Spawn Blu-ray (Limited Edition) (original) (raw)

Limited Edition Arrow | 1997 | 1 Movie, 2 Cuts | 98 min | Rated R | Oct 07, 2025

| | | VideoCodec: MPEG-4 AVCResolution: 1080pAspect ratio: 1.85:1Original aspect ratio: 1.85:1 AudioEnglish: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (48kHz, 24-bit)English: LPCM 2.0 English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (48kHz, 24-bit)English: LPCM 2.0 (less) Subtitles English SDH English SDH (less) DiscsBlu-ray DiscTwo-disc set (2 BD-50) Packaging Slipcover in original pressingReversible coverBookletFigure/replica/props/memorabilia includedPlayback2K Blu-ray: Region A (B, C untested) | | PriceList price: $19.99Amazon: $15.00 (Save 25%) New from: $15.00 (Save 25%) Temporarily out of stock NEW! Now Only $15.00 Movie rating 457 ratings. **18%**popularity | | - | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |

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Spawn

(1997)

Spawn Blu-ray delivers stunning video and audio, but overall it's a mediocre Blu-ray release

Five years after he was murdered by his own colleagues in a covert government operation, Al Simmons makes a pact with the devil to be resurrected so that he may see his wife Wanda once more. In return for the favor, the devil requires, in typically Faustian fashion, that Simmons lead Hell's Army for the destruction of humankind. Blessed in life with extraordinary killing skills, Simmons is even more deadly with the backing of his new master and the changling powers he has at his disposal. As he begins to discover and exercise his new strengths, he encounters two figures who direct him to use his powers in order to serve two different agendas. Cogliostro encourages Spawn to fight the devil and become a new champion for humankind, while Clown goads Spawn into continuing to serve his new master and lead the Armageddon.

For more about Spawn and the Spawn Blu-ray release, see Spawn Blu-ray Review published by Jeffrey Kauffman on October 4, 2025 where this Blu-ray release scored 2.5 out of 5.

Director: Mark A.Z. Dipp�
Writers: Alan B. McElroy

, Mark A.Z. Dipp�, Todd McFarlane
Starring: Michael Jai White, John Leguizamo, Martin Sheen, Theresa Randle, Nicol Williamson, D.B. Sweeney
Producer: Clint Goldman

» See full cast & crew

Spawn Blu-ray Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman, October 4, 2025

Spawn was released on 1080 Blu-ray way back in 2012 courtesy of Warner Brothers (which had acquired New Line Cinema), when we arguably may not have quite yet reached the market saturation for so-called comic book adaptations that seems to be part and parcel of the contemporary zeitgeist. Even that perceived "uniqueness" (debatable as it may be) wasn't enough to "save" Spawn from a pretty savage critical beatdown when it was first released theatrically and then later on home video. Arrow is nonetheless offering another nicely packaged release (in both separate 1080 and 4K UHD standalone formats) that offers two cuts of the film and a glut of bonus material.

As mentioned above, Spawn had a long ago 1080 release by Warner Brothers, and Ken Brown's Spawn Blu-ray review provides a plot summary, list of supplements and Ken's reaction to the technical presentation. I'm perhaps marginally more favorably inclined toward the film than Ken was, and my overall score reflects that difference of opinion.

Spawn Blu-ray, Video Quality

Spawn is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Arrow Video with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.85:1. Arrow's insert booklet contains the following information on the presentation (per its standard operating procedure, Arrow includes the same booklet for its separate standalone 1080 and 4K UHD releases):

Spawn has been restored by Arrow Films and is presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1 with 5.1 and stereo audio.

The Director's Cut and Theatrical Cut of the film are presented in 4K resolution in HDR10 and Dolby Vision.

The original 35mm camera negative was scanned in 4K / 16 bit resoltuion at Warner Bros. / Motion Picture Imaging.

The film was restored in 4K resolution and colour graded at Duplitech.

All materials sourced for this new mater were made available by Warner Bros.

QC review was completed by Pixelogic.

