Fright Night Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		3.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		4.0
Overall		3.5

Fright Night Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman January 31, 2015

It’s been a kind of interesting parlor game to guess and/or watch which titles in Twilight Time’s “limited edition” model sell out. Thus far, it’s been mostly science fiction and/or horror outings which have flown off the virtual shelves. Twilight Time is returning to the vault to re-release at least some of their previously licensed material which sold out the first time, with both Fright Night (which has indeed sold out again) and Journey to the Center of the Earth being offered—at least for a little while, anyway—to eager consumers who didn’t “make the cut” the first time. Journey to the Center of the Earth is reportedly going to feature a newly restored master and transfer, but Fright Night was (again, reportedly) sourced from the same master as the first release, though in this new “30th Anniversary” edition Blu-ray, augmented with new supplementary material. While the master may have been the same, it does appear that the encode is different (as will be discussed below in the video section of the review), something that has once again raised a virtual firestorm of controversy about perceived flaws in the video presentation. In other words: another month, another new Twilight Time release.

This review will focus exclusively on the video/audio components as well as listing the new supplementary material. For more information on the film, please see our original Fright Night Blu-ray review.

Fright Night Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Fright Night returns to Blu-ray with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.40:1. I took quite a bit of heat for my score on the original release (what else is new?), especially considering that it was reportedly sourced from a high-res (4K) scan. The first release was certainly strong, but I still found some issues with crush and a somewhat soft overall appearance. This new release looks a bit brighter to my eyes, something that actually helps bring out detail overall and especially in the many darker sequences, while also helping to make grain more visible. Clarity and sharpness are about where they were in the first release, as can be seen by comparing screenshots in the two reviews (I've attempted to duplicate at least some of the same frames, more or less, for an easier side by side comparison). The biggest bugaboo that has overtaken our Forum over the past few days are a number of anomalies that are "new" to this release (i.e., they were not present in the first Blu-ray put out by Twilight Time). Utilizing freeze frame and frame advance through these problem areas does in fact disclose some minor macroblocking, though I have to say when watching the film in motion, the anomalies don't manifest as traditional macroblocking and instead tend to show up as flashes of what almost looks like webbing, a distraction that typically lasts for a second, if even that. The most noticeable example of this for me is at around 23:19 where some rather small instances of macroblocking can be seen on the pant leg of Chris Sarandon as the camera pans up toward his face. Screenshot 19 provides an example of this, though it has to be noted that only way I could get even this much of the anomaly was to pause the image and then frame advance (for that reason you will see the PS3 pause icon on this screenshot). If you look around Sarandon's knee line, you can see the artifacts. Is it noticeable? Yes. Is it a deal killer? For me personally, no, but as a wise man once said, your mileage may vary. There are a number of other occurrences of much the same thing, including at around 43:28 in, again, another panning scene across some clocks, where the macroblocking can be seen on the wall between some of the timepieces. All of these instances are typically very brief, to the point that as mentioned above I had to actually pause the film and frame advance to isolate them. I'll simply go on record here to state that it seems pointless to either debate the existence of the problem or conversely to go all Chicken Little on the issue, seeing the anomalies as the latest sign of the apocalypse. It's a transitory issue that will bother some viewers more than others, much like the anomalies seen in last month's apocalypse portending release by Twilight Time, Heaven & Earth.

Fright Night Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The 5.1 audio option included on this new Blu-ray mimics the one on the first release, to the point that I heard no appreciable difference between them. This release includes a new DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 audio option that reproduces the original theatrical exhibition, offering good if not outstanding separation and excellent fidelity. My comments on the audio quality of the first release's 5.1 mix are repeated here:

Fright Night features a lossless DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 mix that may not offer incredible surround activity but which sports excellent fidelity and some actually surprising dynamic range. Dialogue and even effects tend to be anchored front and center, though a couple of great sequences, including the first battle between Jerry and Charley in Charley's bedroom have some nicely placed discrete channel effects. Everything is cleanly and clearly presented here, and Brad Fiedel's score (also available as an isolated track) percolates along very nicely.

Fright Night Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• 1st Ever Fright Night Reunion Panel - Fear Fest 2 (2008) with Tom Holland, Chris Sarandon, William Ragsdale, Stephen Geoffreys, Amanda Bearse, Jonathan Stark and Moderated by Rob Galluzzo (480i; 54:32). The title pretty much says it all.


• Shock Till You Drop Presents Choice Cuts with Tom Holland and Ryan Turek includes:

  Part One (480i; 10:42)

  Part Two (480i; 6:52)

  Part Three (480i; 10:44)

• Vintage EPK with Behind the Scenes Raw Footage (480i; 1:34:52) is sourced from an old video master (replete with "DVD Play" still showing at the beginning), with a timecode caption.


• Stills and Memorabilia Gallery from the Tom Holland Archive (1080p)


• Original Theatrical Trailer "G" Rating (1080p; 1:23)


• Original Theatrical Trailer "R" Rating (1080p; 1:26)


• Audio Commentary with Writer/Director Tom Holland, Actors Chris Sarandon & Jonathan Stark, Moderated by Filmmaker Tim Sullivan


• Audio Commentary with Writer/Director Tom Holland, Actors William Ragsdale & Stephen Geoffreys, FX Artist Randall Cook, and Moderated by Journalist Jeremy Smith and Filmmaker Tim Sullivan


• Isolated Score Track is presented in DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0.

Fright Night Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

As my dear, departed Ma used to say, "Life isn't fair," and likewise neither are Blu-ray releases. Home theater enthusiasts always hope for (and often demand) perfection, but it's an often elusive quest. With that in mind, is this "new, improved" Fright Night perfect, or even an improvement? Well the answer to the first part is easy: no, there are imperfections here. Personally I wasn't overly bothered by the compression issues, though I also have to state that they were easily visible on screens ranging from 44 to 72 inches. I preferred the somewhat brighter look to this version, as it offered incrementally more detail throughout. The supplemental package on this release is also heads and shoulders above the first release. It's kind of a moot point since this second release has already sold out, but for what it's worth and taken as a whole with caveats noted, Fright Night comes Recommended.