Displaying items by tag: Via Vision Entertainment

We’ve got two new disc reviews for you today, as well as some great release news. But first those reviews...

Dennis has turned in his thoughts on director Leslie Fenton’s Saigon (1948) on Blu-ray from Kino Lorber Studio Classics. The film stars Alan Ladd and Veronica Lake.

And Tim has taken a look at the new Wes Craven Film Collection on Blu-ray from Via Vision Entertainment down under, a region-free box that includes Deadly Blessing (1981), The Serpent and the Rainbow (1988), and The People Under the Stairs (1991).

And now for that great piece of release news: We’ve been wondering for a while now who was going to be releasing Toho’s outstanding Godzilla Minus One (2023), directed by Takashi Yamazaki, on physical media here in the States, and now we know... it’s Toho themselves!

Toho has decided to release their excellent 4-disc box set Godzilla Minus One: Blu-ray Deluxe Japan Collector’s Edition to US customers exclusively on Godzilla.com! For $65, you’ll get the exact same box set that was released in Japan (and that our own Stephen Bjork reviewed here at The Bits back in May) in the same packaging, simply re-authored with English menus and the option to select the theatrical release English subtitles for Godzilla Minus One and Godzilla Minus One/Minus Color. [Read on here...]

We start today with more new disc reviews, including...

Stephen’s look at John Flynn’s Rolling Thunder (1977) and Kimberly Peirce’s Carrie (2013) in 4K Ultra HD, as well as Jonathan Kaplan’s Over the Edge (1979) on Blu-ray, all from Shout! Factory.

Stuart’s take on Ken Loach’s documentary The Spirit of ‘45 (2013) on Blu-ray from Vinegar Syndrome and Alain Cavalier’s Le Combat dans l’île (1962) on Blu-ray from Radiance Films.

And Dennis’ thoughts on Kino Classics’ Vitagraph Comedies Blu-ray, featuring 40 classic shorts on three discs.

Now then, in terms of actual announcement news, we’ve got a couple of items for you and they’re pretty great. But there’s even more unofficial news, that’s no less exciting! Let’s get to the actual announcement news first...

It starts today with word that Janus Films will be debuting a brand new 4K restoration of Akira Kurosawa’s legendary epic Seven Samurai (1954) next month in New York and Los Angeles! You’ll be able to see it on 7/5 at the Film Forum in NYC and on 7/7 at the American Cinematheque’s Egyptian Theatre in Los Angeles. This is only my favorite film of all time. I will absolutely be at that Egyptian Theatre screening, and the fact that this restoration is now complete surely means that a physical 4K Ultra HD is coming later this year from Criterion as well. You can see the poster for this release at left, and the trailer is available for reviewing below the break. [Read on here...]

Our second news update of the day starts with a little bit of breaking news: Paramount has just made David Zucker, Jim Abrahams, and Jerry Zucker’s Top Secret! (1984) and David Fincher’s Zodiac (2007) available in 4K Digital on Apple TV, Vudu, Kaleidescape, and more. Given the amount of effort Fincher puts into his remasters, we believe it’s safe to assume that Zodiac will be coming to physical 4K Ultra HD from Paramount sooner than later as well.

Zodiac, it should be remembered, was shot mostly in 10-bit RAW in 1080p HD (4:4:4) using the Thomson Viper FilmStream camera, along with some footage in 35 mm photochemical film (Super 35 format). But anyone who doubts that it could look great upscaled and remastered in 4K would do well to take a look at HBO’s Game of Thrones: The Complete First Season in 4K UHD (which we’ve reviewed here). The advantages of high data rate and low compression, combined with an HDR grade, could really make a difference. Zodiac in particular was very well lit and photographed. Personally, I’m eager to get a look at it.

Also today, Arrow Video has announced their August slate, which includes a UK-only 4K Ultra HD release of Michael Lehmann’s Heathers (1988) on 8/5, followed by a slew of titles on 8/26. Among them are Robert Rodriguez’s Desperado (1995) in 4K Ultra HD and The Mexico Trilogy box set (both in the UK, US, and Canada), which includes El Mariachi (1992) and Once Upon a Time in Mexico (2003) in Blu-ray, as well as the Desperado 4K. [Read on here...]

We’ve got three new disc reviews for you to enjoy today, including...

Tim’s take on Halloween II (1981) and Halloween III (1982) on Blu-ray from Via Vision Entertainment, as well as Hanna-Barbera’s animated Rockin’ with Judy Jetson (1988) on Blu-ray from the Warner Archive Collection.

Watch for more reviews coming over the next few days.

