Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		5.0
Overall		4.0

Highlander 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman December 16, 2022

"There can be only one" evidently does not refer to home video releases of Highlander, because Lionsgate and its international heirs assigns have been putting out any number of versions of the film over the course of several years, and are now offering "new, improved" 4K releases in both standard and SteelBook packaging. This review repeats appropriate information from my now (appropriately?) ancient 2010 review of the 1080 Director's Cut release.

If you’re ever feeling down and depressed, head on over to Wikipedia. There, scattered amongst the misspellings, grammar fiascoes, and outright misinformation, are occasional nuggets like this opening description in the Russell Mulcahy article: His work is easily recognized by his use of fast cuts, tracking shots and use of glowing lights. Much like John Ford, most of you are probably thinking. Mulcahy, director of Highlander (and its sequel, though he disowned that film after its release), does indeed seem to like fast cuts, tracking shots and, yes, glowing lights, so in the larger scheme of things, this particular Wikipedia quote might be termed relatively accurate. Mulcahy has had an at best spotty feature film career, after having helped found and develop the then nascent form of the music video (he indeed directed the iconic “Video Killed the Radio Star”), and somehow, against some formidable odds and initial critical disdain for the effort, Highlander has gone on to achieve considerable cult status, with a legion of fans, most of whom were probably pretty young when the film was initially released in 1986, and who thrilled to its comic book ambience filled with immortal Scotsmen (and other nationalities) and less than immortal dialogue and action. Highlander unfortunately has not aged very well at all, with wooden performances, oddly (and at times badly) staged action sequences, and lots and lots of big 1980s hair.

Highlander does have some things going for it, including some great transitions between time periods which Mulcahy serves up with some at times astonishing ingenuity. A segue from beneath an icy stream up to the air gets us to two different time periods hundreds of years apart. A close-up of star Christopher Lambert’s face morphs into a wall poster of the Mona Lisa, odd to say the least, but visually arresting. In fact, Highlander’s trips back and forth from 16th century Scotland to “present day” New York City account for some of the film’s narrative sweep and help to at least partially ameliorate the often laugh out loud dialogue. The film is also helped immensely by the colorful (both literally and figuratively) cameo of Sean Connery, who shows up about halfway through the enterprise to explain to MacLeod (Lambert) why he has recovered so quickly from a seemingly mortal wound, and then to school him in the art of what being an immortal really means. Connery hams it up, to be sure, but his performance is like a lightning bolt of energy in a film that otherwise lurches and halts from sequence to sequence, some working, others often just lying there like a decapitated immortal.

Part of Highlander’s problem, as it was with his previous film Greystoke, is the Neanderthal presence of star Christopher Lambert. Lambert is undeniably charismatic, in a caveman-esque sort of way, and perhaps it’s unfair to lambast him too badly, as he was still not anything close to fluent in English when this film was made (as Mulcahy discusses in his commentary), but soulful eyes and a hulking physique do not a movie star make. Lambert has turned in some excellent performances in his native French tongue (notably Subway), but here his performance is flat and lacking the tormented energy it really needs to make this character come fully alive. In fact, aside from Connery, the only other electric performance is the over the top turn by Clancy Brown, as the proto-punk villain Victor Kruger. Brown is viscerally frightening in this hyperbolic performance, which has him doing everything from destroying an ancient Scottish castle to licking a contemporary priest’s hand while in a New York City Catholic cathedral. That’s range.

Mulcahy’s work here, like the film in total, is uneven at best. The transition sequences and several of the establishing shots for various segments are handled amazingly well. The opening flyby of the wrestling arena is amazing, and gorgeous crane shots of ancient Scotland are similarly picturesque. But just as soon as you’re sure that Mulcahy has a good hand on the directorial reins, we get some appallingly bad fight choreography, including the ludicrious first showdown between MacLeod and a nemesis in a parking garage. Unwieldy swordplay melds with the laugh out loud decision to have the bad guy do acrobatics to get away, making for an uncommonly amusing fight sequence that is funny instead of exciting.

Special mention should be made for one of the elements that works incredibly well in Highlander, and that’s the wonderful song score by Queen. Mulcahy in his commentary states the film “belongs largely” to Freddie Mercury, and Mercury’s luscious multi-tracked harmonies make for a very appealing sonic experience. In fact it’s notable (no pun intended ) and actually laudatory that neither Queen nor score composer Michael Kamen opts for well worn Celtic clichés, despite the more than occasional bagpipe cue, throughout this score. Queen’s contributions are unfailingly melodic and lyrically appropriate, and while Kamen has the tendency to deliver some histrionic orchestral cues, overall the music to Highlander is one of its saving graces.

