Leaving Las Vegas 4K Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		5.0
Video		0.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		5.0
Overall		5.0

Leaving Las Vegas 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov May 18, 2026

Mike Figgis' "Leaving Las Vegas" (1995) arrives on 4K Blu-ray courtesy of StudioCanal. The supplemental features on the release include new audio commentary by Mike Figgis; archival documentary; archival interviews with Nicolas Cage, Elisabeth Shue, Julian Sands, and Mike Figgis; deleted scene; and more. In English, with optional English SDH, German, and French subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.

It is easy to label many of the films Nicolas Cage has made during the last couple of decades as bad. It is because they are. But the same can be said about the majority of the films many other Hollywood A-listers have made during the last couple of decades. It is just the way the film business is these days. It is dominated by bad, made-for-quick-consumption via streaming platforms, projects that are required to check a lot of boxes, meet many quotas, and if one wants to make a living while in it, one has to be willing to do them. It is the naked truth. It is why Hollywood is broken now.

However, it is even easier to declare that Cage has remained one of only a few A-listers who continue to gamble with unorthodox parts in films that aspire to be original -- or at least as much as Hollywood allows these days. Cage has even gone overseas to make them. Some of these films have been misfires, too. However, several are genuine bangers because of the incredible performances Cage gives in them, and a few of them are now rightfully labeled as contemporary cult classics.

Before streaming broke Hollywood, Cage again gambled with unorthodox parts, and arguably the best of them emerged from Mike Figgis’ Leaving Las Vegas. In it, Cage is not the only actor who shines in a truly special way, but it would not be an exaggeration to declare that his performance now makes it easy to argue that Leaving Las Vegas may very well be the best film the 1990s left us. Indeed, before Figgis’ camera, Cage is astonishing, and in every possible way an actor could be.

In a working-class suburb of Los Angeles, failed screenwriter and hardcore alcoholic Ben Sanderson (Cage) begins the final chapter of his life story. He cleans up his house and places all personal belongings connected in some way to the family he has lost in several trash bags, burns his passport, and jumps in his car. Then, after quickly moving through the city’s notorious traffic, he heads to Las Vegas, determined to drink himself to death.

Somewhere near the Strip, Sanderson, already mildly boozed up, nearly hits Sera (Elisabeth Shue), a sexy streetwalker, and, following a short interaction, hires her to give him a good time. Instead of making love in his hotel room, the two then spend the entire night talking and comforting each other, with Sanderson also boozing as much as he can. In the days ahead, Sanderson steals Sera’s heart, reluctantly agrees to move to her apartment, and, for a short period of time, the two begin acting like a somewhat normal couple. However, Sanderson refuses to abandon his plan to drink himself to death, and Sera is forced to rethink her relationship with her Latvian pimp (Julian Sands) after he becomes a target for the Russian mafia.

Cage’s character is like James Caan’s character from Karel Reisz’s The Gambler. They are both hardcore junkies. Only their fix is different. Cage’s character drinks, while Caan’s character gambles. Unsurprisingly, they both slide into the same abyss where all hardcore junkies self-destruct.

What makes the slide of Cage’s character into the abyss different is that it lights up the space around it, where other miserable souls, like the streetwalker, are also gambling with their lives. Because of him, it is easy to see them, and it is even easier to realize that they have simply chosen a longer route to get to the bottom of the abyss.

The final thirty minutes are heartbreaking. The more Cage’s character drinks, the clearer it becomes that hardcore junkies like him cannot be saved. Their addiction is a lot stronger than love, happiness, and everything else that makes a life worth living.

Leaving Las Vegas 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

StudioCanal's 4K Blu-ray release of Leaving Las Vegas does not have a Blu-ray copy of the film. If you need one, you must consider acquiring this release.

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 #1-22 are taken from the Blu-ray.
Screencaptures #29-34 are taken from the 4K Blu-ray.

The release presents the new 4K restoration of Leaving Las Vegas, sourced from the original Super 16mm camera negative, completed at Duplitech and graded by colorists Blake David-Blasingame and Dave Lewis under the supervision of Mike Figgis. In native 4K, the 4K restoration can be viewed with Dolby Vision and HDR grades. I chose to view it with HDR. Also, I viewed the entire 4K restoration in 1080 on the Blu-ray linked above.