In announcement news today, we have a few things to report. First, Warner Bros. Discovery Home Entertainment has made Jan de Bont’s Twister (1996) official for 4K Ultra HD and 4K UHD Steelbook release on 7/9. As we’ve reported previously, look for Dolby Atmos audio, HDR10 high dynamic range, the new The Legacy of Twister: Taken by the Wind retrospective featurette with the director, and the legacy Blu-ray and DVD extras. You can see the cover artwork at left and also below.

Warner Bros. has also set Luca Guadagnino’s Challengers (2024) for Blu-ray and DVD release on 7/9, for Amazon MGM Studios. There’s no indication of special features on the release.

But we’re not yet done with Warner & MGM. Though they haven’t officially been announced yet, the studios have also just listed John G. Avildsen’s Rocky V (1990) and Sylvester Stallone’s Rocky Balboa (2006) for 4K Ultra HD Steelbook release on 7/16. The latter will include both the original Theatrical Version and Stallone’s new Director’s Cut. Both will offer HDR10 high dynamic range and DTS-HD Master Audio. Also listed for release that same day is a brand new Rocky: Ultimate Knockout Collection in 4K, which we expect will include Rocky, Rocky II, Rocky III, Rocky IV, Rocky V, and Rocky Balboa. [Read on here...]

We have a new disc review for all of you to enjoy today here at The Bits...

Our own Tim Salmons has just weighed in on the Warner Archive Collection’s Looney Tunes: Collector’s Choice – Volume 1 Blu-ray, which includes 20 classic animated shorts from 1945 to 1959, among them some real rarities. Tim will be reviewing Volume 2 and Volume 3 on Blu-ray soon as well, so watch for those to follow in the coming days.

We’ve also updated our 4K Ultra HD Release List here at The Bits today with some new titles and Amazon.com pre-order links, so you’ll definitely want to check that out here.

And over on our Patreon page today, I’ve shared a feature entitled Steelbooks (And Why Hollywood Loves Them)! that looks back at the origins and history of Steelbook packaging, and why it’s become so popular with both the Hollywood studios and retailers. This post is free and open to everyone for a couple of reasons.

First, we want to give you all a taste of the kinds of content we’re creating exclusively for our paying supporters on Patreon. And second, we’re going to be running a poll on our Patreon page on behalf of a major Hollywood studio that wants your opinion on a Steelbook project they’re considering. That will appear in the next couple days there and it too will be free and available to all. [Read on here...]

We’re closing out the week with a bunch of new disc reviews and a ton of significant new title announcements as well from the likes of Arrow, Imprint, Sony, Shout! Factory, and more. But first, here are those reviews...

First, Stephen has delivered his in-depth takes on James Gunn’s Guardians of the Galaxy, Volume 3 (2023) on 4K Ultra HD from Marvel and Disney, Jonathan Goldstein and John Francis Daley’s Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves (2023) on 4K UHD from Paramount, Russell Mulcahy’s Razorback (1984) on 4K UHD from Umbrella Entertainment, Lucio Fulci’s City of the Living Dead (1980) on 4K UHD from Cauldon Films, and Dario Argento’s Tenebrae (1982) on 4K UHD from Synapse Films.

Stuart has chimed in with his thoughts on Henry Koster’s My Man Godfrey (1957) on Blu-ray from Kino Lorber Studio Classics, as well as Fred Zinnemann and John Sturges’ The Old Man and the Sea (1958) on Blu-ray from the Warner Archive Collection.

And Dennis has taken a look at Laura Tarruso’s About My Father (2023) on Blu-ray from Lionsgate, along with Cauleen Smith’s Drylongso (1998) on Blu-ray from the Criterion Collection.

Rest assured, we have even more new disc reviews coming next week, including Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas, Akira Kurosawa’s Dreams, and several other titles.

Now then... in announcement news over the last couple of days, Sony Pictures Home Entertainment has officially set Frank Oz’s The Muppets Take Manhattan (1984) for release on 4K Ultra HD on 10/24. Look for the film to be mastered in 4K from the original camera negative with Dolby Vision HDR and a new Dolby Atmos sound mix, both approved by Oz (the original English 5.1 and mono audio are also included). The 4K disc will also include a new audio commentary with Oz. This will be accompanied by a Blu-ray disc featuring the remastered film with 5.1 audio and 3 legacy special features (including an Interview with Jim Henson, Muppetisms: Miss Piggy & Kermit the Frog, and Muppetisms: Pepe and Fozzie Bear). You can see the cover artwork at left and also below. [Read on here...]

All right, we’ve got a lot of catching up to do in terms of release news today, in the wake of the recent Disney and Fox title announcements. So let’s get right to it...

