Items filtered by date: August 2024

We’ve got some MAJOR announcement news to share with you all today, we’re starting things off as always with four new disc reviews...

Tim has checked in with his thoughts on Arthur Rankin Jr. and Jules Bass’ animated The Last Unicorn (1982) in 4K Ultra HD and 4K Steelbook from Shout! Studios.

And Dennis has weighed in with this take on Norman Z. McLeod’s My Favorite Spy (1951) on Blu-ray from Kino Lorber Studio Classics, as well as Serge Bourguignon’s Two Weeks in September (1967) on Blu-ray from Kino Classics.

Now then, our friends at Shout! Studios and the Warner Archive Collection have announce major slates of Blu-ray and 4K Ultra HD catalog titles for release in November and December!

The Warner Archive Collection has revealed 6 new classic Blu-ray titles for release on 11/26, including Jean Negulesco’s Humoresque (1946)—mastered from a 4K scan of original nitrate camera negative—Jack Haley Jr. That’s Entertainment! (1974)—re-constructed from original negatives and preservation elements—The Complete Thin Man Collection (1934-47)—a 6-disc set mastered from 4K scans of the best surviving elements, featuring WS Van Dyke’s pre-Code The Thin Man (1934), After the Thin Man (1936), Another Thin Man (1939), and Shadow of the Thin Man (1941), as well as Richard Thorpe’s Song of the Thin Man (1944), and Edward Buzzell’s The Thin Man Goes Home (1947)—Hanna-Barbera’s animated Wait Till Your Father Gets Home (1972-74) TV series—featuring 48 episodes on 6 discs—Gary David Goldberg’s Must Love Dogs (2005), and finally the Looney Tunes Collector’s Choice: Volume 4 (1937-64)—including 27 classic Looney Tunes fully restored and remastered shorts, including Friz Freleng’s Streamlined Greta Green (1937), Double Chaser (1942), Meatless Flyday (1944), Peck Up Your Troubles (1945), Along Came Daffy (1947), A Bone for a Bone (1951), Muzzle Tough (1954), Stork Naked (1955), Hyde and Go Tweet (1960), Lighter Than Hare (1960), D’ Fightin’ Ones (1961), Devil’s Feud Cake (1963), and Road to Andalay (1964), Tex Avery’s The Sneezing Weasel (1938) and Dangerous Dan McFoo (1939), Tex Avery and Bob Clampett’s The Cagey Canary (1941), Chuck Jones’ Fox Pop (1942), Mouse-Warming (1952), Double or Mutton (1955), and Hopalong Casualty (1960), Robert McKimson’s The Mouse-Merized Cat (1946), Henhouse Henery (1949), Leghorn Swoggled (1951), Muscle Tussle (1953), and Quack Shot (1954), Arthur Davis’ Holiday for Drumsticks (1949), and Norm McCabe’s The Impatient Patient (1942). Whew! [Read on here...]

We’ve got just a couple more reviews for you today to close out the week...

Tim has reviewed both the Blu-ray and DVD versions of DC Studios and Warner Bros. Discovery Home Entertainment’s new Super Friends: The Complete Collection.

Watch for a bunch more new disc reviews next week—the whole team is working on more, including yours truly!

Meanwhile, the big news today is that Arrow Video has just revealed its December Blu-ray and 4K Ultra HD release slate. Look for John Sturges’ The Great Escape (1963) in 4K and Blu-ray (UK only) and the Critters: A Four Course Feast! Blu-ray box set (UK only)—which includes Stephen Herek’s Critters (1986), Mick Garris’ Critters 2: The Main Course (1988), Kristine Peterson’s Critters 3 (1991), and Rupert Harvey’s Critters 4 (1992)—on 12/2, followed by Abel Ferrara’s The Addiction (1995) in 4K (UK, US, and Canada), Marco Brambilla’s Demolition Man (1993) in 4K and Blu-ray (UK, US, and Canada), Kim Jee-woon’s The Good, The Bad, The Weird (2008) in 4K and Blu-ray (UK only), and Cody Kennedy and Tim Rutherford’s The Last Video Store (2023) on Blu-ray (UK and US) all on 12/9. [Read on here...]

