PROGRAM DESCRIPTION
Timed to the 35th anniversary of this iconic modern western, Young Guns will be released on a SteelBook® in a National 4K Ultra HD™ (+ Blu-ray™ + Digital), plus a Best Buy exclusive release, on December 5th from Lionsgate. This is the first time the film will be available in 4K with a brand-new transfer featuring Dolby Vision HDR. Included will be a new Dolby Atmos audio mix as well the original 2.0 stereo original theatrical mix. Additionally, this is also the first time the film will be on digital and the Blu-ray™. Directed by Christopher Cain, written by John Fusco, and starring Emilio Estevez, Kiefer Sutherland, Lou Diamond Phillips, Charlie Sheen, Dermot Mulroney, and Casey Siemaszko, Young Guns will be available nationally for the suggested retail price of $34.99 and a Best Buy exclusive of $37.99.
OFFICIAL SYNOPSIS
The year is 1878, Lincoln County. John Tunstall, a British ranch owner, hires six rebellious boys as “regulators” to protect his ranch against the ruthless Santa Fe Ring. When Tunstall is killed in an ambush, the Regulators, led by the wild-tempered Bill the Kid (Emilio Estevez), declare war on the Ring. As their vendetta turns into a bloody rampage, they are branded outlaws, becoming the objects of the largest manhunt in Western history.
CAST
Emilio Estevez The Outsiders, Wisdom, The Breakfast Club
Kiefer Sutherland TV’s 24, Designated Survivor, Flatliners
Lou Diamond Phillips La Bamba, Stand and Deliver, Courage Under Fire
Charlie Sheen TV’s Two and a Half Men, Wall Street
Dermot Mulroney My Best Friend’s Wedding, Zodiac
Casey Siemaszko Back to the Future, Stand by Me, Of Mice and Men
SPECIAL FEATURES
· Audio Commentary with actors Dermot Mulroney, Lou Diamond Phillips and Casey Siemaszko
· How the West Was Wild: Making Young Guns (NEW FEATURETTE featuring new cast/crew interviews)
· Billy the Kid: The True Story
· Teaser Trailer
· Theatrical Trailer
· Exclusive character art cards as part of the Best Buy release
YOUNG GUNS 4K UHD - Andy's Review
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AndyDursin
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YOUNG GUNS 4K UHD - Andy's Review
Long awaited remaster of this problematic Lionsgate title...
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AndyDursin
- Posts: 34278
- Joined: Tue Oct 05, 2004 8:45 pm
- Location: RI
Re: YOUNG GUNS 4K UHD - December
Some of Horners music can be briefly heard in the featurette...
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AndyDursin
- Posts: 34278
- Joined: Tue Oct 05, 2004 8:45 pm
- Location: RI
Re: YOUNG GUNS 4K UHD - Andy's Review
7/10
Sold as “The Brat Pack Goes to the Old West” – with a trailer I recall seeing every week going to the movies back in 1988 until its August release date – “Young Guns” follows the early adventures of Billy the Kid (Emilio Estevez) and his group of “Regulators” (Kiefer Sutherland, Lou Diamond Phillips, Charlie Sheen, Dermot Mulroney and Casey Siemaszko) as they seek vengeance after the murder of their father-figure rancher (Terence Stamp) at the hands of a dastardly Irishman (Jack Palance).
John Fusco wrote a number of scripts in the western genre (“Hildago,” “Thunderheart,” “Spirit”) and says he didn’t intend for “Young Guns” to be a “Brad Pack” outing per se – rather a story that tries to follow young Billy’s adventures in the “Lincoln County War” utilizing age-appropriate leads. His script is sturdy and the story compelling – as is the casting – though the end product is a bit sabotaged by Christopher Cain’s flat direction and an anachronistic “’80s” score by Anthony Marinelli and Brian Banks.
The duo’s efforts were a late-in-the-game rescore for James Horner’s Irish-ensemble dominated, orchestral soundtrack which, in a new interview included here, Cain says was humorless and too “ethereal.” While the movie’s tone may have been more in sync with the tuneful sound and faster pace of the Marinelli/Banks soundtrack, the music doesn’t work well in the film, its guitars and synths calling attention to themselves and coming off, as some re-scores do, as incongruous to the film it’s trying to support. It also doesn’t help that their main theme sounds like it could’ve been written for “MacGuyver” or even “Saved By The Bell.”
Along with some curiously pedestrian staging of action scenes, “Young Guns” falls short of being a classic, even of the cult variety, but it’s still entertaining enough and the cast of young ‘uns and veteran stars – with cameos from Brian Keith and Patrick Wayne – makes it an irresistible view for western fans.