Paramount has just set a pair of fan-favorite catalog films for release on 4K Ultra HD on 11/7... John Landis’s Trading Places (1983) and Richard Donner’s Scrooged (1988). We haven’t seen official announcements yet, so we don’t know for sure what the details are, but they’re now available for pre-order on Amazon.com. You can see the cover art at left and also below the break, where we’ll include the Amazon links. If the studio follows their usual release pattern however, the discs should include Dolby Vision HDR, DTS-HD MA soundtracks, and (possibly) the previously-released extras. It appears that Scrooged will not include a Blu-ray copy however—it’ll will be 4K UHD + Digital Code only.

Speaking of Paramount, their previously-announced South Park: The Complete Twenty-Sixth Season is finally available for pre-order on Amazon and you can see the cover art below.

Lionsgate has just announced a new John Wick: Chapters 1-4 Blu-ray collection for release on Blu-ray, DVD, and Digital on 10/17. All of the previous special features will be included.

Also newly-announced by Lionsgate for release on Blu-ray, DVD, and Digital that same day is The Twilight Saga: The Complete Collection – 15th Anniversary Edition. Included will be Twilight (2008), The Twilight Saga: New Moon (2009), The Twilight Saga: Eclipse (2010), The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 1 and the Breaking Dawn: Part 1 – Extended Edition (2022), as well as The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 2 (2012). The package will also include “three alternative artwork cards that can be swapped into the front cover of the package” and most or all of the previous legacy extras.

And here’s the big one: Lionsgate and AMC are releasing a massive The Walking Dead: The Complete Collection Blu-ray box set on 10/17. SRP for this one is $209.97. You can see the cover artwork for all three of these Lionsgate sets below the break. [Read on here...]

We’re closing out the week this afternoon with some newsy odds and ends, a few more tidbits about forthcoming titles from our industry sources, and of course more new disc reviews. Today’s reviews include...

Tim’s take on Wes Craven’s The People Under the Stairs (1991) in 4K Ultra HD from our friends at Scream Factory.

His look at Craig R. Baxley’s Stone Cold (1991) on Blu-ray from Kino Lorber Studio Classics.

And Stuart’s thoughts on Richard Thorpe’s The Truth About Spring (1965) on Blu-ray, also from the good folks over at Kino Lorber Studio Classics.

In 4K Ultra HD release news, you might recall that yesterday we mentioned that Sony was bringing Martin Campbell’s The Legend of Zorro (2005) to the format on 8/22. Likewise, Universal was working on a 4K release of Emerald Fennell’s Promising Young Woman (2020) for that same day. [Read on here...]

All right, we’re working on a bunch things here at the website today, including more reviews, follow-up on upcoming titles from our industry sources, and a big My Two Cents editorial/commentary piece on the current state of the home video industry that I’ll be posting here after the July 4th holiday.

In the meantime though, we do have a few more new disc reviews for you today, including...

Dennis’ thoughts on Harvey Hart’s Bus Riley’s Back in Town (1965) on Blu-ray from Imprint Films and Via Vision.

Stuart’s take on Don Siegel’s Steve McQueen/WWII drama Hell Is for Heroes (1962) on Blu-ray from Kino Lorber Studio Classics.

And Stephen’s look at Steve Jodrell’s Shame (1988) on Blu-ray from Umbrella Entertainment via Vinegar Syndrome. [Read on here...]

Today’s new disc reviews here on The Bits include...

Tim’s review of Phil Tucker’s Robot Monster (1953) on Blu-ray 3D from Bayview Entertainment.

Stuart’s in-depth take on the Essential Film Noir: Collection 4 Blu-ray box set from Imprint Films and Via Vision Entertainment, which features The Enforcer (1951), Beware, My Lovely (1952), Jennifer (1953), Rope of Sand (1949), and Appointment with Danger (1950).

And Dennis’ look at Elliott Nugent’s The Great Gatsby (1949) on Blu-ray also from Imprint and Via Vision.

In announcement news today, Lionsgate has set Jalmari Helander’s Sisu for release on Blu-ray, DVD, and 4K Ultra HD on 7/11, with the Digital release available today. The 4K will be available in a wide-release Amaray SKU and also a Best Buy-exclusive Steelbook. Extras will include a pair of featurettes (Indestructible: Making Sisu and Pushing the Boundaries of Reality: The Visual Effects of Sisu). Audio on both the 4K and Blu-ray will be included in 5.1 Dolby TrueHD format. High dynamic range is likely HDR10 only on the 4K SKUs. [Read on here...]