The Great Outdoors 4K Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		5.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		3.0
Overall		4.0

The Great Outdoors 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov May 21, 2026

Howard Deutch's "The Great Outdoors" (1988) arrives on 4K Blu-ray courtesy of Kino Lorber. The supplemental features on the release include new audio commentary by Howard Deutch and filmmaker Douglas Hosdale; new audio commentary by critic Joe Ramoni; new audio commentary by critics Paul Anthony Nelson and Lee Zachariah; and vintage trailer. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.

Roman and Chet

Let’s get the obvious out of the way first. The Great Outdoors is not in the same league with any of the films that John Hughes directed during the 1980s. It works with very familiar material, juggling very familiar themes, but the end product is of a different quality. It is not because Howard Deutsch directed The Great Outdoors, either. It is because the films Hughes directed during the 1980s tell better stories with better characters. John Candy and Dan Aykroyd make viewing The Great Outdoors a very enjoyable experience, but it is because they are that good. It is not because Hughes delivered a special screenplay for Deutsch to work with.

In The Great Outdoors, Chet Ripley (Candy) takes his wife Connie (Stephanie Faracy) and his two teenage boys to the fictional town of Pechoggin, Wisconsin, somewhere near the fictional Lake Potowotominimac. The short but carefully planned vacation is supposed to be the perfect antidote to the family’s monotonous existence in the Chicago area. Ripley is the only one who knows Pechoggin like the palm of his hand. Many, many moons ago, when he was a teenager, his father took him and his mother there, creating some of the most special memories of his childhood. Now, barely able to contain his excitement, Ripley intends to do the same for his sons.

But only moments after Ripley and his family are shown the cabin that is supposed to be their home for the next couple of days, the carefully planned vacation is spoiled by the arrival of his brother-in-law, Roman Craig (Aykroyd), his wife (Annette Bening), and two teenage girls. Because the two families could not be any more different, their members instantly engage in an unmissably awful game of polite and not-so-polite pretending that they are comfortable in each other’s company.

Ripley and his family are responsible for the bulk of the bad pretending. However, they are also the ones who try harder to be more accommodating and warmer, so they could save as much of the vacation experience as possible. As the chief improviser, Ripley then launches several bonding activities that become massive disasters, forcing even the area’s wild animals, who have seen it all, to wonder whether the visitors might be too crazy even for the Land of Lincoln.

The Great Outdoors is a funny film, but not as consistently funny and, more importantly, as witty as it could have been. It is primarily because Candy and Aykroyd are expected to do all the heavy lifting all the time, even in segments where the supporting actors have something meaningful to say and do. This could have been a non-issue, but only if Hughes’ screenplay had been vastly superior, giving both sufficient good material to work with. In the current version of The Great Outdoors, the funny comes in irregular chunks, and a lot of it is of variable quality.

The most Hughes-esque element of the narrative is the most underdeveloped. Candy’s older son (Chris Young) unexpectedly falls in love with a local girl (Lucy Deakins), but their romantic relationship remains an ornament. In the films Hughes directed during the 1980s, this romantic relationship would have had a special significance.

The Great Outdoors 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Kino Lorber's release of The Great Outdoors 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 all screencaptures included with this article are taken from the Blu-ray. We have not provided any screencaptures from the 4K Blu-ray.

The release presents an exclusive new 4K restoration of The Great Outdoors, sourced from the original camera negative. In native 4K, the 4K restoration can be viewed with Dolby Vision and HDR grades. I chose to view it with HDR. Later, I spent time with its 1080p presentation on the Blu-ray.

