Ghost 4K Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.5
Audio		3.5
Extras		2.0
Overall		3.5

Ghost 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Paramount has released 1990s smash paranormal love story film 'Ghost,' directed by Jerry Zucker and starring Patrick Swayze, Demi Moore, Whoopi Goldberg, and Tony Goldwyn, to the UHD format. New specifications include 2160p/Dolby Vision video. As is Paramount's standard practice, this release merely ports over the existing Dolby TrueHD 5.1 lossless soundtrack from the previous Blu-ray editions: chiefly the original 2008 Blu-ray and the more recent 2020 issue, the latter of which was part of the prestigious 'Paramount Presents' line. That disc is included in this set and it houses all of this release's supplemental content. No new extras are included.

Ghost 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The included screenshots are sourced from the UHD disc output at 1080p. They are not representative of the UHD/Dolby Vision image you will see on your screen.

Paramount has now released Ghost to the UHD format, and it has certainly been near the top of many film fans' wish lists for several years now, mine included. Paramount's original Blu-ray was certainly adequate back in the day, and its "Paramount Presents" issue represented a nice upgrade and was itself a very sturdy, reliable image. How much does the UHD improve on Paramount's best Blu-ray offering? Maybe not significantly, but certainly enough to make a clear difference and make this UHD the clear winner in that comparison battle.

The 2160p UHD builds on the fine foundation that the "Paramount Presents" Blu-ray offered. It retains that healthy, film-like image that holds true and crisp, supported by an organic and pleasing grain structure that has a few fluctuations in density here and there but is at least consistent in its presence and its support of the natural film element looks. The UHD does manage to bring amplified clarity to essentially every frame of the film, boasting superior textures around the city, which are so vital to the film, especially in some of the gritty streets, apartment exteriors, some of the rough indoor areas like Lopez's apartment, and also in some of better furnished and more nicely appointed locales, like the bank office where Sam worked and Carl still works and the home Sam builds with Molly. All of these textures are very crisp and well resolved, as are facial features and clothing textures. Ghost is not the most naturally sharp film ever produced, but the UHD more than does the film elements justice and improves on the Blu-ray enough to deliver a very good, crisp, and consistently satisfying image.

The Dolby Vision color grading offers noticeable gains in tonal depth and density but it is not a radical departure for the film. Sam's wine colored shirt, for example, show a little more color accuracy but it's not fundamentally altered from the Blu-ray. The urban grays are a little more dense and lifelike, and even in some of the low light shadow elements, like the scene in which Sam is murdered, offer superior black levels next to the Blu-ray, better shadow detail, and more color nuance to the low light urban hues in the background where the lighting is a little better. White balance is much better here, too, with cars, stripes on the road, clothes, and other white content seeing an improvement to accuracy and brightness. Skin tones are very healthy and naturally occurring as well. Dolby Vision does not rewrite the film's coloring, but it definitely brings it home in a way that the Blu-ray's SDR palette cannot.

The encode is very good; there are no obvious examples of struggle and no introduction of unwanted anomalies into the picture. The print is clean beyond a few trace pops here and there which are of the blink-and-miss variety and very low in frequency. This is a near pristine presentation of the film. It's not a demo UHD but it definitely puts the film's best foot forward. Fans will enjoy it for years to come.

Ghost 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

For this new UHD release of Ghost, Paramount has customarily repurposed the Blu-ray discs' Dolby TrueHD 5.1 lossless soundtrack. For a full audio review, please click here; note that this points back to the original 2008 release.

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

This UHD release of Ghost includes all of the supplemental features on the included Blu-ray disc, which is identical to the disc released back in 2020 as part of the 'Paramount Presents' line. The UHD disc proper contains no supplements. Below is a listing of what's included. Please click here for full coverage of the original Blu-ray's supplements and here for a few words on the extra that was new to the 2020 issue. Note that this is marked as the 8th in the 'Paramount Presents' line, which was the number assigned to the 2020 release.

• Filmmaker Focus: Director Jerry Zucker on Ghost
• Ghost Stories: The Making of a Classic
• Alchemy of a Love Scene
• Theatrical Trailer
• Audio Commentary

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

Ghost is a classic that has received a very good UHD release, boasting superior 2160p/Dolby Vision video that refines the excellent 2020 Blu-ray and offers audience what is easily the best the film has ever looked at home and one that will remain the best look for the film for many years. The legacy audio and extras remain strong. Highly recommended!