The Great Silence 4K Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		4.0
Overall		4.0

The Great Silence 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman February 21, 2026

The Great Silence is one of those films that has both provided inspiration for other efforts as well as having obviously been inspired itself by other efforts. Many of these "extracurricular" tethers are covered in a number of supplements Film Movement has aggregated for this new 4K release of the film, but The Great Silence might be seen as offering something of a connective tissue between, say, Sergio Leone's The Man with No Name Trilogy and Quentin Tarantino's The Hateful Eight. Both new and returning supplements are offered.

The Great Silence had a 1080 Blu-ray release courtesy of Film Movement several years ago, and Svet Atanasov's The Great Silence Blu-ray review provides plot information, a list of supplements and Svet's reaction to the technical presentation.

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

Note: Screenshots are sourced from the 1080 disc in this package.

The Great Silence is presented in 4K UHD courtesy of Film Movement's Film Movement Classics imprint with an HEVC / H.265 encoded 2160p transfer in 1.85:1. The back cover of this release states that there's supposedly an insert booklet with a number of essays and one presumes some technical information on the transfer, but there was no booklet in the review copy sent to me, so I'm not privy to any information it may impart. There's quite a bit of online information about the 4K restoration the film underwent for those interested in seeking it out. This effort can't quite ameliorate some of the "baked in" problems of the source, including the bizarre crosshatching that afflicts the first vignette (see screenshot 5), and which is still something of a mystery, despite several hypotheses being offered in the commentary tracks. There is some very minor and fleeting damage that can be spotted in terms of picayune blemishes and the like, but on the whole the source element is intact and in generally great shape. The probably low quality film stock can't help but show some deficiencies at this resolution and with HDR, and a really thick and chunky grain field can tend to cover the many outdoor snow scenes in what can look like insect swarms. The HDR grading does give some nice emphasis to a generally well suffused palette, but to my eyes it added a blue undertone to a lot of that aforementioned snow material that is not as observable in Film Movement's 1080 release. Fine detail probably sees its most noticeable improvement in terms of some of the sets and costumes, where things like fabric textures are well rendered.

The Great Silence 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The Great Silence features DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono tracks in Italian, English and German. I frankly didn't spend a whale of a lot of time with the German track, but the English track is somewhat louder and noticeably brighter on the high end than the Italian, and it also shows more evident signs of age related wear and tear than the Italian track. To my ears, the Italian track, while maybe slightly thin sounding at times, provides the most balanced listening experience, including generally nice renderings of yet another remarkable score by Ennio Morricone. As befits an international co-production, sync can be loose, but dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly throughout. Optional English subtitles are available.

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

4K UHD Disc

• Commentary with Author Howard Hughes & Filmmaker Richard Knew


• Commentary with Filmmaker Mike Siegel


• Commentary with Filmmaker Alex Cox Recorded Live at the Hollywood Theatre in Portland

Note: All three of the commentaries have fairly low volume. Regular readers of my reviews may recall I'm in Portland, and I can't help but take this opportunity to recommend the fantastic offerings the Hollywood offers, with regular screenings of any number of films both great and small. This is moderated by Dan Halsted, who has actually done some audio work for me in my life as a music director.

1080 Disc

• Commentary with Author Howard Hughes & Filmmaker Richard Knew


• Commentary with Filmmaker Mike Siegel


• Commentary with Filmmaker Alex Cox Recorded Live at the Hollywood Theatre in Portland


• Interview with Film Historian Justin Fisher on The Great Silence (HD; 14:28) provides some context and offers some of those aforementioned tethers to other films.


• Cox on Corbucci (HD; 14:47) is another kind of cheeky offering from Cox, here in a wintry cabin.


• Western, Italian Style (HD; 38:03) is an archival documentary giving some nice background on the Spaghetti Western idiom.


• Alternate Ending 1 (HD; 4:31)


• Alternate Ending 2 (HD; 2:02) features an optional commentary by Alex Cox (listed as a separate menu item).


• Original Theatrical Trailer (HD; 2:10)


• 2018 Theatrical Trailer (HD; 1:46)

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

While I've lived most of my adult life in Portland, I was born and raised in Utah, which makes the supposed setting of this film particularly interesting for me. Utah's history in the "wild west" of the 19th century is really fascinating, and it includes several frightening outbreaks of violence, including some with Mormons as the perpetrators (those intrigued may want to research what's known as the Mountain Meadows Massacre). Things are more "personal" in this tale, as well as almost relentlessly nihilistic. Film Movement's 4K edition has both pluses and minuses at this increased resolution and with HDR, but fans should be generally well pleased and the new commentaries all provide some substantial interest as well. Recommended.