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HDD's Varsity Picks - The 4K UHD & Blu-ray Shopping Guide Jan 7, 2024We begin the new year off slowly, but as indicators are suggesting, it is going to be a big year for collectors and a deflating experience for our wallets. Welcome to Volume 4 Episode 32 of our weekly release guide. A look at the highlights of what's coming to disc the week of January 7th - January 13th, as well as a look at announcements from last week. 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray Releases- No teaser, let's hust get right to it. From Paramount, rom-com Varsity Blues. It stars Jon Voight, Paul Walker and more. Have a look-see. Next from The Criterion Collection, a crime thriller with a little bit of film-noir as well, Blood Simple. And lastly, I could be wrong about this (and the internet will no doubt submit a hundred messages stating I am), Massacre Video's first 4K release, BloodRayne. And YES, there is a video game series based on the same name/universe. Next week sees quite an uptick in titles, if you were expecting the Conan movies, those got moved back to the 30th though. Blu-ray releases- Blu-ray counterparts of the above 4K releases? None this week. Moving on to a tepid slate... TV on disc, this one goes way back to 1967, Doctor Who: The Underwater Menace comes via BBC. This one is interesting as the original video masters were lost so they decided to make an animated recreation with the original audio. Classic Eddie Murphy standup comes to disc from Paramount with Eddie Murphy: Raw. Having HBO growing up, this one is memorable. For anime this week, look for Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon?! Season 4 Part 2, One Piece: Season Thirteen - Voyage Four, 'The Tunnel To Summer, The Exit Of Goodbyes' and Tsurune The Movie: The First Shot. If you've been collecting them, it's time to get volume 16, Film Noir: The Dark Side of Cinema XVI debuts from Kino Lorber. How about a pair of Charles Bronson action films from Shout Factory, St. Ives and Telefon? Next week in blu-ray, about 50% more volume! Notable announcements from last week: A bunch of onesie twosie updates happened last week among a lot of boutique labels primarily. I think one of the big titles from Vinegar Syndrome announced during subscriber week would be Walter Hill's Southern Comfort. Their new partner label Cinématographe also revealed Little Darlings (1980). I'm anxious to see what comes next from that label. VS announced a few days into the week they were on track to have a record number of subscribers. I for one would love an "All the 4Ks" sub for Kino Lorber and Shout/Scream Factory, with options to add blu-rays at a discount price of course. That would be me signaling to them that I support their efforts and want it all. Amazon has leaked a 4K release of Steven Soderberg's Contagion in 4K, with a February 27 street date. The packaging suggests it is a Warner Archive release. 4K Release Calendar 2K/BD Release Calendar 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?Posted Sun Jan 7, 2024 at 09:00 AM PST by: -
High-Def Digest's Favorites and Best of 20232023 Was A Hell Of A Year For Disc Collectors! We saw incredible highs of scores of new and deep catalog titles making their way to Blu-ray and 4K Ultra HD. We saw major studios like Disney/20th Century and Paramount recommit to the cause not only by punching out numerous long sought-after catalog flicks but delivering them with an A/V quality that showed marked improvement (especially from Paramount). And where the majors fell short, the independent labels stepped up unleashing a tide of new releases that was often difficult and expensive to keep up with. We had readers who had abandoned physical media return to collecting their favorites on disc while others said they practically doubled or even tripled their collections within a year! While Best Buy signaling its exit from the physical media market space seemed like bad news, other retailers and online shops are already picking up the slack. With physical media collecting looking a little brighter, lets take a bit to reflect on some of our favorite releases of the year: HDD's Favorite 4K Discs of 2023 Since it's damn near impossible to whittle down hundreds of new releases into a tiny list of ten or twenty, let alone find a way to rank them, we're simply going to showcase the titles that made our writers' favorites lists. No particular order but all amazing releases: HDD's Favorite Blu-ray Discs of 2023 While this was a bumper crop year for new and catalog 4K Ultra HD Blu-rays, good 'ol 1080p had a few great tricks up its sleeve as well. From great TV season releases to true cinematic classics to some stellar 3-D Blu-rays, there are too many titles we'd love to showcase so we have to whittle it down a bit. Here are some of our favorites of 2023. Major Studio 2023 Report Card - Consistently Excellent Across Blu-ray and 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray, Lionsgate has remained consistent and dedicated. If we're not getting every new release with a Blu-ray and 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray disc, they're giving their back catalog titles exciting 4K UHD releases. Not only are they catering to collector the A/V quality of their releases remains consistently excellent. The Mist, Young Guns, John Wick 4, The Wicker Man, Talk to Me, House of 1000 Corpses, The Lord of War - all are excellent releases. 