Flashdance 4K review

May 14, 2023- Permalink

When you see that Paramount’s new 4K release of Flashdance is the “40th Anniversary Edition”, you have to stop and do the math. Has it really been forty years? That would mean…

It really has been forty years since Jennifer Beals played Alex. Welder by day. Exotic dancer by night. Ballerina in her dreams. Forty years since “Maniac” and “What a Feeling” owned the airwaves.

The 2160p HEVC / H.265 encoded native 4K digital transfer with Dolby Vision and HDR10 is presented in a 1.78:1 aspect ratio. The remastered 4K scan looks great with added clarity and contrast. Black levels are deep and the many darker scenes have no loss of detail. The colour palette pops and the HDR adds some extra shine to the specular highlights of stage lighting and neon signs. There’s no evidence of digital noise and compression artifacts. The grain is satisfying and hasn’t been scrubbed digitally.

On the audio side of things, you have the choice of an English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 soundtrack as well as French, German and Japanese Dolby Digital 2.0 tracks. Subtitles are available for English, English SDH, French, German, Japanese, and Spanish. The music is the real star in this mix and is sure to make you break out your torn sweatshirts and leg warmers. Though front-heavy at times, the surrounds do put you into the action of some scenes and the low frequencies add to the score’s bass and the working environments. Dialogue is clear and centred.

The Flashdance 4K comes with a Blu-ray disc as well as a digital code. The special features are on the Blu-ray disc. There’s a short filmmaker focus on director Adrian Lyne, a piece on the look of Flashdance and another on how the film became a phenomenon. There’s also a theatrical trailer.

Flashdance was a pop culture explosion in the Eighties and a perfect example of a movie that drove soundtrack sales… or was it the other way around? With great video and audio, the Flashdance 4K is a worthy addition to your collection.