Displaying items by tag: The Digital Bits

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...]

Three more new disc reviews are up on The Bits today, including...

Tim has posted his thoughts on Jeff Burr’s From a Whisper to a Scream (1987) on region-free Blu-ray from the good folks at Turbine Media in Germany.

Dennis has offered his take on Rouben Mamoulian’s Queen Christina (1933) on Blu-ray from our friends at the Warner Archive Collection.

And Stuart has given John Brahm’s Rio (1939) a spin on Blu-ray from Universal via Kino Lorber Studio Classics.

There isn’t a great deal of official news to report today, but we do have breaking news from Disney, which has leaked via Amazon and the Disney Movie Club: The studio will release Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993) on 4K Ultra HD on 8/22! [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...]

We’re starting the week here at The Bits with more new disc reviews, including...

Stephen’s take on Charles Laughton’s The Night of the Hunter (1955) in 4K Ultra HD from Kino Lorber Studio Classics.

Dennis’ look at Fritz Lang’s Clash by Night (1952) on Blu-ray from the Warner Archive Collection.

And Stuart’s thoughts on Dennis Hopper’s Backtrack (aka Catchfire) (1990) on Blu-ray also from Kino Lorber Studio Classics.

Be sure to watch for more new reviews from The Bits’ team all this week.

In announcement news today, we have a couple of big items to report. First, Paramount will release Tim Burton’s Sleepy Hollow (1999) on 4K Ultra HD in both Amaray and Steelbook packaging on 9/5. This is a title we’ve had in our 4K Ultra HD Release List here at The Bits as “coming in 2023” for a few months now. Expect them to include both Dolby Vision HDR and Dolby Atmos audio. You can see the cover artwork at left and also below. [Read on here...]

We have a few major title announcements to report today...

First up, the big one: Disney and Marvel have officially set James Gunn’s Guardians of the Galaxy: Volume 3 for release on Blu-ray, DVD, and 4K Ultra HD on 8/1, with the Digital release expected on 7/7. You can expect Dolby Atmos audio and HDR10 high dynamic range on the 4K SKU. The Blu-ray Disc will include 7.1 DTS-HD Master Audio. But here’s the most interesting thing: For the first time, a Disney/Marvel title has included a variable aspect ratio that switches from 2.35 to 1.85! [Editor’s Note: Per studio reps, this replicates not the IMAX presentation but rather the wide-release presentation of the film as seen in some regular, non-IMAX theaters. Just FYI.]

Extras on all SKUs will include 2 featurettes (The Imperfect, Perfect Family and Creating Rocket Raccoon), a gag reel, 8 deleted scenes (A Bit Much, A Lending Hand, Drax’s Analogies and Metaphors, The Perfect Society, The Search for 89P13, Annoyed Peter, A Burning Escape, and Knowhere After the Battle), and audio commentary with James Gunn. You can see the cover artwork at left and also below. [Read on here...]

We’ve got a bunch of news, rumors, and official announcements to cover for you today here at The Bits, so let’s get right to it...

First up, Warner Bros. Discovery Home Entertainment has just made Enter the Dragon official for 4K Ultra HD and Digital release on 8/8. Extras will include the previous introduction by Linda Lee Cadwell and the audio commentary by Paul Heller and Michael Allin. This release is happening in honor of the film’s 50th anniversary. The 4K disc will include both the theatrical cut and the 3-minute-longer special editon with HDR10 high dynamic range.

Warner Bros. Discovery Home Entertainment and Adult Swim have just set the all-new animated movie Metalocalypse: Army of the Doomstar for release on Digital and Blu-ray on 8/22 (SRP $19.99 and $29.98). This will be accompanied by two full-length album release by Dethklok: Dethalbum IV and the soundtrack for Army of the Doomstar on 8/25. These will be released widely via WaterTower Music and you’ll be able to get them on actual vinyl from Mondo.

WBDHE and HBO have also just announced Succession: The Complete Series for DVD only release on 9/12, including all 39 episodes with the previously released special features. Also coming that day on DVD will be Succession: The Complete Fourth & Final Season. [Read on here...]

All right, we’re kicking things off today with another new disc review...

With an assist from Stephen, I’ve taken an in-depth look at James Cameron’s Avatar: The Way of Water (2022) in 4K Ultra HD from 20th Century Studios. The disc streets today, and I think both fans and A/V enthusiasts alike will appreciate not only its stunning 4K image quality but also a magnificent Dolby Atmos sound mix, and some great special features as well. Frankly, it’s one of the best looking and sounding 4K discs since last year’s Top Gun: Maverick. So we hope you enjoy it!

In announcement news today, Kino Lorber Studio Classics has revealed that they’re working on a new 4K UHD release of Sofia Coppola’s Lost in Translation (2003), mastered from a new scan of the negative and complete with a brand new Dolby Vision HDR grade. That’s currently listed as coming soon.

