Hard Eight (1997)
Drama, Crime • 1h 42m
Overview
A stranger mentors a young Reno gambler who weds a hooker and befriends a vulgar casino regular.
Director: Paul Thomas Anderson
Cast: Philip Baker Hall, John C. Reilly, Gwyneth Paltrow, Samuel L. Jackson, F. William Parker, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Nathanael Cooper, Wynn White, Robert Ridgely, Kathleen Campbell, Michael J. Rowe, Peter D'Allesandro, Steve Blane, Xaleese, Melora Walters, Jean Langer, Andy Breen, Renee Breen, Jane W. Brimmer, Mark Finizza, Richard Gross, Cliff Keeley, Carrie McVey, Truman Robbins, Ernie Anderson, Wendy Weidman, Jake Cross
Director: Paul Thomas Anderson
Like previous releases, the 4K Blu-ray was scanned from an interpositive rather than the original camera negative at Paul Thomas Anderson’s request which may explain the softness.
Director: Paul Thomas Anderson
Like previous releases, the 4K Blu-ray was scanned from an interpositive rather than the original camera negative at Paul Thomas Anderson’s request which may explain the softness.
Director: Paul Thomas Anderson
Director: Paul Thomas Anderson
Director: Paul Thomas Anderson
Director: Paul Thomas Anderson
Criterion 4K Blu-ray > Sony 4K Blu-ray (better encoding on the Criterion) see caps https://slow.pics/c/fbftSpZF
Criterion 4K Blu-ray > Sony 4K Blu-ray (better encoding on the Criterion) see caps https://slow.pics/c/fbftSpZF
Director: Paul Thomas Anderson
Director: Paul Thomas Anderson
Director: Peter Medak
Imprint 4K Blu-ray scheduled for August 2026 release
Director: Peter Medak
Imprint 4K Blu-ray scheduled for August 2026 release
Director: Roger Donaldson
88 Films & Scream Factory 4K Blu-ray
Imprint 4K Blu-ray scheduled for August 2026 release
88 Films tied with Scream Factory 4K Blu-ray (88 Films is FiM encoded)
88 Films and Scream Factory have exclusive extras
Director: Roger Donaldson
88 Films & Scream Factory 4K Blu-ray
Imprint 4K Blu-ray scheduled for August 2026 release
88 Films tied with Scream Factory 4K Blu-ray (88 Films is FiM encoded)
88 Films and Scream Factory have exclusive extras
Director: Oliver Hirschbiegel
Canada Blu-ray or Netherlands Blu-ray? better than Constantin Germany 4K Blu-ray
Director: Oliver Hirschbiegel
Canada Blu-ray or Netherlands Blu-ray? better than Constantin Germany 4K Blu-ray
Director: Roger Donaldson
Director: Roger Donaldson
Director: John Woo
UK Arrow 4K Blu-ray, correct grade and archival extras missing from the Shout! Factory 4K Blu-ray
Criterion LaserDisc, both Arrow 4K Blu-ray and Shout! Factory 4K Blu-ray are worse.
Criterion USA LaserDisc [CC1397L]: Original Cantonese mono.
Best Cantonese mono still was from Criterion LaserDisc, as the Shout one was boosted with clipping, with some filtering and losing dynamic range over the Criterion LD.
There’s no need for other Cantonese audio, as all 5.1 remixes are extremely bad and not worth including.
For English Dub the Shout offered the best, it was pure mono. All other 5.1 remixed of said dub are also terrible and offer no value, only less fidelity and more echo.
Director: John Woo
UK Arrow 4K Blu-ray, correct grade and archival extras missing from the Shout! Factory 4K Blu-ray
Criterion LaserDisc, both Arrow 4K Blu-ray and Shout! Factory 4K Blu-ray are worse.
Criterion USA LaserDisc [CC1397L]: Original Cantonese mono.
Best Cantonese mono still was from Criterion LaserDisc, as the Shout one was boosted with clipping, with some filtering and losing dynamic range over the Criterion LD.
There’s no need for other Cantonese audio, as all 5.1 remixes are extremely bad and not worth including.
For English Dub the Shout offered the best, it was pure mono. All other 5.1 remixed of said dub are also terrible and offer no value, only less fidelity and more echo.