It’s also easier to appreciate now that the film has received a much-needed 4K remastering from Lionsgate, providing a Dolby Vision HDR (1.85) presentation that blows the doors off the early-format HD master previously seen on Blu-Ray (a similarly remastered BD is also included here). Detail is strong and the presentation consistent from start to end, while the Dolby Atmos sound packs a wallop with lots of panache, sound effects and directional activity (a comparatively limp original 2.0 surround mix is also included).
Lionsgate has also produced a new 35-minute retrospective doc featuring John Fusco, Christopher Cain, Dermot Mulroney, Lou Diamond Phillips and Casey Siemaszko. This is a fast-paced and enjoyable look back at the production with Cain – who had worked with Horner on two previous films – commenting on the change of score and Marinelli discussing the film and also his work in Hollywood as a whole (he notes he and Banks rescored all of Jack Nitzsche’s “Stand By Me” after Rob Reiner decided to use the Ben E. King song as the movie’s title late in production). To be fair, he and Banks did provide the filmmakers with a then-contemporary sound which successfully helped to sell the film, but one wishes Horner’s efforts could be heard – especially attached to the movie itself (there’s a brief cue comparison provided here, but it’s in an action scene which scarcely sounds different from the Marinelli/Banks rescore).
An archival commentary with Mulroney, Phillips and Siemaszko is also on hand plus “Billy The Kid: The True Story,” a Digital HD copy, and those original trailers with Horner’s name attached – both newly rescanned for this release.
Sold as “The Brat Pack Goes to the Old West” – with a trailer I recall seeing every week going to the movies back in 1988 until its August release date – “Young Guns” follows the early adventures of Billy the Kid (Emilio Estevez) and his group of “Regulators” (Kiefer Sutherland, Lou Diamond Phillips, Charlie Sheen, Dermot Mulroney and Casey Siemaszko) as they seek vengeance after the murder of their father-figure rancher (Terence Stamp) at the hands of a dastardly Irishman (Jack Palance).
John Fusco wrote a number of scripts in the western genre (“Hildago,” “Thunderheart,” “Spirit”) and says he didn’t intend for “Young Guns” to be a “Brad Pack” outing per se – rather a story that tries to follow young Billy’s adventures in the “Lincoln County War” utilizing age-appropriate leads. His script is sturdy and the story compelling – as is the casting – though the end product is a bit sabotaged by Christopher Cain’s flat direction and an anachronistic “’80s” score by Anthony Marinelli and Brian Banks.
The duo’s efforts were a late-in-the-game rescore for James Horner’s Irish-ensemble dominated, orchestral soundtrack which, in a new interview included here, Cain says was humorless and too “ethereal.” While the movie’s tone may have been more in sync with the tuneful sound and faster pace of the Marinelli/Banks soundtrack, the music doesn’t work well in the film, its guitars and synths calling attention to themselves and coming off, as some re-scores do, as incongruous to the film it’s trying to support. It also doesn’t help that their main theme sounds like it could’ve been written for “MacGuyver” or even “Saved By The Bell.”
Along with some curiously pedestrian staging of action scenes, “Young Guns” falls short of being a classic, even of the cult variety, but it’s still entertaining enough and the cast of young ‘uns and veteran stars – with cameos from Brian Keith and Patrick Wayne – makes it an irresistible view for western fans.
It’s also easier to appreciate now that the film has received a much-needed 4K remastering from Lionsgate, providing a Dolby Vision HDR (1.85) presentation that blows the doors off the early-format HD master previously seen on Blu-Ray (a similarly remastered BD is also included here). Detail is strong and the presentation consistent from start to end, while the Dolby Atmos sound packs a wallop with lots of panache, sound effects and directional activity (a comparatively limp original 2.0 surround mix is also included).
Lionsgate has also produced a new 35-minute retrospective doc featuring John Fusco, Christopher Cain, Dermot Mulroney, Lou Diamond Phillips and Casey Siemaszko. This is a fast-paced and enjoyable look back at the production with Cain – who had worked with Horner on two previous films – commenting on the change of score and Marinelli discussing the film and also his work in Hollywood as a whole (he notes he and Banks rescored all of Jack Nitzsche’s “Stand By Me” after Rob Reiner decided to use the Ben E. King song as the movie’s title late in production). To be fair, he and Banks did provide the filmmakers with a then-contemporary sound which successfully helped to sell the film, but one wishes Horner’s efforts could be heard – especially attached to the movie itself (there’s a brief cue comparison provided here, but it’s in an action scene which scarcely sounds different from the Marinelli/Banks rescore).
An archival commentary with Mulroney, Phillips and Siemaszko is also on hand plus “Billy The Kid: The True Story,” a Digital HD copy, and those original trailers with Horner’s name attached – both newly rescanned for this release.