I have several older Blu-ray releases of Leaving Las Vegas, including this Region-B Blu-ray release, also produced by StudioCanal in 2016. I also have in my library Shout Factory's American 4K Blu-ray release. I used these releases to do only a couple of quick comparisons.

The 4K restoration and its native 4K and 1080p presentations are the definitive upgrades all fans of Leaving Las Vegas have been wanting to materialize for a very long time. First, the 4K restoration is expertly done, giving the film a very faithful, wonderfully fresh new appearance. Obviously, it retains the many fluctuations affecting clarity and depth introduced by the original cinematography, virtually all of which are now even easier to recognize. However, it is just as easy to see the many great upgrades in delineation, clarity, and depth that emerge elsewhere. On a large screen, these improvements can be enormously impressive even in darker areas, where most of the time light tends to be restricted in specific ways. Color reproduction and balance are outstanding. I have multiple theatrical experiences with Leaving Las Vegas because it is one of my all-time favorite films from the 1990s, and I could not be happier with how the new 4K restoration was graded. Also, while the HDR grade helps some of the colorful footage look even richer, the 1080p presentation is a jaw-dropper as well. It is a great upgrade in quality over the older 1080p presentation. There are no traces of any problematic digital corrections. Image stability is outstanding. The entire film looks immaculate as well.

Leaving Las Vegas 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are three standard audio tracks on this release: English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1, German DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1, and French LPCM 2.0. Optional English SDH, German, and French subtitles are provided for the main feature.

The American 4K Blu-ray release of Leaving Las Vegas features a Dolby Atmos track. This release does not have one, but I do not think that this is an issue. I like the DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track a lot. It produces rich, very well-rounded, and very healthy audio that sounds great. Also, I performed several comparisons between the 5.1 track on this release and the 5.1 track from the old Blu-ray release I have. In some areas, the new 5.1 track sounds fuller, though it is hard to tell if it is because it is encoded differently or something specific may have been tweaked when the new 4K master was created.

Leaving Las Vegas 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Commentary - in this exclusive new audio commentary, Mike Figgis discusses in great detail how different sections of Leaving Las Vegas were put together and then arranged in the final version of the film, and confesses that he sympathizes with Nicolas Cage's miserable character for a good reason. Figgis also reveals that he has never worked with another actor who was as "utterly focused" as Cage, and comments on the difficult sex scenes that Elisabeth Shue had to do and make them look authentic. Later in the commentary, Figgis also shares interesting information about the look of Leaving Las Vegas and the stock that was used to shoot it.

• Making of Featurette - this short archival featurette has clips from interviews with director Mike Figgis, Nicolas Cage, and Elisabeth Shue. In English, not subtitled. (6 min).

• B-Roll - presented here is B-Roll footage from the shooting of the film in Las Vegas. In English, not subtitled. (11 min).

• The Shoot - this long archival program examines the conception and production of Leaving Las Vegas. Included in it are clips from interviews with Mike Figgis, executive producer Stuart Regen, executive producer Paige Simpson, Nicolas Cage, and Elisabeth Shue, amongst others. Also included in the program is plenty of raw footage from the shooting of the film in Las Vegas. In English, not subtitled. (62 min).

• Deleted Scene - presented here is a rare deleted scene with Jessica Alba. In English, not subtitled. (2 min).

• Interviews - presented here are four short archival interviews with Nicolas Cage, Elisabeth Shue, Julian Sands, and Mike Figgis. The interviewees discuss some of the film's main themes, its atmosphere, the nature of the relationship between Ben and Sera, etc. In English, not subtitled.
  
  1. Nicolas Cage (4 min).
  2. Elisabeth Shue (4 min).
  3. Julian Sands (3 min)
  4. Mike Figgis (4 min).

• Booklet - a 20-page illustrated booklet with writing on the film and technical credits.

Leaving Las Vegas 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

In Mike Figgis' Leaving Las Vegas, a lot of great things happen in ways they no longer can in new films. However, it is Nicolas Cage's extraordinary performance that makes it easy to argue that Leaving Las Vegas may very well be the best film the 1990s left us. I am a superfan of it and could not be happier with the 4K restoration that was prepared under Figgis' supervision. It is very, very faithful and jaw-droppingly gorgeous. StudioCanal presents the 4K restoration on 4K Blu-ray and Blu-ray, with a very nice selection of bonus features, one of which is a new audio commentary by Figgis. If you can afford only one release this month, grab Leaving Las Vegas for your collection. VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.