Displaying items by tag: Talking Blu with The Digital Bits YouTube webcast

We’re kicking things off today with a trio of new Blu-ray reviews, including...

Tim’s look at Peter Medak’s The Changeling (1980), available in a new limited edition from Severin Films.

David’s thoughts on William Castle’s Strait-Jacket (1963) from Scream Factory.

And Dennis’ take on the 2004 remake of Walking Tall, starring Dwayne Johnson, from MVD Visual.

We’ve also posted the weekly update of the Release Dates & Artwork section, featuring all the latest Blu-ray, DVD, and 4K cover artwork and Amazon.com pre-order links. As always, whenever you order literally anything from Amazon after clicking to them through one of our links (like this one), you’re helping to support our work here at The Bits and we really appreciate it. [Read on here...]

Published in My Two Cents

Sorry for the lack of news posts these last couple of days, as I’ve been slammed working on disc reviews. As such, we’ve got a bunch of new and recent ones for you, including...

My own take on Marvel’s The Avengers and Avengers: Age of Ultron in 4K Ultra HD (my Avengers: Infinity War review is coming soon as well, I just need time to check out the full audio commentary).

Tim’s review of John Carpenter’s Someone’s Watching Me! on Blu-ray from Scream Factory.

Dennis’ look of Nicholas Meyer’s The Day After on Blu-ray from Kino Lorber Studio Classics.

And David’s take on Truth or Dare (2018) on Blu-ray from Universal and Blumhouse.Lots more reviews are coming over the next few days, so be sure to watch for them. [Read on here...]

Published in My Two Cents

The big news today is that Arrow Video is releasing a new 12 Monkeys: Collector’s Edition Blu-ray on 10/16, mastered from a new 4K scan of the original negative and approved by director Terry Gilliam. Extras will include audio commentary by Gilliam and producer Charles Roven, Keith Fulton and Louis Pepe’s The Hamster Factor and Other Tales of Twelve Monkeys feature-length documentary, an extensive image gallery, the theatrical trailer, and more newly-produced content yet to be announced. You’ll also get a reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Gary Pullin and an illustrated collector’s booklet featuring liner notes by Nathan Rabin and archive materials. You can see the package at left and you can pre-order it here on Amazon.

Arrow is releasing a new Schlock! Collector’s Edition on Blu-ray that same day. This will also be mastered from a new 4K scan of the original negative, and will feature audio commentary by writer/director John Landis and makeup artist Rick Baker, a new video interview with author and critic Kim Newman, Birth of a Schlock, an archival video interview with cinematographer Bob Collins 1972, 1979 and 1982 US theatrical trailers, US radio spots, a reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Graham Humphreys, and an illustrated collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the film by Joe Bob Briggs. You can pre-order it here on Amazon as well. [Read on here...]

Published in My Two Cents

We’ve got three new Blu-ray reviews for you to enjoy today, including David Steigman’s look at Eli Roth’s Death Wish remake and Phillipe de Broca’s 1966 French drama King of Hearts. We’ve also got Dennis Sueling’s thoughts on Jonas Carpignano’s Italian drama A Ciambra. All three are new or recently released on Blu-ray and are worth a look.

In announcement news today, 20th Century Fox has finally officially announced their Predator and Predator 3-Movie Collection on 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray, and DVD on 8/7. A limited edition Steelbook version of the collection will be available at Best Buy and FYE stores. Extras on the Predator will include audio commentary by director John McTiernan, a text commentary by film historian Eric Lichtenfeld, Predator: Evolution of a Species-Hunters of Extreme Perfection, If It Bleeds, We Can Kill It: The Making of Predator, multiple Special Effects and Inside the Predator featurettes, Short Takes with the Filmmakers, deleted scenes and outtakes, a photo gallery, and a Predator Profile.

Audio on all of these films will be in English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1. Predator and Predator 2 were finished on film and should be new 4K film scans, while Predators is a 2K DI upsample. We suspect the HDR format will be HDR10. Note that we’re awaiting official confirmation from the studio on the tech specs (aside from the audio, which is confirmed). [Read on here...]

