Displaying items by tag: The Digital Bits

All right, we have a major new title announcement for you today, plus a significant Star Wars 4K update.

Let’s start with the announcement: Universal Pictures Home Entertainment has just set Sam Mendes’ 1917 for release on Blu-ray, DVD, and 4K Ultra HD on 3/24, with the Digital release expected on 3/10.

The film was finished as a native 4K digital intermediate, and the 4K SKU will include HDR10, HDR10+, and Dolby Vision high dynamic range, with Dolby Atmos audio.

Extras will include feature commentary with director/co-writer Sam Mendes, a second feature commentary with director of photography Roger Deakins, and 5 featurettes (The Weight of the World: Sam Mendes, Allied Forces: Making 1917, The Music of 1917, In the Trenches, and Recreating History). [Read on here...]

[Editor’s Note: This news post has been updated with final art for ALL of the Star Wars single-film 4K SKUs and Amazon.com pre-order links as available.]

All right, we expected it and now it’s finally here: Disney and Lucasfilm have just officially set JJ Abrams’ conclusion to the Star Wars saga, The Rise of Skywalker, for release on Blu-ray, DVD, and 4K Ultra HD on 3/31—just as we thought—with the Digital release due via Movies Anywhere on 3/17. Audio will be Dolby Atmos on the 4K and 7.1 DTS-HD Master Audio on Blu-ray. There’s no mention of HDR, so assume HDR10 only on the UHD disc.

The extras on the Blu-ray and DVD will include over two-hours worth of bonus content, starting with a feature-length documentary, The Skywalker Legacy.

Also included on all versions of the disc will be the featurettes Pasaana Pursuit: Creating the Speeder Chase, Aliens in the Desert, D-O: Key to the Past, Warwick & Son, and Cast of Creatures. There will also be the usual wide-release Digital exclusive featurette, The Maestro’s Finale, with composer John Williams reflecting back on his work for the saga. [Read on here...]

All right, what were we just saying about European studio and retail leaks? LOL. Here’s a big one for you…

Disney has yet to officially announce them (though we do expect the official word any day now), but the Swedish retailer CDON.se has just posted cover artwork for all of the catalog Star Wars films in 4K… not just the front cover art but the back details too…

… and they include special features details! So, let’s get right into them all, film by film and disc by disc… [Read on here...]

Afternoon, folks! We’ve got some interesting announcement news to cover today, along with an interesting rumor, and some new cover artwork to share with you too.

First up, Warner Bros. Home Entertainment has just announced that Steven Spielberg’s The Color Purple is returning to theaters on 2/23 for one day only in honor of the film’s 35th Anniversary. This could mean that a 4K Ultra HD release is planned for later in the year (the official anniversary is in December).

That would make sense given that both Paramount and Universal are planning physical 4K releases of Spielberg catalog films later this year (War of the Worlds and Jaws). We’ve added the title to our 4K Ultra HD Release List here at The Bits as a possibility. [Read on here...]

[Editor’s Note: This week, our very own Tim Salmons is celebrating his tenth year as a member of The Digital Bits team, so we’re handing him the mic for occasion! Congrats Tim—we're proud of you!]

How the time flies! It doesn’t seem like that long ago when I first inquired with Bill Hunt about writing disc reviews for The Digital Bits website. At that time, there was a fairly steady set of folks writing for him, including Adam Jahnke, Todd Doogan, and the late Barrie Maxwell. Working me in was not easy, but it paid off. I had been an avid reader of The Bits for a number of years, even occasionally emailing them with little tidbits of information that came my way about future releases. The thought of being where I am now, one of the main contributors for the site... needless to say, it’s mind-boggling, and I never take it for granted.

