‘Little Darlings’ 4K UHD Blu-Ray Review – An Essential Release For A Coming-Of-Age Classic

In the fleeting summer days of 1980, fifteen year old girls Ferris (Tatum O’Neal, Paper Moon) and Angel (Kristy McNichol, Two Moon Junction) attend Camp Little Wolf outside of Atlanta, Georgia as an escape from the city. Coming from different walks of life, with the privileged Ferris at odds with the scrappy, streetwise Angel, the two immediately end up in a disagreement during their bus ride to camp which is only exacerbated by their lodging accommodations once they arrive, bunking next to one another. Fueled by their competitive peers, the two enter into a contest to see who will lose their virginity first, Angel to camper from the other side of the lake Randy (Matt Dillon, Wild Things) or Ferris to camp counselor Gary (Armand Assante, Gotti). Through the trial, the two learn as much about each other as they do themselves, turning a ribald competition into budding days of friendship.

Long elusive on home video, Ron Maxwell’s (Gettysburg) charming teen sex comedy/drama is an evocative, and often very funny, antidote and precursor to the more raucous (and masculine) sex comedies of its era, including the similarly loss of virginity focused Porky’s and Losin’ It. Written by Dalene Young (The Baby-Sitters Club) and Kimi Peck, with lush on location photography by noted Czech cinematographer Bedřich Baťka (Marketa Lazarová), Cinématographe is proud to bring LITTLE DARLINGS to blu-ray and 4K UHD for the first time in the world, newly restored from archival elements and full of illuminating special features that tell the story of this contemporary coming-of-age classic.

For thoughts on Little Darlings, please check out our discussion on The Video Attic:

[youtube https://youtu.be/pPsN6xv-QFw?si=fhw6gEo9BE38xbjn&t=436]

Video Quality

Cinématographe presents Little Darlings with a phenomenal 2160p/HDR transfer in its original 2.35:1 aspect ratio sourced from a 4K restoration of the Original Camera Negative. This film has been notoriously difficult to own due to the myriad of music clearance issues, but at long last, this film is finally being treated with the respect it deserves. You will not find even the slightest whisper of print damage or stray specks throughout this immaculate restoration. The film grain appears completely natural and consistent without any hint of unwanted manipulation as everything resolves perfectly. Even bright, open skies avoid any spiking or other stray encoding issues. The movie is a beauty with a world of fine detail on display for the first time ever on home entertainment. The texture present in the clothing and within the landscapes is a rewarding sight. When it comes to encoding, there do not seem to be any digital anomalies such as compression artifacts, banding, or any other such nuisances. 

From the opening moments leading up to the departing bus, the implementation of HDR for increased color output is lovingly deployed to enrich the locales. Things become even more radiant as we move out of the urban jungle into the woods, as the hues achieve a level of brilliant accuracy that is not to be missed. Every hue is dialed into exactly the shade intended by the creative team. While largely taking place during the day, the contrast is a pivotal element that is not overlooked. Black levels are robust with nothing in the way of crush present, and highlights are flawless with no sighting of blooming. Director of Photography Beda Batka achieves some amazing compositions within his framing which are given a chance to thrive with this disc. This presentation from Cinématographe is what fans have been dreaming of for years.  

Audio Quality

The 4K UHD Blu-Ray of the film comes with the original DTS-HD 2.0 Master Audio stereo track which represents the film to its fullest potential. As mentioned, this is a title missing in action for the longest time due to music clearance issues, and thankfully the film is now being released with every single original song intact. Music is such an important part of this film’s identity that this is the only way a new release would be acceptable. This soundtrack along with the moving score from Charles Fox establishes the perfect tone for this outing that never falters in its fidelity.

Both the urban environment and the camp setting are brought to life with a din of sound that flows through to provide some impeccable ambient details. All of the various sounds in the mix seem carefully rendered so that nothing ever feels askew or unnatural. Nothing ever gets too intense outside of your standard camp activities, but every noise is delineated with precision. Everything is presented with a respectable fidelity that never shows signs of strain. Dialogue comes through crisp and clear without being overwhelmed by the sound effects or music. This presentation is clear of any hiss or other age-related wear-and-tear. Cinématographe has done everything right with this one. There are optional English SDH subtitles provided. 

Special Features

The Limited Edition version of Little Darlings comes beautifully packaged in a hard outer slipcase that opens up to a MediaBook that includes a bound booklet featuring new writing by film critics Kate Hagen and Quatoyiah Murry plus select archival photo reproductions. These essays delve into the film from multiple angles and provide a great analysis in a thoughtfully written style. The on-disc special features are as follows: 

Disc One (4K UHD)

• Audio Commentary #1: Director Ron Maxwell provides a commentary track in which he discusses the French influences on the narrative, the casting of the film, the importance of finding the right shooting locations, the practical reasons for shooting in 2.35:1 aspect ratio, the development of the score, and much more that is well worth a listen despite some occasional lulls. 

• Audio Commentary #2: Millie De Chirico of the I Saw What You Did podcast uses her deep love and knowledge of the film to relay rich anecdotes about the production of the film, the essential nature of the soundtrack, the thematic underpinnings, details about the shooting locations, the background of the performers, how this fits into the work of the creatives, and much more that puts things into context. 

Disc Two (Blu-Ray)

• Audio Commentary #1: Director Ron Maxwell

• Audio Commentary #2: Millie De Chirico of the I Saw What You Did podcast 

• Art & Business – Ron Maxwell on Directing Little Darlings: A great new 55-minute interview with the director in which he discusses his early career and where he was at during this point in his career, getting involved with Little Darlings, going to a more emotional place compared to earlier versions of the script, fleshing out characters beyond caricatures, his collaboration with cinematographer Beda Batka, early reactions to the film that still make him emotional, and much more. 

• Video Essay by Samm Deighan: A great 20-minute visual essay is provided in which the insightful film historian discusses the cinematic landscape of the time, how this differs from the exploitation cinema that was prevalent in this era, how the film subverts various tropes of the genre, the reception of the time, and much more. 

• Additional Scenes from the TV Version: There are six minutes of unused material provided in HD in an unfinished form that provides small moments mostly between the core group of girls and the counselors. While not essential to the story, these are entertaining. 

• TV Scenes with Director Introduction: An 11-minute audio introduction to the previous featurette in which the unused footage is given helpful context from Ron Maxwell, who was not originally consulted on the television cut of the film. 

Final Thoughts

Little Darlings is a true gem of a film that has been somewhat overlooked due to its scarcity over the years. Thankfully, this is now being rectified so audiences can experience the delicate balance of hilarious antics and emotional honesty. Very few films get this formula right, but this one truly hits the mark with consistent laughs and a conclusion that will have a lump forming in your throat. The performances from the entire ensemble are very strong which allows these girls to feel like a believable friend group. This is one of the best coming-of-age films to emerge from this period. Cinématographe has knocked it out of the park with their first release with a 4K UHD Blu-Ray featuring a truly spectacular A/V presentation and a robust assortment of special features. If you have been longing for this film like we have, this release is a godsend. Essential 

Little Darlings is currently available to purchase on 4K UHD + Blu-Ray. 

Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the 4K UHD Blu-Ray. 

Disclaimer: Cinématographe has supplied a copy of this set free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.