Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		4.0
Audio		4.5
Extras		4.0
Overall		4.0

The Longest Yard 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov May 29, 2023

Robert Aldrich's "The Longest Yard" (1974) arrives on 4K Blu-ray courtesy of Kino Lorber. The supplemental features on the release include exclusive new audio commentary by critics Alain Silver and Kames Ursini; archival audio commentary by Burt Reynolds and writer/producer Albert S. Ruddy; archival featurettes; and vintage trailer. In English, without optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.

An early morning in the tough life of a quarterback

I have often wondered whether Robert Aldrich’s The Longest Yard might have inspired John Huston to shoot Victory. I know the official story about the conception of Victory highlights Huston’s interest in a couple of real events, but every time I revisit The Longest Yard I see major similarities between these films that immediately awaken the speculator in me. The football game that becomes a soccer game. Two teams of prisoners going on the field to face their captors. Professional football players joining Burt Reynolds. Professional European soccer players joining Michael Caine. Sure, different games with different rules, but the idea behind these films looks the same to me. Perhaps I am wrong to speculate that they are related, but I can’t be the only one that sees the similarities. They are way too obvious to be missed, especially by folks that know Aldrich and Huston’s work well.

I would like to point out a couple of things that make these films different as well. For example, Aldrich’s film oozes such unbridled macho energy that a few times it temporarily steps into a territory that ‘70s exploitation films liked to visit. The opening fifteen or so minutes where Burt Reynolds’ disgraced quarterback, Paul Crewe, beats up and ditches his abusive mistress and then gets in serious trouble with the law is classic ‘bad’ ‘70s material of the type that is nowadays impossible to shoot. It sets the tone for the entire film and prevents Crewe and the rest of the characters to evolve into conventional cinematic heroes, which is precisely the reason why later on their antics inside the prison and on the field look legit. Crewe and his players are not supposed to win, they just have to survive in a game that the prison warden and everyone else know they will lose. Huston’s film immediately begins reshaping its characters into conventional cinematic heroes and then tasks them to accomplish something much bigger. Winning against their opponents on the field isn’t enough, they must figure out how to successfully escape as well. It is why the film is overwhelmed by an avalanche of clichés and the big soccer game at the end becomes one big farce.

Perhaps the biggest difference between The Longest Yard and Victory, however, is the star leadership that Reynolds brings to the former. He makes the actors around him perform in ways that legitimize their personalities, which is a very tricky business because except for the warden and his vicious right-hand man (Ed Lauter) they are all tough hombres with huge egos. These men are not supposed to look right in a team, but Reynolds’ relaxed leadership makes their transition appear entirely authentic.

Like many of Aldrich’s great films The Longest Yard also has a good sense of humor. It won’t be everyone’s cup of tea because it is loaded with testosterone and left to flourish in a sea of brutal action, but it is not demeaning either. It is the type of unfiltered humor that you would expect from a prison film that actually takes itself and its characters seriously.

Aldrich used the services of Oscar-winning cinematographer Joseph F. Biroc, who frequently collaborated with him. Their communication must have been great because the visual style of the film is almost exactly like its attitude -- plain and unpretentious but very effective.

The Longest Yard 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Kino Lorber's release of The Longest Yard 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 that appear 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, including the actual color values of this content.

Screencaptures #1-32 are from the Blu-ray.
Screencaptures #35-40 are from 4K Blu-ray.

The 4K Blu-ray and Blu-ray discs introduce a brand new 4K makeover of The Longest Yard. In native 4K, the new 4K makeover can be seen with Dolby Vision or HDR. I chose to view it with HDR.

In 2020, we review this Blu-ray release of The Longest Yard that was prepared by Australian label Via Vision Entertainment. The release is sourced from an older but very good organic master that was supplied by Paramount Pictures. I did numerous comparisons between the previous release and the native 4K presentation of the 4K makeover, as well as the 1080p presentation of the 4K makeover.

