NOTE: The below Blu-ray captures were taken directly from the Blu-ray disc.

ADDITION: Studio Canal 4K UHD (June 2019): The 2018 restoration of They Live was made using the original camera negative which was scanned at 4K resolution in 16bit and Studio Canal applied the ACES workflow to the restoration process which resulted in the creation of a 4K DCP, UHD version and a new HD version which were produced with the same high technological standards as today's biggest international film releases. In short, the image is a huge advancement over the, already strong, Shout! Factory Blu-ray (see BD comparison HERE). Detail and grain support are dramatically improved - the overall image can be brighter, in some scenes, or darker with the contrast being exported with further layers in nighttime sequences.

The restoration and new UHD version was color graded and approved in Los Angeles by the Cinematographer, Gary B. Kibbe (ASC).

It is likely that the monitor you are seeing this review is not an HDR-compatible display (High Dynamic Range) 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. However, to complicate things further the differences between HDR and Dolby Vision can range from minuscule to significant - and this primarily effects colors and color depth. When obtaining our 4K resolution captures, our software, presently, defaults to the Dolby Vision if both are available. If a disc only features HDR, the software utilizes that simulation setting. So my system at the office does not support the exact same colors (warmth of skin tones, brighter or darker hues etc.) as the 4K one at home. But the framing, detail, grain texture support etc. are, generally, not effected by this variance. 

NOTE: 36 more full resolution (3840 X 2160) captures for Patrons are available HERE.

We have reviewed the following 4K UHD packages to date: 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, Studio Canal offer the option of a linear PCM 2.0 channel track or a DTS-HD Master 5.1 surround (no Atmos) - both 24-bit and both in English (there are two DUBs - a German and French.) The surround is extremely robust and blows away both Blu-ray transfers with some real intensity and depth in the effects and the pulsating score by John Carpenter (who scores his own films) and Alan Howarth (The Final Countdown and who has collaborated with Carpenter on many of his films.). It sounds brilliant, but obviously flatter in the uncompressed LPCM but the surround is quite effective in exporting the films paranoid themes. in the lossless. Paramount offer optional English (SDH) and standard English plus many other foreign language subtitle options, on their Region FREE 4K UHD.

There are no extras on the 4K UHD disc. The second disc Blu-ray has the film with the optional commentary by John Carpenter & Roddy Piper, as found on the Shout! Factory. The 3rd disc is a Blu-ray and has the plenty of supplements. Subversion: Exposing John Carpenter’s THEY LIVE is a brand new 47-minute retrospective documentary produced by Ballyhoo Motion Pictures and featuring interviews with associate producer Sandy King, cinematographer Gary Kibbe, actor Peter Jason, actor Robert Grasmere, composer Alan Howarth, stunt coordinator / Ghoul Jeff Imada, author Jonathan Letham, music historian Daniel Schweiger, Blumhouse editor Rebekah McKendry, and visual effects historian Justin Humphreys. It's educational about details of the production beyond those mentioned in the commentary. There is also the original electronic press kit from 1988 with the 8-minute "The Making of They Live", short profiles of John Carpenter, Meg Foster, and Roddy Piper. Independent Thoughts with John Carpenter is the 10-minute 2012 interview with the director Woman of Mystery: Interview with Meg Foster is also from that year running just over 5-minutes. Man vs Aliens is an 11-minute interview with Keith David. I enjoyed the 2.5 minutes of 'Fake' commercials in the film. There are also TV spots and a photo gallery - all founds on the Shout! Factory Blu-ray.

This is my most rewatched John Carpenter film - myself and my two sons love the passive alien invasion angle, and the noble drifter, perfectly played by Rowdy Roddy Piper - who is exposed to the conspiracy. Carpenter's, prescient, deeper themes continue to seem even more contemporary. The 4K package is a winner - a huge advancement in a/v and all the previous extras plus a new 3/4 hour documentary. If you appreciate this film - the Studio Canal 4K UHD is, by far, the best presentation and contains the most extras. It looks great on my system and we strongly recommend this for the digital library of 4K adopters. This film would be another reason to embrace this format.

Gary Tooze