Displaying items by tag: Disney

Today’s post starts with three new disc reviews, including...

Stuart’s take on the Film Focus: George Peppard box set from Imprint, which includes John Guillermin’s P.J. (1968), George Schaefer’s Pendulum (1969), Sam Wanamaker’s The Executioner (1970), and Richard T. Heffron’s Newman’s Law (1974).

Dennis’ look at Val Guest’s Assignment K (1968), also new on Blu-ray from Imprint.

And finally, Stephen’s thoughts on Vincente Minnelli and Busby Berkeley’s Cabin in the Sky (1943) on Blu-ray from the Warner Archive Collection.

Note that we have lots more new disc reviews on the way, so be sure to watch for them. Also here at The Bits today, we’ve posted a significant update of our 4K Ultra HD Release List with lots of new 4K UHD titles and Amazon links.

And for our Patreon supporters, we’ve recently shared our thoughts on Ron Moore’s Battlestar Galactica and how well the series holds up some fifteen years after it ended its run on the Sci-Fi Channel, along with some preliminary commentary on changes that are brewing within the home entertainment industry, as well as Stephen’s thoughts on the ethics of film alteration and the challenges in determining how films should look on Blu-ray and especially 4K. Supporting The Bits on Patreon is a great way to help us continue our work in service of physical media, and we surely do appreciate it. [Read on here...]

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All right, we’ve got quite a bit of ground to cover today here at The Digital Bits. But as always, we’re starting first with some more new disc reviews. And they’re good ones...

Stephen has taken a look at a pair of 4K Ultra HD releases, including Walter Hill’s The Warriors (1979) in 4K from Arrow Video—an absolutely fantastic release—as well as Ishirō Honda’s original Godzilla (1954) in 4K from Toho, a Japanese import disc that has no English subtitles. But read on, because Stephen’s thoughts on it are well worth your time.

Now then, the first big piece of news we have today is that our friends at The Criterion Collection have just announced their April Blu-ray, DVD, and 4K UHD slate, which is set to include an update of Mathieu Kassovitz’s La haine (1995) (Spine #381 – 4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray) on 4/2, an update or Peter Weir’s Picnic at Hanging Rock (1975) (Spine #29 – 4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray) on 4/9, Béla Tarr and Ágnes Hranitzky’s Werckmeister Harmonies (2000) (Spine #1215 – 4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray, Blu-ray, and DVD) on 4/16, Mikhail Kalatozov’s I Am Cuba (1964) (Spine #1214 – 4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray, Blu-ray) on 4/23, and Nancy Savoca’s Dogfight (1991) (Spine #1216 – Blu-ray) on 4/30. Of the 4K titles, La Haine will include Dolby Vision HDR. [Read on here...]

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This is the Martin Luther King Jr. Day holiday here in the States, so there’s not a lot of release news happening at the moment. But we do have a few things to report for you today, plus some new disc reviews including...

Stuart’s thoughts on Kino Classics’ Soundies: The Ultimate Collection Blu-ray set, featuring short films of the 1940s, and E.A. Dupont’s Picadilly (1929) Blu-ray from Milestone Films and Kino Lorber.

Dennis’ take on Miloš Forman’s Valmont (1989) and Robert Wise’s Odds Against Tomorrow (1959) on Blu-ray from Kino Lorber Studio Classics, as well as W.S. Van Dyke’s Tarzan the Ape Man (1932) on Blu-ray from the Warner Archive Collection.

And Stephen’s look at Michael Mann’s Blackhat (2015) on 4K Ultra HD from Arrow Video, as well as Joel M. Reed’s Bloodsucking Freaks (1976) and Michael Armstrong’s Mark of the Devil (1970) in 4K Ultra HD from Vinegar Syndrome.

More reviews are forthcoming all this week, so be sure to keep your eyes peeled for them!

In announcement news today, Warner Bros. Discovery Home Entertainment has officially set Blitz Bazawule’s The Color Purple (2023) for release on Blu-ray, DVD, and 4K Ultra HD on 3/12, with the Digital release expected tomorrow on 1/16. Extras will include 4 behind-the-scenes featurettes (including Creating The Color Purple: A Bold New Take on the Beloved Classic, Hell Yes! The Iconic Characters of The Color Purple, In the Flow: Creating The Color Purple’s Biggest Musical Moments, and A Story For Me: The Legacy of The Color Purple). You can see the cover art below. [Read on here...]

