A few words about…™ Spaceballs – in 4k UHD Blu-ray

I’m not certain that Spaceballs would have been at the top of a list, if I were considering 4k UHD prospects, but it’s here, regardless, courtesy of Kino, and it’s lovely.

I’m just not certain that it’s necessary as 4k. It’s had quality releases in several variants, inclusive of Mel Brooks Collections.

Regardless, for those who relish their film grain up close and personal, this is our Hitler. It’s a wonderful scan, and a beautifully produced 4k Blu-ray.

As Episode 14 of the venerable Star Wars series, I would have though it would have arrived last year with the other Star Wars films, but better late than never.

Great fun from Mr. Brooks!

Image – 5

Audio – 5

Pass / Fail – Pass

Highly Recommended

RAH

Robert has been known in the film industry for his unmatched skill and passion in film preservation. Growing up around photography, his first home theater experience began at age ten with 16mm. Years later he was running 35 and 70mm at home.

His restoration projects have breathed new life into classic films like Lawrence of Arabia, Vertigo, My Fair Lady, Spartacus, and The Godfather series. Beyond his restoration work, he has also shared his expertise through publications, contributing to the academic discourse on film restoration. The Academy Film Archive houses the Robert A. Harris Collection, a testament to his significant contributions to film preservation.

Post Disclaimer

Some of our content may contain marketing links, which means we will receive a commission for purchases made via those links. In our editorial content, these affiliate links appear automatically, and our editorial teams are not influenced by our affiliate partnerships. We work with several providers (currently Skimlinks and Amazon) to manage our affiliate relationships. You can find out more about their services by visiting their sites.

Share this post:

View thread (24 replies)

Malcolm R

Senior HTF Member
Joined
Feb 8, 2002
Messages
25,225
Real Name
Malcolm
Skroob the people! You will buy this again!

C8mlGyl.gif
 

JoshZ

Senior HTF Member
Joined
May 26, 2012
Messages
2,295
Location
Boston
Real Name
Joshua Zyber
Hopefully better than the widescreen laserdisc that actually cropped the gag out. IIRC, the original DVD was just a port of that transfer.

You know, I used to also think that the nose was completely cropped out on the Laserdisc transfer. However, I believe the shot was actually framed with the nose too close to the frame edge and it was just lost to overscan on the CRT TVs we used to watch on at the time.
 

stevenHa

Second Unit
Joined
Sep 12, 2005
Messages
367
For a movie like this even if there is no improvement in the appearance in 4K, do they make a new/better master for the 4K so that even the new 1080 would look better than the previous version, or do they just take the previous master and output it in 4k ?
 

MatthewA

BANNED
Senior HTF Member
Joined
Apr 19, 2000
Messages
9,727
Location
Salinas, CA
Real Name
Matthew
At least this movie captures a moment when Star Wars was a complete trilogy before Lucas started fiddling with them.
 

B-ROLL

Senior HTF Member
Joined
May 26, 2016
Messages
5,031
Real Name
Bryan
Perhaps. But look on the bright side, at least we can now make a partial 4k resto of Planet of the Apes for home viewing.
With the current owners of that franchise it will end up being an up-rez of the Marky Mark version.<_< Spaceballs is still owned by what's left of M-G-M who are willing to license their titles to third parties. The Mouse House has shown no interest in releasing any classic FOX titles on disc - nor to license them to third parties.
 

B-ROLL

Senior HTF Member
Joined
May 26, 2016
Messages
5,031
Real Name
Bryan
At least this movie captures a moment when Star Wars was a complete trilogy before Lucas started fiddling with them.
Star Wars (TM) was always supposed to be a series of a total of nine films - an homage to the Republic/Monogram Sci-Fi Serials. The young Mr. Lucas had determined the middle trilogy was the strongest and went with the first episode of the second trilogy as the first film released.
 

Chewbabka

Second Unit
Joined
Feb 15, 2020
Messages
308
Real Name
Joe
With the current owners of that franchise it will end up being an up-rez of the Marky Mark version.<_< Spaceballs is still owned by what's left of M-G-M who are willing to license their titles to third parties. The Mouse House has shown no interest in releasing any classic FOX titles on disc - nor to license them to third parties.

I know... hence the joke. Probably my most-wanted title rn
 

JoshZ

Senior HTF Member
Joined
May 26, 2012
Messages
2,295
Location
Boston
Real Name
Joshua Zyber
Star Wars (TM) was always supposed to be a series of a total of nine films - an homage to the Republic/Monogram Sci-Fi Serials. The young Mr. Lucas had determined the middle trilogy was the strongest and went with the first episode of the second trilogy as the first film released.

What Star Wars was "always supposed to be" varies depending on when you ask George Lucas. If you ask him now, he'll tell you that Greedo was always supposed to shoot at Han Solo first, and that it was always his intention for Hayden Christensen (who was two-years-old at the time) to appear as Anakin's ghost in Return of the Jedi.

If I had the time and the desire, I'm sure I could dig up interviews from around the release of Revenge of the Sith where Lucas insisted that Star Wars was always supposed to be a six-episode series and that anyone who claimed he ever wanted nine movies was a filthy liar.
 

Chewbabka

Second Unit
Joined
Feb 15, 2020
Messages
308
Real Name
Joe
What Star Wars was "always supposed to be" varies depending on when you ask George Lucas. If you ask him now, he'll tell you that Greedo was always supposed to shoot at Han Solo first, and that it was always his intention for Hayden Christensen (who was two-years-old at the time) to appear as Anakin's ghost in Return of the Jedi.

If I had the time and the desire, I'm sure I could dig up interviews from around the release of Revenge of the Sith where Lucas insisted that Star Wars was always supposed to be a six-episode series and that anyone who claimed he ever wanted nine movies was a filthy liar.

ludicrous!
 

AndyMcKinney

Senior HTF Member
Joined
Apr 2, 2004
Messages
3,188
Location
Kentucky, USA
I'd only buy Spaceballs again if they included deleted scenes. According to a Starlog interview at the time the movie came out, Brooks implied that there was a bunch of stuff that they cut out after the test screenings (he mentioned putting thing in/taking them out/seeing if they worked). He went on to say something like "Charlton Heston would have liked the Director's Cut."
 
Most Popular