One of the key comparison factors is the ability to ignore the originals.
That is, when a film is shot, is entirely mastered and put onto the highest quality of film stock... That is NOT what you actually see in theaters. It is then run through analog reproduction schemes for mass marketing which typically severely impact the actual quality and resolution of what people see in the theater.
Digital doesn't have this issue. Digital, as long as it isn't corrupted, will be pixel-for-pixel as perfect 50 years from now as it was the day it was originally purchased. Digital copies are bit-for-bit, frame-for-frame identical to their digital masters (at the same resolution). So, true 1080p home cinema with a 1.5x viewing distance (THX) will often look better than traditional analog cinema, except for those few movies which are copied at the highest quality levels possible.
Digital cinema at 4k resolution is designed to be a step up in overall quality from film. Not only digital in origin, but as smooth and flawless as the analog masters.
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