Lifeguard Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		2.0
Overall		4.0

Lifeguard Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov March 31, 2025

Daniel Petrie's "Lifeguard" (1976) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Imprint Films. The supplemental features on the release include new audio commentary by critics Scout Tafoya and Daniel Kremer and vintage trailer. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.

Tick, tick, tick. The clock keeps ticking equally fast for everyone, but Rick Carlson (Sam Elliott) refuses to grow old. He is in his late thirties and still doing the job he landed on the way to turning twenty. Carlson is a lifeguard on arguably the most beautiful beach in Los Angeles. He loves the smell of the ocean, the warm sun that each day plays with it, and all the people who come to the beach to have a good time or be weird. As far as Carlson is concerned, it is the ultimate job. It is like being on a permanent vacation at the best spot in Los Angeles and getting paid to be there.

But not everyone agrees with Carlson. When he occasionally visits his parents to have dinner with them, Carlson is inevitably reminded that it is time for him to act his age. This would mean getting a proper job, finding a decent wife, starting a family and providing for it. Even putting money aside, like all sane people who understand that eventually they will no longer be able to work. At the beach, an old friend also urges Carlson to get a respectable job. He even offers to help him get one. He has done very well selling Porsches to the rich, and Carlson can learn to do the same, so if he is interested, all he must do is impress his partner. One great interview at the Porsche dealership and Carlson should be in, wearing a nice suit and a fancy tie, making a bundle. At a high school reunion party, Carlson meets his former girlfriend, Cathy (Anne Archer), now a divorcee, and after restarting their relationship, she also urges him to ditch his current job.

The only person not yet critical of Carlson’s lifestyle is Wendy (Kathleen Quinlan), a seventeen-year-old girl from the beach who has fallen madly in love with him. In her eyes, he is perfect -- as a lifeguard, lover, and man. It does not matter that Carlson is much older than her, and together they can get in some serious trouble for making love. She wants him as he is, doing what he does.

As the summer season comes to an end and the youngest beachgoers prepare to go back to school, Carlson begins pondering whether it is time for him to give up his dream job and permanently reset his life. The logical decision seems obvious, but so does the right one.

Daniel Petrie’s film must have a special place in John Milius’s heart because the latter’s Big Wednesday channels the same intimate feelings and emotions while telling the story of several surfers. These feelings and emotions come from Milius’ past. In his youth, Milius was a hardcore surfer enjoying the same special bond with the beach and ocean in Southern California that eventually forces Elliott’s character to rethink his entire life. Milius faced the same inevitable dilemma Elliott’s character does, but his final decision was different.

In addition to being a wonderful melodrama, Petrie’s film is a terrific time capsule. However, unlike other such films that have preserved a lot of authentic visuals, Petrie’s film has twice as much authentic atmosphere. Of course, the visuals still contribute to it, but a range of other things do a lot more. One of these things is the supposedly dated desire to remain outside the control of corporate America. As Elliott’s character reveals, in the ‘70s, this was still a viable option.

The cast is great. However, Elliott is unforgettable. It would not be an exaggeration to declare that his wonderfully nuanced performance is his best.

Petri chose to work with director of photography Ralph Woolsey, whose credits include such cult films as The Lawyer, Little Fauss and Big Halsy, and The New Centurions.

Lifeguard Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Lifeguard arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Imprint Films.

The release introduces a 4K makeover of the film, prepared at Paramount. I like this master a lot. It produces wonderful, very attractive organic visuals that boast qualities you would expect to see in a film shot during the 1970s. For example, there are plenty of small density fluctuations that occur between daylight and indoor/nighttime footage. Natural light is beautifully reproduced, too. The best news is that the entire master is exceptionally well graded, ensuring that the film retains a very convincing authentic appearance. Primaries and supporting nuances are rich and beautifully balanced, and highlight and shadow nuances are great. Image stability is very good. There are no traces of problematic digital corrections. However, some encoding optimizations could have been introduced to ensure that grain exposure is as good as it needs to be. I noticed a few nicks and tiny blemishes that could have eliminated as well. All in all, this release offers a wonderful organic presentation of a film that has never looked this good before. (Note: This is a Region-Free Blu-ray release. Therefore, you will be able to play it on your player regardless of your geographical location).

Lifeguard Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: English LPCM 2.0. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature.

Music has a very important role throughout the entire film, though it does not create any special contrasts. It is just part of the film's atmosphere. On my system, it sounded great. In a few areas, I did notice very small fluctuations, but I suspect that all are inherited. The dialog is clear, sharp, easy to follow. Some small cosmetic improvements could be introduced to improve the fullness and evenness of the audio, but I do not think that they will make a meaningful difference.

Lifeguard Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Commentary - this exclusive new audio commentary was recorded by critics Scout Tafoya and Daniel Kremer. The commentators explain how Lifeguard permanently altered the career paths of Sam Elliott and Anne Archer, and discuss is style and themes. There is plenty of other interesting information about director Daniel Petrie, other cast members, the era in which the film was made and some of its competitors, Paramount's output, etc.

• Trailer - presented here is a vintage trailer for Lifeguard. In English, not subtitled. (3 min).

Lifeguard Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Life can be a beach, but eventually everyone gets old. What happens then? In Daniel Petrie's film, Rick Carlson, a lifeguard in his late thirties, who makes ends meet on one of the most beautiful beaches in Los Angeles, does not care. He is prepared to roll the dice and continue doing what he loves for as long as they would have him there. Lifeguard was one of my most anticipated releases in a very long time, maybe a decade, and I could not be happier with the quality of the 4K master that was prepared at Paramount. In the United States, Fun City Editions has a local release available for purchase as well. VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.