Gremlins 35th Anniversary Edition (UHD) review

[David Vaughn]

Studio: Warner Brothers
Release Date: October 1, 2019
Rating: PG
Film: 4/5
 
Plot
Gremlins is a wildly original roller-coaster ride of hilarious mischief.  One minute your hair will stand on end, the next you’ll hold your sides with laughter at the havoc these supposedly gentle furballs create when the rules surrounding their care and feeding are inadvertently broken one fateful Christmas.  Written by Chris Columbus and directed by Joe Dante, Gremlins unleashes special effects that dazzle and enchant and merriment that lingers in the memory.

 My Thoughts
This film came out when I was a freshman in high school, and I remember seeing it with a bunch of friends and loving it. Little did I know at the time that it would become such an endearing film 35 years after its initial release. When my kids were young, I decided one night about 15 years ago to watch the film with my two kids, who were maybe eight and six at the time. Well, that was a HUGE mistake. I had forgotten how violent and scary the film gets, especially in its second and third acts and neither of the kids slept for multiple nights in a row without having nightmares. To this day, my wife—and kids—never let me forget that fateful night.
 
I don’t think Warner minted a new 4K DI for this film because normally they advertise that fact on the press release. Regardless, this is the best the film has looked to me on home video. I owned the DVD and Blu-ray, and there’s definitely an uptick in detail, color saturation, and shadow delineation compared to my vintage Blu-ray. The audio track is a 5.1 DTS-HD MA mix that’s pretty front loaded, but DSU does a good job of putting my overhead and rear speakers to work.
 
Video 9/10 
 
Audio 8/10 (DTS-HD MA 5.1)
 
Special Features (Housed on Blu-ray):
 

• Commentary
• Gremlins: Behind the Scenes Featurette
• Additional Scenes with Commentary
• Photo Gallery
• Cute, Clever, Mischievous, Intelligent: Making Gremlins
• Gremlins: The Gift of Mogwai
• The Last Gremlin
• From Gizmo to Gremlins: Creating Creatures
• Hangin’ with Hoyt on the set of Gremlins
• Theatrical Trailers
• Additional Scenes
• Blu-ray+ Digital Copy

 

 
Conclusion
Normally I’m not a fan of the horror genre, but this one is relatively tame (as long as you aren’t a young kid). Gizmo is such a cute character and the mayhem that ensues by not following the simple rules of owning him is fun to watch. The UHD presentation is quite good, although the audio track doesn’t pack the punch that modern soundtracks provide. Recommended for fans.
 
    
Reference Review System:
 
 JVC DLA-RS2000 4K Ultra High Definition Front Projector
 (Calibrated with Portrait Displays CalMAN color calibration software & C6-HDR Meter from Portrait Displays)
 Stewart Filmscreen - Firehawk 88” 16x9 Fixed Screen
 Anthem AVM60 Audio/Video Processor 
 ATI AT527NC Powering Bed Channels
ATI AT524NC Powering Atmos Speakers
 Panasonic DP-UB820 Ultra HD Blu-ray Player 
 System Controller: URC MX-980
M&K S-150 THX Ultra (R-C-L Speakers)
M&K SS-150 x4 (Surround Speakers)
 Atlantic Technology IC6-OBA x 4 Overhead Speakers
 SVS PC-Ultra Cylinder Subwoofer
 HSU VTF-15H MK2 Subwoofer
 SVS SB-3000 Subwoofer
JL Audio Dominion D110 Subwoofer x 2 (configured as tandem mid bass modules)

Mini DSP controlling all subwoofers
 Audioquest and Monoprice - Audio/Video/Speaker Cabling
 PureAV PF60 Power Conditioner

[DavidHir]

This disc is nice and indeed a nice improvement over the BD.

It's been years since I last saw it and it was definitely more violent than I recall.

However, the more I think about it, this movie and Indiana Jones and The Temple of Doom are what led to the PG-13 rating.
http://www.mtv.com/news/1859122/pg-13-rating-anniversary/

[David Vaughn]

This disc is nice and indeed a nice improvement over the BD.

It's been years since I last saw it and it was definitely more violent than I recall.

However, the more I think about it, this movie and Indiana Jones and The Temple of Doom are what led to the PG-13 rating.
http://www.mtv.com/news/1859122/pg-13-rating-anniversary/

David,

I had thought the same thing when I had my kids watch it so many years ago.