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How the Grinch Stole Christmas (2000)
How the Grinch Stole Christmas (2000) poster
Letterboxd

3.6

Best English-Friendly Release

Universal 25th Anniversary 4K Blu-ray

Best Video Release

Universal 25th Anniversary 4K Blu-ray (has Dolby Vision and Atmos compared to the old 4K Blu-ray)

Format

UHD Blu-ray

Length

104 mins

Type

Movie

Alternative Titles

Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas, The Grinch

Last Updated

10 months ago

Contributors

Best English-Friendly Release

Universal 25th Anniversary 4K Blu-ray

Best Video Release

Universal 25th Anniversary 4K Blu-ray (has Dolby Vision and Atmos compared to the old 4K Blu-ray)

Format
UHD Blu-ray
Length
104 mins
Type
Movie
Alternative Titles
Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas, The Grinch
Last Updated
10 months ago
Contributors

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Apollo 13 poster
UHD Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

Theatrical: Universal 4K Blu-ray

IMAX Cut: 2005 DVD

Best Video:

Theatrical: Universal 4K Blu-ray

IMAX Cut: 2005 DVD

Best Audio:

Theatrical: Cinema DTS

Apollo 13 poster
UHD Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

Theatrical: Universal 4K Blu-ray

IMAX Cut: 2005 DVD

Best Video:

Theatrical: Universal 4K Blu-ray

IMAX Cut: 2005 DVD

Best Audio:

Theatrical: Cinema DTS

The Da Vinci Code poster
UHD Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

2026 Sony 4K Blu-ray Steelbook

Best Video:

2026 Sony 4K Blu-ray Steelbook added Dolby Vision

Best English-Friendly:

2026 Sony 4K Blu-ray Steelbook

Best Video:

2026 Sony 4K Blu-ray Steelbook added Dolby Vision

Parenthood poster
UHD Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

Universal 4K Blu-ray

Best Video:

Universal 4K Blu-ray

Best Audio:

1998 Universal DVD

Parenthood poster
UHD Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

Universal 4K Blu-ray

Best Video:

Universal 4K Blu-ray

Best Audio:

1998 Universal DVD

A Beautiful Mind poster
UHD Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

Universal 4K Blu-ray

Best Video:

Universal 4K Blu-ray - caps. Looks stunning against the horribly neutralized old master. Very glad Deakins supervised the new grade and had Universal restore his color filters.

Best Audio:

Universal Blu-ray (included in the 4K edition) has the original 5.1 mix not on the 4K disc 

Additional Info:

The original 5.1 surround mix from the 2011 USA BD was included alongside the new Atmos upmix. The compatibility track is a downmix of the Atmos. The Atmos is overall lightly remixed with noticeably more high frequencies rolled-off relative to the old 5.1. I think the 5.1 sounds better. The 5.1 mix from the USA BD was used as it sounds essentially the same as the EUR BD (with some minor loudness differences) while not featuring the dither noise and low frequency noise that the EUR has. Commentaries between the USA UHD and USA BD are the same, with both featuring Dolby Surround metadata

Audio comparison: 5.1 surround

Best English-Friendly:

Universal 4K Blu-ray

Best Video:

Universal 4K Blu-ray - caps. Looks stunning against the horribly neutralized old master. Very glad Deakins supervised the new grade and had Universal restore his color filters.

Best Audio:

Universal Blu-ray (included in the 4K edition) has the original 5.1 mix not on the 4K disc 

Additional Info:

The original 5.1 surround mix from the 2011 USA BD was included alongside the new Atmos upmix. The compatibility track is a downmix of the Atmos. The Atmos is overall lightly remixed with noticeably more high frequencies rolled-off relative to the old 5.1. I think the 5.1 sounds better. The 5.1 mix from the USA BD was used as it sounds essentially the same as the EUR BD (with some minor loudness differences) while not featuring the dither noise and low frequency noise that the EUR has. Commentaries between the USA UHD and USA BD are the same, with both featuring Dolby Surround metadata

Audio comparison: 5.1 surround

Far and Away poster
UHD Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

Theatrical Cut: Shout! Factory 4K Blu-ray
Extended Cut: The 30th Anniversary Extended Cut on fanedit.org has the additional TV footage and is also uncut.

