I actually bought an HDTV and a Blu-Ray player just because this movie came out on Blu-Ray. Lets just say that my $1,500 investment was worth it. There isn’t any change to the movie, which some were reporting, but the special features give you a different take on how the movie could have gone.

Extended Ending: Jack sees the Lords of Death driving by as they’re leaving the Wing Kong Exchange, and decides to follow them. They park on a pier and are drinking beer when Jack decides to plow into them, knocking them into the water. It’s a great scene, but I’m glad they didn’t put it in the movie. The other changes are them showing the Chinese Wild Man getting in the back of the truck and Egg Shen saying something to Jack as he leaves. Both are interesting but unnecessary.

Deleted Scenes: This is where it really gets interesting. There are scenes where Kurt Russell is hamming it up even more than usual. He has a great line “Too much dried Seahorse”, in one. He also has an extended Henry Swanson scene that is hilarious. Kim Cattrall must thank the editor and John Carpenter, because her deleted scenes were terrible. Her acting is atrocious, and I’m thankful they didn’t leave them in. They’re still fun to watch, though. All in all, there are about 15 deleted scenes, including the last one which contains about 7 or 8 shorter ones. They are worth the purchase alone. It gives you an idea of how fine of a line they tread in the parody vs. reality department. If half of the deleted scenes would have made the final cut, the movie would have been a lot campier and goofier than it already is. Even though I loved most of the deleted scenes, I’m glad they didn’t go that route.

Overall, this DVD is amazing. It isn’t as expansive as the 2 Disc Collector’s Edition, but it is well worth picking up. The movie looks perfect, the deleted scenes and new ending are interesting, and the featurette is great too. I haven’t watched the movie with the commentary yet, but I’m sure that is good too.

Kurt Russell is perfect for this movie and plays the part to a T.

Wish they had done a follow-up for Jack Burton and the Pork Chop Express

I agree with another poster, Hope the blu-ray is a better transfer.

I have seen some like “The Princess Bride” where the transfer was not done

well and ended up grainy in in several scenes

One of my favorites, great movie.

I wrote a review on this movie when it came to DVD for the first time. Here is the review:

Forget about Siskel and Eggbert or Leonard Malted’s ridiculous reviews about this movie. THIS MOVIE IS GREAT!!!

As you can tell, yet another person loves this movie I saw this movie when it was released into movie theaters way back when. Years later it came out on VHS which I purchased as soon as I saw it for sale. I have watched this movie many times over the years (on VHS and on Cable TV) and enjoyed it each and every time. One thing, which most people who did not see the movie in theaters missed out on, is the scope of the movie. This movie has a very wide aspect ratio and a lot of what the director wanted you to see is cut off when viewed on Cable TV or VHS tape (PAN and SCAN). This is no doubt a great movie for DVD because of that fact. I am very happy they finally decided to release this movie on DVD. People who did not see it in a theater who love this movie, but did see it on regular TV (PAN and SCAN), will go wild over it when they see the WIDE SCREEN version which will include all the action they missed out on with the PAN and SCAN version.

Get ready to see this movie for the first time all over again when it released on DVD. ENJOY EVERYBODY!

END REVIEW.

Now, I WILL definitely buy this movie again on Blu-Ray because I played the DVD so much, the hole in the center of the DVD wore out.

I HOPE EVERYONE ENJOY’S THIS GREAT, CLASSIC MOVIE!!!

Picture if you will a mildly obnoxious truck driver getting mixed up in a plot to bring an ancient Chinese demon back into the physical world. Said loser/trucker inadvertently is placed as the savior of all the world. This hero/loser concept is played to the hilt with Kurt Russell giving his character, Jack Burton, the right amount of cocky attitude mixed with a “deer in the headlights” feeling of being in over your head. You can tell Kurt is really enjoying the role, and that level of energy shines through his performance. The beauty of the character is his borderline ineptitude, which makes for some of the best laughs in the movie.

If you read the plot synopsis of the movie the story seems rather simple and even inconsistent in flow in some areas. The execution is the contrary as the visual site gags, character interaction and other bits of eye candy really fill it out. This movie is no masterpiece by any stretch of the imagination, but it is among the best of the popcorn movies that try to give you more than mere spectacle.

Now the movie is from the 80′s and it is not perfection. Some of the special effects will feel dated, especially the monster makeup effects. Some sets are a bit over the top. Once scene bugs me to no end because you can tell Kurt is carrying a prop knife that in no way can be interpreted as the real thing. Sometimes characters do things that don’t entirely make sense. Little things for the most part and not enough to damage the experience of the movie except for the most demanding viewers.

This Blu-Ray release will be in high def 1080p, and from some samples I have seen the picture is noticeably better than the original DVD release. I haven’t seen the special edition DVD version in a while so I can’t really say how much better it would look, but it’s safe to assume there is at least a level of improvement. Keep in mind this is a movie made in the 80′s and it’s production budget was rather limited (another Carpenter trademark) so the source material will likely never compare to current movie releases. Audio will be 5.1 DTS HD in English, Spanish and French and Dolby Digital in English and French (no Spanish, but there are subtitles).

The special features and extras are pretty much identical to the special edition DVD release with one single exception. There is an extended cut included with the theatrical cut. No idea on what scenes were extended and added (likely footage that was found in the deleted scenes of the SE DVD). Here’s the breakdown of the other features:

Commentary by Jack and James: Same one from the previous two DVD’s. Informative, fun, and sometimes off on tangents. Did you know this movie was originally intended as a western?

Nine deleted scenes: Likely the best cuts from the special edition DVD that weren’t put in the extended version.

Featurette: The classic 80′s promotional “behind the scenes” documentary. Kinda fluffy.

Extended Ending: I’m guessing this is the scene with Jack Burton vs. Lords of Death. I’m also guessing it didn’t make the extended cut of the film.

Interview with Richard Edlund: Richard did the special effects for the movie and this interview is more than just him talking about it. Kinda neat.

John Carpenter music video: Don’t ask.

Trailers and tv spots: I believe this will include the international commercials as well.

Still Gallery: Same as SE.

Personally I think getting this disk will fall into a couple of categories. Those who have the Special Edition DVD and those who do not. If you don’t then it’s easy. GET THIS BLU-RAY. It looks better, sounds better, has more extras and a bonus extended version of the film. You get pretty much everything. Now if you have the special edition it’s going to be a tough one. It’s almost assured the picture and sound will be better, but how much? The extras are identical so the only “extra” you get is the extended version of the movie, and to be honest you probably already seen the extended scenes (albeit not in a complete movie version). So that part is up to you.