This year has seen more top-class 4K UHD‘s released, and these are my favourites of what’s been picked up, among the many. Mostly drama or thrillers, this isn’t exhaustive, yet I certainly recommend the lot. If you’re new to the 4K UHD game, it’s an upgrade from Blu-ray and once converted, you’re unlikely to go back, and any DVD screenings will look like an old VHS recording from the television – but not in a fun way… so!

So, are you ready to grab a ride in the vast, empty desert with a stranger? Sit in the audience to watch a seemingly harmless Halloween talk show? Immerse in original cinematic worlds, or even try to avoid a mighty monster?

You’re in the right place…

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The Hitcher

Robert Harmon’s The Hitcher is a film I discovered in the early 2000s, and it never left my mind, so this Second Sight release and restoration of a game-changing genre film is a must for your collection (reviewed here), as we follow Rutger Hauer’s relentless, and unpredictably shadowy hitchhiker from hell, terrorising unsuspecting motorists on deserted Midwestern roads, and particularly C. Thomas Howell’s Jim Halsey, who’s also excellent in this killer cat and mouse on the road thriller. This type of film is exactly what 4K UHD is made for and brings it into the home with aplomb. The colour palette is gorgeous, the visual journey is completely vital for the story, and it’s a film that stands the test of time, and this restoration gets you a new 4K UHD set that is a proper thing of beauty, and bloody darkness, but it’s smart, it’s inspired so many films since and fits into any collection – and it should do, as well. Order here!

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Late Night with the Devil

I missed directing duo’s Colin Cairnes and Cameron Cairnes Late Night with the Devil on the cinema release, but I picked up the 4K UHD literally for Halloween night (reviewed here), and there couldn’t have been a better way to watch it for the first time – as the film itself is set at the same time, and it’s an absolute instant cult classic, and enables a look that takes in the 70s vibe and merges a documentary-type style, but all along telling a genuinely captivating story of a secret demon hidden behind the eyes, and it’s all in the name of hopeful viewing figures, for David Dastmalchian’s astonishing great late night presenter – just after one last big night in the world of television.I can’t recommend this film enough, turn the lights off, make sure you’ve got someone with you and enjoy the bonkers story in all its insanity. Brilliantly done. Order yours here.

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The Last Starfighter

I do enjoy a well-made 80s nostalgia film, but I’d never seen Nick Castle’s The Last Starfighter, possibly bigger in the USA than it would have been in the UK, but this one received a 4K UHD Arrow Film restoration and it’s really worth visiting, if you never have (reviewed here). This enjoyable romp fits the 80s era effortlessly with a feel-good character arc at the middle, and will certainly be one I revisit time and again, and Lance Guest’s lead character Alex Rogan bringing the great balance of a geeky arcade game lover who ends up in a ‘real-life’ interstellar war and, sure, it really pushes the narrative beyond normality but there’s so much to enjoy, even if overall it’s an easy enough story, there’s just something here that brings forth the warmth of such escapism, order a copy here!

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Deadpool & Wolverine

Shawn Levy’s Deadpool & Wolverine so excited me, I didn’t even notice that some fans were complaining about it being too fan-centric but, let’s be honest, that was always going to be the point. Overall, the Ryan Gosl….Reynolds and Hugh Jackman behemoth is a journey. A bloody journey, full of ridiculous fight scenes, big stupid ideas but mostly a real heart in the middle and, yes, I believe that. This is also a great film for 4K UHD (review here), there’s some pure disturbing scenes, in a Deadpool kinda way, and those hands through the skull were unlike anything I’d seen before. In truth, this is major fan service but in the way an adventure should be – big-hearted, a whole lot of nasty deaths and drinks along the road. Get yours here!

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The Creator

You think I might have snuck clandestinely Gareth Edwards’ The Creator in here but that’s because this 4K UHD Steelbook was released in 2024, and it really needs another look from everyone (reviewed) – and with this art from Matt Ferguson. An original story, set in a new world, at a vast scale – I kind of thing that give it 5-10 years and people will really appreciate this underestimated masterpiece, doing for the genre that Rogue One did for Star Wars, this man really knows how to tell a massive story with a great balance of tension and vision. This is ambitious filmmaking, and the visual journey is everything, so a 4K UHD is just what this film needs and, if you’ve not picked up yet, you need it in your collection now. Order now.