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Afternoon, folks! We’re stating the new week here at The Bits with a couple of new disc reviews, including...

Tim’s take on Daniel Attias’ Silver Bullet: Collector’s Edition in 4K Ultra HD, as well as his thoughts on our old friend John Harrison’s Tales from the Darkside: The Movie – Collector’s Edition in 4K Ultra HD, both of them from Scream Factory.

Speaking of Scream, Shout Studios has also begun revealing some of their March catalog titles, which thus far are set to include Jonathan Kaplan’s Over the Edge (1979) on Blu-ray on 3/5, Mick Garris’ The Shining miniseries (1997) on Blu-ray on 3/12, Simon Wincer’s Quigley Down Under (1990) in 4K as a Shout! Select title also on 3/12, and a trio of additional 4K titles on 3/19... Lars Klevberg’s Child’s Play (2019), Kimberly Peirce’s Carrie (2013), and Kathryn Bigelow’s K-19: The Widowmaker (2002).

Meanwhile, the big news today is that Marvel and Disney have officially announced the Blu-ray, DVD, and 4K Ultra HD release of Nia DaCosta’s The Marvels (2023) for release on 2/13, with the Digital release expected on 1/16. Extras will include audio commentary with DaCosta and VFX supervisor Tara DeMarco, 2 featurettes (Entangled and The Production Diaries), 4 deleted scenes, and a gag reel. There will also be a 4K Steelbook edition that’s exclusive to Walmart. Audio on the 4K (a UHD-66 disc) will be Dolby Atmos, with DTS-HD Master Audio on the Blu-ray. You can see the cover artwork at left and also below.

Also, Universal and DreamWorks Animation have listed the CG-animated Trolls Band Together (2023) for Blu-ray, DVD, and 4K UHD release on 7/1 on Amazon, though that’s probably a placeholder date. Whatever the final street date ends up being, look for a Trolls 3-Movie Collection on Blu-ray and DVD that same day. [Read on here...]

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Afternoon, Bits readers! It’s been a few days since we’ve done a major news update here on the site, and the reason is that we’ve been very focused on completing new disc reviews for you guys. This is the time of year when all of the big fourth quarter titles start arriving for review, and we’re right in the thick of it now. So today we’re pleased to offer you...

My reviews of James Mangold’s Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny (2023), along with The Mandalorian: The Complete First Season (2019) and The Mandalorian: The Complete Second Season (2020), all in 4K Ultra HD from Lucasfilm via Disney, as well as my review of James Cameron’s Titanic: 25th Anniversary Limited Edition in 4K Ultra HD from Paramount.

We also have Stephen’s reviews of WandaVision: The Complete Series (2021) in 4K Ultra HD from Marvel via Disney, as well as Tommy Wirkola’s Violent Night (2022) in 4K UHD via Universal, and Michael Crichton’s The Great Train Robbery (1978) on Blu-ray from MGM via Kino Lorber Studio Classics.

And Stuart has weighed in on Henry Decoin’s Strangers in the House (1942) on Blu-ray from Gaumont via Kino Lorber Studio Classics.

Rest assured, we have many more new disc reviews on the way as well, so be sure to watch for them. [Read on here...]

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We’re rounding out the week here with three more new disc reviews, including...

Dennis’ take on Costa-Gravas’ Mad City (1997) on Blu-ray from the Warner Archive Collection.

And Stuart’s thoughts on Frederic C. Hobbs’s Godmonster of Indian Flats (1973) on Blu-ray from AGFA, Something Weird, and Vinegar Syndrome, and the Villages of the Damned: Three Horrors from Spain Blu-ray release also from Vinegar Syndrome, which includes Pedro Olea’s The Forest of the Beast (1970), Silvio Narizzano’s The Sky Is Falling (1975), and Gonzalo Suárez’s Beatriz (1976).

Meanwhile, the rest of us are already working on a bunch more new Blu-ray and 4K UHD reviews for next week. And I do mean a bunch. So be sure to watch for them.

We also have a couple significant pieces of catalog news for you this afternoon before we go...

The first is that Kino Lorber Studio Classics has just officially set Ivan Reitman’s Kindergarten Cop (1990) for release on 4K Ultra HD on 1/23, featuring two new audio commentaries (by film historians Alexandra Heller-Nicholas and Josh Nelson, and a second by film historian Samm Deighan). [Read on here...]

