Overview: Boogie Nights, the critically-acclaimed 1997 New Line film from filmmaker Paul Thomas Anderson and starring Mark Wahlberg, will be available for purchase Digitally in 4K Ultra HD and on 4K UHD Blu-ray Disc on December 16th, 2025.

From an original screenplay by Anderson, the film was nominated for three Academy Awards – Best Supporting Actor (Burt Reynolds), Best Supporting Actress (Julianne Moore), and Best Screenplay – Written Directly for the Screen (Paul Thomas Anderson). Reynolds won the Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actor, and Julianne Moore also received a Golden Globe nomination for Best Supporting Actress.

The film features an all-star ensemble cast, including Mark Wahlberg, Julianne Moore, Burt Reynolds, Don Cheadle, John C. Reilly, William H. Macy, Heather Graham, Nicole Ari Parker, and Philip Seymour Hoffman.

In this dark, comic drama, a gullible teenager takes a turbulent journey through the worlds of pornography, disco and fleeting stardom in the ’70s, when drugs were in vogue, fashion was in flux and the party never seemed to stop.

4K UHD Blu-ray Verdict: New Line Cinema is expanding their 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray catalog offerings this month with the release of the much beloved Boogie Nights (4K Ultra HD + Digital) in the expansive 4K Ultra HD video format this December 16th, 2025.

For my money, this Boogie Nights (4K Ultra HD + Digital) sharpness takes a fairly large step forward from others in their 4K Ultra HD catalog and even comes with HDR (High Dynamic Range) for the complete 4K Ultra HD experience, of course.

So, what we have is Boogie Nights presented to us as a one-disc with a sheet for a Digital HD Copy. Other stand out points you should know are: Codec: HEVC / H.265, Resolution: Native 4K (2160p), HDR: HDR10, Aspect ratio: 2.35:1 and Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1.

Featuring Dolby Vision and HDR10 for brighter, deeper, and way more lifelike colors, as with most all 4K UHDs, everything that we watch features these qualities - but somehow, this film gloriously shines within them all.

Noticeably crisp with the overall clarity receiving an obvious boost here on this release, what is more is that it is enjoyably noticeable. For as well as some new nuances to the somewhat drab palette courtesy of Dolby Vision, we also get to witness sudden bright pops of color, which makes the eyes draw in, for sure.

Some of those moments (and yes, there are many now this is on 4K UHD) include Eddie’s first party at Jack Horner’s house. The part everybody recalls from this sequence is the pool shot, set to Eric Burdon and War’s “Spill the Wine”, when the camera follows a comely swimmer into the pool, under the water, and then back out of the water where Eddie and Reed are debating proper cannonball technique.

It is rightly remembered as one of the more spectacular, show-offy directorial flourishes in a movie loaded with them. I love it. I love how you can hear Burdon softly croon “I dreamed I was in a Hollywood movie” while Buck and Becky bicker about his cowboy clothes.

Another is the gathering at Hot Traxx. Here, Anderson re-creates the sound and feel of bars and nightclubs better than any director save Martin Scorsese. (David Fincher gets an honorable mention for the nightclub scene in The Social Network.) Bars are loud, bustling, grimy, exciting, and occasionally depressing locales in PTA movies, as they are in real life.

My favorite “underrated” music sequence in any PTA movie is that part in Magnolia when William H. Macy grooves out on Diet Coke and tequila to Supertramp’s “Goodbye Stranger” in the dive bar.

As for the audio, well we get the choice of - English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (48kHz, 24-bit), French (Canada): Dolby Digital 5.1, Spanish: Dolby Digital 5.1 and Audio descriptive.

Overall, this is a very strong 4K HDR Blu-ray presentation, and, for the most part, the audio track remains fairly similar to its DTS-HD counterpart; with much of the action occupying the surrounds with outstanding directionality and placement where effects flawlessly pan between the sides and rears.

As for the film itself, well, Boogie Nights has to be one of the funniest and oddest films I have seen in a long time! It is a homage to the pornography culture and to adults who will never grow up in California. The film also has brilliant acting, writing and camera work and is P.T. Anderson’s best work to date, in my humble opinion.

Some of the great stuff in this film is the acting which is some of the best of the decade. Including Burt Reynolds as the director Jack Horner (this is his best piece of acting since the ’70s), Julianne Moore as the struggling mother Amber Waves to the young actors and in a very good performance, and Mark Wahlberg in his best performance yet as the kid Dirk Diggler with something extra (13 inches to be exact) that will make him a star. Also, the supporting cast is top notch and provides a lot of unintentional and sick comedy.

But the real good stuff comes from the director Anderson. He gives us a look into a subject no one else has seen before (or has wanted to see). The writing is funny and touching and the length gives the film time to sprawl into the masterpiece that it is. One of the best of 1997, without a shadow of a doubt and still a movie today that captures the imagine!

In closing, I should add that there is off color language, violence and sex scenes abounding here, so it wouldn’t be suitable for younger viewers, but I don’t see any other reason why anyone should miss out on a marvelous piece of cinema. And if you enjoy this film then check out Anderson’s other films such as Hard Eight and the three-hour masterpiece Magnolia; which he should have, without a doubt, won best director for.

Boogie Nights Digital release and 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray Disc contains the following new and previously released special features:
American Cinematheque Panel Night 1 (NEW)​ – Paul Thomas Anderson and John C. Reilly
American Cinematheque Panel Night 2 (NEW)​ – Paul Thomas Anderson
Commentary: Director Paul Thomas Anderson
Commentary: Don Cheadle, Heather Graham, Luis Guzman, William H. Macy, Julianne Moore, John C. Reilly, Mark Wahlberg, and Melora Walters
Additional Scenes (29:15)
Scene 3: Ham and Cheese; Buck and Amber in the Van; Brock and Chico; The 2nd Awards Ceremony; New Year’s Eve; Fire with Fire: The Brock and Chest Story; Maurice and Rollergirl; Mixing “Feel the Heat”; Under the Table; Becky/Jerome/Car Crash
Michael Penn - Try Music Video (3:16)
The John C. Reilly Files: Outtakes and Extended Sequences (34:54)
Swim Trunks; Waiting for Todd; Mixing with Nick