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Trainspotting

Danny Boyle’s iconic, curiously still relevant Trainspotting has had a selection of releases over the years, but this fine 4K digital restoration of the uncut version of the film (reviewed here), that takes us back inside the equally captivating and grimy world of Renton, Spud, Sick Boy and Begbie – all played by a stellar cast led by Ewan McGregor. It gets a smart Steelbook design, even if the extras haven’t been updated for a bit. But, even with that moment just missed, the film is worth revisiting repeatedly. Even if it’s a difficult one to quickly visit, you more or less forget how many iconic scenes drop one after the other, and how hard certain scenes hit – even today. There’s absolutely none of the power lost, nearly 30 years later, and it’s difficult to decide whether that’s a good thing as it’s strong writing, a killer cast and top directing, or sad because it’s just as reflective as society as ever. Maybe it’s all sides, and it’s certainly worth having in your collection. Get your hit here.

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Alien: Romulus

While my initial expectations of Fede Alvarez’s Alien: Romulus was that it’d be a lot darker, slower, smaller, the wider retrospective of an shrewdly created film – to fit within the franchise – was actually more impressive (review here) than anything else, despite a few steps I think were miscalculated (CGI Holm, for example), but as an overall adventure back into the horror of the original Alien mould, it expanded the Xenomorph-ic world in the best ways, heading back to the vibe of those first two films and combining both fear and thrills. In many ways, it’s a setup to move on – and I think that’s long overdue, if they head that way next. In the meantime, this is a perfect 4K UHD release – not only with a stunner of a 4K UHD Steelbook, but this film deserves the clarity of such a release, in all its darkness and acid-dodging, Facehugging-finger-tapping fun. Pick up a copy here.

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Godzilla Minus One

While released towards the end of last year in the UK, Godzilla Minus One has recently found its 4K UHD release, and a lovely Deluxe package to, and as we’re in the 70^th Anniversary of the original Gojira, it’s been great that the stories can continue to shift and grow – and Takashi Yamazaki’s film offers intelligent, entertaining storytelling (full review here) through committed characters and huge set pieces. This was a clever Toho step forward for the King of the Monsters, while keeping all those original intentions. The power of everyday people steps forward, the visuals are sharp and grand in 4K UHD – and this is a must-buy for any Godzilla fan. Buy it now.

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Leon – The Definitive Edition

Luc Beeson’s Leon was a seminal film in my life, when I was not too far off age of Natalie Portman’s Matilda when I first saw it, in the 90s, there’s something just glorious about everything – and it’s probably undervalued in how many films its influenced since, if you watch it back now, there’s so many ideas in this type of drama-thriller that have been redone ever since. And, as well as a sharp, sensitive killer lead performance from Jean Reno, alongside newcomer Portman, it’s Gary Oldman’s brutal Stanfield who also brings the film to life, and death, in all the wrong ways – making for such a miraculous balance of on-screen physical and mental battles, that it remains outstanding. The other wonderful thing here, and bear in mind this Steelbook has only just been released and I picked it up this week, the 4K UHD version takes all that grimy, gritty, ground level NYC in 35mm and just adds another layer of excellence. Order yours!

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The Sixth Sense and Signs

And yes, I said 10 but these two are sneaking in together for all the wonderful things they bring, and they’ve got a new 4K UHD in the game this 16 December. M. Night may have also had an up and down career, with a nice return to form of late, but these two films in the shape of The Sixth Sense and Signs are surely absolute musts in your collection – and in 4K UHD? Monsieur, you are really spoiling us!

So, while I can’t fully review the 4K impression quite yet, I just know The Sixth Sense atmospherics with Bruce Willis continue to work, after a recent rewatch – even if you know the twist. And if you’ve never seen it, this is the best way to experience it for the first time. And Signs, other than Unbreakable, is a classy film to have in your collection as well, the build is brilliantly created, the cast chemistry is excellent and don’t forget to enjoy that ‘thing’ creeping across the door, because it might just be there to haunt you forever, enjoy!

Click here to order The Sixth Sense, and here for Signs!