The Last Starfighter, directed by Nick Castle and released in the summer of 1984, is an okay – maybe better than okay – teen/sci-fi/gamer film. If it doesn’t have you thinking of Disney’s Tron, which preceded it by precisely two years, then you have no right to the title “cinephile.”
The effects are nicely produced for the budget. The performances are again, okay, or a bit better. The one highlight for me is seeing Mr. Preston doing his Harold Hill two decades later.
As a Blu-ray, it’s a quality affair, with nice audio, inclusive of the original 4.0 mix, and derived from the original camera negative in a 4k scan.
The only problem with a 4k scan is that it brings to the fore, an intermittent cut-through scratch screen center, that appears through the surrounding grain. This may not be visible on panels, but in projections, it tends toward the obvious.
Aside from that, it’s a nice presentation, with a ton of special extras, which is the main reason to go for Arrow’s new Blu.
Image – 4.5
Audio – 5
Pass / Fail – Pass
Upgrade from DVD – Certainly
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.
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