The overall quality of the 4K restoration is on par with that of the recent 4K restoration of Uncle Buck. It produces wonderfully detailed, vibrant, very healthy visuals. All visuals maintain impressive density levels as well. I did not see any traces of problematic digital corrections. The entire 4K restoration is expertly graded as well. All primaries are lush and properly set, and all supporting nuances match their quality. Unsurprisingly, The Great Outdoors has a very faithful period appearance. I would describe the HDR grade as very good. There is plenty of darker material with tricky nuances, but I did not see any distracting flatness or crushing. On the contrary, in the most challenging areas, like the cave footage, darker areas looked wonderful. Image stability is excellent. I performed numerous comparisons with the 1080p presentation of the 4K restoration, and viewed most of the second half of The Great Outdoors on Blu-ray. The 1080p presentation is a total winner as well. It produces outstanding visuals that look every bit as impressive as the native 4K visuals.

The Great Outdoors 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.

The lossless track is excellent. It produces sharp, clear, and very nicely balanced audio. During the busiest footage -- like the one featuring the angry bear -- dynamic intensity is wonderful, too. I cannot see how a 5.1 track would have helped the busiest footage sound dramatically different. All exchanges are very clear, sharp, stable, and always east to follow.

The Great Outdoors 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

4K BLU-RAY DISC

• Commentary One - in this exclusive new audio commentary, director Howard Deutch explains how he became involved with The Great Outdoors, recalls the discussions he had with John Hughes during the pre-production process, and discusses his work with John Candy and Dan Aykroyd. Deutch also shares interesting information about the location where The Great Outdoors was shot, the overlapping of comedy and serious material, and the special characters Hughes was able to craft. The commentary is moderated by filmmaker Douglas Hosdale.

• Commentary Two - in this exclusive new audio commentary, critic Joe Ramoni from Hats Off Entertainment, a big fan of The Great Outdoors, discusses John Hughes and Howard Deutsch's professional relationship, and comments on some similarties between The Geeat Outdoors, Planes, Trains & Automobiles, and Uncle Buck. Ramoni also shares interesting information about the chemistry between John Candy and Dan Aykroyd and how Hughes exerted his influence in the editing room.

• Commentary Three - in this exclusive new audio commentary, critics Paul Anthony Nelson and Lee Zachariah also deconstruct The Great Outdoors and comment on the quality of its comedy, John Candy and Dan Aykroyd's characters, some of the music that is used in the film, and John Hughes' career and legacy. There is good information about some of the supporting actors as well.

BLU-RAY DISC

• Commentary One - in this exclusive new audio commentary, director Howard Deutch explains how he became involved with The Great Outdoors, recalls the discussions he had with John Hughes during the pre-production process, and discusses his work with John Candy and Dan Aykroyd. Deutch also shares interesting information about the location where The Great Outdoors was shot, the overlapping of comedy and serious material, and the special characters Hughes was able to craft. The commentary is moderated by filmmaker Douglas Hosdale.

• Commentary Two - in this exclusive new audio commentary, critic Joe Ramoni from Hats Off Entertainment, a big fan of The Great Outdoors, discusses John Hughes and Howard Deutsch's professional relationship, and comments on some similarties between The Geeat Outdoors, Planes, Trains & Automobiles, and Uncle Buck. Ramoni also shares interesting information about the chemistry between John Candy and Dan Aykroyd and how Hughes exerted his influence in the editing room.

• Commentary Three - in this exclusive new audio commentary, critics Paul Anthony Nelson and Lee Zachariah also deconstruct The Great Outdoors and comment on the quality of its comedy, John Candy and Dan Aykroyd's characters, some of the music that is used in the film, and John Hughes' career and legacy. There is good information about some of the supporting actors as well.

• Trailer - presented here is a remastered vintage theatrical trailer for The Great Outdoors. In English, not subtitled. (2 min).

The Great Outdoors 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

The Great Outdoors is a funny film, but not as consistently funny and, more importantly, as witty as it could have been. It expects John Candy and Dan Aykroyd to do all the heavy lifting, all the time, but without the brilliant material that could have helped them carry the entire film. Still, The Great Outdoors is definitely worth a look. Kino Lorber's combo pack presents a terrific new 4K restoration, on 4K Blu-ray and Blu-ray, prepared at Universal Pictures. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.