Waterworld Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		5.0
Overall		4.0

Waterworld Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman January 21, 2019

Waterworld was released on a bare bones Blu-ray several years ago by Universal that I found lacking in both technical merits vis a vis its video quality, as well as a kind of shocking absence of supplements, including the long sought after longer version(s) of the film. Arrow has once again come to the rescue, offering this film’s perhaps surprisingly large fan base a handsome new set that offers three versions of the film and a host of both on disc supplements and non-disc swag.

For my thoughts on the film, please see our Waterworld Blu-ray review of the Universal Blu-ray release. That review is also a good source for comparisons of screenshots of the Universal and Arrow releases.

Waterworld Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

All three versions of Waterworld included in this set are presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Arrow Video with AVC encoded 1080p transfers in 1.85:1. The booklet in this set has the following information on the transfers:

Waterworld was exclusively restored by Arrow Films and is presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1 with stereo and 5.1 sound.

The original 35mm camera negative was scanned in 4K resolution on a Lasergraphics Director scanner at EFilm, Burbank. Additional 35mm intermediary elements were scanned in 4K resolution for those sections unique to the Extended TV Cut and Ulysses Cut versions. An extensive search was undertaken by NBC Universal to locate all the additional sequences, optical sections and titles necessary to complete these longer versions of the film. Some of the effects sequences in these longer versions were never completed for the theatrical release so they remain in unfinished form.

The film was graded and restored at Pinewood Studios Group, London. Picture grading was completed on a DaVinci Resolve and restoration was completed using PF Clean software. Final grading review and approval was supervised by Director of Photography Dean Semler at EFilm, Burbank. The stereo and 5.1 mixes were remastered by NBC Universal.

All original materials supplied for this restoration were made available by NBC Universal.

By all measures we typically utilize in our reviews, this is a significant and actually even striking upgrade from the old, lackluster Universal version. All of the issues I mentioned in our review of that version have been improved, at times substantially. The pallid color of the Universal version is really quite markedly improved here, with — what do you know? — actual blue skies and waters. Palette saturation is better throughout the Arrow version, at times remarkably so. Detail levels are materially improved throughout the presentation, especially in close-ups, where fine detail levels are excellent. There are still some minor variances in clarity and grain resolution, not necessarily linked to how bright some scenes are. In fact, the rather long sequence somewhat late in the film featuring The Mariner and Helen which takes place at night looks fine, even if shadow detail is arguably a little on the thin side. But some quick scenes like The Mariner tooling through mist and smoke, or even the first sighting of the "atoll" can look a bit fuzzy, with a slightly yellowish tint to grain (some of these variances are understandably linked to things like optical dissolves, it should be added). As is indicated in Arrow's verbiage above, the two longer versions offer relatively brief snippets not sourced from the negative, though I have to say the differences in quality, while noticeable, are perhaps not as major as one might expect. In fact, the big effects laden finale in the hot air balloon looks pretty ragged in all three versions. Screenshots 1 through 24 are from the theatrical version, and I've included just a few examples of shots from the two longer versions in positions 25 through 30 that hopefully help to show some of the variances in clarity and saturation that are at play.

Waterworld Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Perhaps due to the remastering Arrow mentions NBC Universal did to the audio on this release, I actually enjoyed the DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 tracks on all three versions even more than I did on the old Universal release. There's some fantastic LFE, at times with appealing panning, that is noticeable right from the get go, as the Universal masthead appears, but then recurring throughout several of the big effects sequences. The ubiquity of outdoor material provides consistent opportunities for well placed sound effects, including the frequent splish splash of water sounds. Some of the showdown scenes offer really impressive surround activity. James Newton Howard's effective score is also spread around the side and rear channels very effectively. Dialogue is always rendered cleanly and clearly, and the track features great fidelity and wide dynamic range.

There are also DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 tracks available on all three cuts.

Waterworld Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

This is yet another beautifully packaged set from Arrow. The three disc keepcase is housed in a sturdy chipboard box which also includes six collector's postcards, a double sided fold out poster, and a limited edition 60 page "perfect bound" book featuring essays by David J. Moore and Daniel Griffith, along with some archival pictures and writing. There's also a reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Paul Shipper. The contents of the three Blu-ray discs are as follows:

Disc One

• Theatrical Version (1080p; 2:15:06)


• Maelstrom: The Odyssey of Waterworld (1080p; 1:42:22) is an absolutely fascinating retrospective that may well be of interest to those even without much love for Waterworld itself. This gets into a ton of background information, including what ostensibly went "wrong", and includes a number of well done interviews and some enjoyable behind the scenes footage.


• Dances With Waves (720p; 9:20) is an archival featurette documenting the shoot.


• Global Warnings (1080p; 22:21) features Glenn Kenny analyzing apocalyptically themed films.


• Image Galleries

  Production Image Gallery

  Concept Art (1080p)

  Production Stills (1080p)

  Behind the Scenes: Hawaii (1080p)

  Behind the Scenes: Los Angeles (1080p)

  Miniatures and Visual Effects (1080p)

  Promotional Image Gallery (1080p)

• Original Trailers

  Original Teaser (1080p; 2:00)

  Original Trailer (1080p; 2:15)

  Original TV Spots (1080p; 9:06)

Disc Two

• The TV Cut (1080p; 2:56:01) was created for U.S. broadcast television and contains over 40 minutes of additional material, including alternate scenes, but also a few judicious edits (note for example how the "introduction" to The Mariner is kind of hilariously shortened).

Disc Three

• The "Ulysses" Cut (1080p; 2:57:13) was done for European broadcast markets and restores some material shorn from the U.S. broadcast version (again, note for example how The Mariner's opening "activity" is back in full in this version).

Waterworld Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

As my 3.5 score for the film itself hopefully indicates, I've never thought Waterworld was the outright disaster some folks seem to think it was. That said, one of the chief pleasures of this release is being able to compare the theatrical cut to the two longer (and really rather similar) cuts made for various broadcast markets. Fans who have had access to previous versions of these longer cuts have sometimes kind of ironically complained about perceived bloat (ironic, considering "bloat" and water, that is), but I found some of the elements in the longer version helpful to the overall story, even if three hours (or six, if you watch both the TV and Ulysses cuts) may be a bit too long to spend with The Mariner. In some ways Waterworld was ahead of its time, at least with regard to some of its "ecological" proclivities, and the film in any of its versions has therefore perhaps aged more gracefully than some other "high concept" spectaculars from days of yore. I declined to recommend the old Universal release, but this new Arrow offering has in my opinion addressed all of the qualms most fans might have had with the first Blu-ray. Technical merits are first rate, the supplemental features extremely enjoyable, and the packaging very handsome. Highly recommended.