2023 Grade: A - Most Improved It wasn't that long ago that the name "Paramount" could be something that caused worry among disc collectors. Some discs could be great, some were pretty rough with over-blown grain management and tanked bitrates on 4K releases that actually fared worse than their Blu-ray counterparts. Now that issue did pop up a time or two for masters that were previously streaming-only releases, but if you chart their efforts from Star Trek: The Next Generation Motion Picture Collection to Titanic, you'll find an impressive range of excellent titles throughout the year with near flawless A/V presentations. To top off their own efforts, if they didn't release a great back catalog title themselves, they licensed it out an independent label. 2023 Grade: B - Universally Impressive What can you say about a studio that can deliver a title like Fast X and The Alfred Hitchcock Collection: Vol 3 to 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray in the same year? Universal has always been great at giving film fans the newest releases with the best A/V out there (Oppenheimer anyone?) but they've been steadfast at updating their deep catalog titles with worthy Blu-ray and 4K offerings. And like Paramount, they've been terrific about licensing out their most exciting catalog titles to independent labels like Shout! Studios, Kino Lorber Studio Classics, or for great 4K releases the import markets like Germany's Turbine. 2023 Grade: B+ - Bumpy Start but Turned A Corner It's no secret that Disney and by extension 20th Century Studios has had a bumpy time with physical media releases the last couple of years. That is to say in many cases we should be lucky enough to even get a disc release of any kind at all (where is Barbarian on disc?). When discs did come, they could vary in quality because of a frustrating adherence to only using BD-66 discs and no Dolby Vision HDR support or be hit by anemic Atmos mixes. Celebrating the House of Mouse's 100th birthday was at times tough but had some moments for celebration with Cinderella and Snow White. Things improved dramatically in the last four months. Between a terrific first round of Disney+ titles coming to Blu-ray and 4K, upgrading Hulu's Prey to a beast of a 4K disc release, and James Cameron practically saving the studio with a full round of Avatar releases on 4K UHD, Blu-ray, AND 3-D Blu-ray - things got better fast. We can only hope the effort will continue into 2024 and beyond. 2023 Grade: C+ - Great Effort but Some Worrying Trends As the studio also celebrated its 100th Anniversary, it made an incredible effort to dig in and release a flood of catalog titles on 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray while also ensuring their sub-label Warner Archive Collection maintained a steady flow of excellent releases. Where's the problem? While A/V presentations could be terrific for a number of titles, we had four Rocky films that should have been highlights of the year that were hit by audio issues that were never rectified. Likewise, a grand set such as the Christopher Reeve Superman set had inconsistent HDR grades one to the next, with a problematic Atmos track for The Quest for Peace. But more problematic has been the desperate releases between regions. In the U.S., we would receive basic releases and few if any interesting alternate packaging options, and we also had a dramatic lack of new or archival extra features. However, across the pond, the U.K. would get expansive and exciting deluxe editions like The Exorcist or the upcoming 4K release of Se7en making costly imports almost a frustrating requirement. If it weren't for Warner Archive, the studio would be in much rougher shape. Hopefully 2024 will be better. 