NOTE: The below Blu-ray and 4K UHD captures were taken directly from the respective discs.

ADDITION: Kino 4K UHD (November 2022): Kino are releasing Kinka Usher's Mystery Men to 4K UHD. It is advertised as a "Brand New HDR/Dolby Vision Master – From a 4K Scan of the Original Camera Negative". A second disc, dual-layered, Blu-ray is included with the feature; "Brand New HD Master – From a 4K Scan of the Original Camera Negative" and supplements. Colors on the 2160P are very vibrant. They are stunningly rich. There is some softness - almost waxy at times - not much grain - but on my system the image quality was totally stellar. This is a favorite comedy and I have never seen the colors look so intense - balancing and tightening the overall visuals. Our capture renditions aren't doing the image justice - the 4K UHD presentation it looks significantly better, imo. Different systems, as always, will produce different results. 

It is likely that the monitor you are seeing this review is not an HDR-compatible display (High Dynamic Range) or Dolby Vision, where each pixel can be assigned with a wider and notably granular range of color and light. Our capture software if simulating the HDR (in a uniform manner) for standard monitors. This should make it easier for us to review more 4K UHD titles in the future and give you a decent idea of its attributes on your system. So our captures may not support the exact same colors (coolness of skin tones, brighter or darker hues etc.) as the 4K system at your home. But the framing, detail, grain texture support etc. are, generally, not effected by this simulation representation.

NOTE: 56 more more full resolution (3840 X 2160) 4K UHD captures, in lossless PNG format, for Patrons are available HERE

