Displaying items by tag: The Digital Bits

“It's a Wonderful Life is truly the platinum standard in Christmas movies; the benchmark by which all other entries in the genre are judged.” — Thomas A. Christie, author of The Christmas Movie Book

The Digital Bits and History, Legacy & Showmanship are pleased to present this retrospective commemorating the 75th anniversary of the release of It’s a Wonderful Life, the Christmas classic directed by Frank Capra (It Happened One Night, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington) and starring James Stewart (The Philadelphia Story, Vertigo) and Donna Reed (From Here to Eternity, The Donna Reed Show).

In 1990 the Library of Congress selected It’s a Wonderful Life for preservation in the National Film Registry as being “culturally, historically or aesthetically significant” and in 1998 the American Film Institute (AFI) recognized the film as the 11th greatest movie ever made. The film has been released countless times on home media formats with its most recent release (on 4K UHD) in 2019 (and reviewed here). [Read on here...]

It’s a little crazy here at The Bits this week, so today’s news post is going to be a quick one. But we’ve got some more new disc reviews for you, more announcement news, and some new cover artwork too. First the reviews...

Dennis has turned in his thoughts on Harry Keller’s The Brass Bottle (1964) on Blu-ray from Kino Lorber Studio Classics.

Stephen has delivered a look at Alfred Hitchcock’s Number Seventeen (1932), also on Blu-ray from Kino Lorber Studio Classics.

And Tim has reviewed Jimmy Wang Yu’s The Chinese Boxer (1970), a Shaw Brothers title new on Blu-ray from 88 Films, as well as Francois Simard, Anouk Whissell, and Yoann-Karl Whissell’s Summer of 84 (2018) on 4K Ultra HD from Gunpowder & Sky.

All of these are work a look, so do check them out if you’re interested. [Read on here...]

We’ve got more disc reviews for you today, along with another great film retrospective column, a bit more release news, and some news that... well, I’m not sure what to think of it. But you’ll understand what I mean in a minute. First, those disc reviews...

Tim has checked in over the last couple of days with no less than four new reviews, starting with his thoughts on Mei-Chun Chang’s Revenge of the Shogun Women (1982) on Blu-ray from Kino Lorber Studio Classics, a disc that includes both polarized 3D and anaglyph 3D presentations (as well 2D) thanks to our friends at The 3-D Film Archive. It’s a good disc and a rare 3D treat for those who love that format, so do give it a look.

Tim has also reviewed Arrow Video’s Giallo Essentials: Red Edition – Volume One and Yellow Edition – Volume Two, each of which includes three classics of the genre on Blu-ray.

And Tim has posted his thoughts on Brian Trenchard-Smith’s Stunt Rock (1978) on Blu-ray from Umbrella Entertainment (#8 in their Ozploitation Classics line-up) ad well. All are worth your time. [Read on here...]

“Fiddler on the Roof belongs on the list of the best and most successful musicals, which would include West Side Story, My Fair Lady, and The Sound of Music.” — Matthew Kennedy, author of Roadshow!

The Digital Bits and History, Legacy & Showmanship are pleased to present this retrospective commemorating the golden anniversary of the release of Fiddler on the Roof, the popular, award-winning screen adaptation of the Broadway musical and the writings of Sholem Aleichem.

Directed by Norman Jewison (In the Heat of the Night, Moonstruck), Fiddler starred Topol (Flash Gordon, For Your Eyes Only) as Tevye, the poor Jewish milkman determined to marry off his daughters amidst turmoil in his small Ukrainian village.

Also starring Norma Crane, Leonard Frey, Molly Picon, and Paul Mann, and featuring Oscar-winning cinematography, music, and sound, Fiddler rolled out to movie theaters, initially as a roadshow, beginning fifty years ago this autumn. [Read on here...]

A funny thing happened on the way to yesterday’s My Two Cents post! For some reason, I lost track of a day this week, so I thought yesterday was Friday. Then I wake up and here’s Friday again, much to my surprise. LOL. So anyway, while a bit of yesterday’s post still applies this afternoon, we’ve got some great breaking release news to share with you all today...

First up, the fine Imprint Films (down in Australia) has just announced their March 2022 Blu-ray slate, which is due to street on 3/30/22. It will include Sam Peckinpah’s The Osterman Weekend (1983 – mastered from new 2K scans of the director’s cut negative and the theatrical cut, so it will include both versions), Buzz Kulik’s The Hunter (1980 – starring Steve McQueen), Samuel Fuller’s China Gate (1957), Byron Haskin’s Conquest of Space (1955 – produced by George Pal), John Sturges’ Marooned (1969), Robert Wise’s Audrey Rose (1977), and Dalton Trumbo’s Johnny Got His Gun (1971). Not bad at all!

As usual, all of these Blu-rays should be region free. You’ll find them available here on the Imprint website.

But here’s the whopper today... Arrow Video has just announced its March 2022 slate as well, which includes no less than three new 4K UHD catalog titles! [Read on here...]

We’re wrapping up the week today with another new disc review, a major piece of announcement news, and some very interesting things to check out around the Interwebs. We’ll start with the review...

Tim has posted his thoughts on Alfred E. Green’s The Fabulous Dorseys: Special Edition, which is newly available on Blu-ray from our friends at The Film Detective. The film is essentially a biopic about big band leaders Jimmy and Tommy Dorsey, staring themselves along with Janet Blair. Do give it a look if you’re interested.