2023 Grade: B - Setting A High Bar for New and Catalog Titles Similar to Lionsgate, Sony Pictures Home Video has had a terrific 2023 for new title releases, excellent catalog releases, and a slew of impressive 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray SteelBook re-releases with Dolby Vision upgrades. Spider-Man: Across the Spider-verse was a magnificent, demo-worthy disc, but then they go and give the same care and attention to catalog titles like The Remains of the Day, Rudy, and The Way We Were. While some of their SteelBook rereleases haven't exactly necessitated a double-dip, but for those that didn't make the previous purchase these are certainly the better options. With Columbia Pictures celebrating its own 100th Anniversary this year and another Columbia Classics 4K set coming, 2024 looks to be very exciting for catalog titles on Blu-ray and 4K disc. 2023 Grade: A Brightest and Best Domestic & Foreign Indy Labels of 2023 - Quantity with Quality For the last few years, Kino Lorber Studio Classics has been delivering a treasure trove of exciting catalog titles on Blu-ray and 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray. That effort compounded in 2023 with a massive selection of terrific discs to make valuable shelf space for. Between 4K discs like Stalag 17 or 12 Angry Men, we also had an amazing release of Rawhead Rex! They've also committed some amazing releases dedicated to bringing fan-favorite and obscure Film Noir, Western, and Drama titles to Blu-ray and their new Kino Cult label offers some new unique genre flavor into the mix. - Always Worth Importing For They may live in Germany, but every Turbine release is a quality one, and often the label delivers the world its first - or best - 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray releases with unsurpassed A/V quality. Pearl always should have gotten a 4K release from the start, but Turbine delivered it. In the same breath we can't forget to highlight their efforts on titles like Repossessed and Cool as Ice - of all films. While it's cool that we get such a diverse range of titles with the best possible A/V options, they also deliver multiple attractive artwork options with a range of limited-run Mediabooks. We're been teased that some great titles are on the way in 2024 and we can't wait to see what's coming. - Curated Collection of Classics The Criterion Collection has long held a status for curating a collection of releases that spans the breadth of cinema from across the globe. In a year we had titles like the amazing Ranown Westerns and a film like Mildred Pierce space alongside the likes of Malcolm X and Tod Browning's Sideshow Shockers. While each month's titles may seem a little disjointed or not as robust, exciting, or essential as some other labels out there, they are at least quality releases. And when Barnes and Noble have their biannual sales, we often have many titles worth considering to add to the shelf. Now with their Janus Contemporaries efforts, there are even more titles coming to the market that would otherwise be lost to streaming let alone get a disc release at all. & - Great Flicks Getting Great Discs One of the most committed to the cause of Physical Media, Vinegar Syndrome and their sister company OCN Distribution have had an incredible 2023, and 2024 is already gearing up to be bigger and better. Vinegar Syndrome on its own offers up a number of impressive sub-labels, but then OCN Distribution compounds the collecting excitement with its cadre of partner labels. Across the board, fans can pick through over a dozen new titles every month. Where else are you going to get The Prophecy I-II-III, Showgirls, and Sidekicks on 4K? On top of those hits, you can snag high-quality releases from obscure gems from labels like Saturn's Core, Canadian International Pictures, Dekanalog, and Deaf Crocodile among many others. Then you have the subscription service. With a subscription, you get the base release sent to your door every month with the option of picking up new sub-label titles at 50% off. Sure, that upfront for a subscription can be a bit hefty, but several writers here at HDD have given it a try and have now resubscribed. With another new sub-label on the horizon with Cinématographe, even more great movies are coming to disc with exciting attractive packaging. - Continuing 20 Years Of Great Releases Between their labels, Shout Studios, Shout Select, and Scream Factory, 2024 saw some genuinely great discs come to collector's shelves. You have classics like The Magnificent Seven alongside JFK with The People Under the Stairs and a bunch of Chucky fan favorites all in a single year. If you could fault the studio for anything it would be being too aggressive. Promised for 2023, The Ring Trilogy 4K set is now due to arrive in 2024. We also had a bunch of upgrades with the likes of The Dead Zone punched out alongside a ton of Jackie Chan films and and a slew of nearly-forgotten Shaw Brothers films coming to Blu-ray for the first time. You have everything from Comedy, Westerns, Horror, Drama, Martial Arts all getting amazing releases. 