We have reviewed the following 4K UHD packages to date: Silent Running (software uniformly simulated HDR), Dressed to Kill (software uniformly simulated HDR), The Power of the Dog  (software uniformly simulated HDR), Escape From Alcatraz (software uniformly simulated HDR), I, the Jury (no HDR), Casablanca (software uniformly simulated HDR), In the Mood For Love (NO HDR applied to disc), The Werewolf vs. the Vampire Woman  (software uniformly simulated HDR), Blow Out (software uniformly simulated HDR), Night of the Living Dead (NO HDR applied to disc), Lost Highway (software uniformly simulated HDR), Videodrome (software uniformly simulated HDR), The Last Picture Show (software uniformly simulated HDR), It Happened One Night (software uniformly simulated HDR), The Mummy (1932)(software uniformly simulated HDR), Creature From the Black Lagoon (software uniformly simulated HDR), Bride of Frankenstein (software uniformly simulated HDR), The Amityville Horror  (software uniformly simulated HDR), The War of the Worlds (1953) (software uniformly simulated HDR), The Incredible Melting Man  (software uniformly simulated HDR), Event Horizon (software uniformly simulated HDR), The Power of the Dog  (software uniformly simulated HDR), Escape From Alcatraz (software uniformly simulated HDR), I, the Jury (no HDR), Casablanca (software uniformly simulated HDR), In the Mood For Love (NO HDR applied to disc), The Werewolf vs. the Vampire Woman  (software uniformly simulated HDR), Blow Out (software uniformly simulated HDR), Night of the Living Dead (NO HDR applied to disc), Lost Highway (software uniformly simulated HDR), Videodrome (software uniformly simulated HDR), The Last Picture Show (software uniformly simulated HDR), It Happened One Night (software uniformly simulated HDR), The Mummy (1932)(software uniformly simulated HDR), Creature From the Black Lagoon (software uniformly simulated HDR), Bride of Frankenstein (software uniformly simulated HDR), The Amityville Horror  (software uniformly simulated HDR), The War of the Worlds (1953) (software uniformly simulated HDR), The Incredible Melting Man  (software uniformly simulated HDR), Get Carter (software uniformly simulated HDR), The Killing (software uniformly simulated HDR), Killer's Kiss (software uniformly simulated HDR), Out of Sight (software uniformly simulated HDR), Raging Bull (software uniformly simulated HDR), Shaft (1971),  (software uniformly simulated HDR), Double Indemnity (software uniformly simulated HDR), The Untouchables (software uniformly simulated HDR),  For a Few Dollars More (no HDR), Saboteur (software uniformly simulated HDR), Marnie (software uniformly simulated HDR), Shadow of a Doubt (software uniformly simulated HDR), The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (software uniformly simulated HDR), A Fistful of Dollars (no HDR), In the Heat of the Night (no HDR), Jack Reacher (software uniformly simulated HDR), Death Wish II (software uniformly simulated HDR), The Apartment (no HDR), The Proposition (software uniformly simulated HDR), Nightmare Alley (2021) (software uniformly simulated HDR), Mary Shelley's Frankenstein (software uniformly simulated HDR), The Godfather (software uniformly simulated HDR), Le Crecle Rouge (software uniformly simulated HDR), An American Werewolf in London (software uniformly simulated HDR), A Hard Day's Night (software uniformly simulated HDR), The Piano (software uniformly simulated HDR), The Great Escape (software uniformly simulated HDR), The Red Shoes (software uniformly simulated HDR), Citizen Kane (software uniformly simulated HDR), Unbreakable (software uniformly simulated HDR), Mulholland Dr. (software uniformly simulated HDR), Invasion of the Body Snatchers (software uniformly simulated HDR), The Hills Have Eyes (software uniformly simulated HDR), The Servant (software uniformly simulated HDR), Anatomy of a Murder (software uniformly simulated HDR), Taxi Driver  (software uniformly simulated HDR), The Wolf Man (1941) (software uniformly simulated HDR), Frankenstein (1931) (software uniformly simulated HDR),  Deep Red (software uniformly simulated HDR),  Misery (software uniformly simulated HDR), The Silence of the Lambs (software uniformly simulated HDR), John Carpenter's "The Thing" (software uniformly simulated HDR), The Cat' o'Nine Tails (software uniformly simulated HDR),  The Bird With the Crystal Plumage (software uniformly simulated HDR), Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (software uniformly simulated HDR), Perdita Durango (software uniformly simulated HDR),  Django (software uniformly simulated HDR),  Fanny Lye Deliver'd (software uniformly simulated HDR), The Good, the Bad and the Ugly, (NO HDR applied to disc),  Rollerball (software uniformly simulated HDR),  Chernobyl  (software uniformly simulated HDR), Daughters of Darkness (software uniformly simulated HDR), Vigilante (software uniformly simulated HDR), Tremors (software uniformly simulated HDR), Cinema Paradiso (software uniformly simulated HDR), The Bourne Legacy (software uniformly simulated HDR), Full Metal Jacket (software uniformly simulated HDR),  Psycho (software uniformly simulated HDR), The Birds (software uniformly simulated HDR), Rear Window (software uniformly simulated HDR), Vertigo (software uniformly simulated HDR),  Spartacus (software uniformly simulated HDR), Jaws (software uniformly simulated HDR), The Invisible Man, (software uniformly simulated HDR), Steven Spielberg's War of the Worlds (software uniformly simulated HDR), Lucio Fulci's 1979 Zombie  (software uniformly simulated HDR),, 2004's Van Helsing (software uniformly simulated HDR),  The Shallows (software uniformly simulated HDR), The Bridge on the River Kwai (software uniformly simulated HDR), The Deer Hunter (software uniformly simulated HDR),  The Elephant Man (software uniformly simulated HDR), A Quiet Place (software uniformly simulated HDR), Easy Rider (software uniformly simulated HDR), Suspiria (software uniformly simulated HDR), Pan's Labyrinth (software uniformly simulated HDR),  The Wizard of Oz, (software uniformly simulated HDR), The Shining, (software uniformly simulated HDR), Batman Returns (software uniformly simulated HDR), Don't Look Now (software uniformly simulated HDR), The Man Who Killed Killed and then The Bigfoot  (software uniformly simulated HDR),,  Bram Stoker's Dracula (software uniformly simulated HDR), Lucy (software uniformly simulated HDR), They Live (software uniformly simulated HDR), Shutter Island (software uniformly simulated HDR),  The Matrix (software uniformly simulated HDR), Alien (software uniformly simulated HDR), Toy Story (software uniformly simulated HDR),  A Few Good Men (software uniformly simulated HDR),  2001: A Space Odyssey (HDR caps udated), Schindler's List (simulated HDR), The Neon Demon (No HDR), Dawn of the Dead (No HDR), Saving Private Ryan (simulated HDR and 'raw' captures), Suspiria (No HDR), The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (No HDR), The Big Lebowski, and I Am Legend (simulated and 'raw' HDR captures).

