Ah, the 1980s, back when major studios released comedies about suicidal teens – and only got “PG” ratings for them! Such became the case for 1985’s Better Off Dead.

High school student Lane Meyer (John Cusack) gets dumped by his girlfriend Beth Truss (Amanda Wyss). Because Lane feels more than slightly obsessed with Beth, he takes this poorly.

So poorly that Lane decides he can’t continue with his life, in fact. Lane makes a few attempts at suicide, though he proves inept at these and eventually pursues other paths to deal with the end of his relationship.

I understand that the “PG-13” rating remained fairly new in 1985, but it shocks me that Dead only got a “PG”. With teen sex, suicidal content and a character who tries to snort every substance he finds, the movie seems to rub against an “R”, much less a “PG-13”.

I also feel surprised that Dead enjoys a pretty good cult following. Absurdly dated, this becomes a mess of a movie.

Dead really does feel like the platonic ideal of an 80s “outrageous comedy”. Granted, I think some of this is intentional, as I get the impression Dead acts as semi-parody of the genre.

If Dead managed any wit or cleverness of its own, this might work. However, it feels less like a spoof of bad 80s teen comedies and more like an actual bad 80s teen comedy.

With a movie like this, we find a strong “you had to be there” factor. If you were a teen in 1985 and saw it then, you probably loved it and maintain an affection for it that allows you to overlook its flaws.

I was a teen in 1985, but as far as I recall, I never saw Dead back then. If I did, it failed to stick with me, so I bear no nostalgic connection to it.

As I watch it 40 years later, I find it to offer a nearly incoherent collection of comedic beats without much to link them. Dead throws everything it can find at the screen and hopes some of it sticks.

Unfortunately, little of the material connects, so the movie becomes a bit of a chore to watch. This frustrates as the film’s wacked-out attitude means it should turn into a blast, but instead, it just feels random and asinine.

Four decades after its debut, Dead retains a cult fanbase. I can’t become an addition to that club, as I think it delivers little more than a headache.

Better Off Dead appears in an aspect ratio of approximately 1.85:1 on this 4K UHD Disc. The movie came with a dated but largely solid Dolby Vision presentation.

Overall sharpness felt generally positive. It became mostly concise and only sporadically showed any signs of softness.

No jagged edges or shimmering occurred, and edge haloes remained absent. With a heavy layer of grain, I didn’t suspect issues with noise reduction, and print flaws failed to mar the presentation.

With a resolutely natural palette, the colors of Dead seemed strong. HDR gave the hues a nice boost and made them vivid most of the time, although a handful of oddly dull shots manifested.

Blacks were dark and tight, while shadows appeared fairly positive. Though a few low-light shots could be a bit murky, the flick usually presented appealing definition through its shadows.

Whites and contrast enjoyed extra punch thanks to HDR. While the image couldn’t overcome the nature of its 1985 source, the movie looked good enough for a “B” that bordered on a “B+”.

Remixed from the original monaural – which unfortunately failed to appear on the 4K UHD – the movie’s DTS-HD MA 5.1 soundtrack seemed reasonably expansive. In particular, music broadened to the sides and surrounds with decent gusto.

Effects lacked as much to do. Nonetheless, they expanded to the various speakers on occasion and became a reasonable accompaniment to the tale.

Audio quality seemed fine. Speech was concise and distinctive, with no edginess or other distractions.

Music showed good range and definition. The synth-heavy score offered nice reproduction across the board.

Effects were also clear and reasonably accurate, with positive dynamics. Nothing here dazzled but the track seemed pretty good.

How did the 4K UHD compare to the film’s Blu-ray from 2011? Though I expected identical 5.1 from both, the UHD’s audio seemed to boast a broader soundfield.

In terms of the UHD’s Dolby Vision image, it looked better defined than its BD predecessor and also came with superior colors and blacks. Throw in the fact the UHD lost the BD’s source flaws and this turned into an appealing upgrade.

No extras appear on the 4K UHD disc but the included Blu-ray copy provides with the film’s trailer. Note that the BD literally reproduces the existing 2011 release, so don’t expect a new remaster.

If you want an extreme example of 1980s comedy trends, the massively dated Better Off Dead provides a clear lesson. If you want a funny, entertaining movie, look elsewhere. The 4K UHD provides pretty good picture and audio but it lacks supplements. Dead fails to provide anything witty or amusing.