A History of Violence 4K Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		3.5
Audio		5.0
Extras		4.0
Overall		3.5

A History of Violence 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov October 29, 2025

David Cronenberg's "A History of Violence" (2005) arrives on 4K Blu-ray courtesy of Criterion. The supplemental features on the release include new program with screenwriter Josh Olson; archival audio commentary by David Cronenberg; archival documentary on the making of the film; footage from the Cannes Film Festival; vintage trailer; and more. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.

The Indiana man

David Cronenberg’s A History of Violence delivers the same message Jose Giovanni’s Boomerang does. A criminal who lives long enough to rethink his lifestyle and gather the courage to walk away from it is scarred forever by his past. It is irrelevant how hard the criminal attempts to become a new man. Sooner or later, his past will boomerang and reinsert itself into his life.

In the sleepy town of Millbrook, Indiana, Tom Stall (Viggo Mortensen) leads a simple, seemingly perfect life. He owns a small diner and makes enough to feed his family. His wife, Edie (Maria Bello), loves him, has a flexible job, and looks after their teenage son and younger daughter. They have a small but perfect home, far enough from the nearest neighbors to make it appear as if it were on a private island.

But on a day like any other day, Stall unexpectedly becomes a local hero, and his seemingly perfect life is instantly and irreversibly shattered. It happens after a couple of traveling killers (Greg Bryk, Stephen McHattie) enter the diner, threatening to expand their legacy, and Stall, much to the dismay of his employees and a few customers, expertly takes out both. A day later, Stall is then visited by a couple of out-of-towners, and one of them, a man with an ugly facial scar and a permanently damaged eye (Ed Harris), engages him, insisting that his real name is Joey and implying they have a history from years back in Philadelphia. Initially, Stall politely brushes off the visitor, telling him that he has made a mistake, but when his persistence threatens the safety of his family, he engages him, and all hell breaks loose.

The narrative is broken into three acts, each revealing a different side of Stall's quickly evolving identity. Unfortunately, all three acts are riddled with seemingly countless cliches that create various ridiculous situations, and as Stall moves through them, dodging different threats, it routinely looks as if someone is gauging Mortensen’s ability to protect his integrity. It is difficult to watch at times because Mortensen’s lines and long facial expressions are rarely effective in revealing the consequences of the supposedly intense internal psychological battle that Stall is trying to win while facing enemies from his past. Needless to say, in all three acts, there are artificial contrasts galore.

The finale is impossible to describe as anything but comical. William Hurt emerges as a supposedly tough crime boss from Philadelphia who behaves as if he is expected to earn a spot in an upcoming Quentin Tarantino project. Mortensen confronts him, but seemingly while following instructions to leave a lasting impression in an impeccably realistic, unforgettably mean project. The disconnect is so obvious that it makes the finale look like an extract from a parody, repeatedly edited by different people with different ideas about how it should wrap up the film.

There is graphic material that does not add anything of value, but this is to be expected given Cronenberg’s involvement.

*Two slightly different versions of the film exist. However, the short footage that makes them unique features only alternate and ultimately meaningless shots, which Cronenberg addresses in an archival program. This release presents a new 4K makeover of the International Version.

A History of Violence 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Criterion's release of A History of Violence is a 4K Blu-ray/Blu-ray combo pack. The 4K Blu-ray is Region-Free. However, the Blu-ray is Region-A "locked".

Please note that some of the screencaptures included with this article are taken from the 4K Blu-ray and downscaled to 1080p. Therefore, they do not accurately reflect the quality of the 4K content on the 4K Blu-ray disc.

Screencaptures #1-28 are taken from Blu-ray.
Screencaptures #31-38 are taken from the 4K Blu-ray.

The following text appears inside the leaflet provided with this release:

"Supervised by director of photography Peter Suschitzky and approved by director David Cronenberg, this new 4K restoration was created from the 35mm original camera negative and a 2K digital intermediate. The original 5.1 soundtrack was remastered from the digital master audio files.

Mastering supervisors: Lee Kline, Giles Sherwood.
Colorist: Greg Fisher/Company 3, London.
Image restoration: Prasad Corporation, Burbank, California.
Audio restoration: The Criterion Collection."

In native 4K, the 4K makeover can be viewed with Dolby Vision and HDR grades. I chose to view it with Dolby Vision. Later, I spent time with its 1080p presentation on the Blu-ray.

A History of Violence made its high-definition debut with this Blu-ray release in 2009, which offered a very problematic presentation of it. For this reason, I do not think that there is any need to compare the original presentation and the new presentation (in native 4K or 1080p).

