Somewhere in Time 4K Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		3.5
Audio		5.0
Extras		3.0
Overall		4.0

Somewhere in Time 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov March 14, 2026

Jeannot Szwarc's "Somewhere in Time" (1980) arrives on 4K Blu-ray courtesy of Kino Lorber. The supplemental features on the release include new audio commentary by critic Tim Lucas; new audio commentary by critics Julie Kirgo and Peter Hankoff; archival documentary; vintage trailer; and more. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.

Come back to me!

The few older films about time travel whose speculations remain intriguing today all share a crucial similarity. They do not view time travel as a journey that moves human beings or physical objects through portals connecting different time dimensions. These older films focus on the human mind, in which, according to all of them, time travel becomes possible.

The basic argument behind their speculations is that the human mind can detach itself from the present and ‘travel’ to other places, including different time dimensions. A ridiculous concept? In the 1970s, U.S. government officials did not think so, which is why they launched Project Stargate, a top-secret program exploring the limits of ‘remote viewing’. All participants in Project Stargate could tap into the minds of strangers, browse through them as if they were open books, and extract information that their employers needed. In other words, these participants provided factual evidence that the mind can, in fact, ‘travel’ to other places. However, sometime during the 1990s, after Project Stargate had dramatically expanded and become beneficial to the three-letter agencies, the U.S. government terminated it, citing inconsistencies in the returned information.

Is this really what happened? Did the U.S. government permanently terminate Project Stargate? Or did the people in charge of Project Stargate perfect a device like the one the scientist in Ken Russell’s film Altered States is seen experimenting with and then merge it into a far more ambitious and better-managed operation? If Project Stargate did evolve, how far beyond the present were they able to 'travel'?

Jeannot Szwarc’s Somewhere in Time is extremely easy to place next to Altered States, and not only because both films are about time travel and were released in 1980. These films employ nearly identical arguments to justify their speculations that the human mind is the place where time travel becomes possible. They even identify the same potential risks associated with the journey.

In Somewhere in Time, there are no ambitious scientists or fancy devices. The time traveler is Richard Collier (Christopher Reeve), a Chicago-based playwright who becomes obsessed with the portrait of a beautiful actress (Jane Seymour) and, in a desperate attempt to connect with her, forces his mind to transport him to her time dimension. Collier pulls off the trick by self-hypnotizing in a quiet hotel room. Soon after meeting the actress and falling madly in love with her, however, Collier’s physical existence becomes a major liability.

For a while, the romance between the playwright and the actress effectively overshadows the former’s groundbreaking accomplishment, producing the most attractive and memorable material. However, this material is given a proper structure by the same speculations that are channeled through Altered States, all of which are, frankly, entirely legitimate. The most thought-provoking is that time travel remains a questionable practice because it is incorrectly deconstructed and understood. What if time travel is, as the playwright discovers, a state of mind, which, when adequately managed, can in fact transport us to different places and time dimensions?

Somewhere in Time 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Kino Lorber's release of Somewhere in Time is a 4K Blu-ray/Blu-ray combo pack. The 4K Blu-ray is Region-Free. However, the Blu-ray is Region-A "locked".

Please note that some of the screencaptures included with this article are taken from the 4K Blu-ray and downscaled to 1080p. Therefore, they do not accurately reflect the quality of the 4K content on the 4K Blu-ray disc.

Screencaptures #1-26 are taken from the Blu-ray.
Screencaptures #29-40 are taken from the 4K Blu-ray.

The release introduces an exclusive new 4K restoration of Somewhere in Time, sourced from the film's original camera negative. In native 4K, the 4K restoration can be viewed with HDR and Dolby Vision grades. I chose to view it with HDR. I also viewed the 4K restoration in its entirety in 1080p on the Blu-ray.

Somewhere in Time made its high-definition debut with this Blu-ray release, produced by Universal Pictures in 2014. The original Blu-ray release was sourced from an older and quite undemanding master, which also featured adjustments that made it impossible for Somewhere in Time a proper period appearance.

The new 4K restoration revives the theatrical appearance of Somewhere in Time, which, among other things, does not feature the prominent golden cast present on the older master. Additionally, the original, softer, more nuanced footage with the unique highlights and shadows is now managed better, and while some of the density fluctuations present on the previous presentation are retained, delineation and clarity are far more convincing. Variations in depth can still be observed, but they are more natural on the new 4K restoration. From start to finish, Somewhere in Time has a dramatically healthier appearance as well.

Because the original cinematography is very unusual, I performed numerous comparisons between the native 4K and 1080p presentations of the 4K restoration, specifically in areas featuring some of the most notable fluctuations, both in terms of delineation and color reproduction. On my system, the 4K presentation was the undisputed winner, easily revealing richer visuals with a dramatically better dynamic range. The 1080p presentation, while boasting a solid organic appearance, reveals many areas with a substantially weaker color spectrum, and mostly underwhelming highlights, shadow detail, and even contrast levels. In native 4K, the HDR grade very effectively strengthens daylight, indoor, and nighttime footage, all with completely different ranges of subtle nuances. On my system, this discrepancy in quality was too big, making the superiority of the native 4K presentation incredibly easy to appreciate. Image stability is excellent. The surface of the visuals is immaculate as well.

Somewhere in Time 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this release: English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature.

John Barry's rich score sounds terrific, and all exchanges throughout the film are clear and very easy to follow. However, as good as the lossless track is, I would not have objected if the new 4K restoration had introduced a new Dolby Atmos track, like the ones that appear on some of Sony Pictures' 4K Blu-ray releases of older films. I think there is plenty of material throughout the film where a great Dolby Atmos track would have created even better dynamic contrasts. I did not encounter any technical anomalies to report in our review.

Somewhere in Time 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

4K BLU-RAY DISC

• Commentary One - this archival audio commentary was recorded by director Jeannot Szwarc.

• Commentary Two - this exclusive new audio commentary was recorded by critic and novelist Tim Lucas.

• Commentary Three - this exclusive new audio commentary was recorded by critics Julie Kirgo and Peter Hankoff.

BLU-RAY DISC

• Commentary One - this archival audio commentary was recorded by director Jeannot Szwarc.

• Commentary Two - this exclusive new audio commentary was recorded by critic and novelist Tim Lucas.

• Commentary Three - this exclusive new audio commentary was recorded by critics Julie Kirgo and Peter Hankoff.

• Back to Somewhere in Time - presented here is Laurent Bousereau's archival documentary about the making of Somewhere in Time, which gathers interviews with many of the people who made the film, including Christopher Reeve, Jane Seymour, Christopher Plummer, and Richard Matheson, amongst others. The documentary was produced in 2000. In English, not subtitled. (64 min).

• Inside Insite - a short program about the creation of a fan club, Insite, that gathered people from around the world who loved Somewhere in Time. In English, not subtitled. (4 min).

• Trailer - presented here is a vintage trailer for Somewhere in Time. In English, not subtitled. (3 min).

Somewhere in Time 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

While the romance between the playwright and the actress may be the main attraction, Somewhere in Time channels several very interesting themes through it, all linking to the intriguing speculation that the human mind is capable of far more than we realize. I think it is a wonderful, enormously moving, but also thought-provoking film that will always be revisited and rediscovered. Kino Lorber's combo pack presents a great new 4K restoration of Sowehere in Time that must be seen in native 4K. On the Blu-ray, the 4K restoration is a decent upgrade as well, but in native 4K, it is a stunner. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.