At the start of the 1980s, Canadian Actor and Comedian was a rising star with secondary roles in films like 1979’s 1941, 1981’s Stripes, 1983’s National Lampoon’s Vacation, and 1984’s Splash. Prime to break it big: in 1985, Candy received his break as a lead in the Carl Reiner Comedy Summer Rental. A box office success, Summer Rental was followed by many other films like 1986’s Armed and Dangerous, 1987’s Planes, Trains and Automobiles (which is arguably Candy’s best performance as Del Griffith), and 1988’s The Great Outdoors. It was a golden era of Comedy with Candy shining bright, but one of his most memorable roles came in 1989 as the out-of-work, fun-loving Buck Russell in Uncle Buck.
Candy’s third big role in a John Hughes production, co-stars included the Academy Award-nominated Amy Madigan as Bucky’s girlfriend Chanice Kobolowski, along with a cast of talented youngsters including Jean Louisa Kelly (who would go onto films like 1995’s The Fantasticks and the series Yes, Dear) as his moody, conflicted nice Tia Russell, Gaby Hoffmann (who would star in a list of films and series in the three decades since) as the cute, smart-mouthed youngest nice Maizy Russell, and Macaulay Culkin (who would become a superstar a year later in 1990’s Home Alone) as the humorous, quick-witted nephew, Miles Russell. You also cannot overlook Jay Underwood (known for 1986’s The Boy Who Could Fly) as Bug, Tia’s punk boyfriend who is crewing for a big life lesson.
All of them are the heart and soul of Uncle Buck’s memorable characters, and it should be expressed that Candy himself was completely within his element as Uncle Buck. Analyzing the character, Buck is an unassuming guy who no one seems to take seriously but is full of surprises. To this point in Buck’s life, he has been a bit of a wanderer who never took on much responsibility but soon finds his perception completely shifted as he is brought into his nieces and nephews’ lives on a more full-time basis.
Overall, Uncle Buck is a perfect example of a John Hughes film that combines real-life problems and heartwarming situations that make you realize what is truly important. Originally released on August 16, 1989, in theaters, it became the number-one movie at the box office on its opening weekend. Riding high on John Candy’s reception, the film would eventually earn nearly $80,000,000 and become one of the last big Comedy films of the 1980s.
Proving the character of Uncle Buck was endearing, the story was even adapted into a short-lived CBS television series that aired between September and March of 1990, with Kevin Meaney assuming the character rather than John Candy. If that is not enough, seemingly out of nowhere, a new Uncle Buck television series emerged in 2016, this time on ABC with Mike Epps playing Buck. Again, it faired poorly after only eight episodes and was canceled.
All these factors lead you to believe that John Candy was the essential personality to play Uncle Buck, thus making the original film something many still have affection for. That is why it is exciting to find out that the original Uncle Buck everyone knows is coming up on 4K Ultra HD in 2025. To date, you could find Uncle Buck on DVD since 1998 and Blu-ray since 2011, but never before in a restored 4K format. Made possible by Kino Lorber, they released the new edition on February 18th to the delight of Candy fans all over.
Remastered with a brand new HDR/ Dolby Vision Master, the 4K scan is of the 35mm original camera negative, and the difference is significant. Compared to prior home video editions of the film, the colors are more pronounced, and the overall clarification is noticeable in many instances. A great way to enjoy Uncle Buck, Kino Lorber packages it with a nice slipcase featuring the original classic poster, and it includes audio commentaries plus a cool interview with Jean Louisa Kelly, which was not in previous home media formats.
All of this adds up to the best presentation of Uncle Buck to date, and that is Cryptic Rock gives the new 4K Ultra HD release from Kino Lorber 4.5 out of 5 stars.
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