Now then, the big release news today is that Disney Media & Entertainment Distribution and Marvel have just officially announced the 2/15 release of Chloé Zhao’s The Eternals on Blu-ray, DVD, and 4K Ultra HD, with the Digital release expected on 1/12. (Note that I haven’t yet seen any indication of an international Blu-ray 3-D release, but one may appear eventually.)

This film was actually finished as a native 4K Digital Intermediate and should feature HDR10 high dynamic range on UHD, with Dolby Atmos audio (the Blu-ray will feature 7.1 DTS-HD MA). Note that the aspect ratio for both disc and digital on this title will be 2.39:1, though it’s likely to appear as IMAX enhanced at 1.90 as a Disney+ streaming exclusive. Extras will include an audio commentary (with Chloé Zhao, Stephane Ceretti, and Mårten Larsson), 4 deleted scenes, a gag reel, and 2 featurettes (Immortalized and Walks of Life). You can see the cover artwork at left and also below. [Read on here...]

Stephen has just turned in a review of Warren Beatty and Buck Henry’s Heaven Can Wait (1978), Beatty’s first film as a director and an interesting romantic comedy, which is newly available on Blu-ray from Paramount Pictures Home Entertainment.

In terms of announcement news today, Criterion has just revealed its March 2022 release slate, which is set to include Márta Mészáros’s Adoption (1975) (Spine #1115 – Blu-ray and DVD) on 3/8, a new 4K upgrade of Jean-Pierre Melville’s legendary crime drama Le cercle rouge (1970) (Spine #218 – 4K UHD/Blu-ray Combo) on 3/15, Robert Aldrich’s The Flight of the Phoenix (1965) (Spine #1116 – Blu-ray) on 3/22, and Martin Scorsese’s The Last Waltz (Spine #1118 – 4K UHD/Blu-ray Combo and Blu-ray) and Theodore Witcher’s Love Jones (1997) (Spine #1117 – Blu-ray) on 3/29. Both of the 4K titles will include Dolby Vision HDR.

Note that we’ve updated the relevant Criterion Spines Project page here at The Bits accordingly. [Read on here...]

We’ve got more reviews and some great new announcements today as well. As usual, let’s start with the reviews...

I’ve just taken an in-depth look at Orson Welles’ Citizen Kane (1941) with an assist from the late great Bits reviewer Barrie Maxwell. The film is now available in a 4K Ultra HD/Blu-ray Disc combo edition from The Criterion Collection and it’s worth every penny. The package features a terrific new film restoration and a wealth of new and legacy special features. As you know, there’s an issue with the movie Blu-ray in the package, but Criterion is already fixing it and I wouldn’t let that stop you from picking up what is one of the best releases of 2021.

Also today, Stephen has taken a look at Glenn Jordan’s Mass Appeal (1984) on Blu-ray from Code Red, and William Malone’s Creature (1985) on Blu-ray from Vinegar Syndrome.

Tim has checked in with this thoughts on Jeffrey Obrow and Stephen Carpenter’s The Kindred (1987) on Blu-ray from Synapse Films.

And Dennis has offered his thoughts on Jerry Schatzberg’s The Seduction of Joe Tynan (1979) on Blu-ray from Kino Lorber Studio Classics. [Read on here...]

We start today’s post with a couple more new disc reviews, as usual...

Stephen has taken a nice deep dive into Neon Genesis Evangelion: The Complete Series, as newly-released on Limited Collector’s Edition Blu-ray by GKids via Shout! Factory. Directed and later re-envisioned by Hideaki Anno (Shin Godzilla), the series is a classic of Japanese anime, right up there with Akira, Ghost in the Shell, and Cowboy Bebop. But it can be a little daunting for the uninitiated, so Stephen will help guide you through it, and there’s no better way to experience the series than this new Blu-ray box set. It’s only available directly from Shout!, but you can also find a wide release Blu-ray edition of the series on Amazon (linked in the review).

Also today, Dennis has take a look back at Milos Forman’s Ragtime, which is now available on Blu-ray from Paramount Pictures Home Entertainment fully remastered from a new 4K scan and restoration as part of their Paramount Presents line. Both the theatrical version and Director’s Cut workprint version are included in the set. You can learn more here.

As always, more reviews are on the way, including a look at Criterion’s new Citizen Kane 4K Ultra HD, which should be up here on the site by Monday. [Read on here...]

Today’s update is a quick one, but we’ve got some good announcement news and a bunch of new disc reviews for you to enjoy. So as always, let’s start with the latter first...

I’ve now posted my thoughts on Cary Joji Fukunaga’s No Time to Die in Ultra HD from MGM and Universal, which offers a stunning 4K image, a very good Dolby Atmos mix, and a lean batch of extras that actually includes a nice 4K exclusive feature.

I’ve also reviewed Ridley Scott’s latest medieval drama, The Last Duel, new on 4K Ultra HD from 20th Century Studios. The film stars Matt Damon, Adam Driver, Jodie Comer, and Ben Affleck, and borrows liberally from Akira Kurosawa’s Rashomon.

Tim’s been busy reviewing as well, delivering his thoughts on William Lustig’s Maniac Cop 2 (1990) in 4K UHD from Blue Underground, as well as Budd Boetticher’s Wings of the Hawk in Blu-ray and Blu-ray 3D from Kino Lorber Studio Classics (with a restoration by the 3-D Film Archive). [Read on here...]