Highlander is one of many films which saw its fortunes ascend with the advent of the home video market. There is certainly something here that attracts legions of fans. Whether that be its quasi-mythic scenario, or its rather ingenious ping-ponging approach to two disparate time frames, or something else entirely is anyone’s guess. Those who love this film probably won’t be swayed by any critical analysis that doesn’t deem the film an outright classic. It’s really nothing more or less than comic book fare, as Mulcahy himself tends to support in his commentary. As such, it’s far from the best in this genre, but it probably isn’t the worst, either. Highlander is more middling ground than anything.

Highlander 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Note: Screenshots are sourced from the 1080 disc.

Highlander is presented in 4K UHD courtesy of Lionsgate Films with a 2160p transfer in 1.85:1. Highlander enjoyed a 4K restoration a few years ago from StudioCanal, and I highly recommend those interested to read Svet's reviews of both StudioCanal's 1080 release and their subsequent 4K UHD release. As I have so often repeated, "different reviewers means different opinions", and while I echo Svet's comment about the almost unbelievable improvement in the overall technical presentation of both the 1080 and 2160 versions in this package when compared to the often inconsistent 1080 disc I reviewed in 2010, I may not be quite as enthusiastic about the 2160 presentation as Svet was, which is not to say I wasn't repeatedly impressed with improvements across the board. There are still huge variances in grain resolution and clarity throughout this presentation which are at least somewhat similar to what I mention in my original review, but there is a much more homogeneous appearance now overall. Low light scenes can still offer a rather chunky and at times near pixellated grain field, but in brightly lit moments, especially some of the stunning outdoor material, grain is very tightly resolved and looks great. The palette is beautifully suffused for the most part and HDR and/or Dolby Vision helps to bring new nuance to things like the burgundy outfit Sean Connery wears. Some of the "historical" material still looks like it was intentionally brightened at times, which can minimally detract from fine detail levels. One way or the other, this is perhaps a surprisingly strong upgrade for a film which had some problematic 1080 presentations in the past. My 4K UHD score is 4.25.

Highlander 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Highlander features DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 options. The DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 mix is surprisingly spry for its age, especially with regard to the great Queen song score, but it still lacks consistent surround activity that could have made it a knockout. While the fidelity and especially the dynamic range of this track is quite commendable, with thundering lows and absolutely no distortion or damage, dialogue scenes play resolutely front and center a lot of the time. There is some nice ambient environmental noise and great sound effects, especially in the historically placed scenes, and LFE here is very impressive. But it's the Queen score where the lossless audio really reaches its full potential, with Freddie Mercury and the boys sounding fantastic. All of this said, like Svet, I actually prefer the DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 track, which provides a less dispersed accounting of the great Queen score while also offering more than capable support for dialogue and effects. Optional English and Spanish subtitles are available.

Highlander 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

This release duplicates the supplements that Svet covered in his previous reviews, and there's some more information in those reviews for anyone interested.

4K UHD Disc

• The Immortal Attraction of Highlander (HD; 56:20) is subtitled "Looking back at four decades of Highlander magic", and offers a really winning assortment of sometimes unexpected talking heads discussing various aspects of the film.


• A Kind of Magic: Music of the Immortals (HD; 14:25) focuses on the film's iconic score.


• Capturing Immortality (HD; 12:59) is an interview with photographer David James.


• There Can Only Be One Kurgan (HD; 14:20) is an interview with Clancy Brown.


• Audio Commentary with author John Melville


• Audio Commentary with Russell Mulcahy


• Audio Commentary with Russell Mulcahy, William Panzer and Peter Davis

1080 Disc

• Audio Commentary with Director Russell Mulcahy


• Interview with Director Russell Mulcahy (HD; 23:02)


• Interview with Christopher Lambert (HD; 20:35)


• The Making of Highlander (HD; 2:00:37) will be an amazing source of information for any of the film's fans. This deals with everything from pre-production to casting to filming and the film's legacy and includes a glut of interviews and lots of great behind the scenes footage.


• Deleted Scenes (HD; 6:13) have no audio and play to the film's score.


• Archival Interview with Christopher Lambert (HD; 8:54)


• Trailer (HD; 2:31)

Highlander 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Why do certain films attain cult status after their release? In the case of Highlander, it's even harder to fathom than it usually is. This is a film with an intriguing concept, great bridging sequences, but some absolutely leaden dialogue and performances, especially by star Christopher Lambert. If an immortal Scotsman traipsing through 16th century Scotland and 20th century New York is your plate of haggis, Highlander is probably must-see cinema, and fans of the film will most likely be generally well pleased with both its 1080 and 2160 presentations here, along with some really excellent supplements. Recommended.