Krull 4K Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		2.5
Overall		4.0

Krull 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

"The reward is freedom! And fame!"

Reviewed by Kenneth Brown September 25, 2025

Mill Creek Entertainment first released director Peter Yates and screenwriter Stanford Sherman's 'Krull' on Blu-ray via a barebones Blu-ray in 2014 that didn't offer any extras whatsoever. Enter 2025's Sony. Not only is 'Krull' granted a solid new 4K remaster, it also features Dolby Atmos audio, SteelBook packaging, and several special features, including two audio commentaries. The 1983 fantasy/adventure film stars Ken Marshall, Lysette Anthony, Freddie Jones, Francesca Annis, Alun Armstrong, David Battley, Liam Neeson and Robbie Coltraine.

"I too was young once. I too loved as you do. But your love will be luckier than mine. What I told you was that I knew how to find the fortress and that is by seeking the vision of the blind emerald seer... it is known to me. It is a day's journey from here. Come."

Prophecy foretells of a prince and princess who shall marry. She shall become queen, he king, and their son shall rule the universe. On the day of Colwynn (Ken Marshall) and Lyssa's (Lysette Anthony) wedding, a great evil strikes. The world is attacked by "the slayers," evildoers under the control of the powerful "beast." Lyssa is taken prisoner and Colwynn barely escapes with his life. He sets out to rescue Lyssa. He must first ascend a treacherous mountain and locate a powerful weapon known as "the Glaive." Once he recovers it, he teams up with a ragtag bunch, including a magician named Ergo (David Battley), a cyclops (Bernard Bresslaw), and a band of criminals led by a man named Torquil (Alun Armstrong). It will require their combined skills and wills to survive all the dangers that await.

Click here to read the rest of Martin Liebman's review of Krull, which he says "doesn't accomplish much more than putting some Sci-Fi makeup on the classic "Quest" film but does so with a self-assuredness, a spring in its step, and its tongue lightly planted in its cheek." Adding, "the end result is a catchy, enjoyable romp through basic Fantasy adventure that comes with all of the requisite stumbling blocks... that make the adventure tough on the heroes and entertaining for the audience."

Krull 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Ah, early '80s fantasy. You could essentially show any cinephile worth his or her salt a single frame from a 1980s fantasy adventure film and they could immediately identify the decade and the genre. Krull is no different, offering a whirlwind tour of every lovely visual flourish that make the fantasy epics of yesteryear such beloved fan and cult favorites. Of course, the era presents a host of challenges to modern restorations and remasters; challenges Sony handles in stride and with the utmost faithfulness. Softness abounds, as does the often unsightly nature of heavily composited fx sequences, but, thankfully, the studio continues to thumb its nose at any effort to revise history. Krull's 4K presentation is stunning at times, particularly when actors are simply given leave to act and characters converse with one another. At other times, the film looks... less than due to the limitations of the original source material and wholly optical nature of the photography. But for those who love when a studio commits to a faithful remastering of a movie as it was made and was meant to be seen, there's little to complain about here. Colors are warm and skintones convincing, saturation is spot on, black levels are deep yet forgiving (delineation is quite good), and contrast leveling grants the presentation a perfectly filmic aesthetic. Grain hasn't been scrubbed and the image boasts a natural, well-resolved appearance.

Overall detail is just as remarkable. Edge definition is unassuming but exacting, with crisp edges and zero hint of ringing. Fine textures are satisfying on the whole and notably revealing, with faces, stubble and beards, costume textiles and cyclopsian prosthetics faring as beautifully as is conceivably possible. Yes, darker scenes suffer from reduced clarity and softness is a rather constant issue that rears its head again and again, typically the moment you forget how invasive it can be, but it is and has always been the way of things with Krull. Moreover, the negative has been cleansed of any specks, print wear, damage or nicks, and the encode doesn't exhibit any signs of significant blocking, banding or errant digital noise. This is easily the best the film has ever looked and is likely the best it ever will. Fans of the film will be particularly delighted at Sony's unerring respect for the original source and happily overlook every inherent eyesore to enjoy the high quality results.

Krull 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Krull's Dolby Atmos track (not to mention its Dolby TrueHD 7.1 core and the disc's DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 surround track) do a spectacular job bringing the film's fantasy soundscape and triumphant adventure score into the 21st century. No, Krull doesn't sound like a film made anytime within the last ten years, but its retention of the nostalgic high notes of '80s fantasy is much appreciated. As faithful as its video presentation, the Atmos audio spreads the subtleties of the movie's environmental ambience around the soundfield, and without over-emphasizing elements to the point of sounding false or overly modern. LFE output is strong without being too aggressive, offering weighty low-end heft but never at the expense of the original sound design. The rear speakers infuse Krull's world with life too, playing with directional touches that expand the spatial nature of catacombs, caverns and castles nicely. Overheads are weak but that tends to be the way of things with audio restorations and remasters of the era. Thankfully, dialogue is intelligible and neatly grounded in the mix, despite the slight tinniness that haunts the mixes of the 1980s. Far more nostalgic than disappointing, though, it's merely par for the course and should in no way register as a problem. Atmos audio is probably a bit overkill for a flick like Krull, but why not? I can't imagine it ever sounding better than it does here.

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

• Audio Commentaries - Two commentaries are included with the 4K release of Krull, although the second track isn't quite what I would call a commentary. Featuring a narrator reading the entirety of "Cinefantastique" magazine article from 1982, this unique curiosity is a bit more hype than production deep-dive, and only lasts for 72 minutes. Still, there's a quaint nostalgia to the reading and the film's coverage that certainly makes it worth a listen, if only to remind oneself just how ambitious the movie and impressive the effects were in their day.
  
  The actual audio commentary available for the film brings together director Peter Yates, actors Ken Marshall and Lysette Anthony, and editor Ray Lovejoy for a more comprehensive trip behind the scenes. Touching on virtually all aspects of the production, the four cast and crew members serve up a decidedly decent overview of things, with plenty of anecdotes to keep things interesting.

• Journey to Krull (SD, 22 minutes) - A fairly promotional behind-the-scenes featurette that adds a little more to the set's look into the making of the film. It's a vintage extra, though, so don't expect anything too noteworthy.

• Original Theatrical Trailer (HD, 2 minutes)

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

Krull isn't a bonafide classic but continues to earn its cult cred with a fun, relatively inventive trek through the tropes and cliches of high concept '80s fantasy. Sure, it's outdated and more than shows its age. No one will mistake it for anything other than a film from 1983. But between its sincere performances, memorable characters, now-cheesy fx and rousing score, there's more here than meets the eye. Perhaps you need to have seen it as a child to appreciate its finer qualities -- nostalgia is a powerful force -- but I can't help but continue to be enamored with what it was in its day and the memories it brings to mind with its often too-familiar showdown between good and evil. Sony's 4K UltraHD Blu-ray release is far better too thanks to an excellent restoration, utterly faithful yet rejuvenated video presentation, solid audio package and decent extras. Come for the cheese, stay for the adventure. Either way, you'll have little to complain about as far as the AV quality is concerned and more than enough to discover in the wild world of Krull.