Billy the Kid (1930)
Western • 1h 35m
Overview
Billy, after shooting down land baron William Donovan's henchmen for killing Billy's boss, is hunted down and captured by his friend, Sheriff Pat Garrett. He escapes and is on his way to Mexico when Garrett, recapturing him, must decide whether to bring him in or to let him go.
Director: King Vidor
Cast: Johnny Mack Brown, Wallace Beery, Kay Johnson, Karl Dane, Wyndham Standing, Russell Simpson, Blanche Friderici, Roscoe Ates, Warner Richmond, James A. Marcus, Nelson McDowell, Jack Carlyle, John Beck, Chris-Pin Martin, Marguerita Padula, Aggie Herring, Hank Bell, Buck Bucko, Roy Bucko, Bob Card, Don Coleman, Frank Ellis, Frank Hagney, Soledad Jiménez, Bud McClure, Sarah Padden, Frank Reicher, Carl Stockdale, Blackjack Ward
Director: Alfred E. Green
Director: Alfred E. Green
Directors: Louis J. Gasnier & Max Marcin
Directors: Louis J. Gasnier & Max Marcin
Director: Frank Tuttle
Director: Frank Tuttle
Director: Clarence Brown
Warner Archive Blu-ray 4K restoration from Original Camera Negative
Director: Clarence Brown
Warner Archive Blu-ray 4K restoration from Original Camera Negative
Director: John Ford
Warner Archive Blu-ray new restoration by Library of Congress and the Film Foundation
Director: John Ford
Warner Archive Blu-ray new restoration by Library of Congress and the Film Foundation
Warner Archive Blu-ray 4K restoration from Original Camera Negative
Warner Archive Blu-ray 4K restoration from Original Camera Negative
Director: King Vidor
Kino Lorber vs France Carlotta vs Germany Blu-ray ?
Kino Lorber US, and other Germany and France Blu-ray
Director: King Vidor
Kino Lorber vs France Carlotta vs Germany Blu-ray ?
Kino Lorber US, and other Germany and France Blu-ray
Director: King Vidor
Director: King Vidor
Director: King Vidor
Director: King Vidor
Director: King Vidor
Director: King Vidor
Director: King Vidor
Director: King Vidor
Director: King Vidor
Director: King Vidor
Director: John Woo
Director: John Woo
Director: Ken Hughes
MGM Blu-ray's stereo track.
MGM's 7.1 track is a remix with a few flaws and much worse fidelity. Capelight's stereo and 7.1 track are both from the remix.
The movie was originally premiered as a roadshow release, with a a 70mm 6-Track Stereo mix. This mix, unfortunately has not been released on home video.
The closest thing to that mix, is the stereo track included on the 2010 Blu-ray. It sounds great, with high fidelity and little filtering. It's lossy, but that doesn't matter very much.
Both the DVD 5.1 and the Blu-ray 7.1 tracks (identical on both discs) are a new remix, rather than a repackaging of the original mix. The 7.1 track sounds quite muffled, though not evenly so. The Capelight Blu-ray's lossless stereo track uses the same remix, but with higher fidelity than the surround tracks, sounding significantly less muffled. Compared to the original, this remix sounds wider and more "cleaned up". The remix contains a handful of errors, for example the intermission cue fades out, rather than ending correctly.
Comparison samples
Director: Ken Hughes
MGM Blu-ray's stereo track.
MGM's 7.1 track is a remix with a few flaws and much worse fidelity. Capelight's stereo and 7.1 track are both from the remix.
The movie was originally premiered as a roadshow release, with a a 70mm 6-Track Stereo mix. This mix, unfortunately has not been released on home video.
The closest thing to that mix, is the stereo track included on the 2010 Blu-ray. It sounds great, with high fidelity and little filtering. It's lossy, but that doesn't matter very much.
Both the DVD 5.1 and the Blu-ray 7.1 tracks (identical on both discs) are a new remix, rather than a repackaging of the original mix. The 7.1 track sounds quite muffled, though not evenly so. The Capelight Blu-ray's lossless stereo track uses the same remix, but with higher fidelity than the surround tracks, sounding significantly less muffled. Compared to the original, this remix sounds wider and more "cleaned up". The remix contains a handful of errors, for example the intermission cue fades out, rather than ending correctly.
Comparison samples
Director: David Lynch
Criterion 4K Blu-ray or Germany Plaion 4K Blu-ray - subtle difference in encoding to the Criterion in encoding, trading blows in different shots, with Plaion taking a slight edge with less highlight blocking
1993 MGM LaserDisc/2000 Region 1 MGM DVD
Criterion's 2.0 sounds muffled due to noise reduction and EQ.
Plaion's 2.0 lacks bass and has a very bright EQ, more resembling the 5.1 remix. Plaion’s 2.0 doesn't have any filtering unlike the Criterion, see https://forum.blu-ray.com/showpost.php?p=23831289&postcount=110
Director: David Lynch
Criterion 4K Blu-ray or Germany Plaion 4K Blu-ray - subtle difference in encoding to the Criterion in encoding, trading blows in different shots, with Plaion taking a slight edge with less highlight blocking
1993 MGM LaserDisc/2000 Region 1 MGM DVD
Criterion's 2.0 sounds muffled due to noise reduction and EQ.
Plaion's 2.0 lacks bass and has a very bright EQ, more resembling the 5.1 remix. Plaion’s 2.0 doesn't have any filtering unlike the Criterion, see https://forum.blu-ray.com/showpost.php?p=23831289&postcount=110
Director: Bob Clark
Director: Bob Clark
Director: John Badham
Director: John Badham
Director: Michael Curtiz
Director: Michael Curtiz
Director: Tod Browning
Director: Tod Browning
Director: Woody Allen
4k restoration not released
4k restoration, not sure about blurays https://www.indiewire.com/features/general/manhattan-trailer-woody-allen-4k-digital-print-diane-keaton-meryl-streep-1201785874/
Director: Woody Allen
4k restoration not released
4k restoration, not sure about blurays https://www.indiewire.com/features/general/manhattan-trailer-woody-allen-4k-digital-print-diane-keaton-meryl-streep-1201785874/
Director: John Huston
2023 WB 4K Blu-ray
2023 WB 4K Blu-ray
Director: John Huston
2023 WB 4K Blu-ray
2023 WB 4K Blu-ray
Director: John Sturges
Director: John Sturges
Edit History
12/23/2025
Format
From
1080p Blu-ray
To
DVD
From
1080p Blu-ray
To
DVD
11/12/2025
Format
Added
1080p Blu-ray
Added
1080p Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly Release
Added
MGM DVD
Added
MGM DVD
Best Video Release
Added
MGM DVD
Added
MGM DVD
Blu-ray.com
Added
https://www.blu-ray.com/Billy-the-Kid/1054826/#Releases
Added
https://www.blu-ray.com/Billy-the-Kid/1054826/#Releases
