Addams Family Values (4K UHD Review)
- Review Date: Nov 18, 2024
- Format: 4K Ultra HD
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Director
Barry SonnenfeldRelease Date(s)
1993 (October 29, 2024)Studio(s)
Scott Rudin Productions (Paramount Pictures Home Entertainment)- Film/Program Grade: B+
- Video Grade: A
- Audio Grade: B+
- Extras Grade: C-
Review
1991’s The Addams Family was several things. A hit, a resurgent appreciation for the characters, a feather in the cap for its cast and crew, and a stylish update of a dormant intellectual property. However, it did have some detractors. For instance, many didn’t care for the M.C. Hammer Addams Groove tune that closes out the film. More importantly, some didn’t consider it a true Addams Family movie because Fester, for all intents and purposes, isn’t present as a character for the majority of the running time, which is fair to some degree. It also falls into the trap of being a 90s adaptation of an old TV show wherein an outsider attempts to sabotage our favorite characters in some way or another for their own nefarious purposes (see also: The Beverly Hillbillies and The Brady Bunch Movie, among others). It’s part and parcel as to why many feel that the sequel, 1993’s Addams Family Values, is the better of the two. It wasn’t as popular or as much of a financial success, but it managed to find its audience with the same darkly funny and quirky sensibilities.
Morticia (Anjelica Huston) and Gomez (Raul Julia) have welcomed home the newest member of the family, their newborn son Pubert, creating jealousy among the Addams children, Wednesday (Christina Ricci) and Pugsley (Jimmy Workman). They find themselves forced to find a nanny, happening upon Debbie (Joan Cusack), who immediately takes a liking to the family, especially Fester (Christopher Lloyd). Outside of Wednesday, no one realizes that Debbie is actually a serial killer who marries men for their money before doing them in. To get Wednesday and Pugsley out of the way, Debbie recommends that they should attend summer camp at Camp Chippewa, whereupon they wreak havoc on the counselors, Gary (Peter MacNicol) and Becky (Christine Baranski). Wednesday also begins to take a romantic liking to a nerdy young boy, Joel (David Krumholtz), but the fate of Fester and the rest of the Addams family under threat from Debbie hangs in the balance. Carel Struycken returns as Lurch, Carol Kane takes over the role of Grandmama from Judith Malina, and Mercedes McNab returns in the role of Amanda (she played a girl scout in the first film), whom Wednesday despises.
Addams Family Values was shot by director of photography Donald Peterman on 35mm film using Panavision cameras and spherical lenses, finished photochemically, and presented in the (matted) aspect ratio of 1.85:1. Paramount debuts the film on Ultra HD with what appears to be a fresh 4K scan of the original camera negative, graded for High Dynamic Range in HDR10 and Dolby Vision, and presented on a dual-layered BD-66 disc. It’s certainly one of Paramount’s more organic presentations, and the majority of it is quite excellent. Bitrates are a tad erratic, ranging anywhere from 50 to 85Mbps, dipping and spiking here and there, but it never seems to lead to encoding errors or digital artifacts. A thin layer of natural grain appears throughout, usually faulting during transitions and special effects opticals, which are baked into the presentation. The color palette offers a fine range of hues with perfect flesh tones, boosted dutifully by the HDR grades. Contrast is quite good, although there’s some mild crush to shadow details. Everything appears clean and crisp with perfect stability. Minor flaws aside, this presentation of the film looks amazing, and it’s certainly a welcome upgrade from its aging Blu-ray master.
The primary audio is included in English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio with optional subtitles in English and English SDH. The film was released in Dolby Stereo SR, and this could have been a good opportunity to revisit the theatrical audio, but Paramount has ported over the existing 5.1 audio instead, which itself is no slouch. The various elements of the film’s soundtrack have good separation and placement in the surrounding environment, with frequent uses of panning and plenty of low end activity. Dialogue is crystal clear while score, music, and sound effects are amply supported. Additional audio options include English Audio Description and French, German, Italian, Japanese, and Spanish (Castellano) 2.0 Dolby Digital. Additional subtitle options include Danish, Dutch, German, Finnish, French, Italian, Japanese, Norwegian, Spanish (Castellano), and Swedish. The audio commentary also comes with subtitle options in English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, and Spanish (Castellano).
The 4K Ultra HD of Addams Family Values sits in a black Amaray case alongside a Digital Code on a paper insert and an altered version of the original theatrical artwork. Everything is housed in a slipcover with the full original theatrical artwork intact. The following extras are included:
- NEW Audio Commentary with Barry Sonnenfeld and Paul Rudnick
- NEW Crafting Family Values (HD and SD – 10:29)
Paramount has included a pair of new extras, the first being an audio commentary with director Barry Sonnenfeld and screenwriter Paul Rudnick (from the sound of it, it appears they were recorded via Skype or Zoom). It’s not very good as they dip in and out constantly as the film’s audio is raised and lowered in between their comments. They’re more than game to provide details about the production, even if they’re a bit on the reactionary side, but the track could have used an extra round of editing, or a moderator. Crafting Family Values is a very fluffy featurette about the film, but it does feature vintage interviews with Barry Sonnenfeld, Paul Rudnik, Raul Julia, Angelica Huston, Christopher Lloyd, and Joan Cusack. The teaser and theatrical trailers from the DVD are nowhere to be found, nor are any of the other marketing materials.
Addams Family Values is one of the rare sequels that for many tops the original without sacrificing what made it so enjoyable in the first place. One can argue that it’s yet another plot to destroy the Addams family in some way, but it feels more integrated and has a little more going for it, especially the summer camp subplot. Thanks to top notch performances, great characters, stylish cinematography, and beautiful costumes and set design, Addams Family Values holds up beautifully in 4K. Highly recommended.
- Tim Salmons
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