‘Happy Gilmore’ and ‘Coneheads’ spotlight “Saturday Night Live” icons in 4K UHD releases

Here’s a look at a pair of films new to the ultra-high definition disc format that star two legends of the TV show “Saturday Night Live.”

Happy Gilmore (Kino Lorber, rated PG-13, 1.85:1 aspect ratio, 92 minutes, $44.95) — Arguably one of “Saturday Night Live” alum Adam Sandler’s best comedies from early in his fledgling film career, “Happy Gilmore” gets the 4K treatment to satisfy his loyal fans.

A “Caddyshack” for the masses back in 1996, with Mr. Sandler’s one-character-fits-all approach to acting, finds viewers meeting Happy Gilmore. The quick-tempered aspiring ice hockey player must abandon his dream and apply his powerful slapshot to golf drives to raise the cash to stop the foreclosure of his grandmother Anna’s house.

What truly helped make this a classic for Mr. Sandler was the wonderful variety of actors totally on their game, including Christopher McDonald as arrogant pro golfer nemesis Shooter McGavin and Carl Weathers as Happy’s mentor Derick “Chubbs” Peterson.

Guest appearances also shine, including SCTV stalwart Joe Flaherty as a heckler; Richard Kiel (James Bond henchman Jaws) as Happy’s former boss; Bob Barker as himself partnered with Happy at a celebrity tournament; and Ben Stiller as an abusive nursing home orderly.

The new restoration, built from a 6K scan of the original negative and completed at Universal, is nothing short of stunning and offers a realistic visual mix of sharp colors and clarity, especially when appreciating the hued wonders of a miniature golf scene and the actual terrain of the courses.

Of course, Kino Lorber’s timing for Mr. Sandler’s masterpiece could not be better with the sequel “Happy Gilmore 2” now available to watch on Netflix, making for a mixed media evening of laughs.

Best extras: Kino Lorber comes up a bit short of the green on the goodies, led by a new optional commentary track with author and filmmaker Bryan Connolly and the Billy Gilmore Podcast host (focused on an appreciation of Adam Sandler’s career), Wilson Smith.

The duo, who really love the film and Mr. Sandler, talk nonstop about their hero’s career and his characters as well as exploring topics such as his collaboration with the director; the movie’s cast; friends appearing in his movies; the story; comparisons to “Caddyshack,” sports comedy themes; seeing the film in theaters; analyzing the Bob Barker fight scene; and the script spreading around the laughs.

The conversation is sometimes too much about Mr. Sandler (even comparing him to Jerry Lewis), but these guys both love to laugh and talk movies, so it’s kind of fun listening to an enthusiastic Mr. Connolly often breaking up at the onscreen hijinks while spewing informational nuggets.

Also available are six deleted scenes (18 minutes) and a collection of outtakes (five minutes).

Coneheads (Kino Lorber, rated PG-13, 1.85:1 aspect ratio, 92 minutes, $44.95) — Popular sketches on “Saturday Night Live” rarely transform into blockbuster movies. Such was the case back in 1993 when the origin story of a familiar pointy-headed extraterrestrial family visiting Earth bombed at the box office.

Now looking for cult status in its new 4K disc release, the comedy adventure revisits venerable icons Dan Aykroyd and Jane Curtin re-creating their TV roles of parental units Beldar and Prymaat Clorhone (aka Conehead), a pair of aliens from the hostile planet Remulak tasked with conquering Earth.

All does not go as planned after their ship crash-lands near Manhattan. The pair eventually acclimate to life with the blood skulls (humans) rather than take over the planet; live in the New Jersey suburbs; welcome new daughter Connie (Michelle Burke); and avoid a pair of immigration agents (David Spade and Michael McKean) while waiting for a rescue ship.

The crazy and equally silly movie pulls out laughs mainly fueled by the off-the-charts performance of Mr. Aykroyd, one of the strangest and most committed of his career.

Additionally, producer Lorne Michaels (the patriarch of “Saturday Night Live”) must have called in a bunch of favors to add some onscreen weight to the weak script as an abundance of comedy legends and soon-to-be legends fill out the cast.

They included Dave Thomas, Drew Carey, Sinbad, Jason Alexander, Michael Richards, Ellen DeGeneres, Tom Arnold and Parker Posey, as well as “SNL” alum Laraine Newman, Garrett Morris, Phil Hartman, Adam Sandler, John Lovitz, Jan Hooks, Kevin Nealon, Tom Davis and Julia Sweeney.

So even if the movie is kind of not great, it’s a nostalgic trip to see a parade of laugh luminaries gracing the screen.

The 4K remaster, built from the 35mm original camera negative, is solid, colorful, clear and really worth appreciating, especially once the Coneheads return to their home planet of Remulak.

The landscape features textured neon-blue banners, purple clouds and a reddish sky, hundreds of wildly dressed citizens and a gloriously detailed scene of Beldar fighting the Garthok creature (that came to life via stop-motion animation).

Best extras: Kino Lorber delivers a very solid collection of new bonus goodies that will delight fans.

Start with a satisfying optional commentary track with director Steve Barron basically interviewed by film historian Michael Felsher.

Prompted by Mr. Felsher, as the pair occasionally follow the onscreen action, Mr. Barron talks about his being at the forefront of creating music videos (including Michael Jackson’s “Billie Jean”); his directing career highlighted by the successful “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles”; securing the job for “Coneheads”; working with the variety of actors; challenges in preparing to direct the film; and the production design.

He also offers some memorable on-set stories, such as creating the cone makeup effects and visual effects like the questionable CGI for the Subway sandwich scene; and the truth about Mr. Aykroyd’s battle with a parking lot security gate.

Next, and well worth watching, are a pair of interviews led by 22 minutes with a candid Ms. Burke.

She covers her early life, career and ultimately focuses on her work on the film, including character motivations; eating an entire Subway sandwich in that scene; the makeup process; meeting River Phoenix; remembering her co-star Chris Farley, the awkward senso rings “sex” scene; her wild Remulak wardrobe; and filming a new Earth ending.

Next, visual effects fans get 17 minutes with the modern master of stop-motion animation, Phil Tippett.

He discusses working on the Garthok while touching on previous creatures created; collaborating with George Lucas on “Star Wars”; the evolution of analog to digital in “Jurassic Park”; his contributions to “The Mandalorian” and “Dragonslayer”; and offers some insight into his animation techniques.

The interview even includes legacy footage of Mr. Tippett creating and animating the Rancor and Jabba the Hutt from “Star Wars: Return of the Jedi” and the Garthok.

Closing out the extras are nine minutes of vintage interview segments with Mr. Aykroyd, Ms. Curtin, Ms. Burke, Mr. Michaels, and Mr. Barron as well as a six-minute, original promotional featurette for the film.