The Yeti Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		2.5
Video		4.5
Audio		5.0
Extras		0.5
Overall		2.5

The Yeti Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman May 14, 2026

The back cover of this release touts the fact that The Yeti "hearkens back to a time when monster movies were king", and putting aside any quaint use or spelling of "hearken", the film does in fact mirror venerable monster movies from the veritable days of yore by not showing audiences much of anything in terms of a titular creature until the final reel, and then only fleetingly. The story here is predictable in any number of ways, not just in its foundational setup of a big, bad beastie traipsing around "Alaska Territory" in 1947 and taking out various interlopers, but its whole ecological subtext, which once again casts an ostensible "monster" as simply a natural creature attempting to live peacefully in its own environment until, you know, humans (and oil executives at that) start showing up.

If The Yeti is supposedly an homage to monster movies from a bygone age, a frankly weird semi-comical "newsreel" early on kind of deliberately creates a tonal disjunction that may be just the first of several potential stumbling points. That happens after a potentially confusing set of opening vignettes that may or may not have anything to do with each other (I'm frankly still unsure), but which at least document the fact that something is going boom out in the nighttime Alaskan wilderness. With missing explorers then announced via that seemingly intentionally silly newsreel, a rescue mission including several characters who are themselves arguably on the intentionally or unintentionally comic side (you know you're in trouble when one intrepid investigator sports a Phantom of the Opera -esque face mask you just know is going to get ripped off for a shock effect) foray into isolated Alaskan territory and, well, you can probably guess what happens next.

The Yeti provides a couple of very bloody and gory kills, but it never works up much suspense (why do potential victims always walk backwards into mist laden environments where carnage has already occurred?). The human performers are all hobbled by writing that is often half baked, leaving characterizations intermittently haphazard, but the film does better with some of its practical effects. Yes, there's no denying glimpses of the titular monster are few and far between, but they're decently real looking, for whatever that's worth. Seeming nods to everything from The Thing from Another World (and/or The Thing) to King Kong (and/or. . .well, you know) may only tend to point out that sometimes homages can simply come off as derivative.

The Yeti Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The Yeti is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Well Go USA with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.39:1. The IMDb doesn't really have any technical information as of the writing of this review, but I found both this and this interview with cinematographer Joel Froome where he offers a glut of background and context, including the use of the Arri Alexa Mini LF. Whatever narrative lapses the film may have it's really rather stylishly shot by Froome and co-directed by Gene Gallerano and William Pisciotta, and this 1080 presentation, while often intentionally hazy (as overtly referenced in the above linked reviews) still delivers some really appealing fine detail levels on things like parka fur or, well, Yeti fur. There is some very evocative grading and lighting utilized which ranges from ice cold blues to rather interestingly some more burnished oranges and yellows.

The Yeti Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The Yeti has a fun DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track that kind of unabashedly exploits venerable monster movie tropes with things like LFE startle effects suddenly booming out of nowhere, as happens repeatedly in those aforementioned opening vignettes, but also later. The beast's maybe slightly guffaw worthy grunting and huffing is also nicely positioned in several key sequences to help create an enveloping feeling of anxiety. The supposed outdoor setting also provides good engagement of the side and rear channels for ambient environmental effects. Dialogue is rendered without any issues. Optional English and French subtitles are available.

The Yeti Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Trailer (HD; 2:09)

Packaging features a slipcover.

The Yeti Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

The Universe and/or whatever or Whomever is in charge of such things continues to have a sense of humor with regard to my review queue, as this film came directly after The Himalayan, a relatively early Golden Harvest martial arts "epic" that somewhat hilariously overtly mentions the Yeti in its trailer (that film has no such beast, though one of the other early Golden Harvest outings 88 Films is releasing in tandem with The Himalayan, The Angry River does in fact feature an unabashedly comical rubber suited Lizard Man). The story here is pretty hackneyed from a number of angles, but the stylish visual and audio presentations may be enough for genre aficionados to check this out.