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

ADDITION: Masters of Cinema - Region 'B' - Blu-ray (December 2015): As with their Touch of Evil Blu-ray the Masters of Cinema gang have brought us different aspect ratios for a classic film. But in this case they are all the same cut of the film - but are differently framed. We get the 1.37:1 AR, which matches up almost exactly with the 2013 Paramount Blu-ray - although at times the colors can seem richer on the UK 1080P. I would say differences are marginal although MoC maxes out their bitrate and this may shows up as a superiority in-motion more than comparing the static captures.

Masters of Cinema's second Blu-ray has two more 'versions' both in '166:1' with a 'Theatrical' HD transfer and and an alternate 1.66:1 framing optimized for this ratio - supervised by George Stevens, Jr. Both of these are also 1080P and share the same, lower, but stable bitrate on this second dual-layered Blu-ray. Now, I didn't take the entire film apart to see the differences but you can see it most prominently in the captures where Shane has just fired his gun and the 'alternate' shows more head space above and some cropped off on the bottom. It may seem inconsequential but I am convinced it has an impact on the viewer's overall presentation. What is beneficial is we have the option and it allows for multiple viewings of the iconic film. Providing the 1.66:1 theatrical ratio was an excellent idea, IMO. I'll have to judge the revised-framing in future viewings.

For audio, Masters of Cinema go with linear PCM (24-bit) - offering the option of mono or 2.0 channel stereo for all three HD versions. I couldn't say I noticed much difference with the Paramount for the stereo but the mono does give a hollowness to the gunplay while the uncompressed gives it surprising depth.  Another memorable score by Victor Young (Three Faces West, The Sun Shines Bright, Johnny Guitar, China Gate, Bullfighter and the Lady, etc.) that certainly benefits from the lossless rendering. Actually the score is a large part of this film experience and it's readily noticeable the improvement over the SD's simple Dolby transfers. There options subtitles (English - SDH) on MoC's region 'B'-locked Blu-ray disc.

Masters of Cinema include the same audio commentary by George Stevens, Jr. and associate producer Ivan Moffat as found on the Paramount discs, but add a new, 22-minute, video interview with film scholar Neil Sinyard and the complete, 54-minute - audio only, Lux Radio Theater adaptation of Shane as well as an original theatrical trailer . The package itself has one of their desirable 36-page liner notes booklets featuring writing on the film by critic Penelope Huston, an unpublished interview with Stevens, a treatment for an unfilmed prologue to the film, an essay on the different ratios, and archival imagery.

This two Blu-ray set is limited to only 2000 copies, so it would be prudent to act now if you are keen. This is likely to be one that fetches absurd prices in auction and third party selling in the future. Shane is one of the greats of the genre and this package is certainly the definitive one to own. Perhaps, a reason - all by itself - for Region 'A'-locked viewers to adopt Region freedom. Our highest recommendation!

***

ADDITION: Paramount - Region FREE - Blu-ray (July 2013): Having seen my DVD version of Shane probably a dozen times, the new 1080P image REALLY jump out for me. Not knowing what it looked like theatrically, I can only say that I am very pleased with this appearance. It's clean, colors are very bright - some of the indoor and night sequences are a shade dark. Skin tones are warm. There is more information in the frame on all 4 edges and it's nice to see some of the original grain in the backgrounds. Incredibly deep black levels at times - almost moiring. This is dual-layered with a high bitrate. I see some very minor edge-enhancement if I zoom in far enough. I was mesmerized by the areas of improvement by the Blu-ray.

Effects are effective during the fire, bar brawl, dance and the guns shots (definite punch!) - the DTS-HD Master 2.0 channel handles it all expertly. There is a decipherable crispness to the dialogue. There are foreign language DUBs and subtitle options (including English - SDH) on Paramount's region FREE Blu-ray disc.