My Two Cents
All right, welcome to a new week Bits readers!
Today is all about James Cameron here at the website, and to that end I’ve just finished knocking out in-depth reviews of the filmmaker’s The Abyss (1989), Aliens (1986), and True Lies (1994) in long-awaited physical 4K Ultra HD and remastered Blu-ray from 20th Century Studios!
The gist is that all three of these discs are worth picking up for Cameron fans and cinephiles, though one of the three titles is a bit complicated. The Abyss is the best looking of the three, nearly on par with the recent Titanic 4K release. Aliens is not far behind in terms of A/V quality and both titles include a nearly complete archive of all past special features created for the films.
True Lies is... well, it looks a lot better than the previous DVD, LaserDisc, and D-VHS releases. Sometimes, it looks fantastic. But at other times, the remastering is a little bit heavy-handed.
It’s still way better looking than StudioCanal’s Terminator 2 4K release though, so it’s a very solid upgrade over previous physical media releases, and it includes some nice features too.
Anyway, you’ll find all of the details in the linked reviews.
But while we’re on the topic of Cameron—and speaking the Terminator—producer Gale Anne Hurd shared over the weekend that plans to celebrate the 40th anniversary of Cameron’s original The Terminator (1984) are soon to be revealed. And we have good word that a new 4K Ultra HD release will chief among them. In the meantime, you can see her post on X/Twitter here. [Read on here...]
Today’s new disc reviews here at The Bits include...
Tim’s look at Richard Fleischer’s Conan the Destroyer (1984) in 4K Ultra HD from Arrow Video, as well as Rospo Pallenberg’s Cutting Class (1989) in 4K Ultra HD from the MVD Rewind Collection.
And Stephen’s thoughts on George P. Cosmatos’ Leviathan (1989) in 4K Ultra HD from MGM via Kino Lorber Studio Classics.
In announcement news today, Warner Bros. Discovery Home Entertainment has officially set Martin Scorsese’s The Departed (2006) for 4K Ultra HD and Digital release on 4/23. The 4K disc will also be available in Steelbook packaging. Extras include the new Guilt and Betrayal: Looking into The Departed featurette, along with the legacy Stranger than Fiction: The True Story of Whitey Bulger, Southie, and The Departed and Crossing Criminal Cultures featurettes, as well as 9 deleted scene with introduction by the director. The press release doesn’t indicate it, but the packaging lists 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio. Look for HDR10 high dynamic range only. [Read on here...]
All right, we’ve been talking a lot about Disney over the last couple of weeks here at The Digital Bits.
So it’s only fitting that we’re back early this morning here at the site to bring you some great breaking 4K Ultra HD news from the studio.
And for those of you eagerly awaiting the studio’s next wave of Disney+ streaming titles, I think you’ll agree that you simply couldn’t ask for a better selection of titles than the ones they’re announcing this morning!
You’ll find the studio’s complete official press release below, along with expanded-packaging images of each of the Steelbooks in question.
Then I’ll be back at the end of this post (below the break) with some additional comments of my own...
FOR THE FIRST TIME ON 4K UHD AND BLU-RAY!
THE FALCON AND THE WINTER SOLDIER SEASON 1, MOON KNIGHT SEASON 1,
ANDOR SEASON 1 & OBI-WAN KENOBI
BURBANK, CA. (MARCH 5, 2024) – The Walt Disney Company today announced four new Collector’s Editions of popular Disney+ Original series from Marvel Studios and Lucasfilm will be available on 4K UHD and Blu-ray for fans to add to their collections. These special releases feature Steelbook packaging, concept art cards and some never-before-seen bonus features.
The titles, all to be released on April 30, 2024 are:
- Marvel Studios’ The Falcon and The Winter Soldier: The Complete First Season
- Marvel Studios’ Moon Knight: The Complete First Season
- Star Wars: Obi-Wan Kenobi – The Complete Series
- Star Wars: Andor – The Complete First Season
All titles will be available to pre-order from March 12, 2024.
Like the previous Marvel Studios and Lucasfilm Collectors Editions released last year, each of these new releases will be available nationally on 4K UHD and Blu-ray Steelbook with brand-new box art designed by popular artist Attila Szarka and collectible concept art cards. [Read on here...]
We have several new disc reviews to begin the week here at The Bits, starting with...
Stuart’s take on Raoul Walsh’s Gentleman Jim (1942) on Blu-ray from the Warner Archive Collection.
Dennis thoughts on Michael Epstein’s LennonNYC (2010) on Blu-ray from Via Vision Entertainment and Peter Yates’ Murphy’s War (1971) on Blu-ray from Arrow Video.
Stephen’s look at Bill Plympton’s The Tune (1992) on Blu-ray from Vinegar Syndrome.
And finally, Tim’s review of Ardman Animations’ Shaun the Sheep: The Complete Series on Blu-ray from Shout! Studios.
We also have a bunch of new announcement news for you today, but first this: Warner Bros. Discovery Home Entertainment has listed Denis Villeneuve’s Dune: Part Two for Blu-ray, 4K Ultra HD, and 4K Steelbook pre-order on Amazon. The street date is TBA, but is likely due in May or June. There will also be a 2-Film Collection in both 4K UHD and Blu-ray.
Now, a lot of you have asked what aspect ratio Dune: Part Two will be in on disc. As many of you know, Dune: Part One was shot mostly in 2.39:1 but about an hour was in full 1.90:1. Yet Warner’s Blu-ray and 4K release were both in 2.39 only. Meanwhile, most of Dune: Part Two was shot in 1.90:1, with about forty minutes in the full 1.43:1 IMAX ratio. So people are wondering if the Blu-ray and 4K will preserve that variable IMAX ratio, and if Part One will ever be re-released on both formats with the variable ratio as well. I’ve asked Warner for clarification on this and will share it here when they reply. Meanwhile, you can find the studio’s temp cover art (with Amazon links) below the break. [Read on here...]
All right, it’s been a week and a half now since we first broke the news here at The Digital Bits that Disney had signed a new deal with Sony for the latter to take over Disney’s physical media production and distribution.
In that time, there’s been a lot of speculation as to what this might mean for Disney’s physical media releases going forward. And there are certainly many questions that it’s natural for disc consumers to ask about the deal.
Does this mean that Disney will continue releasing Blu-ray and 4K discs? Will they perhaps even increase their title output? Will more Disney, Fox, Touchstone, and Hollywood Pictures deep catalog content finally come to 4K UHD? Does Sony taking over distribution from Disney mean that their product will return to markets the studio has pulled out of recently?
One thing we can safely say for sure is that Sony is a lot more efficient at producing and distributing titles on Blu-ray and 4K Ultra HD.
So streamlining this process and reducing unnecessary bureaucracy can only be a good thing in the sense of making Disney’s physical media titles more profitable for the studio.
But to answer those larger questions, I’ve continued to check in with our many industry sources over the last week or two. And I have learned a couple of things that should help to clarify the picture a bit for consumers. [Read on here...]