A Star Is Born (1954)
Drama, Music, Romance • 2h 34m
Director: George Cukor
Cast: Judy Garland, James Mason, Jack Carson, Charles Bickford, Tommy Noonan, Lucy Marlow, Amanda Blake, Irving Bacon, Hazel Shermet, James Brown, John Alban, Laurindo Almeida, Leon Alton, Rudolph Anders, David Armstrong, Phil Arnold, Nadine Ashdown, Gertrude Astor, Jack Baker, George Becwar, Don Beddoe, Rodney Bell, Oscar Blank, Lennie Bluett, Lulu Mae Bohrman, Willis Bouchey, Marshall Bradford, Ruth Brady, Paul Brinegar, Tex Brodus, Sheila Bromley, Paul Bryar, Benny Burt, Boyd Cabeen, George Calliga, Kathryn Card, John Carlyle, Beth Carter, Spencer Chan, Chick Chandler, Lauren Chapin, Beulah Christian, Samuel Colt, Heinie Conklin, Charles J. Conrad, Tom Cound, Oliver Cross, Russell Custer, Blythe Daley, Havis Davenport, Rudy Del Campo, Harry Denny, Eddie Dew, Alan DeWitt, Joe Dougherty, Helen Eby-Rock, Jack Ellis, Jean Engstrom, Harry Evans, Rex Evans, Franklyn Farnum, Timothy Farrell, Frank Ferguson, Elizabeth Flournoy, Bess Flowers, Almeda Fowler, Raoul Freeman, Nacho Galindo, Kenneth Gibson, Joe Gilbert, Joseph Glick, Jack Gordon, Wilton Graff, Marion Gray, Robert Haines, Charles Halton, Joseph Hamilton, Sam Harris, Ray Heindorf, Percy Helton, Louis Jean Heydt, Al Hill, Stuart Holmes, Olin Howland, Robert F. Hoy, James Hyland, Bob Jellison, Jay Johnson, Dick Johnstone, Arlene Karr, Fred Kelsey, Jack Kenney, Tom Kingston, George Kitchel, Allen Kramer, Frank Kreig, Henry Kulky, Nancy Kulp, Richard LaMarr, Carl M. Leviness, Paul Levitt, Carey Loftin, Robert Locke Lorraine, Frank Marlowe, Mae Marsh, Strother Martin, Dorothy Martinson, Louis Mason, Nita Mathews, Ila McAvoy, Jack McCoy, Philo McCullough, Don McKay, Heidi Meadows, Joseph Mell, Harold Miller, Nolie Miller, Patrick Miller, Todd Miller, Wade Miller, Mort Mills, John Monaghan, Hal J. Moore, Monette Moore, Charles Morton, Jack Mower, George Nardelli, Tom Nolan, Anton Northpole, Barry Norton, Ron Nyman, William H. O'Brien, Monty O'Grady, Pat O'Malley, Leonard Penn, Barbara Pepper, Jack Pepper, Hilda Plowright, Mel Pogue, Murray Pollack, Ezelle Poule, Frank Puglia, Grandon Rhodes, Don Richards, Leoda Richards, Kay Riehl, Larry Rio, Lotus Robb, Walter Rode, Patricia Rosemond, Riza Royce, Henry Russell, Loretta Russell, Dick Ryan, John Saxon, Bernard Sell, Patrick Sexton, Harry Seymour, Joan Shawlee, Don Shelton, Charles Sherlock, Dick Simmons, Reginald Simpson, Arthur Space, Bert Spencer, Buddy Spencer, Eileen Stevens, Robert Stevenson, Robert Strong, Grady Sutton, Kay Tapscott, Dub Taylor, Wayne Taylor, Al Thompson, Ted Thorpe, Louis Tomei, Emerson Treacy, Dale Van Sickel, Valerie Vernon, Ralph Volkie, Geraldine Wall, Ruth Warren, Charles Watts, Harte Wayne, Richard Webb, Duff Whitney, Shirley Whitney, Josephine Whittell, Frank Wilcox, Jean Willes, Tom Wilson, Eric Wilton, Stephen Wyman, Mary Young
About the film
A movie star helps a young singer-actress find fame, even as age and alcoholism send his own career into a downward spiral.
- Featured Lists
- National Film Registry
Year of Induction: 2000
- TSPDT
- 2026: #4422025: #4372024: #4262023: #4482022: #448
Director: Mike Nichols
Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab) · Blu-ray.com (opens in a new tab)
StudioCanal 4K caps.Criterion Blu-ray better encode than StudioCanal Blu-ray.