Best Video:

Theatrical Cut: Shout! Factory 4K Blu-ray
Extended Cut: The 30th Anniversary Extended Cut on fanedit.org has the additional TV footage and is also uncut.

Additional Info:

The TV version is extended but is censored. The Shout! Factory 4K Blu-ray is restored from an interpositive, no release so far is confirmed to be from the Original Camera Negative.

Far and Away poster
UHD Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

Theatrical Cut: Shout! Factory 4K Blu-ray
Extended Cut: The 30th Anniversary Extended Cut on fanedit.org has the additional TV footage and is also uncut.

Best Video:

Theatrical Cut: Shout! Factory 4K Blu-ray
Extended Cut: The 30th Anniversary Extended Cut on fanedit.org has the additional TV footage and is also uncut.

Additional Info:

The TV version is extended but is censored. The Shout! Factory 4K Blu-ray is restored from an interpositive, no release so far is confirmed to be from the Original Camera Negative.

Backdraft poster
UHD Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

Universal 4K Blu-ray

Best Audio:

1991 Universal LaserDisc [41131]

Backdraft poster
UHD Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

Universal 4K Blu-ray

Best Audio:

1991 Universal LaserDisc [41131]

Cocoon poster
1080p Blu-ray
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OOP British Eureka Blu-Ray

Best Video:

OOP British Eureka Blu-Ray

Cocoon poster
1080p Blu-ray
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OOP British Eureka Blu-Ray

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OOP British Eureka Blu-Ray

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

Theatrical: Disney Blu-ray
Extended: LaserDisc or fan restoration

Best Video:

Theatrical: Disney Blu-ray
Extended: LaserDisc or fan restoration

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

Theatrical: Disney Blu-ray
Extended: LaserDisc or fan restoration

Best Video:

Theatrical: Disney Blu-ray
Extended: LaserDisc or fan restoration

Inferno poster
UHD Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

Sony 4K Blu-ray

Best Video:

Sony 4K Blu-ray

Inferno poster
UHD Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

Sony 4K Blu-ray

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Sony 4K Blu-ray

Angels & Demons poster
UHD Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

Theatrical: Sony 4K Blu-ray
Extended: Old Sony Blu-ray

Best Video:

Theatrical: Sony 4K Blu-ray
Extended: Old Sony Blu-ray

Best English-Friendly:

Theatrical: Sony 4K Blu-ray
Extended: Old Sony Blu-ray

Best Video:

Theatrical: Sony 4K Blu-ray
Extended: Old Sony Blu-ray

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The Incredible Hulk poster
UHD Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

Universal 4K Blu-ray

Best Video:

Universal 4K Blu-ray 

France M6 4K Blu-ray has Dolby Vision, but is inferior with more washed out colors and inferior encoding plus no hardcoded subtitles for the Portuguese language parts

comparison

Best Audio:

Universal Blu-ray has the original DTS-HD 5.1

For the 7.1 remix, the DTS-X of the Universal is clipped on the front speakers while the Atmos of the M6 is a very tame mixdown.

Best English-Friendly:

Universal 4K Blu-ray

Best Video:

Universal 4K Blu-ray 

France M6 4K Blu-ray has Dolby Vision, but is inferior with more washed out colors and inferior encoding plus no hardcoded subtitles for the Portuguese language parts

comparison

Best Audio:

Universal Blu-ray has the original DTS-HD 5.1

For the 7.1 remix, the DTS-X of the Universal is clipped on the front speakers while the Atmos of the M6 is a very tame mixdown.

