interview commentary from the LD is ported over but given a new mastering. Compared to past releases it has been very slightly noise reduced.

Director: Anthony Mann

Best Video & Audio:

Criterion Blu-ray

Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab)

Additional Info:

Criterion Blu-ray upgrade removes the pictureboxing of their old DVD transfer. New HD discussion extra added to the DVD supplements package and reprints the rare out of print source novel as a paperback.

Director: James Neilson

Best English-Friendly:

Kino Lorber Blu-ray

Best Audio:

2003 Universal DVD

Additional Info:

The Universal HD master is appalling. This is a large format early Technirama film that has been hit with a massive amount of DNR resulting in a smeary appearance throughout with little detail. On one hand it is still a better scan than the old DVD with better color and element issues addressed. On the other it is barely above the DVD upscaled in other moments. The mono audio has been horribly processed to sound thin, canned and lacking in overall fidelity. The DVD clearly uses the same source element for picture and sound and here the sound is left alone. It sounds miles better. The Kino Lorber Blu-ray is technically the best US release but this master has been released in Europe where it likely has better encoding. The Kino Lorber Blu-ray adds a basic commentary. This film needs a proper transfer and audio presentation desperately. The HD master is so lackluster that the DVD despite its age is arguably preferable in visuals and certainly far superior in audio.

Director: Sam Peckinpah

Upcoming Release:

4K Blu-ray said to be coming from Criterion, per Bill Hunt

Video Notes:

Includes Director's Cut and Roadshow Version

Same master as old WB Blu-ray but better encoding

Director: George Stevens

4K · Solid

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

Video Notes:

Kino Lorber 4K Blu-ray has unusually strong encode but only a minimal upgrade over the excellent Eureka Blu-ray

Director: Samuel Fuller

Video format: 1080p Blu-ray

Best Video:

Criterion Blu-Ray

Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab)

Director: John Ford

Best Audio:

Japan IVC Blu-ray

TV series

Video Notes:

4K restoration from Original Camera Negative for all episodes

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· last reviewed 1 year ago

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