Director: John Carpenter
Shout! Factory 4K Blu-ray for now
Australia Imprint 4K Blu-ray upcoming, UK Arrow 4K Blu-ray possibly teased?
Shout! Factory 4K Blu-ray but bad compression
Director: John Carpenter
Shout! Factory 4K Blu-ray for now
Australia Imprint 4K Blu-ray upcoming, UK Arrow 4K Blu-ray possibly teased?
Shout! Factory 4K Blu-ray but bad compression
Director: Ron Shelton
Director: Ron Shelton
Director: Martin Ritt
Director: Martin Ritt
Director: Phil Joanou
UK Second Sight Blu-ray maybe better than all the other Blu-rays?
Australia Imprint 4K Blu-ray is disappointing with DNR and poor compression
Director: Phil Joanou
UK Second Sight Blu-ray maybe better than all the other Blu-rays?
Australia Imprint 4K Blu-ray is disappointing with DNR and poor compression
More Drama on Blu-ray
Director: Orson Welles
MoC 4K Blu-ray and Kino Lorber 4K Blu-ray are similar
Director: Orson Welles
MoC 4K Blu-ray and Kino Lorber 4K Blu-ray are similar
Director: Jean Renoir
The Criterion 4K Blu-ray has marginally better detail and grain structure than ESC 4K Blu-ray
The ESC France 4K Blu-ray is an SDR grade erroneously presented in HDR, but if your player can force the HDR into SDR it looks very good.
Director: Jean Renoir
The Criterion 4K Blu-ray has marginally better detail and grain structure than ESC 4K Blu-ray
The ESC France 4K Blu-ray is an SDR grade erroneously presented in HDR, but if your player can force the HDR into SDR it looks very good.
Director: Robert Wise
Disney 4K Blu-ray, see caps https://slow.pics/c/hE3HUCdj
Disney 4K Atmos is great, a reference quality track. It's a very slight remix (music seems to be from a better source), but it's completely seamless and faithful to the original, better fidelity than anything since the 1994 30th Anniversary Edition LaserDisc.
All DVDs (and 2010 Blu-ray) sound far worse than the 4K Blu-ray/LaserDisc and have various missing sound cues.
Director: Robert Wise
Disney 4K Blu-ray, see caps https://slow.pics/c/hE3HUCdj
Disney 4K Atmos is great, a reference quality track. It's a very slight remix (music seems to be from a better source), but it's completely seamless and faithful to the original, better fidelity than anything since the 1994 30th Anniversary Edition LaserDisc.
All DVDs (and 2010 Blu-ray) sound far worse than the 4K Blu-ray/LaserDisc and have various missing sound cues.
Director: Akira Kurosawa
BFI 4K Blu-ray has excellent master and grade, no DNR and tasteful HDR
Restored original mono mix: Toho Japan 4K Blu-ray
Unrestored original mono: 2014 BFI Blu-ray
BFI 4K Blu-ray has OG Perspecta (in 5.1 container) and a stereo downmix of it; no original mono.
The unrestored track on BFI's earlier release appears to be an almost entirely unmanipulated transfer of the original mix. It suffers from a distracting low-frequency hum. The 4K restoration comes with a restored track, which appears to be the same transfer, but which appears to be cleaned up with a moderate amount of noise reduction and some EQ, nicely opening up the high-end, and which is likely to be preferable to most listeners. All earlier releases sound poor.
Perspecta isn't a discrete surround format, instead only relying on manipulating volume and panning of the mono track across L/C/R channels, based on embedded control tones. As such, even the Perspecta track is technically just the mono mix, though the omission of the proper mono on BFI's 4K is still unfortunate.
Director: Akira Kurosawa
BFI 4K Blu-ray has excellent master and grade, no DNR and tasteful HDR
Restored original mono mix: Toho Japan 4K Blu-ray
Unrestored original mono: 2014 BFI Blu-ray
BFI 4K Blu-ray has OG Perspecta (in 5.1 container) and a stereo downmix of it; no original mono.
The unrestored track on BFI's earlier release appears to be an almost entirely unmanipulated transfer of the original mix. It suffers from a distracting low-frequency hum. The 4K restoration comes with a restored track, which appears to be the same transfer, but which appears to be cleaned up with a moderate amount of noise reduction and some EQ, nicely opening up the high-end, and which is likely to be preferable to most listeners. All earlier releases sound poor.
