Sneakers - 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray

As I’ve dug through some recent espionage thrillers of late, I have to ask: When did “simple” go out of fashion? When was it that we decided that every spy thriller or espionage flick had to have these stacked stakes of increasingly improbable set pieces in order for a film to be a success? Why did this genre become so complicated when complications only lead to truck-sized plot holes? Sometimes simple works best because it covers all of the bases and doesn’t leave things up to convenience. Sneakers is just the sort of smartly thought-out, tech-savvy (for its time) thriller that keeps things simple and still delivers a tight and tense thriller with just enough comedic beats for a thoroughly entertaining venture. 

Martin Bishop (Redford) is at the top of his game as a Sneaker. Hired by banks and business, Martin and his team - ex-CIA man Crease (Sidney Poitier), conspiracy theory nut Mother (Dan Aykroyd), the blind computer wiz Whistler (David Strathairn), and young protege Carl (River Phoenix) are tasked with finding the weak spots. Occasionally, Martin’s ex-girlfriend, Liz (Mary McDonnell), joins in on the fun. Their big payday comes when NSA agents Gordon (Timothy Busfield) and Wallace Eddie Jones) hire them to secure a mathematician’s little black box, but everyone wants that box. When the job goes sideways, and nothing is what it seems, Martin and his team will risk everything to pull off the ultimate sneak to save their lives. 

Now, for a tech-thriller like Sneakers, the technology may be quaint by today’s standards, but I think that’s something that works in its favor. My colleague Joshua Zyber reviewed the Blu-ray in 2015, and he made a similar point, but as a sort of negative attribute that the film is now dated. And true, this film certainly feels dated, but I feel we’ve come full circle on that point. I think being dated or antiquated is now an asset. 

Dated tech, even fanciful dated tech, actually works because it doesn’t have all the bells and whistles like we have today. There isn’t facial recognition, smart phones, YouTube lockpicking videos, or real-time three-dimensional crime scene composites to wow the audience like The Amateure is currently trying to do in theaters right now. This film doesn’t have to try and outwit the internet to be a good thriller. It sets up the stakes, establishes the team’s limitations, and the guys go to work to figure out how to pull off the job and get away clean. The thrills come from watching these guys adjust to the situation at hand. The fun comes from seeing this great cast work together. 

But I have to admit a smidge of bias because I’m a longtime fan of this film. I saw it in theaters when I was all of ten and have loved it ever since. It’s been a part of the collection in one format or another for over thirty years. Having seen it countless times now, it’s one of the few films that I never tire of. It’s entertainment with no other purpose than to be entertaining. While Redford is the star, every character, right down to side guys like Stephen Tobolowsky, has a standout moment. Even James Earl Jones’ cameo is a fun piece of work, if for no other reason than the little trivia nugget that Jones’ father worked with Redford twenty years earlier in The Sting. Since his character’s identity is something of a spoiler, I’m purposefully not mentioning a particular cast member in case there’s someone out there that never saw this film. Putting it this way, I didn’t need a 4K disc for an excuse to watch Sneakers again. I would have joyfully done it at some point anyway; watching in 4K was a bonus. 

Vital Disc Stats: The 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray 
Kino Lorber Studio Classics gives us a two-disc 4K UHD + Blu-ray release of Sneakers. The 4K is pressed on a BD100 disc, while a Region A BD50 disc serves up the 1080p edition and bonus features. Both discs are housed in a standard black case with identical slipcover artwork. Each disc loads to a static-image main menu with standard navigation options. 

Sneakers breaks into 2160p with a 1.85:1 Dolby Vision transfer. Universal had a really dodgy start to the 1080p era. Between their bullish support for HD-DVD exclusively to their reticently slow move to Blu-ray after the format war, some films like Tremors could be absolute disasters, or they’d be like Sneakers and just be mildly okay. The issue with Universal’s Blu-ray of Sneakers was the heavy-handed edge enhancement that could lead to any number of unsightly artifacts, complete with a rather dour color timing. Now this movie isn’t visually flashy, it isn’t bathed in bold colors or lavish costumes and scenery; it’s a simple product of the early 90s, but I have to say it’s nice seeing it look this good! 

For starters, that obnoxious edge enhancement is long gone. The fine lines and facial features look fittingly natural and clean with a nice cinematic veneer of film grain. Grain can be a tad noisy in a few spots, but it was nothing I thought was overly distracting. The HDR grade is also even-keeled, enhancing the visual attributes without blasting colors unnaturally. Skin tones are natural and human. Primaries get plenty of attention, especially the blues and reds of the team’s van. Black levels are very strong, nice and inky, without getting too close to crush, offering a nice sense of depth. The film was never very flashy visually, but after that “meh” Blu-ray ten years ago, this is a very welcome upgrade.

On the audio side, KLSC keeps to their standards, offering a DTS-HD MA 5.1 and 2.0 audio mix. The 5.1 plays pretty much the same as the 2015 Blu-ray, which is fine. That was a perfectly good audio mix, in my opinion, and it worked well for the film. Like the film’s visuals, the mix isn’t sonically exciting except for some key scenes, and in those moments, the 5.1 track delivers. Surround activity isn’t always obvious, but where it counts, it's there when you need it. As for the 2.0, I replayed stretches of the film with this option and it's a nice track, I didn’t get the impression that it’s a strict mixdown of the 5.1. It does sound narrower and more upfront as expected, but I also felt it sounded a tad too squeezed for my liking. I liked that the 5.1 sounded a little wider and spacious. 

On the bonus features side of the disc, we have a pretty decent selection of extra features. Most of the pack is recurring, the commentary with Phil Aldren Robinson with John Lindley - which is a great track even if Robinson does most of the talking. What’s nice is the other audio commentary with Phil Alden Robinson with co-writers Lawrence Lasker and Walter F. Parkes, makes its grand return to disc. It was absent on the previous Blu-ray. I’d never listened to this track before. They do cover some familiar ground as they do in the documentary, but it’s informative and entertaining as they deliver relevant trivia scene-by-scene. The old documentary also comes back, and if you haven’t seen it before, it’s a good watch. Overall, none of these extras are exactly “new,” but the package is now complete and worth the time. 

4K UHD Disc

• Audio Commentary featuring Phil Alden Robinson with Lawrence Lasker and Walter F. Parkes
• Audio Commentary featuring Phil Alden Robinson with John Lindley

Blu-ray Disc

• Audio Commentary featuring Phil Alden Robinson with Lawrence Lasker and Walter F. Parkes
• Audio Commentary featuring Phil Alden Robinson with John Lindley
• The Making of Sneakers - Documentary (SD 40:04)
• Trailer
• KLSC Trailer Gallery:
• 3 Days of the Condor
• Havana
• Indecent Proposal
• The Last Castle

Sneakers is a damned fun film. It’s a pleasant thriller that gets you on the edge of your seat but also knows its energy to have moments of levity. Redford might be the headliner, but it’s an ensemble effort, with everyone giving the film something of their personality to stand out. Some of the technology might be archaic by today’s standards, but that quaintness is why this film is so entertaining today. As sophisticated as it was for the era, there were challenges to overcome. There wasn’t an internet or smart phones to do the legwork. There wasn’t a workaround to cheat the suspense. On 4K, Sneakers gets away with a great new restoration and Dolby Vision transfer. Vastly better than the old 2015 disc, it’s not a revolutionary looking film to start, but now it actually looks pretty damned good on home video. The 5.1 and 2.0 audio tracks work well for themselves, and the bonus features package delivers the two great audio commentaries and making-of doc. It’s a longtime favorite, and I’m pleased as punch to have a quality release like this. Highly Recommended