On their 4K UHD, Kino offer DTS-HD Master tracks in both the 2.0 channel and a very robust 5.1 surround (both 24-bit) in the original English language. They are plenty of effects that come through with floor-rattling bass. This is also notable in the score by Stephen Warbeck (Shakespeare in Love, Birthday Girl, Polisse, Prime Suspect) with unique instrumentation including Hungarian instruments, the tárogató and the cimbalom, and also a Greek instrument, the bouzouki etc. Plus there is a ton of music in the film - thanks to 'The Disco Boys' characters we get snippets of plenty of that genre including The Trammps's "Disco Inferno", A Taste of Honey's "Boogie Oogie Oogie", Anita Ward's "Ring My Bell", The Bee Gees's "Night Fever", Chic's "Le Freak", KC & The Sunshine Band's "That's the Way (I Like It)", Walter Murphy's "A Fifth of Beethoven" - also fittingly is The B-52's "Planet Claire" when Paul Reubens character 'Spleen' is introduced. There is more sounding very impressive in lossless - even if they are only short samplings of the songs. It sounds quite effective. The 4K UHD disc offers optional English subtitles - and is, like all 4K UHD, region FREE, playable worldwide. The second disc Blu-ray with extras is Region 'A'-locked.

The 4K UHD disc also has the Kinka Usher commentary from 2000. The rest of the supplements are on the second disc Blu-ray (which also offers the commentary.) These extras are a repeat of the 2020 88 Films Blu-ray supplements with deleted scenes and the 'Spotlight On Location' featurette also found on the DVD and 2012 Blu-ray. There are also four other video pieces duplicated from the 88 Films Blu-ray release; We're The Other Guys!: The Making of "Mystery Men" with Director Kinka Usher running 23-minutes, I'm A Superhero, Mother!: The Costumes of "Mystery Men" with designer Marilyn Vance for a dozen minutes discussing the superhero costuming. Inside Champion City!: The Effects of "Mystery Men" spends 10-minutes with visual effects supervisor Todd Tucker and Disco Is Life!: The Score(s) of "Mystery Men" is with film music historian Daniel Schweiger for 8.5 minutes. Lastly is a trailer. 

Kinka Usher's Mystery Men is loosely based on Bob Burden's Flaming Carrot Dark Horse comic series - which I also love. In fact, Burden was on-set responding to questions about the characterizations. Mystery Men features oddly-powered superheroes, with surreal adventures interacting with many eccentric characters that inhabit 'Champion City' in this parody universe. The film features a large cast with Ben Stiller, Hank Azaria, William H. Macy, Greg Kinnear, Janeane Garofalo, Paul Reubens, Kel Mitchell, Wes Studi, Geoffrey Rush, Lena Olin, Eddie Izzard, Claire Forlani, and Tom Waits. The unlikely superheroes include Mr. Furious, the Shoveler, the Blue Raja with recruits Invisible Boy, the Spleen, and the Bowler (mentored by The Sphinx)  - to do battle with Casanova Frankenstein (the Disco Boys and Frat Boys) who has kidnapped the preeminent superhero of the city, Captain Amazing. This was Usher's feature debut - he had won awards for the "Got Milk?" and Taco Bell Chihuahua commercial campaigns. Certainly the film is considered a success although no sequel was produced. I adore Mystery Men and am thrilled with this 4K UHD transfer. I re-watch the film all the time - it has an fun addictive positive-ness to it - appropriately culminating with Smash Mouth's All Star. Huge 'keeper' for this reviewer.