Greetings, Bits-ers! We’ve got some great announcement news for you this afternoon, but first...

Tim has taken a look at a couple of new releases on disc for you all, including Sergio Martino’s Torso (1973), an Italian giallo title from Arrow Video in 4K Ultra HD, and also Antonio Margheriti’s Cannibal Apocalypse (1980) in 4K Ultra HD from Kino Cult. So that should take care of your schlock horror cravings for today.

Morning reviews are on the way, so be sure to keep your eyes peeled.

Now then, the big announcement news today is that 20th Century Studios has just officially set Fede Alvarez’s Alien: Romulus (2024) for 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray, and DVD release on 12/3, with the Digital release expected in a couple of weeks on 10/15. The title will come in Steelbook packaging only. Look for HDR10 high dynamic range and Dolby Atmos audio on a 66GB disc. The aspect ratio (per the press release) is 2.39:1.

[Editor’s Note: The studio press release indicates HDR10 only, but the open packaging shot—when zoomed in—reveals that the disc has the Dolby Vision logo on it. We’ve asked the studio to confirm and will post an update here when we hear back.]

[Editor’s Update – 10/1/24: Just a quick heads up to clarify... I’ve confirmed with studio sources that the Alien: Romulus 4K will indeed have Dolby Vision HDR, despite the fact that their press release suggested otherwise. However: No, Disney and 20th Century aren’t necessarily adding DV to all future Ultra HD titles. Instead, they’re making the decision to include it on a case by case basis going forward.]

Extras will include the Return to Horror: Crafting Alien: Romulus documentary, which includes 4 parts (The Director’s Vision, Creating the Story, Casting the Faces, and Constructing the World). You’ll also get 2 additional featurettes (Inside the Xenomorph Showdown and Alien: A Conversation which features Alvarez talking with original Alien director Ridley Scott). And a selection of Alternate/Extended Scenes will also be included. You can see the packaging at left and also below. [Read on here...]

All right, we’ve got a bunch of news to run down for you all today...

But before we get to that, we wanted to let you know that we’ve just completed major updates of our Release Dates & Cover Artwork section here at The Bits, as well as our 4K Ultra HD Release List, both of which include all the latest Amazon pre-order links. What’s more, we’ve posted some very cool content over the last couple of weeks on our Digital Bits Patreon. And those of you interested in titles that might be coming to 4K UHD in 2025 will definitely want to check those posts out. Becoming a Patreon subscriber is a great way to support the work we do here at The Bits—it’s affordable and we try to make it worth your while. So please consider joining us over there, and we appreciate it! Now then...

The big news today is that Marvel and Disney have just officially set Shawn Levy’s Deadpool & Wolverine (2024) for release on 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray, and DVD on 10/22, with the Digital release expected on 10/1. The 4K disc will include Dolby Vision HDR and Dolby Atmos audio on a 66GB disc. There will be a wide-release 4K version in Amaray packaging, along with dual limited-edition Steelbooks one of which features Deadpool on the cover with a red interior, and the other featuring Wolverine on the cover with a yellow interior. A Walmart-exclusive Amaray version will also include “pop-up” packaging featuring the Deadpool corp. Regardless of which version you buy, the disc will contain audio commentary with Shawn Levy and actor Ryan Reynolds, a gag reel, 4 featurettes (Finding Madonna: Making the Oner, Practical Approach: Celebrating the Art of Ray Chan, Loose Ends: The Legacy of Heroes, and Wolverine), 3 deleted scenes (Elevator Ride, Do Nothing, and Daddy’s in Love), and “Fun Sack” (Dr. Deadpool, Product Review, and Wade is Back). You can see the cover artwork at left and also below. [Read on here...]

Heads up, Digital Bits readers!