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We’re starting the new week with a trio of disc reviews...

First up, I’ve posted my look at Dan Trachtenberg’s Prey (2022), which streets in long-awaited 4K Ultra HD on 10/3 from 20th Century Studios and Buena Vista Home Entertainment. And I’m pleased to say that the disc does not disappoint in terms of A/V quality.

Also today, Stuart has offered his thoughts on Compton Bennett and Andrew Marton’s King Solomon’s Mines (1950), as recently released on Blu-ray by The Warner Archive Collection.

And Tim has turned in his take on Ryan Meade’s Tom Sullivan documentary Invaluable: The True Story of an Epic Artist (2014) on Blu-ray from Synapse Films.

In terms of announcement news today, Sony Pictures Home Entertainment has just announced a new Resident Evil: 6-Movie Collection 4K Ultra HD in Steelbook packaging. That’s due on 11/21. The set includes all 6 films in both Blu-ray and 4K, and all of the 4Ks will feature Dolby Vision HDR and Dolby Atmos audio, plus the previous 5.1 mixes. You can see the cover artwork at left. [Read on here...]

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We’ve got a bunch of ground to cover here at The Bits, so we’re going to post a couple of news updates here today. For the first one this afternoon, we’re going to talk about a new Disney release that was announced on Sunday of all days (naturally, when I was too busy doing a bunch of work around the house to see the press release in time). So let’s get right into it...

Disney has officially revealed a new Disney Legacy Animated Film Collection, featuring 100 animated films from Disney, Walt Disney Animation Studios, and Pixar Animation Studios, which is set to street on 11/14. The box set—which will retail for the whopping price of $1,500—is only going available from Walmart.com, with pre-orders expected to start on 9/18. What’s more, this is obviously an extremely limited release, very likely with just a few thousand copies produced. So if you want it, don’t wait. It will likely sell out very quickly.

The question that must be asked, of course, is: Should you want it? And to help you answer that, we’ve got some exclusive additional details for you...

As announced, the box set will include all 100 films on Blu-ray Disc (more on that in a minute), along with Digital codes for each title, plus “a copy of the original theatrical poster art, a collectible lithograph from Disney Animation’s new musical comedy Wish, and a collectible crystal Mickey ears hat with exclusive Disney 100 engraving.” [Read on here...]

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Afternoon, folks!

This is just a quick and rare weekend My Two Cents here at The Bits in celebration of the fact that today marks a major movie anniversary: 43 years ago today, The Empire Strikes Back was released into theaters!

As many of you can attest firsthand, the event was certainly life changing for all those of us who were there to experience it as teenagers.

And to celebrate the occasion, I’d like to call your attention to a trio of great History, Legacy & Showmanship columns here at The Bits written by our own Michael Coate:

Empire @ 40: Remembering the Early 70mm Cut from 12/21/20.

Betting the Ranch: Remembering "The Empire Strikes Back" on its 40th Anniversary from 5/21/20.

The Force Defeated: Remembering "The Empire Strikes Back" on its 35th Anniversary from 5/21/15.

But that’s not all! [Read on here...]

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While we’re waiting for Warner Bros. to announce their Superman: 5-Film Collection 4K release, which we expect to happen anytime now, we’ve got some more release news for you today and a couple new disc reviews as well.

Starting with the reviews, Stephen has taken a look at Patrice Leconte’s Monsieur Hire (1989) on Blu-ray from Cohen Film Collection.

Stephen has also reviewed Dale Fabrigar’s They Crawl Beneath (2022) on Blu-ray from Well Go USA Entertainment.

Now then, back on the topic of Superman 4K for a moment, it’s starting to look as if there will not be 4K singles of the films in the new collection here in the States, but rather simply the box set in deluxe Steelbook and standard Amaray packaging (you can see the Amazon US listings here and here). There are 4K singles available in the UK if you want them (we have them linked in our 4K Ultra HD Release List here at The Bits now, but curiously not Superman: The Movie—just the sequels—which could indicate that the new remaster of Superman: The Movie may be exclusive to the box set for a while. We’ll have to wait for Warner’s official press release to be sure.

As I said, that could drop at anytime, so we’ll be sure to post all the details when it arrives. [Read on here...]

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