***

ADDITION: 88 Films (UK) Blu-ray (June 2020): 88 Films have transferred Kinka Usher's delightful Mystery Men to Region 'B' Blu-ray. The image advances over the VC-1 encoded Universal Blu-ray, which fans often felt was underwhelming with a waxy softness. Here, on a dual-layered disc with a higher max'ed out bitrate and AVC encode the image is crisper, has better layered contrast, richer colors and looks appealing in-motion. It's a nice upgrade from the original Blu-ray and fans will appreciate it's more film-like qualities. 

NOTE: We have added 68 more large resolution Blu-ray captures (in lossless PNG format) for DVDBeaver Patrons HERE

On their Blu-ray, 88 Films use a more robust DTS-HD Master 5.1 surround track (24-bit) in the original English language.  Universal offer optional English subtitles on their Region 'B'-locked Blu-ray.

The 88 Films Blu-ray has the Kinka Usher commentary, deleted scenes and On Location featurette also found on the DVD and 2012 Blu-ray. But there are also four other video pieces as supplements on the 88 Films release; We're The Other Guys!: The Making of "Mystery Men" with Director Kinka Usher running 23-minutes, I'm A Superhero, Mother!: The Costumes of "Mystery Men" with designer Marilyn Vance for a dozen minutes discussing the superhero costuming. Inside Champion City!: The Effects of "Mystery Men" spends 10-minutes with visual effects supervisor Todd Tucker and Disco Is Life!: The Score(s) of "Mystery Men" is with film music historian Daniel Schweiger for 8.5 minutes. The Blu-ray package has a limited edition collector's booklet by James Oliver with extensive behind the scenes photographs and an nice LE matte slipcase. 

Mystery Men is still a formidable comedy gem - hard to believe it is 20-years old now. We all hoped for a sequel but I am still very pleased to revisit this every once in a while. It has great dialogue and memorable performances from Janeane Garofalo, William H. Macy, Greg Kinnear, Geoffrey Rush and many others. The 88 Films Blu-ray is the one to own winning on all fronts - a/v and extras. Fans should have this one in their digital library.

Gary Tooze

ADDITION: Universal - Region FREE - Blu-ray (July 2012): Firstly, because of the intrusive timeline feature I wasn't able to get exact frame matches on all captures. Surprisingly, this Universal Blu-ray is encoded with VC-1 - which we don't often see anymore as most 1080P transfer use AVC. Being such a dark film, it is hard to notice strong visual improvement over the capable SD-DVD, but on a large screen system - it becomes more evident. The Blu-ray is transferred in the original 1.85:1 aspect ratio (DVD was 1.78) and shows a shade more information in the frame. It is marginally brighter with an uncomfortable softness. Colors are tighter but don't stray far from the DVD-exported scheme. There is some depth in the day-lit, outdoor, sequences (interviewing perspective team members). It is dual-layered with a high bitrate and I don't discount some digitization but it's not enough to quibble over.

Universal supply a DTS-HD Master 5.1 surround track at 2721 kbps. It has some buoyancy but there isn't a plethora of aggressive separations. What effects are exported to the rear speakers are often subtle and atmospheric.  There are optional subtitles on the Region FREE Blu-ray disc.

In regards to extras we keep the light director commentary, the amusing deleted scenes and the 'making of...' - lose the 'origins' from the DVD but gain an HD trailer. The Blu-ray is also 'My Scenes' capable.

I love this film every time I see it. I'll bet I watch it every 6-months or so. Great cast and writing - a super fun film that I wouldn't pass up in 1080P. Recommended - especially at this reasonable price.

***

ON THE DVD: The first noted detail of the image is that it is exceptionally dark, but I always prefer this as far more natural look than contrast boosted transfers. This is obviously how the film looked theatrically and it definitely suits the style of the detailed art production. Colors are intentionally on the dull side but sharpness is there and overall the quality is very consistent.

The supplements are very good - the director commentary shares many production details and some frank anecdotes. There is a 'Spotlight on Location' featurette and about 7 minutes of deleted scenes.

Overall this is a well above-average DVD at a good price. The film is very addictive and charming in its own juvenile way. Although it won't make our Essentials DVDs listing - we still recommend it for some great fun. 

Gary W. Tooze