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Tuesday, 11 June 2019 12:18

Hellboy (2019) officially announced, plus Flight of the Navigator: Limited BD in the UK & the Universal Fire Revisited

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Okay, we’ve got a couple things for you today...

First, Tim has posted his thoughts on Teruo Ishii’s Yakuza Law (1969) on Blu-ray from Toei via Arrow Video. And Dennis has turned in a look at a Richard Dreyfuss film from 1979, The Big Fix on Blu-ray via Twilight Time.

Also today, the big announcement news is that Lionsgate has set Hellboy (2019) for release on Blu-ray, DVD, and 4K Ultra HD on 7/23, with the Digital release expected on 7/9. The film employs a native 4K digital intermediate, so resolution should be very good indeed. The Ultra HD will also feature Dolby Vision HDR and Dolby Atmos audio. Extras will include deleted scenes, Previsualizations, and the 3-part Tales of the Wild Hunt: Hellboy Reborn documentary. You can see the cover artwork at left. [Read on here...]

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Meanwhile, Second Sight Films in the UK has just announced a gorgeous new Blu-ray limited edition of Flight of the Navigator that they’re releasing across the Pond on August 26th. Mastered from a brand new 4K scan supervised by director Randal Kleiser, it will feature new interview featurettes with Kleiser (Directing the Navigator), actors Joey Cramer (Playing The Navigator), Veronica Cartwright (Mother of The Navigator), and Matt Adler (Brother of The Navigator), as well as Art of the Navigator, and the original audio commentary with Kleiser and producer Jonathan Sanger. You’ll also get a slipcase, a 100-page book, and a reversible poster with new and original artwork. Here’s a look...

Flight of the Navigator: Limited Edition (Blu-ray Disc)

Also today, Kino Lorber Studio Classics has announced that Canyon Passage (1946), Murder, He Says (1945), The Flame of New Orleans (1941), and The Mind Benders (1963) are coming soon to Blu-ray.

And Shout! Factory has added Peter, Paul and Mary: At Newport 1963-65 to its August slate for DVD and CD release on 8/16.

Finally today, there’s a pair of new features in The New York Times today (here and here) that land as a punch in the gut for anyone who loves music. Many of you will recall that, back in 2008, there was a big fire on the Universal Studios backlot that burned down one of the studio’s archive buildings, aka the “video vault.” At the time, much was made—and rightly so—of the film legacy that was probably lost in the disaster, though the studio was very coy about offering details. Much less was made of the fact that the Universal Music Group also stored valuable material—as in original sound recordings—in the vault. And much of it was lost. We’re talking masters from the likes of Billie Holiday, Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington, Al Jolson, Bing Crosby, Ella Fitzgerald, Judy Garland, Chuck Berry, Aretha Franklin, Ray Charles, B.B. King, the Four Tops, Joan Baez, Neil Diamond, Sonny and Cher, Joni Mitchell, Cat Stevens, Gladys Knight and the Pips, Al Green, Elton John, Eric Clapton, Jimmy Buffett, the Eagles, Aerosmith, Rufus and Chaka Khan, Barry White, Patti LaBelle, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, The Police, Sting, Steve Earle, R.E.M., Janet Jackson, Guns N’ Roses, Mary J. Blige, No Doubt, Nine Inch Nails, Snoop Dogg, Nirvana, Beck, Sheryl Crow, Tupac Shakur, Eminem. It’s shocking. And it makes us wonder... if Universal Music lied about the severity of the music legacy lost in this fire, one can only wonder what the true loss to Universal’s film and television legacy may have been. Anyway, I know that’s a dark turn for today’s post to take, but these articles are just devastating for music fans. And yet they’re still worthy and important reading (again, find them here and here). This is why the work of preservation and restoration is so important. These media forms, this art—these things we all love can be lost. And it’s worth spending some time and money to protect and preserve them for future generations. (Special thanks to Bits reader Bill M. for the heads-up on this article.)

That’s all for now. Stay tuned...

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