Also coming soon from KLSC: A new Blu-ray edition of Allan A. Goldstein’s Death Wish V: The Face of Death (1986).

Meanwhile, KLSC has officially set their long-awaited 4K Ultra HD release of Sydney Pollack’s 3 Days of the Condor (1975) for release on 8/29, also mastered from a brand new scan of the original camera negative and with Dolby Vision HDR. [Read on here...]

All right, we’ve got a lot of ground to cover today to close out the week. But first as always, we have more new disc reviews for you, including at least one from each member of The Bits review team!

First, I’ve posted my in-depth review of James Cameron’s Avatar (2009) in 4K Ultra HD from 20th Century Studios, which is a really beautiful 2K to 4K upsample and remaster. Plus, it carries over nearly four hours worth of extras from the 2010 Blu-ray release, and it features a fantastic and (thankfully!) uncompromised Dolby Atmos mix as well. If you’re a fan, it’s well worth the upgrade. And note that our review of Avatar: The Way of Water in 4K Ultra HD will follow this weekend, so be sure to watch for it.

Also new from Stephen is a review of Peter Greenaway’s Drowning by Numbers (1998) in 4K Ultra HD from Severin Films.

Tim has reviewed Sammo Hung’s Warriors Two (1978) on Blu-ray from Arrow Video, as well as Alex Proyas’ Spirits of the Air, Gremlins of the Clouds (1989) on Blu-ray from Umbrella Entertainment and Vinegar Syndrome.

Dennis has weighed in with a look at William Edwards’ Dracula (The Dirty Old Man) (1969) on Blu-ray from AGFA and Vinegar Syndrome.

And finally, Stuart has checked in with a look at Maigret: Season 4 (1963), the classic BBC TV series, which comes to Blu-ray from Kino Classics.

Now then, in announcement news today, our friends at The Criterion Collection have unveiled their September release slate! [Read on here...]

All right, today’s news update is going to be a very quick one, because I’m hard at work on 4K UHD reviews of James Cameron’s Avatar and Avatar: The Way of Water. Hopefully, we should have at least one of them up tomorrow.

But first, we have several more new disc reviews for you to enjoy today, starting with...

My own in-depth look at Star Trek: Strange New Worlds – Season One in 4K Ultra HD from CBS Studios and Paramount Home Entertainment. The series is far from perfect, but what’s good is very good and it’s the most like the classic Trek we know and love that modern incarnations of this franchise have ever been, save for Picard: Season Three. (More on that in a moment.)

Also today, Tim has reviewed Michael Winner’s original Death Wish (1974) in 4K Ultra HD from Kino Lorber Studio Classics.

Stephen has taken a look at Gaspar Noé’s Irreversible: Special Edition (2002) on Blu-ray from Altered Innocence and Vinegar Syndrome.

Dennis has reviewed Amanda Kramer’s Please Baby Please (2022) on Blu-ray from Music Box Films and Vinegar Syndrome.

And Stuart has checked out Maigret: Season 3 (1962), the classic BBC TV series, which comes to Blu-ray as part of a final arrangement between the now defunct Network Distributing and Kino Classics. [Read on here...]

Welcome to a new week, Bits readers! And the theme of this week is all about disc reviews. We’ve posted no less than SEVEN of them over the weekend, and we have lots more coming in the next few days, including some MAJOR and long-awaited 4K titles. But more on that in a minute.

To start today, we’ve got new reviews of the following titles...

My take on Scott Beck and Bryan Woods’ 65 (2023) in 4K Ultra HD from Sony, along with William Hanna and Joseph Barbera’s feature-length animated classic Hey There, It’s Yogi Bear! (1964) on Blu-ray from the Warner Archive Collection), as well as John Frankenheimer’s classic actioner Ronin (1998) in 4K Ultra HD from Kino Lorber Studio Classics.

All three titles are worth a look, and Ronin looks absolutely spectacular—it’s mastered from a recent 4K scan, and both the Blu-ray and the 4K disc in the package are a major improvement over the previous Arrow Blu-ray release, which was certainly good for its day. You definitely don’t want to miss that one.

Also today, we have Stephen’s review of Patrice Leconte’s Man on the Train (2002) on Blu-ray from Kino Lorber.

We have Dennis’ thoughts on Raymond Griffith: The Silk Hat Comedian on Blu-ray from Undercrank Productions, which includes Paths to Paradise (1925) and You’d Be Surprised (1926).

And we close things out with Tim’s look at James Wan’s Dead Silence (2007) in 4K Ultra HD from Scream Factory, as well as Kevin Reynolds’ Waterworld (1995) in 4K Ultra HD from Arrow Video! [Read on here...]