Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		0.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		2.5
Overall		4.0

My Girl 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

"My fears and secrets? I'm afraid I killed my mother."

Reviewed by Kenneth Brown March 7, 2025

My Girl is a lovely film that often goes forgotten when chatting early '90s cinema. And beware, newcomers, it has bite, something that comes rather unexpectedly and serves as a gut-punch of almost legendary proportions in the minds of those who love the movie. Young Anna Chlumsky even outshines Macaulay Culkin, who was hot off his breakout role in Home Alone and the newly A-list face driving attention for the project. With a careful touch and an ease of emotion, Chlumsky disappears as an actress, simply standing out as a young girl in the throes of pre-adolescence dealing with the lightness and heaviness of life in equal measure. She's so authentic, in fact, the film so real in its dealings with her joy and grief, that it sometimes ceases to play like the classic it is and takes on a timelessness more natural in its plotting and heart-wrenching in its storytelling that it feels wholly organic, even as its suddenly extraordinary events unfold. Chalk it up to screenwriting, casting, direction... whatever it is, My Girl works and works wonders, tugging on heart strings, yes, but doing so with real stakes and meaning rather than cheap gimmicks or narrative coercion. If you haven't had the pleasure, there's no time like the present and no release of the film better than Sony's new 4K edition.

"I used to like to play with my Ken and Barbie dolls. Ken was my favorite. Then one Christmas I got them a camper and all they wanted to do was hang out in it by themselves. So I wasn't too upset when they took that wrong turn and went over the cliff."

Vada Sultenfuss (Anna Chlumsky) lives with her widower father Harry (Dan Aykroyd) who runs a small-town funeral parlor out of his home. Vada is obsessed with the idea of illness and death, convinced that she's sick with every sunrise but who lives with an otherwise cheery disposition and sense of adventure. She's best friends with Thomas J. (Macaulay Culkin), a local boy who happens to be allergic to nearly everything. She's also madly in love with her teacher (Griffin Dunne) who is leading a summer poetry class that Vada desperately wishes to attend. One day, Shelly DeVoto (Jamie Lee Curtis) answers a help-wanted ad for a makeup artist at the parlor. She's hired, and she and Harry grow more fondly of one another, beyond their professional acquaintance. Meanwhile, Vada spends her summer having fun and learning about life, love and loss with Thomas J. at her side. Directed by Howard Zieff and penned by female screenwriter Laurice Elehwany, the film also stars Richard Masur, Ann Nelson, Peter Michael Goetz, Jane Hallaren, Tom Villard, Anthony R. Jones, Lara Steinick, Kristian Truelsen, Glenda Chism, David Caprita, Jodi Wilson, Nancy L. Chlumsky and Linda Perri.

Click here to read the rest of Martin Liebman's review of My Girl, which he calls "one of the most effective films of its kind, remaining relevant, accessible, and welcoming even decades removed from its release." Adding "the movie belongs to then-newcomer Anna Chlumsky who hits a home run with a fully agreeable, detailed, and knowledgeable performance, appearing to deeply understand the character's complexities and convey them through dialogue, body language, and a confidence in herself and the character that shows even in the most challenging moments."

My Girl 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

My Girl makes its 4K debut with a 2160p presentation that appears to be minted from the same master as the 2015 standard Blu-ray release, which isn't a bad thing by any means. The film has a sunnier disposition throughout but saturation is quite subtle and striking, as are its lifelike skin tones, disarming primaries and satisfying black levels. Darker scenes are a tad problematic -- chalk it up to more natural lighting -- but crush is kept to a minimum and delineation is decidedly decent. Dolby Vision enhancements lend an array of colors renewed punch too, with carnival festivities, bingo nights, lakeside conversations and funerals taking on particular power and poignancy. Detail receives a nice uptick as well. Edge definition is as clean and crisp as before, but closeups and fine textures are better resolved and slightly more revealing. Grain is also appealing, without anything in the way of off-putting chunkiness or soupiness that might interfere with the image quality. The montage that unfolds against the opening credits is a touch soft, as is often the case with movies of the era that add footage to credits, but it's hardly an issue. There also isn't any blocking, banding, errant digital noise or other anomalies that might distract from the near-perfect visuals. Sony continues to grant its catalog releases new life with its 4K remasters and releases.

My Girl 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

No Atmos, no problem. While Sony has made a habit of outfitting many a release with a Dolby Atmos experience, My Girl would hardly benefit, making its DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 surround track more than enough lossless audio for the film. I suspect this is the same track that accompanied the 2015 Blu-ray, although I had a slightly more positive reaction to it than my colleague if so. Dialogue is clear and intelligible from start to finish, with fairly flawless prioritization and only a few lines that have been obviously ADR'd. LFE output is reserved, as is rear speaker activity, but there aren't many scenes that demand much more, and when they do -- a la the carnival -- there's a notable increase in the mix's assertiveness. Any thinness is easily attributable to the era, and thus more easily overlooked, and the film's music does a solid job of filling out the soundscape when conversation dominates and pulls the track front and center.

My Girl 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Like the 2015 standard Blu-ray release before it, the Sony Pictures 4K UltraHD edition of My Girl features a small but welcome complement of special features that offer a nice glimpse into the production.

• Audio Commentary - Screenwriter Laurice Elehwany delivers quite a bit more information than most writers might. She covers everything from the inception and writing of the script to the casting process and performances -- particularly those of Chlumsky and Culkin -- the differences between her original screenplay and the final film, the themes she wished to present and the manner in which she drew those out through story, pacing and characterization, and the movie's unique take on life and death as seen through the eyes of a child. Elehwany's track is far more engaging and comprehensive than I assumed it would be and deserves a listen from anyone who enjoys the film.

• Original Behind-the-Scenes Featurette (HD/SD, 6 minutes) - A short upscaled archive EPK.

• A Day on the Set (HD/SD, 5 minutes) - A pair of fly-on-the-wall shorts: "First Kiss" and "Bingo."

• Theatrical Trailer (HD, 2 minutes)

My Girl 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

"Weeping willow with your tears running down, why do you always weep and frown? Is it because he left you one day? is it because he could not stay? On your branches he would swing, do you long for the happiness that day would bring? He found shelter in your shade. You thought his laughter would never fade. Weeping willow, stop your tears. There is something to calm your fears. You think death has ripped you forever apart. But I know he'll always be in your heart."

My Girl telegraphs its third-act tragedy a bit too prominently but the film remains a powerful and poignant examination of pre-adolescence regardless. Anna Chlumsky should have gone on to become the era's preeminent teen and young adult A-lister, and the fact that she largely vanished until Veep resurrected her career is a real shame. Still, the cast's work elevates My Girl and keeps it relevant and meaningful, even some thirty-five years after its release, making it something of a true '90s classic. Sony's 4K release helps even further with an excellent video transfer, solid DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 surround track, and decent supplemental package of extras (including a writer's commentary that's well worth a listen). If you're a fan of 1990s film, this one comes highly recommended.