Darkest Hour poster
UHD Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

Universal 4K Blu-ray

Best Video:

Universal 4K Blu-ray

Darkest Hour poster
UHD Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

Universal 4K Blu-ray

Best Video:

Universal 4K Blu-ray

Born to Be Blue poster
1080p Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

UK Universal Blu-ray

Best Video:

UK Universal Blu-ray is the only English-friendly release

French Blu-ray has forced subtitles, and no comparison available

Best English-Friendly:

UK Universal Blu-ray

Best Video:

UK Universal Blu-ray is the only English-friendly release

French Blu-ray has forced subtitles, and no comparison available

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

2011 Blu-ray (4K Blu-ray is upscaled; former PDI animator Jonathan Gibbs confirms the film was originally rendered at 1828 pixels wide to save space)

Upcoming Release:

Universal 25th Anniversary 4K Blu-ray with Dolby Vision and Atmos

Best Video:

2011 Blu-ray (4K Blu-ray is upscaled; former PDI animator Jonathan Gibbs confirms the film was originally rendered at 1828 pixels wide to save space)

Best Audio:

Cinema DTS

Additional Info:

The old 2 disc DVD has extras missing from 4K Blu-ray

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

2011 Blu-ray (4K Blu-ray is upscaled; former PDI animator Jonathan Gibbs confirms the film was originally rendered at 1828 pixels wide to save space)

Upcoming Release:

Universal 25th Anniversary 4K Blu-ray with Dolby Vision and Atmos

Best Video:

2011 Blu-ray (4K Blu-ray is upscaled; former PDI animator Jonathan Gibbs confirms the film was originally rendered at 1828 pixels wide to save space)

Best Audio:

Cinema DTS

Additional Info:

The old 2 disc DVD has extras missing from 4K Blu-ray

Cape Fear poster
4K Streaming
Best English-Friendly:

Universal Blu-ray or 4K master on streaming

Best Video:

Universal Blu-ray or 4K master on streaming

Cape Fear poster
4K Streaming
Best English-Friendly:

Universal Blu-ray or 4K master on streaming

Best Video:

Universal Blu-ray or 4K master on streaming

Kindergarten Cop poster
UHD Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

Plaion German 4K Blu-ray

Best Video:

Plaion German 4K Blu-ray > US Kino Lorber see comparison and caps

Kino Lorber has an exceedingly poor encode, only slightly improved by the DV layer.

Best Audio:

Original matrixed Dolby Stereo: Universal US Blu-ray
Dolby Atmos remix: Plaion DE 4K Blu-ray

Universal's BD uses the same transfer as the old LaserDisc and sounds a bit better than Plaion's, which has worse dynamics.

Plaion's Atmos remix is tastefully done and preserves the original mix's characteristics, the 5.1 track on Kino's release is overly aggressive and unbalanced.

Best English-Friendly:

Plaion German 4K Blu-ray

Best Video:

Plaion German 4K Blu-ray > US Kino Lorber see comparison and caps

Kino Lorber has an exceedingly poor encode, only slightly improved by the DV layer.

Best Audio:

Original matrixed Dolby Stereo: Universal US Blu-ray
Dolby Atmos remix: Plaion DE 4K Blu-ray

Universal's BD uses the same transfer as the old LaserDisc and sounds a bit better than Plaion's, which has worse dynamics.

Plaion's Atmos remix is tastefully done and preserves the original mix's characteristics, the 5.1 track on Kino's release is overly aggressive and unbalanced.

Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron poster
1080p Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

DreamWorks/Universal Blu-ray

Best Video:

DreamWorks/Universal Blu-ray

Best English-Friendly:

DreamWorks/Universal Blu-ray

Best Video:

DreamWorks/Universal Blu-ray

Shadow of a Doubt poster
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

House of Flying Daggers poster
1080p Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

Germany Turbine Mediabook Blu-ray

Best Video:

Germany Turbine Mediabook Blu-ray has a superior MPEG-4 AVC encode over the US Sony Blu-ray's MPEG-2 or France/Australia Universal Blu-ray's VC-1. Open matte version also included

Best Audio:

Germany Turbine Mediabook Blu-ray has a Dolby Atmos remix and the original audio in DTS 5.1.

Korea Blu-ray for lossless original 5.1 audio mix.

Additional Info:

Germany Turbine Mediabook Blu-ray is completely uncut and uncensored, having none of Sony US's PG-13 edits or Pathé UK's BBFC horse trip cuts.