We’ve got some great and exclusive breaking news for all of you here at the site for you today, and it comes to you direct from the good people at Warner Bros. Discovery Home Entertainment!

Now… many of you will no doubt have been wondering exactly why it is that Second Sight in the UK had to stop taking pre-orders for this title from customers here in the United States.

Well, with this announcement this afternoon, now we finally know why.

Here are all the official details, straight from the studio…

Coming to 4K Ultra HD and Blu-ray Disc from Warner Bros. Discovery Home Entertainment on October 22

Newly remastered in Dolby Vision HDR from a new 4K Scan of the Original Camera Negative!

THE HITCHER (1986)

Cast – Rutger Hauer, C. Thomas Howell, Jennifer Jason Leigh

In this 1986 cult classic, director Robert Harmon thrills the viewer with the story of young Jim Halsey (C. Thomas Howell), who stops on the highway to pick up a hitchhiker, not knowing that by doing so, he opens the door to terrible evil. [Read on here...]

Heads-up, Bits readers—we’ve got an exclusive title announcement for you this morning! Here are all the details…

Refuse Films announces the world Blu-ray premiere of Trey Parker's Cannibal! The Musical! and their latest sub-label, the TromArchive Collection

Cannibal! The Musical is making its debut on Blu-ray from Refuse Films. Shot on 16mm film and edited on video, Cannibal! The Musical is presented in high definition for the first time on Blu-ray.

Written and directed by Trey Parker (co-creator of South Park), this release is limited to only 3,000 units, playable worldwide and includes an exclusive slipcover featuring the original 1997 key art.

Brand new special features include new audio commentary, cast interviews, never-before-seen deleted scenes approved by Trey Parker and Matt Stone, over three hours of raw BTS footage, the UK cut of Alferd Packer: The Musical, plus hours of archival material.

Producer Jason McHugh confirms that the original 16mm footage of Cannibal! The Musical was lost somewhere in Colorado in the late 90s. Refuse Films uncovered the original Betacam master tape from the Troma archives in New York. [Read on here...]

As we close out the week, let’s start today as always with more new disc reviews...

Stephen has turned in his thoughts on John Mackenzie’s The Long Good Friday (1980) in 4K Ultra HD from the Criterion Collection.

Stuart has offered his take on a trio of new and recent Blu-ray titles, including Daniel Mann’s Come Back, Little Sheba (1952) from Kino Lorber Studio Classics, and the 1965 French anthology film Six in Paris (1965) and Larry Kent’s The Bitter Ash (1963) from Vinegar Syndrome.

Tim has taken a look at Tinto Brass’ Frivolous Lola (1998) in 4K Ultra HD from Cult Epics.

And finally, Dennis has delivered a review of Penny Lane’s documentary Nuts! (2016) on Blu-ray from Vinegar Syndrome.

In announcement news today, Warner Bros. Discovery Home Entertainment has finally made Aaron Sorkin’s The West Wing official for Blu-ray on 10/1, in honor of the NBC series’ 25th anniversary. [Read on here...]

All right, here are today’s new disc reviews...

Dennis has taken a look at Joel Schumacher’s 8MM (1999) on Blu-ray from Imprint Films.

Stuart has offered his take on Roberto Gavaldón’s Untouched (1954) on Blu-ray on Powerhouse Films’ Indicator label.

Tim has taken a look at Marcus Nispel’s remake of Friday the 13th (2009) in 4K Ultra HD from Arrow Video. He’s also turned in a review of Lucio Fulci’s Lizard in a Woman’s Skin (1971) on Blu-ray from Umbrella Entertainment.

And last, but certainly not least, Stephen has taken a deep dive into Toho’s Godzilla store-exclusive version of Takashi Yamazaki’s Godzilla Minus One (2023) in 4K Ultra HD!

Also here at The Bits today, we have a brand new update of our Release Dates & Artwork section, which is a convenient way to see all of the new Blu-ray, DVD, and 4K Ultra HD titles that street each week. You can see the cover art, and sort by date and format. And you can click on each of the titles to pre-order them on Amazon.

