CARLITO'S WAY 4K UHD BLU-RAY REVIEW

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Carlito’s Way was released on 4K UHD in October 2021 and this has been my first chance to finally have a look at it. It’s a good ‘un. Not the best 4K we’re ever going to see but an good electronic reproduction of the original 35mm film.
Sound has been re-worked to DTS-X. Image aspect ratio is the ‘Scope format of approximately 2.40:1. 4K disc immediately perceptibly superior to the Blu-ray largely owing to HDR and on this disc, it is HDR10+.

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28 thoughts on “CARLITO'S WAY 4K UHD BLU-RAY REVIEW”

  1. Another very fine review. I like this movie a great deal and just bought the 4K. Is Star Trek VI the movie where the Klingon moon explodes? I remember the sound of that explosion was awesome on my new 5.1 system years ago.

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  2. I love your reviews John. So well done with great information about the movie and your experience seeing it in theaters. I sometimes find myself rewatching your past reviews as I wait for the next one.

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  7. Back in the 80s and 90 in Sweden we had a weekly tv program called ’Filmjournalen’ (the movie journal). They showed trailers and talked about past, present and upcoming movies. The networks should bring those kind of shows back. John would be an excellent host of such show in the U.K with all his knowledge and calm approach.

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  10. Carlito's Way is one of those films that so often gets overlooked. I loved it when I bought it in the late 1990s and watched it several times, but I strangely enough never bought it on DVD or Blu-ray. At art college in the 1990s, I considered some of the sequences to be practically a masterclass in great film editing. Where shot continuity is concerned, I suspect Brian de Palma has the same attitude as some of the filmmakers of old did towards cuts: look at the blatant continuity jumps in My Darling Clementine or The Maltese Falcon. He approximates where things should in the scene, but hopes the pace, acting and story will get the audience through it. De Palma evidently got away with it in the cinema, but the unforgiving nature of home cinema inevitably takes its toll and we tend to notice things sitting in a small setting with few people that we might not in an auditorium fulll of people. I've added this one to my list. Sorry to hear that the included the Blu-ray appears not be based on the 4K scan: I'll buy the 4K for future-proofing. Thanks John! 🙂

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  12. a rare outstandig universal 4k release (scarface 4k was not bad either), though i thought i detected a few annoying nicks and white specks etc. [ best de palma's films: blow out, carlito's way (and sean penn never has been able to rise to that level again since playing that sleaze lawyer, an oscar performance), untouchables, scarface, body double. his other works are ok too (raising cain, dressed to kill, black dahlia?, etc.). ] universal's other 4k releases are shoddy as it's too cheap to fully restore and clean up or re-remaster their own films for uhd release (jaws 4k, doom 4k etc). paramount's new hyped star trek motion picture director's cut 4k shockingly has a few dirt and specks in a few scenes despite the documented 'extensive efforts/expense/time spent to clean up/restore' the film… what a shame. columbia and warner do a better job with the new 4k versions of poltergeist, lost boys, fright night. fox does a passable job with flatliners 4k. criterion got lazy as blow out's 4k version still has at least 4-6 jarring white specks plus smudges etc. and these releases are pricey. too bad they're not as perfect as they could've been.

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  13. Great review, John. This is one of my all time favourites and got it last Xmas. I finally got around to finishing the book it was based on recently, which is sprawling and convoluted; it could have made a decent TV series. There is very little that resembles the final film; Koepp and De Palma made the right choice in exorcising the guts of the book.

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  14. John, I really enjoy how you tell about your experience of watching your review film in the Cinema originally. It's fantastic, especially for films I was too young to see then, Carlito included. It also gives a great comparison to the Disc.

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  15. A friend of mine bought me the blu ray steelbook of Carlito’s Way for my birthday a few years ago. I absolutely love the steelbook design it’s one of my favorites. I don’t see the need to purchase the 4K remastering just yet but thanks for the review John! I also loved Scarface so much! Easily in my top 5 favorite movies of all time for sure.

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  17. Love the Undiscovered Country, and am very glad that the 4k has the theatrical cut. I think that the director’s cut is a significantly lesser version of the film, and I’d be interested to hear your perspective on the changes when you record your next review.

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  20. I got into a discussion with someone some weeks ago who claimed that DePalma was “rubbish”. After I reeled off 1-12 of his films she changed her position. In the early phase of his career he did suffer as he was often considered to be a Hitchcock plagiarist.

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  21. I really like ur nice reviews John 🙂

    I think Carlito's Way is the best film with Al Pacino and slightly better than Scarface. Brilliant performance by Pacino and Penn in this fantastic crime story. It's been a few years since I saw this film so I may have to watch it again soon.

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  25. Hi John! And I can Imagine just HOW nice that THX home system sounds with some of our favourite films!! I'd be curious to hear some of your personal go to movies. The ones we collect because we know we'll watch and rewatch regularly. As far as this one (and there being so many I want to buy lolol) I have the blu ray but hearing you speak of the disco scenes alone and the sound bringing you into that out of body experience it just may be a double dip for me at some point. As many agree this is an Underrated film IMO and seems to be passed over for others. (noted your Scarface reference) And Sean Penn's work here as well worthy of praise! My best to you guys over there! Cheers D!

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  27. Great review John!

    I own the blu ray for this but I still haven't seen it! I need to get around to it.

    I've got the Aliens 70mm test screening tomorrow, which I'm very excited about, due to the print having 6-track mag and most likely being sourced from the negative so it should look like a very nice print. I now have a shot-list so I can look at it while in the booth and get some great shots for the upcoming video.

    Drive on 35mm was very nice, the color grade was extremely similar to the great second sight 4K disc, except the sound on the 35mm sounded fantastic, and not as good as the 4K disc (although the 4K disc sound track is great, I found the 35mm track sound a lot clearer and had a better mix).

    I recently saw the new Halloween film "Halloween Ends" and thought it was one of the worst films I've seen all year. which is extremely unfortunate, I would have rather waited for the writers to come up with a better story than have the release date in October. oh well

    "Carrie" was also announced for a 4K disc a couple days ago, so perhaps when that is released you may do a review and could talk about those super 8 prints you own?

    Have a great day, John!

    Cheers,
    Clark

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  28. Great video as usual John. I too think this is a terrific film! I've never understood the comparison with Scarface either. De Palma's films all have their own unique identity in my opinion and I treated myself to the steelbook 4k of this film as its a long time favourite. I remember it being the first time I noticed how good Sean Penn was as an actor. Really enjoy your channel, thanks for the great work 👍

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