The new 4K makeover produces visuals with more attractive surfaces -- grain exposure is a tad more even and density levels are slightly better. The entire film looks healthier now as well. On the previous presentation, I spotted a few blemishes and nicks, but on the 4K makeover, all such imperfections are eliminated. I was surprised to see that delineation, clarity, and depth are practically identical on both presentations. In fact, there are a couple of areas where the older presentation performs better. For example, in the final act, once the game begins, I spotted several very obvious examples of light smearing, which is usually related to digital manipulation(s). In 1080p, the smearing is even easier to spot, but in native 4K, trained eyes will quickly notice that depth and background details are very shaky as well. I took several screencaptures to highlight what I observed on my system -- see examples here and here. Color saturation is improved. However, black crush emerges and in quite a few areas the uptick in quality that native 4K content should reveal is effectively negated by it. When you add the light smearing to it, many of these areas begin to look underwhelming. You can see an example here. For what it's worth, the previous presentation reveals light black crush too, but I repeatedly went back and forth to spot the same or similar smearing and I could not. I saw various signs that reveal the age of the master. Excluding the blacks, color balance is very good. HDR produces visuals with a superior dynamic range, but this is to be expected. Image stability is excellent.

The Longest Yard 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

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

I did not encounter any issues to report in our review. The audio is clear, stable, and easy to follow. Dynamic intensity is good, but a part of me was secretly hoping to hear some minor enhancements during the action/game footage that would expand the dynamic field a bit. However, I think that the audio simply replicates the minor limitations of the original soundtrack.

The Longest Yard 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

4K BLU-RAY DISC

• Commentary One - this exclusive new audio commentary was recorded by film critics Alain Silver and Kames Ursini, authors of What Ever Happened to Robert Aldrich?. The two gentlemen -- both clearly with an outstanding grasp of the many unique qualities of Robert Aldrich's directing style and work -- discuss in great detail the conception of The Longest Yard and the special characters it introduces, the nature of the drama in it and its macho overtones, the humor that flourishes with it, the evolution of Aldrich's career, etc.

• Commentary Two - this archival audio commentary was recorded by Burt Reynolds and writer/producer Albert S. Ruddy. It has appeared on previous home video releases of The Longest Yard.

BLU-RAY DISC

• Commentary One - this exclusive new audio commentary was recorded by film critics Alain Silver and Kames Ursini, authors of What Ever Happened to Robert Aldrich?. The two gentlemen -- both clearly with an outstanding grasp of the many unique qualities of Robert Aldrich's directing style and work -- discuss in great detail the conception of The Longest Yard and the special characters it introduces, the nature of the drama in it and its macho overtones, the humor that flourishes with it, the evolution of Aldrich's career, etc.

• Commentary Two - this archival audio commentary was recorded by Burt Reynolds and writer/producer Albert S. Ruddy. It has appeared on previous home video releases of The Longest Yard.

• Doing Time on The Longest Yard - this archival program examines the genesis of The Longest Yard. Included in it are clips from interviews with Burt Reynolds, James Hampton, producer/writer Albert S. Ruddy, and a couple of sports journalists. In English, not subtitled. (12 min).

• Unleashing The Mean Machine - this archival program examines the authenticity of the sports footage in The Longest Yard. Also, there are some very interesting and hilarious comments about the great Ray Nitschke. Included in it are clips from interviews with Burt Reynolds, James Hampton, producer/writer Albert S. Ruddy, and Doug Flutie, amongst others. In English, not subtitled. (12 min).

• Trailer - presented here is avintage trailer for The Longest Yard. In English, not subtitled. (4 min).

The Longest Yard 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

I found this 4K Blu-ray/Blu-ray release of The Longest Yard rather underwhelming. It introduces a brand new 4K makeover of the film that is very similar to the one Paramount Pictures prepared for Pretty Baby. Certain areas of the film reveal anomalies that are typically associated with degraining adjustments and they become quite easy to recognize on a large screen. Naturally, if you want it in your collection, my advice would be to find a way to test it first. RECOMMENDED to the fans.