Zodiac (2007)
Crime, Drama, Mystery, Thriller • 2h 38m
Director: David Fincher
Cast: Jake Gyllenhaal, Mark Ruffalo, Anthony Edwards, Robert Downey Jr., Chloë Sevigny, Elias Koteas, John Carroll Lynch, Brian Cox, Dermot Mulroney, Charles Fleischer, Zach Grenier, Philip Baker Hall, James LeGros, Donal Logue, Richmond Arquette, Bob Stephenson, John Lacy, Ed Setrakian, John Getz, John Terry, Candy Clark, June Diane Raphael, Ciara Hughes, Lee Norris, Patrick Scott Lewis, Pell James, David Lee Smith, Jason Wiles, Charles Schneider, James Carraway, Tom Verica, Jimmi Simpson, Doan Ly, Karina Logue, Joel Bissonnette, John Mahon, Matt Winston, Jules Bruff, John Ennis, J. Patrick McCormack, Adam Goldberg, Clea DuVall, Paul Schulze, Adam Trese, Penny Wallace, John Hemphill, Michel Francoeur, Thomas Kopache, Barry Livingston, Christopher John Fields, Jack Samson, Micah Sauers, Zachary Sauers, Jessica Baltutis, Peter Quartaroli, Geoff Callan, Michael Hungerford, Anna Katarina, E.P. McKnight, Betty Murphy, Jeff Daniel Phillips, Shane Woodson, Cookie Crawford, Cassius M. Willis, Judith Drake, Phoebe Holston, Marty Lodge, Cooper Thornton, Cazimir Milostan, Charlotte Ferguson, Phoebe Ferguson, Kacey Malmsten, Karly Malmsten, JD Cullum, Stanley B. Herman, Roy Lee Jones, Michael Rose, James Joseph O'Neil, Rod Damer, John Sarno, Gloria Grant, Brett Rickaby, M.F. Bernier, Carter Evans, Bill Seward, Dave Nemeth, Ted Garcia, Greg Wolf, Barry LeBrock, Ione Skye, David Winston Barge, Hayati Akbas, Brad Carr, Mitchell Fink, Tish Hicks, Danielle McKee, Derris Nile, Carmen Plumb, Callie Thompson, Bud Davis
UHD tiers
About the film
The Zodiac murders cause the lives of Paul Avery, David Toschi and Robert Graysmith to intersect.
- TSPDT
- 2026: #5892025: #6062024: #6252023: #6432022: #643
Director: David Fincher
Digipack release includes an Amazing Amy book the standard edition doesn’t have.
Director: David Fincher
4K Blu-ray has exclusive “unrated” audio with a small change to one line under the request of David Fincher (removed the poor dub over of frickin’ in the line “Screw it, let’s gut the f**kin’ nerd.”).
Director: David Fincher
Disney 4K Blu-ray or Fox 2009 Blu-ray or Kinowelt Entertainment 2008 Germany Blu-ray for a purist version
Sources: slow.pics (opens in a new tab) · notonbluray.com (opens in a new tab)
Disney 4K Blu-ray or Fox 2009 Blu-ray for a purist version or Kinowelt Entertainment 2008 Germany Blu-ray from the original 1999 telecine transfer
Disney 4K Blu-ray, while a good release by itself, is very revisionist albeit made by Fincher. It has a huge amount of tinkering, a different grade, and at times uncanny with the sharpening. Caps of just how revisionist the new master is.
All Blu-ray tracks have significant limiting.
Disney 4K Blu-ray has some alterations, otherwise similar to the Fox Blu-ray
A blog article going over the home video history of Fight Club: https://notonbluray.com/blog/fight-club-compared-blu-ray-vs-itunes-vs-d-vhs-vs-dvd-vs-laserdisc/
Director: David Fincher
2025 WB 4K Blu-ray or the 1997 New Line DVD (CCE colors)/Netherlands Blu-ray (2000 restoration) for a purist version
Sources: Blu-ray.com (opens in a new tab) · notonbluray.com (opens in a new tab)
2025 WB 4K Blu-ray, better detail and everything, or the 1997 New Line DVD (CCE colors)/Netherlands Blu-ray (2000 restoration) for a purist version
4K caveat: A variety of VFX set pieces and touch-ups were added in scenes throughout the film, probably for continuity or consistency, although they might be unnecessary or revisionist. Clouds are added to clear sky of the last act.