Perspecta isn't a discrete surround format, instead only relying on manipulating volume and panning of the mono track across L/C/R channels, based on embedded control tones. As such, even the Perspecta track is technically just the mono mix, though the omission of the proper mono on BFI's 4K is still unfortunate.
Director: Vincent Ward
Director: Vincent Ward
Director: Sidney Lumet
2026 Criterion 4K Blu-ray
2011 Criterion Blu-ray is the best. Kino Lorber 4K Blu-ray has heavily filtered audio
Director: Sidney Lumet
2026 Criterion 4K Blu-ray
2011 Criterion Blu-ray is the best. Kino Lorber 4K Blu-ray has heavily filtered audio
International Warner Bros 4K Blu-ray
International Warner Bros 4K Blu-ray > US Paramount 4K Blu-ray for the US Cut.
International Warner Bros 4K Blu-ray, is significantly better than the US Paramount 4K Blu-ray (even with FEL Baked in and Dolby Vision), with more grain retention and detail
SDR Comparisons: International Warner Bros 4K Blu-ray vs US Paramount 4K Blu-ray: https://slow.pics/c/TEPHtKjl
HDR Comparisons: International Warner Bros 4K Blu-ray vs US Paramount 4K Blu-ray: https://slow.pics/c/hIFe11Hx
Comparisons in SDR using L8 Trim from CM v4.0 (both UHDs can use CM v4.0): Remux vs USA UHD: https://slow.pics/c/mkrhVtpl
The International Cut, which contains alternate, more violent shots in the final act, hasn't been released on home video to date.
International Cut contains alternate, more violent shots in the final act.
International Warner Bros 4K Blu-ray
International Warner Bros 4K Blu-ray > US Paramount 4K Blu-ray for the US Cut.
International Warner Bros 4K Blu-ray, is significantly better than the US Paramount 4K Blu-ray (even with FEL Baked in and Dolby Vision), with more grain retention and detail
SDR Comparisons: International Warner Bros 4K Blu-ray vs US Paramount 4K Blu-ray: https://slow.pics/c/TEPHtKjl
HDR Comparisons: International Warner Bros 4K Blu-ray vs US Paramount 4K Blu-ray: https://slow.pics/c/hIFe11Hx
Comparisons in SDR using L8 Trim from CM v4.0 (both UHDs can use CM v4.0): Remux vs USA UHD: https://slow.pics/c/mkrhVtpl
The International Cut, which contains alternate, more violent shots in the final act, hasn't been released on home video to date.
International Cut contains alternate, more violent shots in the final act.
Director: John Ford
Director: John Ford
Director: Ernst Lubitsch
Kino Lorber 4k resto
The audio on the Kino Lorber Blu-ray comes from a better source than the various DVDs and the previous HD version on streaming. This audio is relatively untampered with, and is likely the best available source as no laserdisc was ever issued.
Director: Ernst Lubitsch
Kino Lorber 4k resto
The audio on the Kino Lorber Blu-ray comes from a better source than the various DVDs and the previous HD version on streaming. This audio is relatively untampered with, and is likely the best available source as no laserdisc was ever issued.
Director: John Woo
International Cut: US Magnolia Pictures Blu-ray
Original Hong Kong Cut (2 parts): US Magnolia Pictures Blu-ray or Hong Kong Blu-rays?
International Cut: US Magnolia Pictures Blu-ray
Original Hong Kong Cut (2 parts): US Magnolia Pictures Blu-ray or Hong Kong Blu-rays?
Director: John Woo
International Cut: US Magnolia Pictures Blu-ray
Original Hong Kong Cut (2 parts): US Magnolia Pictures Blu-ray or Hong Kong Blu-rays?
International Cut: US Magnolia Pictures Blu-ray
Original Hong Kong Cut (2 parts): US Magnolia Pictures Blu-ray or Hong Kong Blu-rays?
Edit History
12/1/2025
Format
Added
1080p Blu-ray
Added
1080p Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly Release
Added
AU Imprint BD
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AU Imprint BD





























