8 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
Crafty railroad worker Bart becomes the first black sheriff of Rock Ridge, a frontier town about to be destroyed in order to make way for a new railroad. Initially, the people of Rock Ridge harbor a racial bias toward their new leader. However, they warm to him after realizing that Bart and his perpetually drunk gunfighter friend are the only defense against a wave of thugs sent to rid the town of its population.
Starring: Cleavon Little, Gene Wilder, Slim Pickens, Harvey Korman, Madeline KahnComedy | 100% |
Western | 32% |
Video codec: HEVC / H.265
Video resolution: 4K (2160p)
Aspect ratio: 2.39:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1
English: Dolby Atmos
English: Dolby TrueHD 7.1 (48kHz, 24-bit)
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono (48kHz, 24-bit)
French: Dolby Digital 5.1 (448 kbps)
Spanish: Dolby Digital 5.1 (448 kbps)
English SDH, French, Spanish
Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Digital copy
4K Ultra HD
Region A (B, C untested)
Movie | 4.0 | |
Video | 0.0 | |
Audio | 5.0 | |
Extras | 3.5 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
Offering alongside the standard 4K edition celebrating the film's 50th anniversary, Warner Bros.' new 4K Steelbook edition of Mel Brooks' Blazing Saddles offers a variant packaging alternative for die-hard fans and collectors alike. All on-disc content is exactly the same as that standard release, which makes this Steelbook a cosmetic upgrade only. ("Upgrade" is certainly debatable in this case, as both covers are nothing to write home about.)
NOTE: These slightly compressed screenshots are sourced from the new 4K disc but downscaled to 1080p/SDR; therefore, they should not be considered a 100% accurate representation of this release's video quality.
For my thoughts on Blazing Saddles' fairly impressive but not necessarily revelatory new 2160p/HDR10 transfer, please see my recent review of Warner Bros.' standard 4K edition.
For my thoughts on the inarguably great audio options (which yes, finally includes the original theatrical mono mix in lossless DTS-HD 2.0 Master Audio), please likewise see my review of the standard 4K edition.
This one-disc release ships in perhaps the most literally crafted Steelbook in recent memory and somehow looks even worse than the new cover for the standard 4K edition, proving that Warner Bros. is allergic to original poster artwork. As seen above, an actual blazing saddle adorns the front and eerily floats above a desolate landscape, whereas every other part of the release features scenes front the film including that nice interior spread where the 4K disc sits on a hub on the right side. If WB needs a designer for future Steelbook covers, I work cheap. Final verdict: meh.
The fairly well-rounded bonus features listed below are mostly sourced from previous releases including both Blu-rays and are all detailed in my recent review of the standard 4K edition.
Blazing Saddles was only Mel Brooks' third film and a huge hit back in 1974, scoring big at the box office and even earning three Academy Award nominations. (The same can be said for Young Frankenstein, released later that same year and also performing well with fans and critics.) Blazing Saddles considerable legacy has survived five full decades of increasingly sensitive social mores; in other words it still plays like gangbusters, which means that fans and first-timers alike should have no problem enjoying WB's welcome new 4K edition. I'll be honest in that this Steelbook variant is one of the worst-looking in recent memory, so my recommendation is to stick with the regular version instead.
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1974
40th Anniversary Edition
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40th Anniversary Edition
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25th Anniversary Edition
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10th Anniversary Edition
2008
Holy Schnike Edition
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