Starman is on 4K and part of Sony Pictures’ release of Columbia Classics 4K Ultra HD Collection, Volume 4.

I love John Carpenter movies.

He’s one of my favourite directors because he’s happy to take on all genres and give his imaginative take on each of his films. Starman may have been the first Carpenter film I saw when I was young, and at that time I had no point of reference who Carpenter was.

I was intrigued by the story, an alien comes to Earth and takes the form of a widow’s dead husband, and tries to find a way to not only understand humanity but elude the government that is pursuing him. I remember reading the film’s novelization and bringing the movie home from the video store as soon as I could get my hands on a copy.

Jeff Bridges plays the Starman who comes into Jenny Hayden’s (Karen Allen) life, causing her to face how much she misses her dead husband, and reconcile that with the fact that he appears to be standing before her, but he’s an alien. Both actors are wonderful and they have a great chemistry together.

Charles Martin Smith plays Mark Shermin, a government scientist who is more understanding and empathic than his fellows and is off pursuing Starman and Jenny.

Bridges earned himself an Oscar nomination for his portrayal, something unusual at the time; a genre film getting nominated. And the film itself remains a powerful, emotional, comedic road movie blended with science fiction.

I’d never seen this one projected, I’ve only ever watched it on VHS, and later DVD, so to settle in and watch it on 4K, it was an all-new experience. The colours are so lush, the special effects, while definitively 80s, still look pretty damned good, the details, the designs, the performances are crystal clear.

It could have been shot this year. It’s a beautiful-looking film, and I love that this was my introduction to John Carpenter.

The 4K/Blu-ray release comes loaded with all manner of extras, giving great insight into the film; there’s the original theatrical trailer, a still gallery that shows a variety of the marketing materials for the film from around the globe, a music video that I never knew existed of Jeff Bridges and Karen Allen delivering a cover of the classic “All I Have to Do is Dream.”

Of course, there’s ‘making of’ things as well, including a vintage featurette, a mass of deleted scenes, a fun retrospective featurette, and commentary by Carpenter and Bridges.

But for fans, and those of us who grew up in the time, the last extra is a brilliant addition. In 1986, there was a sequel television series with Robert Hays taking on the role of Starman as he returns to Earth. It ran for a single season, and for the first time, the entire twenty-two-episode run is here on two 4K discs, giving viewers the complete Starman experience.

I cannot wait to explore the entire series episode by episode. Stay tuned for that!

Starman is a wonderful release and is a welcome part of the Columbia Classics 4K Ultra HD Collections, and Volume 4 is available now!