Moneyball 4K Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		0.0
Audio		0.0
Extras		3.0
Overall		4.0

Moneyball 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Not a home run, but a solid double.

Reviewed by Randy Miller III April 8, 2026

---

UPDATE 4/21: As pointed out in our forum's official thread, this forthcoming 4K edition of Moneyball has an audio defect in that the individual LFE channel is notably more subdued than its older Blu-ray counterparts. The studio and manufacturer are now aware of this issue and a replacement program is forthcoming that will cover all purchasers of this title, but I still encourage interested parties to hold off on purchasing until that program is enacted.

---

Timed to coincide with its 15th anniversary, Sony Pictures Home Entertainment now offers Bennett Miller's popular sports drama Moneyball as a MOD (pressed) 4K edition though, somewhat unusually, this is a disc without a new HDR grade or even a Dolby Atmos remix. This places it in a fairly small group of UHDs mostly occupied by Criterion's Akira Kurosawa releases as well as various titles reissued by Kino Lorber, but this new 2160p transfer is still worthwhile due to better encoding and a true representation of its native 4K source. Even so, most everything else about this disc is more or less identical to the previous one, so it'll be best received by those with larger home theater setups.

For a synopsis and appreciation of Moneyball, please see Martin Liebman's review of Sony's 2011 Blu-ray, where he awarded it a full five stars. Obviously my comparatively lower rating means that I'm not quite as enamored with this dramatic effort but still consider it to be a high-quality and durably entertaining film with great performances, a solid script, and yes, an ability to play well whether or not you're a huge fan of baseball. (Like Marty, my interest is similarly casual, as the extent of my fandom involves occasional playoff/championship games, sporadic trips to the local minor league park, and pretty much any baseball-related YouTube video featuring either Jon Bois or Jomboy.)

Moneyball 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

NOTE: These screenshots were sourced directly from the 4K disc but downscaled to 1920x1080p.

Shot on a mixture of Kodak's Vision3 250D 5207/7207 and 500T 5219/7219 film stocks, Moneyball was delivered to theaters as a 4K DCP... but I'm comparatively a little light on details regarding Sony's new 2160p/SDR transfer, which very likely does not come from a recently-made master but is still listed as being "approved by director Bennett Miller". While these direct-from-disc screenshots may not exactly show it, there are clear gains in fine detail and textures over the studio's own 2011 Blu-ray and another disc mentioned below, both of which were awarded perfect marks by Martin Liebman in his linked review. In hindsight, that 2011 Blu-ray obviously had various amounts of sharpening or boosting applied as the UHD image typically appears smoother with no signs of ringing, few to no compression artifacts such as macro blocking, and better overall handling of film grain... so anyone assuming my comparatively modest 4/5 rating is a downgrade next to the 2011 Blu-ray would be mistaken since I'd score that older disc lower.

In 2013, Sony also released a "Mastered in 4K" Blu-ray which Marty likewise awarded a (perhaps more deserving) five stars, and it's that disc that this new UHD release shares the most in common with based on screenshot comparisons. In short, both clearly come from the same 4K master. With that in mind, this 4K/SDR presentation is obviously more of a proportionately even step forward than a massive leap; it's a smoother, more film-like, and obviously better-encoded effort that feels like a natural transition into the newer format with no drastic changes. As such, it's also a bit lower on the immediate "wow" factor than some might be expecting, but it's nice to finally have in its native 4K... even though I'll certainly admit that casual fans or those with smaller setups needn't pick it up on release day.

Please note that screenshots #6-14 in this review closely (or loosely) match 9 screenshots from both Blu-ray reviews linked above, with mine presented in the order they appear intermittently in those earlier reviews. As another reminder, my 4K screenshots have been downscaled so obviously there will be additional detail gains during playback.

Moneyball 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Without having Sony's older Blu-ray on-hand for a direct comparison, I can't claim any significant differences between this DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio mix and the older one, as my observations are similar to those Marty made in his review of the 2011 Blu-ray where he awarded it a matching 4.5/5 based on its subtle but effective qualities. While a new Dolby Atmos remix certainly would have been interesting to hear (especially during Moneyball's sporadic on-field moments), it's tough to complain since this lossless surround mix gets the job done with energy to spare.

As before, optional subtitles (including English SDH) are included during the main feature and extras below; Spanish and French dubs are also carried over, with the former receiving an appreciated courtesy bump to DTS-HD MA.

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

This one-disc release ships in a keepcase with recycled cover artwork, but it includes a new slipcover based on this original poster which creates a nice contrast. The bonus features are largely recycled from Sony's 2011 Blu-ray; a few negligible promo items have been swapped out for one "new" supplement, the film's theatrical trailer.

• Deleted Scenes (3 clips, 12:05 total)

• Brad Loses It (3:11)

• Billy Beane: Re-Inventing the Game (16:02)

• Drafting the Team (20:51)

• Moneyball: Playing the Game (19:28)

• Adapting "Moneyball" (16:33)

• NEW! Theatrical Trailer (2:33)

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

Bennett Miller's popular sports drama Moneyball turns 15 this year, and Sony Pictures Home Entertainment celebrates with a welcome new MOD (pressed) 4K disc that fans will enjoy. In short, it presents a true 4K/SDR version of what we got from Sony's earlier "Mastered in 4K" Blu-ray and the bonus features (plus one) from their 2011 Blu-ray. While its visual gains obviously don't represent the format's typical leaps in quality, die-hard fans with large displays will enjoy having the durably entertaining Moneyball in its best home video presentation to date. Recommended.