AI is used to fix an unwanted camera movement in one scene.
some shots had been further stabilized, resulting in strange motion blur.
Also has missing dialog intact.
But it can be argued that the Warner Bros 4K Blu-ray 5.1 (remix) is technically a better mix.
More info on the different color grades over the years: https://notonbluray.com/blog/the-case-of-se7en/
Director: David Fincher
Sources: slow.pics (opens in a new tab) · Blu-ray.com (opens in a new tab)
HDR caps by fkid. Obviously this is a huge improvement after what was available until now. Still, the early 2000s nature of the film is palpable and more noticeable, f.ex. in the opening scene that looks upscaled but seemingly without AI usage or any egregious tools. No info yet about what Fincher actually changed and where he tinkered around. Also see samlop10's review
Sources: slow.pics (opens in a new tab)
Arrow UK 4K Blu-ray > Paramount US and Capelight DE, same black crush on all three but the Arrow is encoded by FiM and has very good new supplements, the Capelight looks slightly low-passed, but in motion it probably looks about the same as the Paramount, see caps comparison for all three.
Arrow and Paramount basically sound the same, the Arrow has a slightly higher bitrate. Capelight is probably the same too but for now it's TBA.
Paramount US 4K Blu-ray has FEL Dolby Vision
Arrow UK 4K Blu-ray and Capelight DE 4K Blu-ray have MEL Dolby Vision
Paramount 4K Blu-ray Purist choice: Blu-ray
Sources: YouTube (opens in a new tab)
Paramount 4K Blu-ray new improved master with color grading and slight issues. Blu-ray is old master with original color grading
Blu-ray 5.1
The Paramount 4K Blu-ray has a much better new scan that removes the original extremely dated color grading. This is an improvement on one hand but a definite revisionist change on the other. There is the expected grain management and slight HDR issues in addition to encoding quirks from Paramount. It is a giant improvement over the original Blu-ray but the color change and other issues means that the Blu-ray is one to keep for purists to have the as-is original iteration of the film's presentation. Audio wise the film has been remixed into Atmos but it merely seems like a slightly tweaked and frankly tamed version of the original 5.1. Of the two I prefer the Blu-ray 5.1. The original Blu-ray was Dolby TrueHD and the reissue Blu-ray in the four film Blu-ray collection boxset was DTS-HDMA.
DFIC extensive review: https://youtu.be/evsrJOTIjdA?si=wtdWGxZBfhPYTIeW
Director: Tony Scott
The 70mm 6-track mix has a higher bitrate on the Paramount 1998 DVD, but is more limited than on the THX LaserDisc The Paramount 1998 DVD also has open matte versions in fullscreen 1.33:1 and widescreen 2.00:1 instead of the theatrical aspect ratio of 2.39:1, but the 2.00:1 widescreen presentation is non-anamorphic. The THX LaserDisc is available in both fullscreen 1.33:1 and widescreen 2.00:1 variants.
Director: Terrence Malick
Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab)
Lovely underlying remaster by Criterion and Resillion but encode is sadly low-pass filtered by Pixelogic, and even then, the encode is still less than ideal. Still easily obliterates any prior disc release, but certainly wouldn't hurt to have a UK or German label take a crack at this same master.
Director: Peter Faiman
Australia Cut: Australia Fox DVD
International Cut: Paramount Blu-ray
Encore Cut: Germany Winkler Film 4K Blu-ray, censored but good encoding
Sources: movie-censorship.com (opens in a new tab)
US Paramount 4K Blu-ray, is the International US Cut and not the Encore Cut
Australia Cut: Laserdisc
The film exists in three versions:
- the original Australian cut (~104 minutes at 24fps/~100 minutes at 25fps);
- the American/international version (~98 minutes at 24fps/~94 minutes at 25fps) trimming some exposition in the Outback first half of the film and some shorter extensions of a few seconds in the New York section, altering some of the dialogue – including censoring a "fuck" to "screw" – but featuring one additional dialogue extension not in the Australian version (a comparison of the two cuts can be found at Movie Censorship);
- the Australian Encore Cut (~95 minutes at 24fps/~91 minutes at 25fps) which uses the international version source so it already has those alterations but also removes approximately three minutes consisting of parts of two scenes featuring Mick grabbing the crotch of a cross-dressing prostitute and a later sequence when he does the same thing at a party to a woman with a deep voice (a comparison of the international version and the Encore Cut can be found at Movie Censorship).