Before I came to The Bits, I was just a regular guy with dreams of doing more than hopping between jobs at restaurants, factories, and places that required janitorial work. I had been obsessed with film since I was a kid, which I thank my Father for. He made home copies of movies all the time, and as such, it was the first film library that I ever had access to. Right through to my twenties, I was watching anything and everything I could get my hands on. I was also reading a lot of film books and, thanks to the Internet, researching everything about movies as much as possible. I don’t want to say I was an expert though because that would be a lie. I didn’t have a 100% understanding of the home video industry and how it functioned, only a working knowledge. Even to this day, I learn new things all the time, which is good. I’d hate to be in a position where there was nothing left to learn. How boring would that be? [Read on here...]

All right, we’re closing out the week with a big news update. But first, we have some new disc reviews for you...

I’ve just finished my look at Taika Waititi’s Oscar-winning satire Jojo Rabbit in 4K Ultra HD from 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment.

I’ve also taken a look at Mike Flanagan’s surprisingly good sequel to The Shining, Doctor Sleep, now in Ultra HD from Warner Bros. Home Entertainment. (This one is a reference-quality 4K A/V experience.)

Tim has turned in his thoughts on Don Sharp’s Rasputin the Mad Monk (1966) on Blu-ray from Scream Factory.

And in case you missed it the other day, we have a review of Paramount’s new Steelbook 4K edition of The Hunt for Red October that’s being released in honor of the film’s 30th anniversary. [Read on here...]

All right, we’ve got two more new reviews for you all to enjoy today...

First up, I’ve turned in my thoughts on Ruben Fleischer’s long-awaited sequel Zombieland: Double Tap in 4K Ultra HD from Sony Pictures Home Entertainment.

And a quick heads-up: I’ll have a review of Mike Flanagan’s Doctor Sleep in 4K Ultra HD from Warner Bros. Home Entertainment done soon as well.

Also, Tim has just finished his in-depth look at Scream Factory’s outstanding new Universal Horror Collection: Volume 3 Blu-ray box set, which includes Rowland V. Lee’s Tower of London, George Waggner’s Man Made Monster and Horror Island, and Albert S. Rogell’s The Black Cat. [Read on here...]

All right, I certainly hope you all had a great weekend and that those of you who watched last night’s Oscar telecast enjoyed it and found all of the winners disserving.

For my money, the Academy actually got it right for a change: Bong Joon-ho’s Parasite was far and away the most original and interesting of the Best Picture-nominated films this year and it’s richly deserving of its win. If you haven’t seen the film yet, you should correct that oversight as soon as you can.

I reviewed the film on Blu-ray Disc a few weeks ago here at The Bits (you can read my thoughts here) and I’ve already contacted Universal to ask if the Best Picture win makes it more likely that the studio will finally give the film the physical media 4K release it deserves. We’ll see. [Read on here...]

All right, today’s post will be quick, because we’re working on some new reviews for you. To that effect...

I’ve just posted my in-depth thoughts on Roland Emmerich’s Midway (2019), new on 4K Ultra HD from Lionsgate.

I’ve also posted a full review of the Warner Archive Collection’s amazing new Tex Avery Screwball Classics: Volume 1 Blu-ray, which is worth every penny.

And Tim has added his thoughts on Scream Factory’s My Bloody Valentine: Collector’s Edition on Blu-ray.

All three of those title street in the next two weeks, so we hope you enjoy them. [Read on here...]

So the big news this morning is that Shout! Factory has dropped an out-of-left-field 4K Ultra HD announcement: They’re gotten the US release rights to Michael Cimino’s 1978 Best Picture winner The Deer Hunter. As some of you will know, this was a Studio Canal release last year in the UK on 4K Ultra HD, but there was no U.S. distributor.

Shout! will be releasing it on 5/26 as a Shout Select 4K/Blu-ray Collector’s Edition. SRP is $34.93, but you can pre-order it direct from the Shout website for just $28.43 with an exclusive poster. There will apparently be some new extras, which will be announced at a later date. We have no details yet on HDR or audio specs, but the Studio Canal package included Dolby Vision and HDR10, with 2.0 and 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio. [Read on here...]