Considering the issues he details in his review, Ken's score of 3.5 for the now ancient Warner Brothers 1080 release might seem commendably generous, but all of the anomalies like noise, banding and other problems Ken mentions are absent from this great 1080 presentation. Ken's review gets into some of the "baked in" variances due to the surplus of special effects sequences. Ken wasn't especially enthused about the CGI in the film in particular, but I'm kind of an old school fan who still thrills to the likes of Georges M�li�s or later masters like A. Arnold "Buddy" Gillespie (The Wizard of Oz), so while not immune to how much technologies have improved since 1997, I may be more of a fan of the "look" of this film than Ken was, including the VFX. The 1080 presentation may offer a somewhat more subliminal account of some of the now quaint looking effects, but the biggest difference between this presentation and Arrow's 4K UHD release is probably with regard to the palette. It's suitably suffused in this version and offers some eye popping hues especially in the orange to red territory, but the entire spectrum of hues really benefits from the HDR / Dolby Vision grades available on the 4K UHD disc, which may therefore make it the preferred version for some fans. This is another shot on film effort where the at times very heavy grain field may be intermittently bothersome for some. It's especially noticeable against even slightly brighter backgrounds, though as tends to be the case, the overall look of the grain at this resolution may be less "in your face" than in the 4K UHD version.

Spawn Blu-ray, Audio Quality

Spawn features DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and LPCM 2.0 options. Ken was probably marginally more impressed with the DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track on the old Warner Brothers 1080 disc than he was with regard to the video side of the equation, and I share Ken's appreciation and perhaps enjoy the surround version even more than Ken did. Yes, as Ken mentions, this track is almost relentlessly aggressive and often very loud and "busy", but the surround engagement is near constant from the get go, and tends to remain surprisingly consistent even in some of the "normal" earthbound material. The effects sequences, especially some of the hellscape material, offer some spooky engagement of the side and rear channels. "Era specific" scoring also resides quite noticeably in the side and rear channels throughout the film. Dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly throughout. Optional English subtitles are available.

Spawn Blu-ray, Special Features and Extras

Note: This two disc set contains the Director's Cut (1:38:34) and the following bonus items on Disc One. Disc Two presents the theatrical cut (1:36:26) with no on disc supplements.

• Commentaries

• Critic's Commentary is newly recorded and features Dave Baxter.

• Filmmakers' Commentary is an archival piece from 1998 featuring Todd McFalrane, Mark A.Z. Dipp�, Clint Goldman and Steve Williams.

• Hell's Perfect Son (HD; 16:20) is a new interview with actor Michael Jai White.

• Spawn Support (HD; 16:48) features new interviews with Melinda Clarke and D.B. Sweeney.

• The Devil's in the Details (HD; 20:14) is a new interview with animatronic creature and special makeup effects artists Howard Berger and Greg Nicotero. An "uncredited" Melinda Clarke is also featured.

• The Devil's Music (HD; 10:24) is a new interview with music supervisor Happy Walters.

• Order Out of Chaos (HD; 16:42) is a new interview with editor Michael Knue.

• Todd McFarlane: Chapter & Verse (HD; 19:37) is an archival featurette from 1998.

• The Making of Spawn (HD; 21:58) is an archival behind the scenes featurette.

• Spawn: The Animated Movie Preview (HD; 1:44)

• Theatrical Trailer (HD; 1:47)

• Scene to Storyboard Comparisons are image galleries with brief embedded videos:

• Clown to Violator (HD)

• Violator to Clown (HD)

• Cape (HD)

• Mask (HD)

• Violator from Bookcase (HD)

• Original Todd McFarlane Sketches (HD)

• Spawn Concept / Sketch Gallery

• Spawn (HD)

• Clown and Violator (HD)

• Malebolgia (HD)

• Jessica Priest (HD)

• Costume Design (HD)

• Set Decoration (HD)

• Special Effects (HD)

This Limited Edition features a reversible sleeve and a boule sided foldout poster with the same two artwork options. An illustrated collector's booklet has new writing by John Torrani, along with the usual technical and cast / crew information. Packaging features a slipcover.

Spawn Blu-ray, Overall Score and Recommendation

Spawn may be derided by many, even jokingly (?) by its own director, but for fans of the film, Arrow is providing another nice release with solid technical merits and appealing supplements. Diehard fans with the appropriate equipment should arguably opt for Arrow's 4K UHD release due to the additional nuances in palette offered by HDR / Dolby Vision.

Spawn: Other Editions

4K2-disc set**$33.32**	Blu-ray1-disc	Blu-ray1-disc	Blu-ray1-disc

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Spawn Blu-ray, News and Updates

• Arrow Video Announces October Releases

- July 25, 2025

Arrow Video has announced its October batch of 4K Blu-ray and Blu-ray releases. They are: Ms .45 (1981), Spawn (1997), In the Mouth of Madness (1994), Three / Three... Extremes (2002-2004), The Return of the Living Dead (1985), The Sadness (2021), and Trick ...

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