Director: Ridley Scott
Final Cut: WB 4K Blu-ray (Caveat: No Dolby Vision from Streaming)
Workprint: WB 30th Anniversary Blu-ray Set for a better AVC encode
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
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
2025 Taiwan Deltamac 4K Blu-ray
Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab)
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)
Director: Stanley Kubrick
Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab)
US Criterion 4K Blu-ray > UK MoC 4K Blu-ray > Australia Imprint > US Kino Lorber better encoding
The MoC, Criterion and Imprint UHDs were encoded by FiM making all 3 very close. The higher bitrate helped in deciding and some luck; however Criterion is the most consistent one of all 3. Imprint has some scenes with more splotchy grain while MoC is quite close to Criterion but has some more blocking in dark scenes (e.g.: comp #27). With Criterion’s superior audio, it ensures complete consistency.
From cbc: "I'm personally quite fond of the restored track on Eureka's 4K Blu-ray. It does have spots with objectively worse fidelity, but for the most part, it sounds a lot more natural and less shrill, particularly dialogue. It seems to be a new mixdown of stems. Technically a remix, so not everyone's cup of tea, but it's not revisionist like most new movie mixes tend to be"
Both Imprint (included in their set) and Capelight (on its own/individually) offer remastered BDs. All other BDs, including the one included in The Complete Kubrick, are sourced from the same older master from around 2010.
Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab) · Blu-ray.com (opens in a new tab)
Arrow 4K Blu-ray > Criterion 4K Blu-ray > Kino Lorber 4K Blu-ray see caps
1991 Orion LaserDisc vs 2024 Arrow 4K Blu-ray vs Criterion
Three masterings of the original Dolby Stereo SR mix exist: the original Orion video releases, the Criterion (which is from their LD) and the Arrow. All three are excellent with slight mastering differences between them. The original Orion still is probably the one with the most fidelity, the Criterion is the cleanest with a kind of warm feel to it and the Arrow has a bit of both aspects. The Arrow mastering has a tiny almost imperceptible bit of audio bleeding into the surround that isn't on the Criterion. Each has their own pluses and minuses but you can't go wrong with any of them. Whatever you do though: DO NOT WATCH WITH THE 5.1 REMIX. It is another MGM botch job that fundamentally alters the impact of many scenes. It is vastly inferior to the original mix in every way.
Director: Hal Ashby
Director: Anthony Mann
Criterion 4K Blu-ray, Universal 2008 DVD
Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab)
2008 Universal DVD mono
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.
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.
4K restoration from safety preservation elements
Director: George Cukor
Sources: caps-a-holic (opens in a new tab)
US Twilight Time Blu-ray or UK Signal One Blu-ray are basically the same see cap
Video format: UHD Blu-ray
WB 4K
Sources: YouTube (opens in a new tab)
An undeniably significant improvement from the BD yet still severely flawed. See DFIC's review.
Director: Orson Welles
Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab) · blah-ray.blogspot.com (opens in a new tab)
WB Europe 4K Blu-ray
WB Europe 4K Blu-ray slightly better encoding than Criterion (caveat: missing Criterion extras)
Director: Sylvester Stallone
Warner Bros 2024 Ultimate Knockout Collection 4K Blu-ray/ Warner Bros 2023 Knockout Collection 4K Blu-ray (replacement disc)
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
2024 Ultimate Knockout Collection Warner Bros 4K Blu-ray Box Set
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
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.
Director: John G. Avildsen
Warner Bros 2024 Ultimate Knockout Collection 4K Blu-ray/ Warner Bros 2023 Knockout Collection 4K Blu-ray (replacement disc)
Original Mono: Ultimate Knockout Collection/Knockout Collection replacement disc
Original Mono: Ultimate Knockout Collection/Knockout Collection replacement disc > Knockout collection original.
The Mono mix on the initial release of the Knockout Collection is a stereo fold-down of the 5.1, it also has a missing piano cue. The replacement disc and the ultimate knockout version fixed the error.
The Steelbook and UK standard edition is the same disc as the 2023 knockout collection.
Director: Sylvester Stallone
Warner Bros 2024 Ultimate Knockout Collection 4K Blu-ray/ Warner Bros 2023 Knockout Collection 4K Blu-ray (replacement disc)
Original Knockout Collection release had its 5.1 mix pitched too low, replacement disc and Ultimate Knockout Collection fixed the error.
The Steelbook and UK standard edition are the same disc as the 2023 knockout collection.
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Every recommendation follows the same method — how these calls are made.