The 4K makeover produces strikingly healthy and very stable visuals that look great in native 4K and 1080p. All visuals maintain impressive density levels as well, so even on a very large screen, their quality continues to impress. I thought that the Dolby Vision grade was effective and carefully managed not to produce issues in darker areas. After testing several such areas in native 4K and 1080p, I think that both presentations reveal equally pleasing details and nuances. I did not notice any traces of problematic digital corrections in native 4K and 1080p. Color balance is stable. However, the film has been regraded and now large areas of it, typically featuring outdoor footage, favor a soft/creamy yellow that overwhelms and/or eliminates some primaries and nuances that were visible on its theatrical presentation. Primary blue and different ranges of grays are affected the most. I must mention that the regrading is a lot easier to tolerate in darker indoor and nighttime footage, where soft/creamy yellow is essentially missing, but even there, some ranges of blues shift toward turquoise. All of these changes combined give the entire film a much warmer, somewhat artificially stylized, new appearance. I did not notice any encoding anomalies to report in our review.

A History of Violence 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this release: English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature.

The lossless 5.1 track enhances numerous seemingly random sounds and noises -- like the crushing bones in one of the edited bits that David Cronenberg discusses -- incredibly well, so there is a great deal of variety that audiophiles will surely appreciate. The action footage where rifles and guns are fired sounds terrific as well. Howard Shore's music adds to the desired atmosphere in some places, but its role remains supportive. I did not notice any encoding anomalies to report in our review.

A History of Violence 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

4K BLU-RAY DISC

• Commentary - in this archival commentary, David Cronenberg explains in great detail how various sequences from A History of Violence were shot, why certain editing choices were made, and how key contrasts in the narrative are managed. Cronenberg also has some interesting observations about Viggo Mortensen's character, and specifically his body language and facial expressions, and specific lensing choices he made not to give up too much of Joey's personality, as well as why violence and sex are portrayed in the film in a specific manner. The commentary was recorded in 2005.

BLU-RAY DISC

• Commentary - in this archival commentary, David Cronenberg explains in great detail how various sequences from A History of Violence were shot, why certain editing choices were made, and how key contrasts in the narrative are managed. Cronenberg also has some interesting observations about Viggo Mortensen's character, and specifically his body language and facial expressions, and specific lensing choices he made not to give up too much of Joey's personality, as well as why violence and sex are portrayed in the film in a specific manner. The commentary was recorded in 2005.

• Josh Olson with Tom Bernardo - in this new program, writer-producer Tom Bernardo and screenwriter Josh Olson discuss John Wagner's graphic novel that inspired A History of Violence. Olson also comments on the evolution of its characters and their representation in his screenplay. The program was produced for Criterion in 2025. In English, not subtitled. (33 min).

• Acts of Violence - this archival documentary takes a closer look at the production of A History of Violence. Included in it are clips from interviews with David Cronenberg, screenwriter Josh Olson, cinematographer Peter Suschitzky, Viggo Mortensen, Stephen McHattie, and Greg Bryk, amongst others. The documentary was produced by Carolyn Zeifman in 2005. In English, not subtitled. (67 min).

• David Cronenberg and Viggo Mortensen - presented here is a filmed excerpt from an interview with David Cronenberg and Viggo Mortensen conducted at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2014. Cronenberg and Mortensen discuss their professional relationship and collaboration on A History of Violence. In English, not subtitled. (34 min).

• Too Commercial for Cannes - a short program about David Cronenberg's trip to the Cannes Film Festival, where A History of Violence was nominated for the Palme d'Or. The program was produced by Carolyn Zeifman in 2006. In English, not subtitled. (9 min).

• Scene 44 - presented here is a scene that David Cronenberg chose not to include in the final version of A History of Violence. In the original commentary, Cronenberg discusses why, while the featurette documents the shooting of the scene. In English, not subtitled. (3 min).

• The Unmaking of Scene 44 - presented here is raw footage from the shooting of the scene, with David Cronenberg, Ed Harris, and producer Chris Bender are seen commenting on it. In English, not subtitled. (8 min).

• On the Versions - in this short archival program, David Cronenberg comments on the small changes that exist between the European and North American versions of A History of Violence. In English, not subtitled. (2 min).

• Trailer - presented here is a vintage trailer for A History of Violence. In English, not subtitled. (2 min).

• Leaflet - an illustrated leaflet featuring critic Nathan Lee's essay "Dead in the Eye", as well as technical credits.

A History of Violence 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

The two conventional crime films David Cronenberg and Viggo Mortensen have made, A History of Violence and Eastern Promises, are odd, even perplexing misfires. They are packed with good actors but produce characters looking like caricatures that usually roam free in genre parodies of the kind Quentin Tarantino loves to direct. This is a big problem because both are supposed to be gritty and, more importantly, authentic crime films. Criterion's combo pack brings a much-needed 4K makeover of A History of Violence, supervised by cinematographer Peter Suschitzky and approved by Cronenberg, on 4K Blu-ray and Blu-ray. However, those who went to see the film theatrically will quickly discover that the 4K makeover is, in some ways, a revisionist presentation of it.