On that note, I wanted to take a moment to share a challenge we’ve been having of late, which is that our Amazon Affiliate revenue has been declining. For a long time now—for over a decade—our Affiliate revenue has been a big part of helping us to keep The Digital Bits going—to help us cover our server and operating costs. It’s how we’ve been able to keep The Bits free for everyone to read for over 27 years now. In recent months, however, that revenue has begun to decline. We understand that Amazon may not always be the cheapest option these days. So for those of you who still support The Bits by shopping with them through links (in the daily news column, in our disc reviews, in the 4K Ultra HD Release List, and in the Release Dates & Artwork section), we really appreciate it very much! [Read on here...]

All right, here’s today’s new disc reviews for all of you to enjoy...

Stephen has taken a look at Aleksandr Ptushko’s Ruslan and Ludmila (1972) on Blu-ray from Mosfilm via Deaf Crocodile and Vinegar Syndrome.

Dennis has reviewed William C. Reilly’s Men of Respect (1990) on Blu-ray from Columbia Pictures via Imprint Films.

And Tim has checked in with his thoughts on Nancy Walker’s Can’t Stop the Music (1980) in 4K Ultra HD from EMI via Kino Lorber Studio Classics!

Now then, we have a bunch of great announcement news for you today, so let’s get right into it...

For starters, Criterion has just announced their December release slate, which is set to include Wim Wenders’ Paris, Texas (1984) (Spine #501 – 4K + Blu-ray and Blu-ray) on 12/3, Joel and Ethan Coen’s No Country for Old Men (2007) (Spine #1243 – 4K + Blu-ray and Blu-ray) and Federico Fellini’s 8½ (1963) (Spine #140 – 4K + Blu-ray) on 12/10, and Sammo Hung’s Eastern Condors (1987) (Spine #1244 on Blu-ray) on 12/17! Paris, Texas and No Country for Old Men will both include Dolby Vision HDR. No Country for Old Men is a Miramax title currently controlled by Paramount, so this is a licensing situation (and a welcome one). More details are available here, and you can see the cover artwork for all of these below the break. [Read on here...]

We’ve got two more new disc reviews for you today, including...

Stephen’s look at Roger Donaldson’s No Way Out (1987) in 4K Ultra HD from Kino Lorber Studio Classics.

And Tim’s thoughts on Jeff Lieberman’s Squirm (1976) on Blu-ray, from KLSC’s Kino Cult line.

Also today, we’ve have word from retail sources (and customers who have pre-ordered the tiles) that Warner Bros. Discovery Home Entertainment’s recently street-dated 4K catalog titles—Alfred Hitchcock’s North by Northwest (1959), Mel Brooks’ Blazing Saddles (1974), and James Cameron’s The Terminator (1984)—have been pushed to 11/19 from 11/5. That probably has to do with the added time needed to replicate enough production to meet demand. Adjust your plans accordingly.

In any case, be aware that North by Northwest (1959) and Blazing Saddles (1974) will each include HDR10 and Dolby Atmos audio, while The Terminator (1984) will include both Dolby Vision HDR and Dolby Atmos audio.

In terms of special features The Terminator will also include Creating The Terminator: Visual Effects & Music, The Terminator: Close to the Real Thing, Unstoppable Force: The Legacy of the Terminator, and 7 deleted scenes. (It appears that the video-based features may be all-new.) Blazing Saddles will include Inappropriate Inspiration: The Blazing Saddles Effect, scene-specific commentary with Mel Brooks, Blaze of Glory: Mel Brooks’ Wild, Wild West, Back in the Saddle, and additional scenes. And North by Northwest will include audio commentary with screenwriter Ernest Legman, North by Northwest: Cinematography, Score, and the Art of the Edit, Destination Hitchcock: The Making of North by Northwest, The Master’s Touch: Hitchcock’s Signature Style, North by Northwest: One for the Ages, and A Guided Tour with Alfred Hitchcock. [Read on here...]