Soldier 4K Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		2.5
Video		0.0
Audio		4.5
Extras		5.0
Overall		3.0

Soldier 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman April 27, 2026

The Russell family evidently has the "acting gene", as evidenced by Bing (see my closing comments below), Bing's son Kurt, and now Kurt's son Wyatt. That said, even a perceived predilection for performance can't necessarily overcome a less than cohesive production, and if Kurt will probably pass muster with his own fans for his work in Soldier, others may be less convinced, and one way or the other, the film can be something of a mess. Soldier received a 1080 release way back in 2011 courtesy of home studio Warner Brothers (see below for a review link), but now Arrow Video is revisiting the title in 4K with a glut of supplementary material.

As mentioned above, Soldier had a 1080 release many years ago, and Ken Brown's Soldier Blu-ray review provides plot information, a list of supplements and Ken's reaction to the technical presentation.

Soldier 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Note: This release does not include a 1080 Blu-ray, 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 Ken's review linked to above for a probably better representation of the palette, even given the age of that release. Since this release does not include a 1080 disc, the 2K video score above has been intentionally left blank.

Soldier is presented in 4K UHD courtesy of Arrow Video with an HEVC / H.265 encoded 2160p transfer in 2.39:1. Arrow's insert booklet contains the following information on the presentation:

Soldier has been restored by Arrow Films and is presented in its original 2.39:1 aspect ratio with 2.0 stereo and 5.1 audio. The film is presented in 4K resolution in HDR10 and Dolby Vision. The original 35mm camera negative was scanned at 4K / 16 bit resolution at Warner Brothers Motion Picture Imaging. The film was restored in 4K resolution and color graded at Duplitech.

All materials source for this new mater were made available by Warner Brothers. QC review was completed by Pixelogic. The New restoration has been approved by director Paul W.S. Anderson.

Ken was relatively enthusiastic about the old 1080 presentation, but his comment that it's unlikely that Soldier "will ever look much better" of course was written before the advent of 4K UHD presentations, and especially with the blandishments that contemporary restoration efforts can bring to the veritable table. Ken's qualms about DNR in the old Warner 1080 release are definitely not going to be of concern here, and in fact about the only minor quibble I have with this are moments of pretty severe grain spiking during some of the special effects, notably when our focal hero gets to the "trash planet" and supposed dust storms enter the fray. Otherwise, though, grain is rather tightly resolved and adds a nice organic texture to the proceedings. That potential bugaboo aside, it's the upticks in detail levels and especially palette nuance courtesy of the HDR / Dolby Vision grades that will probably attract the most immediate notice. Fine detail is often quite impressive on practical things like actual human faces and practical sets and costumes. The palette is very vivid on both the cool (blue) and warm (yellow) ends of the spectrum, and some of the slightly peach-ochre tones on the trash planet are especially evocative.

Soldier 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Soldier features a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 mix that I suspect is similar if not identical to the old track on the Warner release, though I'm evidently a bit more sanguine about some of the hyperbolism on display than Ken was. As Ken mentions, the surround track can offer a virtual onslaught of activity almost pummeling the listener at times, but that's kind of part of the fun of a potentially over the top enterprise like this. Side and rear channels are nicely engaged throughout with a variety of both "high tech" effects and supposed ambient environmental sounds. As Ken mentioned in his review, the sheer bombastic quality of the sound design can occasionally lead to slight prioritization issues in the noisiest scenes, but overall dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly. Optional English subtitles are available.

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

• Commentary by Paul W.S. Anderson, Jeremy Bolt & Jason Isaacs


• Reporting for Duty (HD; 9:31) is a 2025 interview with actor James Black.


• Fire in the Hole! (HD; 12:38) is a 2025 interview with assistant director Dennis Maguire.


• On the Front Lines (HD; 10:02) is a 2025 interview with associate producer Fred Fontana.


• Designing for the Future (HD; 14:07) is a 2025 interview with production designer David L. Snyder.


• VFX Before and After (HD; 4:48) is a 2025 featurette with visual effects supervisor Craig Barron.


• Weapons of Mass Creation (HD; 18:27) features 2025 interviews with visual effects supervisors Craig Barron and Van Ling, as well as with miniature supervisor Michael Joyce.


• A Soldier's Journey (HD; 6:54) is a 2025 interview with Danny Stewart, author of Soldier: From Script to Screen.


• We Don't Need Another Hero (HD; 11:51) is a 2025 retrospective with film historian Heath Holland.


• Electronic Press Kit

Featurette (HD; 6:37)




Behind the Scenes (HD; 14:58)

• On Set Interviews

Kurt Russell (HD; 4:01)




Gary Busey (HD; 1:06)




Jason Scott Lee (HD; 2:29)




Michael Chiklis (HD; 00:52)




Connie Nielsen (HD; 1:39)




Paul W.S. Anderson (HD; 4:28)




Jerry Weintraub (HD; 1:59)

• Theatrical Trailers

Teaser Trailer (Workprint) (HD; 1:52)




Theatrical Trailer (HD; 2:03)




International Trailer (with narration) (HD; 1:51)




International Trailer (without narration) (HD; 1:51)




International Trailer (short, with narration) (HD; 00:38)




International Trailer (short, without narration) (HD; 00:38)

• Image Gallery (UHD)

Arrow's insert booklet has an interesting essay by Priscilla Page, along with the usual assortment of photos and technical information. Packaging features a slipcover.

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

Portland, Oregon may not seem like a place to find a pretty significant Kurt Russell connection, but those who know about Russell's non film biography will probably know Kurt's father Bing owned the Portland Mavericks and Kurt himself played for the team. There's actually a really wonderful documentary about the Russells and Portland sports called The Battered Bastards of Baseball, done by Bing's grandsons (not Kurt's kids). I was introduced to Bing decades ago at a theater event in Portland where he regaled me with anecdotes about his own storied past (the guy was a major raconteur), and he seemed especially proud of some of his collaborations with his only son. That said, my hunch is probably neither Bing nor Kurt himself ever considered Soldier to be an unappreciated milestone. That said, this new 4K UHD edition actually helps to point out some of the positives of the production in terms of visuals and sound design. Technical merits are solid, and as usual Arrow has aggregated a really appealing set of supplements, for anyone who may be considering making a purchase.