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

ADDITION: Criterion Blu-ray (March 2021): Criterion have transferred Albert Brooks' Defending Your Life to Blu-ray. It is cited as being from a "New 4K digital restoration, supervised by director Albert Brooks". The 1080P image has a fair amount of grain. It is on a dual-layered disc with a max'ed out bitrate and while contrast occasionally looks a bit dull, other sequences with colors are bright exporting pleasing depth. I was surprised how extensive the textures appeared. 

NOTE: We have added 36 more large resolution Blu-ray captures (in lossless PNG format) for DVDBeaver Patrons HERE

On their Blu-ray, Criterion use a DTS-HD Master 2.0 channel stereo track (24-bit) in the original English language. The film has a fairly passive soundstage with a score by Michael Gore (Pretty in Pink, Terms of Endearment, Fame). Music includes Barbra Streisand singing Leonard Bernstein's Something's Coming on the CD in Daniel's (Brooks) new car before he crashes, samplings of That's Life, Misty plus Home on the Range performed by Albert Brooks. Criterion offer optional English subtitles on their Region 'A' / 'B' Blu-ray.

The Criterion Blu-ray has new supplements. Extras offer a new (Nov. 2020), 28-minute, conversation between writer-director-actor Albert Brooks and filmmaker Robert Weide recorded remotely. Brooks admits that Defending Your Life seems to be, of all the films he's made, to be most effecting to people as death is so universal. There is a 22-minute video piece with theologian and critic Donna Bowman who takes a closer look at Defending Your Life and the afterlife world created by writer-director-actor Albert Brooks. It was also recorded remotely in November 2020 by Criterion. Included are segments from interviews with writer-director-actor Albert Brooks and actors Lee Grant and Rip Torn. They were recorded for the television talk show Crook & Chase in 1991, around the time of the original release of Defending Your Life. They run about a dozen minutes. Lastly, is a trailer for the film and the package has liner notes with an essay by filmmaker Ari Aster.

Albert Brooks' Defending Your Life is filled with chestnuts of philosophy, forcing contemplation of mortality and putting in perspective how we are living on the brief time we have here on earth:

"There was one person you were really cheap with. Over and over again. I wish you'd been more generous with him."
"Who?"
"You."

The idea of Judgment City is such a comforting fantasy - it's kind of like a 5-star Vegas hotel, always pristinely clean, but you can gorge yourself on the most amazing food without gaining weight or having it effect your health. We won't have to 'defend our life' if we live it properly now - be less afraid, less selfish etc. 

Overall, this is more of Brooks' intelligent, reflective, humor, very much worth seeing and re-assessing after 30-years. The 'Director-Approved' Criterion Special Edition Blu-ray offers a wonderful home theatre presentation with over an hour's worth of interesting extras. Strongly recommended!

Gary Tooze