Posted Sun Mar 10, 2024 at 09:00 AM PDT by D. LaFontaine
Between this week and next, you might need to draw from your equity line of credit if you truly buy everything you want. Those three James Cameron titles finally (maybe?) hit the streets, three new title releases, and more. And that's just the 4K category. If you are budgeted to buy just 4 titles this week, you will probably buy the 3 Cameron releases, so which one is your 4th title?
Welcome to Volume 4 Episode 41 of our weekly release guide. A look at the highlights of what's coming to disc the week of March 10th - March 16th, as well as a look at announcements from last week.
In general, we normally post the new releases first. But this week is not a normal release week. Let us begin with the three James Cameron titles we have waited decades for to hit blu-ray, but now (maybe) get them in 4K and blu-ray in the same package. BONUS! My reluctance to say they are finally here is that I do not have them in my hands, nor have I seen them in retailer back rooms yet either. Some merchants have even pushed the street date to next week, which tells me the ETA in their stock rooms will be Monday afternoon, or Tuesday if we're lucky.
The Disney company has overused the term Ultimate Collector's Edition, but this week all three Cameron titles don that label, for a good reason. Dolby Vision, BD100 discs, lots of extras, this batch has it all.
First in the trio of releases, the title that got a remaster a couple of years ago and was on Prime video among other sites and had a lot of us speculating a future release, The Abyss finally arrives. Finally my video wall will have this one, Deepstar Six and Leviathan all over again! At press time Amazon's stats say they sold over 10K+ copies in the last month.
Next in our trio of James Cameron releases, Aliens. In addition to it being a serious action thriller, the scene that sticks out the most to me in a comical sense was Bill Paxton's character saying "Game Over Man!" Amazon's stats show 7K+ were ordered last month.
Someone pinch me, the third title is here (maybe) and hopefully is a major upgrade to that blu-ray we had to import from Spain, referring to True Lies. Don't be 'stuck' in the van unless it has a big screen and a killer sound system, grab your copy NOW, if you can find it. Just like Aliens, 7K+ were ordered last month alone.
And now back to our regularly scheduled programming, let's see what New Releases we are getting this week.
First from Warner Bros, Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom. Ranked 35% on Rotten Tomatoes, but with an 81 audience score, not sure what to really think about this one. You can also/alternately snag a Walmart Exclusive Steelbook.
Also from Warner Bros, The Color Purple (2023) get a 4K disc release, and this one ranks 82% on the Tomatometer, with an audience score of 95. What does the remake do that the original does not? The simplest answer is it adds elements from the stage musical. Hopefully by press time we will have a review ready.
And the third (and final) new release 4K this week is Disney's Wish - Walmart Exclusive SteelBook. When it was originally announced we expected a standard 4K from the Disney Movie Club. In light of recent news of the club closing its doors, that is not happening.
On to catalog titles, first with Dreamworks Animation, Kung Fu Panda. With Kung Fu Panda 4 hitting theaters, releasing the first 3 only make sense. Now if they would release the TV Series to blu-ray! (hint hint)
The Shout Select label this week is offering Quigley Down Under. Tom Selleck NOT driving a Ferrari? Yeah, he did do that.
From Paramount, because they were so successfuly, reprints of SteelBooks of Dragonslayer, Event Horizon and The Running Man are available this week.
Now then, that wasn't too damaging, was it? If there were multiple box sets, one would say YES. Next week is a bunch of boutique label releases, we finally get The Ring Collection, more Shout Factory, Kino Lorber and Arrow Video.
Blu-ray counterparts of the above 4K releases include Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom and The Color Purple (2023) from Warner Bros, and Wish from Disney. You can also get the Aquaman 2-Film Collection from Warner Bros.
The rest of the blu-ray category looks pretty crowded, so best of luck resisting temptation on a spending spree.
New release from 20th Century Studios and Searchlight Pictures, Poor Things. Available in 4K via streaming, getting just a blu-ray is slightly infuriating and more common now that Disney owns the Fox label. Could be worse I suppose, DVD only!
New rom-com from Sony Pictures with Anyone But You. I'd swear this came out a couple of weeks ago, but apparently not.
From Universal Pictures, The Prince of Egypt: The Musical.
Get your fill of action and suspense with I.S.S. from Decal Bleecker. While we are on sub-labels and action films, Freelance comes out from Relativity Media. And the Michael Mann biography/drama Ferrari comes via Neon.
Ever heard the names John Wayne, Lauren Bacall or Ron Howard? How 'bout Don Siegel ? This week from Arrow Video we get all four with The Shootist (Limited Edition).
Warner Archive Collection has a couple of titles for us this week, Colt .45: The Complete Series and Looney Tunes Collector's Choice: Volume 3.
Boutique label Criterion Collection has a pair of blu-ray releases this week. First, 1941's fantasy romance All That Money Can Buy (a.k.a. The Devil and Daniel Webster). Then, shifting gears to a documentary, Laura Poitras’s All the Beauty and the Bloodshed.
Anime highlights include Akiba Maid War: Complete Collection, The Legendary Hero Is Dead! - The Complete Season, One Piece: Season Thirteen - Voyage Six and Suzume: Movie, which is also available as a Limited Edition and as a Walmart Exclusive SteelBook.
TV on disc other than Warner Archive Collection also includes All Creatures Great and Small - Season 4, Rick and Morty: Season 7, also available in a SteelBook Edition, Sonic Prime: Season One and Stephen King's The Shining (1997).
Shout Factory has announced much of their May releases. In no particular order, look for blu-rays of The Island of Dr. Moreau Collector's Edition (1996), Dracula 2000 and Orphan, and for 4K, look for The Addams Family 1&2, Gretel & Hansel and Killer Klowns from Outer Space, which the latter will also have a SteelBook release.
Disney is releasing more Disney+ content to blu-ray and 4K disc. Andor, Moon Knight, Obi-Wan and Falcon and the Winter Soldier are coming April 30th.
Jason Statham's The Beekeper is coming to blu-ray and 4K disc on April 23rd.
Which titles are you buying this week? Which ones are on your wishlist, be it to buy as an impulse buy or to wait for the right price?
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