2023 was a year to celebrate. - Long Haul To Australia But Worth It Via Vision and their sublabel Imprint Films did a masterclass job bringing film fans all over the world some remarkable releases. We saw numerous global first releases on Blu-ray with incredibly intricate packaging and some amazing box sets. Their commitment to delivering the best possible A/V releases is one thing, but to also load up their sets with a bunch of new bonus features is better than commendable it's downright admirable. Here's hoping 2024 sees plenty more great hits, we need more Rawhide seasons on Blu-ray! - Proudly Serving Both Shores of the Atlantic Arrow may have a tough time offering some of their biggest and best titles on both sides of the big pool separating the U.S. and U.K., but if you can't get a film on both shores, you can be sure it's worth importing. We haven't had the chance to fully review the Hellraiser and Psycho collections yet, but from what we've seen they're incredible sets. Alongside efforts for Barbarella and even Tremors 2 saw a great release, Arrow hasn't lost their knack for amazing A/V quality on both formats. Now we're just salivating for Conan the Barbarian to arrive on 4K. Hopefully, 2024 is just as aggressive and impressive as 2023. - You Get Everything You Pay For Severin titles can sometimes be a tad pricy, more than the average, but in terms of quality A/V, packaging, and pure volume of amazing titles, you get every cent of what you pay for, and then some. Where else are you going to see something as expansive like The Sensual World of Black Emanuelle multi-film box set ride high with Pod People and Jess Franco's Count Dracula while finally giving the world a luscious release of Cemetary Man (Dellamorte Dellamore)? Toss in their monthly bundle deals and amazing swag packages, and Severin had an amazing year. Thanks to them fans have their own Trumpy and Joe Spinell stuffed buddies! - Quality First Quantity Second Second Sight has been around for a while now, but we felt they really burst onto the scene with their fantastic Dawn of the Dead 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray. That commitment to quality releases hasn't wavered in the years since and 2024 was a terrific year. We weren't able to review all that we wanted to of their releases - still have It Follows and Crimes of the Future to dig into - but every release has been eye-catching and worth the wait. And for some, we've waited a long time. George Romero's Martin was a highlight of the year as was their Limited Edition of The Texas Chain Saw Massacre. What's also more than commendable and should be the industry standard is their commitment to quality control. When a problem is spotted, they pull the product before it ships and delay the release rather than throw it out to the masses hoping no one notices or if they do, go through the expensive and arduous task of issuing disc replacements. Get it right first and fans will be happy. - Great Domestic and Import Product Another label we wished we'd been able to review more from is U.K. label 88 Films. From maniacal martial arts classics to ghastly Italian horror gems, 88 Films had a great crop of releases this year on Blu-ray and 4K. They've positioned themselves in such a way that when a title gets announced domestically, one often has to pause and keep an eye on the 88 Films social accounts just to see if they won't be punching out one themselves for a possibly an even better release. In the Line of Duty I-IV, Police Story 3: Super Cop, and Hell of the Living Dead all saw terrific releases. We aim to review more of their stuff soon and do our damndest to keep up with their 2024 lineup. - Stacked Year For Amazing Content Powerhouse Films and their sublabel Indicator kept fans on both sides of the Atlantic busy. From amazing 4K titles like Two Orphan Vampires to amazing Blu-ray releases of The Big Gundown - it's truly a good thing to see so many amazing titles come out you can barely keep up. We had a hell of a time trying to! Each of us at HDD picked up several of their 2023 slate and were often gobsmacked by the care and attention to the releases. We can only hope to dig in deeper and give more of their work the attention they deserve in 2024. Their pre-order lineup already looks fantastic. Not wanting to leave anyone off this list, but there's so many amazing labels out there truly doing A+ work giving fans incredible content on physical media. We have to give honorable mention shoutouts to all of the great labels we've reviewed and hope to see more from in 2024. 2023 was one of the most exciting years for physical media collectors. It may seem dire with brick-and-mortar locations like Best Buy and Target shuttering or greatly reducing their offerings, but with the major studios waking up from their expensive streaming hangover and all of the stalwart and new independent labels cropping up, collectors had a lot to celebrate. And with all of the titles already announced into 2024, we've got a hell of a year ahead of us. The team here at High-Def Digest want to thank all of you readers out there who click in to check out our personal mumblings about movies on disc. We also want to thank all of the incredible independent labels out there. You've made this hobby a passionate and exciting one delivering one exciting slate of releases after another. You're the folks that make this hobby grand and worth the effort. Happy Collecting Everyone - see you all throughout 2024!Posted Fri Jan 5, 2024 at 05:50 AM PST by: -