3D version: Paramount 3D Blu-ray
Paramount 4K Blu-ray on October 26 2026
Director: Billy Wilder
Sources: slow.pics (opens in a new tab)
Paramount 4K Blu-ray. See caps
HDR/grading: nice, but some blown out
Encoding: inconsistent, smeared motion
DNR: inconsistent, frozen
Old Paramount Blu-ray is arguably a solid alternative choice
Paramount 4K Blu-ray mono
Paramount 4K Blu-ray mono is different version of the Blu-ray mono from the same old 2000 DVD transfer.
The 5.1 remix on the 4K Blu-ray is an appalling remix done by going wild with artificially generated stems from Park Road Post who were given the surviving mono to separate. The experience is jarring and fidelity to original mix in terms of level balance, directionality and impact is nonexistent. Not only does this sound painfully weird, but the Paramount mixers then did whatever they wanted in terms of LFE, sound pans and effect changes.
The original mono mix was not restored and still needs it badly. The 4K master is filled with frozen grain examples coming and going plus some HDR issues in addition to the usual Paramount problems. It is simultaneously better and worse than the Blu-ray master.
More Crime on Blu-ray
Director: Robert Altman
Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab) · Blu-ray.com (opens in a new tab)
Cinematrographe's HDR grading is overcooked, which is a known VinSyn tendency. Additionally, their booklet mis-credits the encode to FiM.
YMMV, but for some, the included BD encoded by Marcus Johnson—ironically may make for a more pleasing experience.
4K restoration of the original 3D left eye and right eye camera negatives
Director: John Woo
Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab) · Blu-ray.com (opens in a new tab)
Arrow has a different grade and a better encode than the Shout! Factory, though the difference in either is not major. Imprint release, which leaves Shout! Factory's master and subtitles as is, is encoded by FiM. https://forum.blu-ray.com/showpost.php?p=24473097&postcount=56
Original mix: Shout! Factory 4K Blu-ray
Alternate mix: Scanbox Nordic PAL DVD
Surround remix: HK Video France 4K Blu-ray (5.0)
Original mix: Shout! Factory 4K Blu-ray (similar to Criterion LaserDisc, but less distorted)
Alternate mix: Scanbox Nordic PAL DVD
Surround remix: HK Video France 4K Blu-ray (5.0)
Arrow used the alternate mix, but with extra filtering and lowered dynamic range. The alternate mix has much better fidelity.
Imprint presumably used the Shout! Factory original mix and left it as is, though no official confirmation.
Director: Richard Brooks
4K restoration from Original Camera Negative
Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab)
Arrow 4K Blu-ray > Criterion 4K Blu-ray > Kino Lorber 4K Blu-ray
1991 Orion LaserDisc vs 2024 Arrow 4K Blu-ray
Director: William Dieterle
4K restoration from Original Camera Negative
Director: Stanley Kubrick
Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab)
The 4K discs in both Criterion and Imprint sets are FiM encodes, but low-passed, Imprint minimally less so. Unfortunately, unlike with The Killing, Kino does not hold up at all, the grain is much rougher and the compression visibly struggles making for a much less pleasant watch, even if select stills look better.
All discs use the same source transfer. Criterion cleaned up some hums and hiss, but lost a little bit of high-end detail. Unlike The Killing, the difference's relatively mino.
Director: Stanley Kubrick
Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab) · slow.pics (opens in a new tab)
The 4K discs in both Criterion and Imprint sets are FiM encodes, but low-passed. The compression is better, but some of the grain is lost. Difference is pronounced in screen caps, but not likely to be noticed during playback, without a reference to compare it to. Comparisons
All discs use the same source transfer. It's not of the highest quality, and it includes some slight distortion, looping, clicks, pops, and hum. Criterion cleaned it up for their release, but unfortunately also lost a lot of fidelity in the process.
MGM NTSC DVD doesn't seem to have some of the more prominent distortion and has slightly different EQ but is otherwise the same.
Director: Karel Reisz
Sources: Blu-ray.com (opens in a new tab)
Cinematographe is mis-credited to be an FiM encode. It isn't. Neither the encode nor the color grading are entirely satisfactory.
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