Displaying items by tag: Olive Films

Afternoon, folks! And welcome to Friday. Is anyone else out there as ready for the weekend as we are?

This has been a busy week of just “three steps forward two steps backward” behind-the-scenes work here at The Bits. We got a lot done, but very little of it is visible to any of you. But that’s how it goes sometimes.

We’re all working on more reviews here at the site today (and we will be through the weekend—including War of the Worlds 4K and Days of Thunder 4K), but we do have some interesting release news to report today.

First up, Warner Bros. Home Entertainment and HBO have just set His Dark Materials: The Complete First Season for release on Blu-ray and DVD on 8/4 (SRP $29.98 each). [Read on here...]

Today’s post is just a quickie because I’m working hard to finish up some long overdue Blu-ray reviews.

I should add a note here to acknowledge the fact that the COVID-19 pandemic has proven quite a challenge for all of us, and it’s no different here at The Digital Bits. Title announcements have been delayed, many of our studio and industry contacts have either been working at home or furloughed, screener product has been delayed or cancelled, etc. And of course, as is probably the case with many of you, our own lives have been turned upside down. It’s required a lot of shifting of schedules, workflow, energies, and effort. And some of the review work I usually do personally has gotten waylaid by having to deal with other issues to keep the site going.

The good news is that we seem to be rolling with it all fairly well, and Tim, Dennis and our other Bits team members have been doing yeoman’s work filling in. That said, I do very much appreciate whatever support you guys—our readers—can provide in this difficult time, either by continuing to purchase items through our Amazon links and/or making contributions by a PayPal in our Back the Bits program. And I just wanted to take a moment to say thank you all for sticking with us. We have the best readers on the Internet. Some of you have been with us all the way back to the beginning of the site back in 1997. And we appreciate each and every one of you. [Read on here...]

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

First a couple of new Blu-ray reviews... Tim has looked at Cyril Frankel’s The Witches, aka The Devil’s Own (1966) on disc from Hammer Films by way of Scream Factory. Tim’s also reviewed Eddie Adlum’s Invasion of the Blood Farmers (1972) from Severin Films.

More reviews are on the way here too; I’m working on Hannibal 4K from Kino, Shout! and GKids’ new Princess Mononoke: Collector’s Edition, and more. So watch for those in the next few days.

The big announcement news today is that Warner Bros. Home Entertainment will release Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining on 4K Ultra HD on 10/1. [Read on here...]

[What follows is a feature I wrote for The Daily Oklahoman about one of the greatest movie stars and human beings ever… Burt Reynolds]

Maybe it was the mustache. Or the unscripted quips. Or the genteel Southern manner.

Or just maybe it was that laugh, a cackle delivered by one comfortable in his own skin – inviting his audience gut bust with him, as though they were all in a private joke.

That’s our Burt. And he’s, unbelievably, gone.

Fame, according to Jeanine Bissinger, is “often conferred or withheld just as is love, for reasons and on grounds other than merits.” Burt Reynolds earned his fame with raw boned talent and insight into the business of filmed diversion. [Read on here...]

We’ve got some interesting new announcement news for you today...

We start today with the Criterion Collection, which has just announced its December slate of titles. Look for it to include Samuel Fuller’s Forty Guns (Spine #954 – Blu-ray and DVD) and Euzhan Palcy’s A Dry White Season (Spine #953 – Blu-ray and DVD) on 12/11, followed by Julien Duvivier’s Panique (Spine #955 – Blu-ray and DVD) and an update of Ingmar Bergman’s Sawdust and Tinsel (Spine #412 – Blu-ray and DVD) on 12/18. We’ve updated the Criterion Spines Project pages here at The Bits accordingly.

Our friends at the Warner Archive Collection have just announced a few new Blu-ray titles, including the Hammer films titles Dracula AD 1972 (1972) and Satanic Rites of Dracula (1974), both starring Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee, along with Bad Ronald (1974), Robert Altman’s Brewster McCloud (1970), and The 100: The Complete Fifth Season (2018). All are coming soon. [Read on here...]

Sometimes it’s wonderful to find someone who hails from the same planet as you. I go to film festivals and am always pleased to find intelligent, well dressed and conversant people on subjects close to my heart. These folks, somewhat like yours truly, are professionals, go to work every day, raise families and live contemplative and productive lives. And, well, like a fool such as I, love, as Pauline Kael once said, “when the lights go down.”

I’ve been extremely lucky – I’ve had mentors and friends who have done their dead level best to educate me in the ways of the world while also sharing their deep and abiding love for everything silver and screen. [Read on here...]

A little preface – I started writing my little nickel and dime pieces for the holidays not before December 25 but after. And I’ll tell you why. How many of us receive as presents gift cards – they’re easily purchased and delivered. However, many have time limits and they’re incredibly easy to lose. Come on, you’ve lost a few, haven’t you?

So, I write up these fabulous video gifts because you have gift money to spend. And please do so.

When I was in the throes of graduation from Purcell Oklahoma High School about 40 years ago, we Seniors observed a tradition that I’m sure in some form or fashion was copied throughout the country – we had to complete a form that listed our personal “likes.” You know, favorite song, favorite type food, favorite movie, etc. [Read on here...]

Morning, folks. We’re going to be working on more reviews here at The Bits today, but we do have some interesting release news to report for you before we get started on those.

First, it appears that whatever was going on to delay the Amazon pre-orders for upcoming 4K titles from Warner seems to have been resolved. You can now pre-order Blade Runner: 2049 on 4K (and also Blu-ray – keep in mind the title hasn’t officially been announced, so there’s no street date yet and we don’t know if there will be the 3D and deluxe SKUs in the US) and also Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban – one of the four remaining Potter titles due on 11/7. We expect the others to appear soon and we’ve updated our 4K Ultra HD Release List too. [Read on here…]

We’ve got lots more announcement news for you today…

Lionsgate has just set The Hitman’s Bodyguard for release on Blu-ray, DVD, and 4K Ultra HD on 11/21. We’ve updated our 4K Ultra HD Release List accordingly. The studio has also set Marc Webb’s The Only Living Boy in New York for Digital HD release on 10/20. There’s no word yet of a physical release. Lionsgate will also release The Glass Castle on Blu-ray and DVD on 11/7, with the Digital HD release set for 10/24.

Warner Bros Home Entertainment is releasing Justice League Action: Season 1, Part 1 and Once Upon a Sesame Street Christmas on DVD on 10/10. [Read on here…]

I’ve figured out what’s wrong with movies.

This thesis prevailed on me as I went to see the 3-D Imax version of a new picture called The Great Wall. This picture opened to dismal reviews, but the previews had made it look righteous and the effects, I knew, would be fun, and they were and the whole experience wasn’t bad.

And on the way out, I was thinking of all these feckless movie reviewers who get published and why they would trash this movie. I thought to myself: “Why were they so hard on this movie? It’s just a fun “B” picture?”

And then I figured it out. They all are. 90% of what we see in the theaters are “B” pictures with “A” budgets.

Let’s discuss... [Read on here...]