New York, New York 4K Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		3.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		5.0
Overall		3.5

New York, New York 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman August 5, 2026

A Star Is Born was supposed to be the film that more or less completed the "divorce" between Judy Garland, her reputation and Metro Goldwyn Mayer, though it may have "succeeded" in unintentional ways. Garland's still unstable behaviors led to significant delays and cost overruns, and by the time the film premiered the budget had ballooned to such an extent that hopes of profits slipped through Jack Warner's probably desperate fingers, and of course the film itself was edited (butchered?) at Warner's behest to try to get more screenings in per day and up that box office ante. So, in other words, what better film for Martin Scorsese to revisit in his own inimitable fashion? Joking aside, the tethers between the 1954 Garland opus and this 1977 effort starring her equally iconic daughter are not only legion, they extend beyond merely narrative and even structural similarities to certain "meta" aspects like, well, an out of control budget and an arguably bloated running time that was chopped down to something more "marketable". New York, New York may be an even more frustrating viewing experience for some than even the 1954 A Star is Born, since the earlier film didn't have to worry about "exploiting" Scorsese's own "meta" proclivities in terms of intentional artificiality blending with so-called New Hollywood improvisatory "realism", leading to a rather uneasy stylistic mix, even aside and apart from any narrative slogs (which are arguably more pronounced than in the 1954 film).

Speaking of Metro Goldwyn Mayer, the once mighty studio released New York, New York on 1080 disc many years ago, and Michael Reuben's New York, New York Blu-ray review provides plot information, a list of supplements (all ported over here) and a reaction to the technical presentation.

New York, New York 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Note: This release does not include a 1080 presentation of this version of the film, so these screenshots are taken directly from the 4K UHD disc and downscaled to 1080 and SDR. Color space in particular is therefore not accurate, and I recommend those interested to look at some of the screenshots in the above linked 1080 review for a probably better representation of the palette. The 2K video score above reflects the quality of the International Version.

New York, New York is presented in 4K UHD courtesy of MVD Visual's MVD Marquee Collection imprint with an HEVC / H.265 encoded 2160p transfer in 1.67:1 (according to our site's pixel measuring tool). The back cover of this release states this is a "2025 4K scan and restoration (16 bit scan of the original camera negative). A lot of the pluses mentioned in the above linked 1080 review are carried over here, and the HDR grade in particular gives special emphasis to an elaborately designed palette in particular. Immense pop is perceivable from the get go with regard to the incredibly vivid blues and reds of the credits themselves, but the whole opening act (or at least the first half hour or so) offer a wealth of blues in particular that show some real nuance here in HDR. Rather interestingly, and to my eyes quite distinctively, it's actually the relatively unusual orange tones, like those around the 39:00 minute mark and then much (much) later in some of the Liza montage material, that really benefit from HDR. Fine detail levels on the elaborately designed costumes and sets is also typically commendable, though this is a very grainy looking presentation, especially in some of the darker vignettes. As can tend to be the case at this resolution and in HDR, grain can have an almost chroma anomaly effect with little colored byproducts seeming to be attached to each individual grain fiber. Some of the baked in after effects of all of the opticals as mentioned in the 1080 review are still observable here.

New York, New York 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

New York, New York features DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and LPCM 2.0 options, though as was mentioned in the old 1080 review, there was a deliberate attempt to evoke soundtracks of yore, analogous to the way Scorsese and László Kovács approached the visuals, and as such the "surround" track is almost relentlessly front centered. That may make the stereo option (which isn't especially widely imaged itself) as appropriate as the ostensibly fuller sounding track. Music and dialogue are all delivered without any issues. Optional English subtitles are available.

New York, New York 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Note: More information on the ported over supplements is available in the above linked 1080 review.

4K Disc (Expanded Cut 2:43:10)

• Introduction by Martin Scorsese (UHD; 5:37) is accessible under the Play Menu and is authored to lead directly into the main feature.


• Commentary by Martin Scorsese and Carrie Rickey is accessible under the Audio Menu.

1080 Disc

• New York, New York International Version (HD; 2:17:16) features DTS (not DTS-HD Master Audio) 5.1 audio.


• The New York, New York Stories: Part One (SD; 25:31)


• The New York, New York Stories: Part Two (SD; 26:58)


• Liza on New York, New York (SD; 22:09)


• Alternate Takes / Deleted Scenes (SD; 19:14)


• Commentary on Selected Scenes by László Kovács, ASC (SD; 10:14)


• Photo Gallery (HD; 2:33)


• Theatrical Teaser (HD; 2:07)


• Theatrical Trailer (HD; 3:26)

Packaging features a reversible sleeve and a slipcover.

New York, New York 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

In one indication of what a critical drubbing this film took at the time of its release, Kander and Ebb somehow didn't even get a Best Song nomination for their now legendary title song, though it should be noted (no pun intended) that Sinatra's version wasn't released until several years after the film debuted. One way or the other, though, their collaboration with Minnelli remains one of the most interesting long term partnerships in American Musical Theater history. In my conducting life I've had the pleasure of Music Directing the Kander and Ebb show that launched Minnelli on Broadway and got her her first Tony, Flora, the Red Menace (even if the current performing version is drastically altered from the original with Minnelli), and I'm just about to Music Direct Kander and Ebb's absolutely charming flop 70, Girls, 70, which includes the lovely song "Yes" that Minnelli used to open her Emmy winning Liza with a Z. Unfortunately, even their contributions can't really help what was probably a misguided attempt in the first place, kind of weirdly similar in that regard to One from the Heart 4K. This new edition provides the long cut of the film in 4K with generally solid technical merits and a wealth of ported over supplements and the redacted version of the film in 1080. Fans of the film will enjoy the added luster the HDR grade affords an already impressive palette, and diehard fans should appreciate having both versions in one release.