Having *never* seen Tobe Hooper’s adaptation of Stephen King’s Salem’s Lot (1979) prior to the Arrow 4K UHD release, I was surprised to notice that disk 1 (disk A) featured the miniseries versus the movie itself, so I changed disks and watched the 2-hour movie. I was bewildered with what I watched; I was shocked, stunned, and slightly appalled. The movie was nearly unwatchable — bad, chopped-up, messy, chaotic, unpleasantness — and I couldn’t figure out why there was an excitement for this release and why it is regarded as a good movie. Then I switched disks and watched the slightly over three-hour two part mini-series, and good lord why they decided to chop up the mini-series into a theatrical cut instead of just releasing the mini-series of the movie baffles me. What can only be described as a Cliff’s notes version, the two-part mini-series version of the movie is really the *only* way to watch Salem’s Lot, so, thankfully, the team at Arrow gives audiences the option of both.
If you’ve never read the King novel, or seen the Hooper adaptation(s), then we’ll give a quick run down about this Stephen King vampiric tale.
The movie focuses on Ben (David Soul), an author, as he returns to the town of Salem’s Lot after a quarter of a century absence. The town is eerily worried/uneasy about his return as he is focusing his writings and works on the Marsten house, a house that has tormented Ben since he was a child. The house is now occupied by Richard and Mr. Barlow (James Mason and Reggie Nalder, respectively) and there is a string of disappearances and deaths that have been occurring in town leading Ben to believe there is a vampire feeding on the citizens of Salem’s Lot. Genuinely a wild leap to think a vampire is killing the town, but when the house that has haunted you since childhood and mysterious happenings occur, anything is possible.
Before getting into how the transfer looks, having someone as prolific as Tobe Hooper (The Texas Chainsaw Massacre) direct the work of someone as prolific as Stephen King is always going to be a success. It is bewildering that this was destined to be a television movie as TCM was a successful hit and Stephen King has always garnered fans despite his perceptions of adaptations of his work. This Arrow 4K UHD edition is jam-packed with features and specials along with the two different versions of the film (even though the re-edited theatrical version is a mess) and is more than worth owning.
SALEM’S LOT 4K UHD packshot. Photo courtesy of Arrow Video and MVD Entertainment Group.
Lets break down the good, the bad, and the ugly (which, in this case, the latter two do not exist). This presentation is a brand new 4K Dolby Vision restoration of both versions of the movie with original lossless mono audio and comes with a reversible sleeve featuring two original artwork options. In the collector’s edition, there is a bound booklet with new writings by film critics and some archival interviews, a Salem’s Lot town sign sticker, and a double-sided poster with both art works. On the first disk, you can play the movie as it aired, in two parts, or have it play straight through them. As far as special features go, there’s a new audio commentary from film critics, archival commentary from Tobe Hooper, and alternative tv footage, while on the theatrical version, there’s another new commentary from a film critic and a plethora of new features including a new fantastic interview with Stephen King and biographer Douglas Winter, a featurette looking at the locations of Salem’s Lot today, and some more interviews with critics focused on a new appreciation of Salem’s Lot and how it set the bar for what TV movies could be.
With a plethora of features, interviews, and commentaries, there is a lot of insight and interesting information given, but, by far the most engaging and engrossing feature is “King of the Vampires,” the new interview with Stephen King.
Salem’s Lot Special Features:
- *NEW* Brand new 4K restorations of both the original two-part miniseries and the shorter theatrical cut distributed internationally
- 4K (2160p) UHD Blu-ray presentations in Dolby Vision (HDR10 compatible) of both versions of the film
- Original lossless mono audio
- Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
- Reversible sleeve featuring two original artwork options
- Collectors’ perfect-bound booklet containing new writing on the film by critics Sean Abley, Sorcha Ni Fhlainn, and Richard Kadrey, plus select archival material including interviews with director Tobe Hooper, and stars Lance Kerwin and Julie Cobb
- Salem’s Lot town sign sticker
- Double-sided foldout poster featuring two original artwork options
DISC 1 – ORIGINAL TV MINI-SERIES VERSION
- Two viewing modes: Play as miniseries in two parts as per the original broadcast or as extended movie
- *NEW* Brand new audio commentary by film critics Bill Ackerman and Amanda Reyes
- Archive audio commentary by director Tobe Hooper
- Alternate TV footage: commercial bumpers and original broadcast version of the antlers death
- Original shooting script gallery
DISC 2 – THEATRICAL VERSION & EXTRAS
- *NEW* Brand new audio commentary by film critic Chris Alexander
- *NEW* King of the Vampires, a new interview with Stephen King biographer Douglas Winter
- *NEW* Second Coming, a new appreciation by author and critic Grady Hendrix
- *NEW* New England Nosferatu, a new interview with filmmaker Mick Garris
- *NEW* Fear Lives Here, a new featurette looking at the locations of Salem’s Lot today
- *NEW* We Can All Be Heroes, a new featurette with film critic Heather Wixson, co-author of In Search of Darkness
- *NEW* A Gold Standard for Small Screen Screams, a new featurette with film critics Joe Lipsett and Trace Thurman, co-hosts of the podcast Horror Queers
- Trailer
- Image gallery
Available on 4K UHD Blu-ray March 31st, 2026.
For more information, head to the official Arrow Video Salem’s Lot webpage.
To purchase, head to the official MVD Entertainment Group Salem’s Lot webpage.
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Categories: Home Release, Home Video, Recommendation, Reviews
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