Problem Child Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		3.0
Audio		3.0
Extras		0.0
Overall		2.5

Problem Child Blu-ray Movie Review

Mill Creek has released the 1990 Comedy 'Problem Child' to Blu-ray. The film was previously released to Blu-ray in 2017 by Universal. Both discs are featureless. It appears that Mill Creek has repurposed video and audio from the Universal disc, but a fresh look has resulted in a slightly tweaked video score.

Problem Child Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

This is a serviceable but ultimately unimpressive image that looks nearly, if note entirely, identical to the Universal disc. It's been heavily processed with plenty of digital artifacts and obvious signs of extensive digital sharpening. It looks a lot like Universal's disc in just about every respect, and in these problem areas in particular. Still, despite some heavy-handed processing and the absolute lack of a real filmic image, the picture holds to an agreeable level of detail, never falling so far off a cliff as to destroy core textures in faces, clothes, and around various locales, like orphanage and home interiors. Clarity could stand to be better, but it could also be a good bit worse in the aggregate. Colors are bold, lacking subtlety and nuance and looking a bit oversaturated for effect, but better a bit overly pumped than undercooked and looking dim and faded. Fans will find agreeable punch to vivid blues and reds, though again within the context of lacking a more natural appearance. Issues with compression are surprisingly far and few between; most of this image's problems date back to a standard definition-era master that was just dropped onto Blu-ray. Mill Creek's image, then, is not a gain for the film, and neither is it much of a loss, if it is a loss at all, compared to the Universal disc.

Problem Child Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

It appears that Mill Creek has simply repurposed the DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 lossless soundtrack from the Universal disc. Problem Child's DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 lossless soundtrack has its moments of harshness, but the presentation by-and-large complements and carries the film well enough. Shrieking effects and unkempt details define the open, but things tighten up nicely enough to deliver scenes like Junior crashing a car through a store or musical numbers like It's My Party with satisfying detail and delivery. Spacing along the front is suitably wide and dialogue angles towards the center naturally enough. The spoken word finds good clarity and prioritization, too. Minor ambient effects, such as the din of an orphanage cafeteria or background clutter at a sporting goods store, fill the front side of the stage well enough.

Problem Child Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Mill Creek's Blu-ray release of Problem Child contains no extras, as neither did the previous issue house any supplemental material. This disc's main menu screen offers only options to play the film and toggle subtitles on and off. It does ship with Mill Creek's popular "Retro VHS" slipcover.

Problem Child Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Problem Child remains an enjoyable little romp through the hells of raising a bad seed child in contemporary suburbia, but it also remains a tender little tale of the power of love to tame even the most problematic child. Solid performances and a number of enjoyable scenes shape the film. It's a re-watchable little slice of nostalgia that's a welcome re-addition to Blu-ray, even with iffy video, middling audio, and no extras. Hopefully Mill Creek will soon release the lesser, but no less enjoyable, sequel. Recommended.