The Conan Chronicles (1982-1984) Arrow Video 4K UltraHD Review

Robert E. Howard is considered the father of the sword and sorcery subgenre. And more importantly, is the creator of Conan the Barbarian. He wrote many adventures of the iconic Conan. Well, in 1982 his character was taken from the pages and brought to the big screen starring action superstar and former governor of California Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Now Arrow Video is bringing the original film and its sequel to Blu-ray and 4K UltraHD in a massive set featuring tons of bonus features. The set is perfectly titled The Conan Chronicles.

Our Rating System:
****=Don’t Miss it!
***=Worth a look.
**=An Ok way to spend an evening.
*=You haven’t missed anything.

Conan The Barbarian (1982) A young boy named Conan, becomes a slave after his parents are killed and tribe destroyed by a savage warlord and sorcerer, Thulsa Doom. He grows to becomes a fearless fighter and seeks revenge against Thulsa Doom. ***

Conan The Destroyer (1984) Conan and a group outcasts escort Queen Taramis of Shadiza's niece, Princess Jehnna, on a perilous journey to retrieve the Jeweled Horn of Dagoth, the Dreaming God. ***1/2 

Now both of these films are a lot of fun to watch and some may not agree with me on this. But I actually think Conan the Destroyer is a little bit better of a film than Conan the Barbarian. That is rare when a sequel is better than the original. I can only think of one film series where that is the case right now. Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back.

Both of these adventure films have been restored in 4K from the original negatives by Arrow Films. They are presented in 4K (2160p) UHD Blu-ray presentations of both films in Dolby Vision (HDR10 compatible). The audio is a newly restored original mono audio and remixed Dolby Atmos surround audio for both films. And there is the option for English subtitles for the deaf and hard-of-hearing.

When you look at these films on these releases in comparison to previous DVD and Blu-ray, these new 4K restorations really bring new life to these classic adventures. The colors are bright and vibrant and the picture is crisp and clean and the audio is clear. These films look spectacular! But that is not all that is included here. Arrow Video (as always) added some really awesome bonus features to this box set! Take a look at what is included.

* Three versions of Conan the Barbarian via seamless branching: Theatrical Cut (127 mins), International Cut (129 mins) and Extended Cut (130 mins)
* Archive commentary for Conan the Barbarian by John Milius and Arnold Schwarzenegger
* Archive commentaries for Conan the Destroyer by Richard Fleischer and actors Olivia d’Abo, Tracey Walter and Sarah Douglas
* Brand new commentaries for both films by genre historian Paul M. Sammon
* Newly assembled isolated score tracks in lossless stereo for both films
* Newly filmed interviews for Conan the Barbarian with production artist William Stout, costume designer John Bloomfield, special effects crew members Colin Arthur and Ron Hone, actors Jorge Sanz and Jack Taylor, assistant editor Peck Prior, visual effects animators Peter Kuran and Katherine Kean, filmmaker Robert Eggers (The Northman) and authors John Walsh and Alfio Leotto
* Newly filmed interviews for Conan the Destroyer with Bloomfield and Walsh, casting director Johanna Ray, art director Kevin Phipps and stunt coordinator Vic Armstrong
* Conan Unchained: The Making of Conan, an archive documentary from 2000 featuring interviews with Schwarzenegger, Milius, Stone, Jones, Lopez, Bergman, Poledouris and several others
* Archive bonus features for both films, including interviews with sword master Kiyoshi Yamasaki, writers Roy Thomas & Gerry Conway and Poledouris, outtakes and more
* A Tribute to Basil Poledouris, a series of videos produced by the Úbeda Film Music Festival, including video of Poledouris conducting a concert of music from Conan the Barbarian in 2006 (remixed in 5.1 surround)
* Theatrical trailers and image galleries for both films
* Double-sided fold-out posters for both films
* Twelve double-sided collectors’ postcards
* Illustrated collectors’ booklet featuring new writing by Walter Chaw and John Walsh, and archive set reports for both films by Paul M. Sammon

After watching these two amazing adventures, you will have so much fun checking out all these bonus interviews, commentaries, documentaries and more. Arrow Video has done it yet again producing a must own release for physical media fans.

So, if you enjoy 80s adventure films or Arnold Schwarzenegger films, this new Arrow Video 4KUltraHD of The Conan Chronicles is an absolute must own release. Head over to Amazon and order your copy today before they are all gone.



Out of 4 Film Reels (4 Being the Best) The 4K of The Conan Chronicles receives.....