Published in My Two Cents

Disney has just announced that Lucasfilm’s Solo: A Star Wars Story, directed by Ron Howard, will arrive on Blu-ray, DVD, and 4K Ultra HD on 9/25 (just as we first predicted here on The Bits way back when), with the Digital release due on 9/14.

The Digital 4K offering will offer Dolby Vision HDR, but it appears that the physical 4K disc will feature HDR10 only. This would seem to be a reversal for Disney (and it’s one that appears to be the case with Avengers: Infinity War in 4K as well). Aspect ratio is 2.39:1 on all SKUs.

The 4K SKUs will feature Dolby Atmos object-based audio. There’s no 3D SKU planned for the US, but as usual it appears there will be an all-region Blu-ray 3D SKU available in the UK (click here) for those who wish to import. [Read on here...]

Published in My Two Cents

Today’s is a quick update here at The Bits as I have my mother visiting from North Dakota until tomorrow afternoon. Thanks for your patience!

Note, however, that I’m going to start posting my reviews of Paramount’s Mission: Impossible films in 4K Ultra HD tomorrow night and I should have them all up by the end of the week. We’ll have more new Blu-ray reviews from Tim as well.

Okay, with that out of the way…

In announcement news today, Studio Canal has just announced the UK release of a new 4K restoration of Michael Cimino’s The Deer Hunter that’s set for Blu-ray and Digital release on 8/20 and 4K Ultra HD on 10/15, both in the UK. It will also be released in theaters in the UK on 7/4. [Read on here...]

Published in My Two Cents

We have just a couple things for you today, but first a quick recommendation…

If you’re a fan of Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey, you really owe it to yourself to pick up a copy of Michael Benson’s new book on the making of the film, Space Odyssey. I’m only about a quarter of the way through it, but it’s incredibly comprehensive and filled with interesting and surprising revelations and insights on the production. I can’t recommend it more highly. You can find it here on Amazon.

Also today, we’ve updated the Release Dates & Artwork section with all the latest Blu-ray, DVD, and 4K Ultra HD cover artwork and Amazon.com pre-order links. As always, anytime you order through our links you’re helping us to continue our work here at The Bits and we appreciate it! [Read on here...]

Published in My Two Cents

All right, this is just a quick post today with some big release news and updates...

First, Tim’s got a stack of Blu-ray titles he’s working his way through for review, while I’ve got reviews of Three Billboards, Dark Crystal, and Murder on the Orient Express in 4K Ultra HD all in the works. So watch for those to start going up tomorrow and Monday. And sometime late next week… Justice League 4K.

Also here at The Bits, today, we’ve got a new update for you of the Release Dates & Artwork section with lots of fresh Blu-ray, DVD, and 4K Ultra HD cover art and Amazon pre-order links. Remember, whenever you shop Amazon through our links, it makes a big difference for us here in terms of keeping The Bits going. So thank you for doing so!

Now then... the big news today is more 4K: Universal has just revealed its 4-film/8-disc Jurassic Park: 25th Anniversary Collection for release on 5/22 (SRP $79.88), which will include Jurassic Park, Jurassic Park: The Lost World, Jurassic Park III, and Jurassic World each on both 4K UHD and Blu-ray. [Read on here...]

Published in My Two Cents

Tim has another couple of disc reviews for you today, starting with the Pulp: Special Edition on Blu-ray from Arrow Video and Beyond the Seventh Door on DVD from Severin Films and Intervision. Do give them a look.

In announcement news today, Universal has officially set Craig Gillespie’s twisted comedy I, Tonya for release on Blu-ray and DVD on 3/13, with the Digital release expected on 3/2. The film stars Margo Robbie and Allison Janney. It’s quite good.

Warner Bros. Home Entertainment will release the anime Batman Ninja on Blu-ray and DVD on 5/8. The BD will include English dubbed audio as well as the original Japanese audio with English subtitles. Strangely, there are also plans to release it in 4K but digitally only this summer, not on 4K UHD Blu-ray. That seems like a mistake to me, but I suppose that if the Blu-ray sells well the studio could reconsider. Extras will include 3 featurettes (East/West Batman, Batman: Made in Japan, and New York Comic Con Presents Batman Ninja). The Blu-ray will also be available in regular and Steelbook versions. [Read on here…]

Published in My Two Cents