Rating summary

Movie		1.5
Video		0.0
Audio		4.5
Extras		5.0
Overall		3.0

The Woman 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman August 21, 2024

Note: This film is available in 4K UHD as part of Arrow's The Woman 4K / Offspring 4K double feature.

The wild and wacky world of licensing deals for various regions for (1080) Blu-ray releases may well have contributed to the fact that those on this side of the pond who (for whatever reason) looked for the two films in this package on disc would have found first an older 1080 release of The Woman put out by the little remembered label The Collective, which was then followed a few years later by Arrow's 1080 release of The Woman. There's only a rather old Lionsgate 1080 Region A release of Offspring. In that regard, Arrow's UK branch offered a 1080 double feature of The Woman and Offspring, which its US division is now bringing out on 4K UHD discs.

My The Woman Blu-ray review hopefully provides plot information and thoughts on the 1080 presentation that will suffice for those interested. The 4K UHD disc repeats the supplements of the 1080 release, as I've listed below.

The Woman 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Note: Screenshots are sourced off of Arrow's standalone 1080 release of the film. Per Arrow's standard operating procedure, there is no 1080 disc in this set.

The Woman is presented in 4K UHD courtesy of Arrow Video with an HEVC / H.265 encoded 2160p transfer in 1.78:1. Arrow's insert booklet lumps both films in this package's double feature together on its page devoted to the transfers, as follows:

The Woman and Offspring were both restored in 4K by Moderncine. Both films are presented in their original 1.78:1 aspect ratios with their original 5.1 surround sound mixes.

The original digital intermediate for The Woman was remastered in 4K resolution by the film's editor and post production supervisor Zach Passero. The film was restored and graded in SDR and HDR at Cheeky Monkey Post. All restoration work was supervised and approved by director Lucky McKee.

The original Super 16mm camera negative of Offspring was scanned in 4K on a Lasergraphics ScanStation at Gamma Ray Digital in Boston. The film was restored and graded in SDR and HDR on a Baselight at Filmworkers in Dallas. All restoration work was supervised and approved by director Andrew van den Houten.

Arrow's new 4K UHD version of the film capitalizes on some of the strengths I mentioned in my The Woman Blu-ray review of their 1080 version, offering a probably marginal but still noticeable uptick in fine detail levels on everything from mundane objects like props and costumes to some of the gruesome wounds the increasingly start to be part of the story. The palette looks quite similar to Arrow's 1080 version, though HDR / Dolby Vision at least intermittently aid in developing more shadow detail. Kind of interestingly, this improvement is not consistent, and there are still some very dimly lit scenes where even general detail levels let alone fine detail levels are negligible. Some of the rather interesting grading choices, which see things vary from sepia tone to nearly desaturated to relative "normalcy", also offer some visibly new highlights.

The Woman 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

This new 4K UHD disc repeats the DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 option of Arrow's 1080 release. As I mentioned in my original 1080 review, I heard no discernable differences between that disc's DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track and the one on the old disc put out by The Collective, and that's once again the case with this newest version. As with Arrow's 1080 release, it's worth noting that this release comes with a DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 option, whereas the previous release had only a lossy Dolby Digital 2.0 track as its stereo option. As I mentioned in the review of the first release by The Collective, the film's score may not appeal to everyone, but it, along with a wide array of ambient environmental effects, make good use of the surround channels. Both outdoor activity and even some of the more harrowing "chained" interior moments regularly utilize the side and rear channels to establish spatial relationships. Dialogue (anot to mention the more than occasional feral grunt) is rendered cleanly and clearly throughout the presentation. Optional English subtitles are available.

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

As fans of cult cinema may be expecting, it's Arrow's excellent set of supplements that may provide even more interest than the film itself for some:

• Commentaries

  Commentary by Lucky McKee

  
  

  Commentary by Lucky McKee, Zach Pasero, Andrew Smelek and Sean Spillane

  
  

  Commentary by Pollyanna McIntosh

  
  

  Commentary by Scott Weinberg

• Dad on the Wall: Filming The Woman (HD; 1:15:13) is advertised as being a "newly assembled fly on the wall" aggregation of candid shots caught by Mike McKee, the father of director Lucky McKee.


• Meet Peggy Cleek (HD; 19:59) is a new interview with Lauren Ashley Carter.


• Malam Domesticam: The Making of The Woman (HD; 25:29) is an archival featurette from 2011.


• Meet the Makers (HD; 6:49) offers six short biographical featurettes originally produced for cable channel Chiller.


• American Horror: A Panel Discussion (HD; 44:46) took place in 2011 at Film4 Frightfest in London, and includes Lucky McKee.


• Deleted Scenes (HD; 5:55) also includes outtakes.


• Mi Burro (HD; 6:41) is a short animated film directed by The Woman's editor Zach Passero, and produced by Lucky McKee.


• "Distracted" by Sean Spillane Music Promo (HD; 5:01)


• Theatrical Teaser (HD; 1:17)


• Theatrical Trailer (HD; 1:40)


• Image Gallery (HD)

This is another nicely packaged release from Arrow, with a slipcover and a nicely appointed insert booklet.

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

Those interested can consult my original 1080 review of Arrow's release of The Woman to help explain the rather large difference in "movie score" and "overall score" my assessment offers. This new 4K UHD version offers at least marginal improvements in detail and passing additional information in at least some of the most shaded moments, but it's still probably the supplements that may provide the most interest for those considering making a purchase.