There are certain films that have an aura surrounding their name, leaving those who have not seen them before to wonder… are they really worth all the hype? A valid question, in the case 1979’s The Warriors, is it worth all the buildup and then some.
Directed by Walter Hill (who worked on other known films such as 1982’s 48 Hrs. and 1984’s Streets of Fire), the story of The Warriors is actually based on a 1965 novel by Sol Yurick of the same name. A hybrid between a classical Greek story, Anabasis, with a fictional account of gang wars in New York City, what Hill and David Shaber did with it for a feature film is nothing less than magical. Completely shot on location amidst the streets of New York City, the grit is perfectly captured, encapsulating a period in the city’s history much like films such as 1971’s The French Connection.
That in mind, they also casted a mix of then relatively unknown faces, only adding to the mystic and realism of what transpired on the screen; this included standout performances from Deborah Van Valkenburgh as Mercy, James Remar as Ajax, Michael Beck as Swan, David Harris as Cochise, and David Patrick Kelly as Luther. With this, The Warriors had a delightful sense of rawness, fantastically elements, all brought to you with perfectly plotted cinematography that make it the classic it is today. Sure, there was some controversy upon the release (including vandalism and violence outside theaters in the weeks to follow the initial theatrical release), plus there were critics’ overall negative thoughts on the film, but even with that, The Warriors is a legendary film for the period.
Building a legacy, it was released to VHS in 1980, LaserDisc in 1981, and DVD in 2000. To follow came several other DVD releases with different cuts of the film, but now in 2023 Arrow Video looks to trump them all with their epic Limited Edition 4K set of The Warriors. Really the most packed home video edition of the film ever, it arrives as a 2-disc set on December 12th with plenty to dig.
First and foremost, it features exclusive new 4K remasters of both the theatrical cut and the 2005 alternate version of the film sourced from the original camera negative; supervised by Arrow Films and approved by Walter Hill himself. With these two versions of the film split onto 2 discs, it must be said that the presentation is the absolutely most clarified of The Warriors ever. In fact, some might think it is too clean… because the grit of the film is part of the charm. However, if you are someone who might appreciate seeing The Warriors in such a way, the 4K transfer is an absolute must watch. And even if you are on the fence about it all, it is urged to at least take a look… if only for your own fandom.
Beyond the stunning 4K transfer, the theatrical cut is presented in the original aspect ratio of 1.85:1, and this is actually for the first time ever to be offered this way on home video. This is while there are extras such as a new interview with Walter Hill called War Stories, Come Out to Play (which is a new look at the iconic locations of the Warriors’ Coney Island home turf), plus much more. Curious what that more is? Well, it is outstanding physical box set that includes lovely artwork by Laurie Greasley, a 100-page bound collector’s book containing new writing by film critic Dennis Cozzalio plus select archival material, a double-sided poster with the original and new art, 6 postcard-sized reproduction artcards, plus gang logo stickers.
Simply put, Arrow Video pulls out all the stops and gives fans the best collector’s piece of The Warriors ever offered. An absolute must purchase for long-time fans , Cryptic Rock gives this set 5 out of 5 bold stars.
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