Best English-Friendly:

Germany Turbine Mediabook Blu-ray

Best Video:

Germany Turbine Mediabook Blu-ray has a superior MPEG-4 AVC encode over the US Sony Blu-ray's MPEG-2 or France/Australia Universal Blu-ray's VC-1. Open matte version also included

Best Audio:

Germany Turbine Mediabook Blu-ray has a Dolby Atmos remix and the original audio in DTS 5.1.

Korea Blu-ray for lossless original 5.1 audio mix.

Additional Info:

Germany Turbine Mediabook Blu-ray is completely uncut and uncensored, having none of Sony US's PG-13 edits or Pathé UK's BBFC horse trip cuts.

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The Dark Crystal poster
UHD Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

Shout! Factory 4K Blu-ray

Best Audio:

LaserDisc, Shout! Factory's 2.0 is a downmix of the 5.1

Additional Info:

Old Sony DVD has an isolated score

Best English-Friendly:

Shout! Factory 4K Blu-ray

Best Audio:

LaserDisc, Shout! Factory's 2.0 is a downmix of the 5.1

Additional Info:

Old Sony DVD has an isolated score

Labyrinth poster
UHD Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

Shout! Factory replacement 4K Blu-ray

Best Video:

Shout! Factory replacement 4K Blu-ray, Shout! Factory doesn't have the low-pass filter that's on the Sony US 4K Blu-ray from 2021 with Dolby Vision (or the worse HDR10 only release from 2016). Shout! Factory retains more high-frequency grain and detail.

Labyrinth poster
UHD Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

Shout! Factory replacement 4K Blu-ray

Best Video:

Shout! Factory replacement 4K Blu-ray, Shout! Factory doesn't have the low-pass filter that's on the Sony US 4K Blu-ray from 2021 with Dolby Vision (or the worse HDR10 only release from 2016). Shout! Factory retains more high-frequency grain and detail.

Walking with Dinosaurs poster
1080p Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

Fox 3D Blu-ray has both the theatrical cut and the "Cretaceous Cut"

Best Video:

Fox 3D Blu-ray

Best Audio:

Fox 3D Blu-ray

Additional Info:

Fox 3D Blu-ray has both the theatrical cut and the "Cretaceous Cut" which removes the dialogue and the framing device, essentially serving as a director's cut of the film. The "Cretaceous Cut" is not available on the 2D Blu-ray or on digital streaming.

Best English-Friendly:

Fox 3D Blu-ray has both the theatrical cut and the "Cretaceous Cut"

Best Video:

Fox 3D Blu-ray

Best Audio:

Fox 3D Blu-ray

Additional Info:

Fox 3D Blu-ray has both the theatrical cut and the "Cretaceous Cut" which removes the dialogue and the framing device, essentially serving as a director's cut of the film. The "Cretaceous Cut" is not available on the 2D Blu-ray or on digital streaming.

Turning Red poster
UHD Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

Disney 4K Blu-ray

Best Video:

Disney 4K Blu-ray

Turning Red poster
UHD Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

Disney 4K Blu-ray

Best Video:

Disney 4K Blu-ray

Rad poster
UHD Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

Vinegar Syndrome 4K Blu-ray

Upcoming Release:

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

Rad poster
UHD Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

Vinegar Syndrome 4K Blu-ray

Upcoming Release:

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

The Emperor's New Groove poster
UHD Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:
  • 2001 DVD for uncensored cut with rock and extras

Best Video:

Disney 4K Blu-ray, caps

Best Audio:

Disney Blu-ray; 4K Blu-ray only has an Atmos remix with a phasing issue

Best English-Friendly:
  • 2001 DVD for uncensored cut with rock and extras

Best Video:

Disney 4K Blu-ray, caps

Best Audio:

Disney Blu-ray; 4K Blu-ray only has an Atmos remix with a phasing issue

Popeye poster
UHD Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

Paramount 4K Blu-ray

Best Audio:

Paramount Blu-ray

Popeye was mixed for a failed Vistasonic system with 4 discrete tracks (L/C/R/S). That mix has never been released on home video in its original form.

The older 5.1 track appearing on older DVD/BD releases sounds excellent. It appears to be a slight upmix of the original mix, only splitting the surrounds and adding LFE. It sounds close to the old analog LaserDisc, which is likely the original mix in a matrixed form.

The 5.1 included on the UHD is a new remix which significantly differs from previous tracks. There are new foley effects all over the place. Music is jarringly spliced in from different sources. Unlike the old 5.1 which had clearly discrete surrounds, the channels surrounds overlap somewhat with the fronts here.

Details on the new mix from Paramount's former head of restoration: https://youtu.be/P-AmjqViJyE?t=788

The 2.0 tracks on all DVDs/BDs are just downmixes of their respective 5.1 mixes.

Samples

Popeye poster
UHD Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

Paramount 4K Blu-ray

Best Audio:

Paramount Blu-ray

Popeye was mixed for a failed Vistasonic system with 4 discrete tracks (L/C/R/S). That mix has never been released on home video in its original form.

The older 5.1 track appearing on older DVD/BD releases sounds excellent. It appears to be a slight upmix of the original mix, only splitting the surrounds and adding LFE. It sounds close to the old analog LaserDisc, which is likely the original mix in a matrixed form.

The 5.1 included on the UHD is a new remix which significantly differs from previous tracks. There are new foley effects all over the place. Music is jarringly spliced in from different sources. Unlike the old 5.1 which had clearly discrete surrounds, the channels surrounds overlap somewhat with the fronts here.

Details on the new mix from Paramount's former head of restoration: https://youtu.be/P-AmjqViJyE?t=788

The 2.0 tracks on all DVDs/BDs are just downmixes of their respective 5.1 mixes.

Samples

7 Faces of Dr. Lao poster
1080p Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

Warner Archive Blu-ray

Best Video:

Warner Archive Blu-ray 4K restoration from Original Camera Negative

Best Audio:

Warner Bros NTSC DVD

The old DVD's track has significantly better detail compared to BD, especially on the score. The BD has some extra detail on dialogue, but also exhibits strange artifacting (e.g. sample 3, 0:20) which suggests possible AI "enhancement" or some other form of aggressive filtering. In contrast, DVD appears to be completely unfiltered and sounds good throughout. Samples

As the BD is significantly rolled off, a lot of the detail (real or fabricated) is buried in the mix and not audible during normal playback.

Best English-Friendly:

Warner Archive Blu-ray

Best Video:

Warner Archive Blu-ray 4K restoration from Original Camera Negative

Best Audio:

Warner Bros NTSC DVD

The old DVD's track has significantly better detail compared to BD, especially on the score. The BD has some extra detail on dialogue, but also exhibits strange artifacting (e.g. sample 3, 0:20) which suggests possible AI "enhancement" or some other form of aggressive filtering. In contrast, DVD appears to be completely unfiltered and sounds good throughout. Samples

As the BD is significantly rolled off, a lot of the detail (real or fabricated) is buried in the mix and not audible during normal playback.

Chicken Little poster
1080p Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

2D: Disney Blu-ray

3D: Disney 3D Blu-ray

Best Video:

2D: Disney Blu-ray

3D: Disney 3D Blu-ray

Best Audio:

Disney 3D Blu-ray has a slightly better audio mix

Chicken Little poster
1080p Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

2D: Disney Blu-ray

3D: Disney 3D Blu-ray

Best Video:

2D: Disney Blu-ray

3D: Disney 3D Blu-ray

Best Audio:

Disney 3D Blu-ray has a slightly better audio mix

Atlantis: The Lost Empire poster
1080p Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

Disney Blu-ray

Best Video:

Disney Blu-ray

Best Audio:

Disney Blu-ray

Cinema DTS-ES centre channel information unconfirmed

Best English-Friendly:

Disney Blu-ray

Best Video:

Disney Blu-ray

Best Audio:

Disney Blu-ray

Cinema DTS-ES centre channel information unconfirmed

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How the Grinch Stole Christmas (2000) backdrop