Alexandre O. Philippe’s Lynch/Oz Headed for a Janus Contemporaries Blu-ray March 19The 2022 documentary focused on David Lynch's cinematic inspiration from The Wizard of Oz will be getting a Janus Contemporaries Blu-ray from The Criterion Collection on March 19. The themes, images, and cultural vernacular of Victor Fleming’s The Wizard of Oz continue to haunt David Lynch’s filmography—from his early short The Alphabet to his recent television series Twin Peaks: The Return. Arguably, no filmmaker has so consistently drawn inspiration—consciously or unconsciously—from a single work. Is Lynch trapped in the Land of Oz? If so, what can we learn about his body of work by taking a closer look at how it intersects and communicates with that legendary fantasy? In turn, what do Lynch’s films have to say about the enduring resonance of one of America’s most beloved classics? Through six distinct perspectives, Alexandre O. Philippe’s Lynch/Oz helps us reexperience and reinterpret The Wizard of Oz by way of David Lynch, delivering new appreciations of both. Lynch/Oz - Blu-ray The Blu-ray release will include Meet the Filmmakers, a new interview with director Alexandre O. Philippe and a trailer. Pre-orders for Lynch/Oz are up - Happy Collecting!Posted Thu Jan 4, 2024 at 10:33 AM PST by: -
GOOOAAALLL!!! Taika Waititi's Next Goal Wins Scores a Blu-ray Release on February 27The soccer sports comedy based on a true story and starring Michael Fassbender, Oscar Kightly, Will Arnett, and Elisabeth Moss will arrive on Blu-ray on February 27. Digital will be available on January 16th. Based on a true story, this heartfelt underdog comedy follows the American Samoa soccer team, infamous for their brutal 31-0 FIFA loss in 2001. With the World Cup qualifiers fast approaching, the team hires down-on-his-luck, maverick coach Thomas Rongen (Michael Fassbender), hoping he will turn the world’s worst soccer team into winners. Next Goal Wins - Blu-ray The Blu-ray + Digital release will feature lossless 5.1 audio and supplements include: Featurette Creating The Pitch of Life – Explore filmmaker Taika Waititi’s loving homage to American Samoa, Polynesian culture, and the sports movie in this delightfully entertaining short-form documentary. See what it took to make a winning movie about the losingest soccer team in the world. Deleted Scene Priest Blessing the Team Pre-orders for Next Goal Wins are up and here is the full press release: “HEARTFELT AND HILARIOUS”– Pete Hammond, DeadlineSearchlight Pictures’ Delightful Feelgood Comedy Next Goal WinsArrives on Digital January 16 and Blu-ray™ and DVD February 27 BURBANK, CA (January 4, 2024) – From Academy Award® winner Taika Waititi* (Thor: Ragnarok, Jojo Rabbit, What We Do In The Shadows) comes Next Goal Wins, a heartwarming and hilarious tale inspired by the true-life story of soccer underdogs American Samoa and their stumbling attempts to qualify for the 2014 FIFA World Cup.Described as “big-hearted and feel-good” (Wendy Ide, Screen Daily), “a perfect underdog movie” (Martin Tsai, The Wrap), and “one of the best comedies of the year” (Dayna Eileen, CGM Backlot), the film stars acclaimed actor Michael Fassbender (X-Men: First Class, The Killer) as Thomas Rongen, the maverick coach with the near-impossible task of trying to turn one of the world’s worst soccer team into winners. The international ensemble cast also includes Oscar Kightley, Kaimana, David Fane, Rachel House, Beulah Koale, Uli Latukefu, Semu Filipo, Lehi Falepapalangi, with Will Arnett and Elisabeth Moss.Be the first to watch at home when Next Goal Wins becomes available from all major digital retailers including Prime Video, Apple TV, and Vudu on January 16, and arrives on Blu-ray and DVD on February 27, with never-before-seen bonus content including Taika Waititi’s homage to American Samoa, Polynesian culture, and sports movies.*Best Adapted Screenplay 2020, Jojo RabbitFilm SynopsisBased on a true story, this heartfelt underdog comedy follows the American Samoa soccer team, infamous for their brutal 31-0 FIFA loss in 2001. With the World Cup qualifiers fast approaching, the team hires down-on-his- luck, maverick coach Thomas Rongen (Michael Fassbender), hoping he will turn the world’s worst soccer team into winners.Bonus Features**Featurette Creating The Pitch of Life – Explore filmmaker Taika Waititi’s loving homage to American Samoa, Polynesian culture, and the sports movie in this delightfully entertaining short-form documentary. See what it took to make a winning movie about the losingest soccer team in the world. Deleted Scene Priest Blessing the Team **Bonus features vary by product and retailerCastMichael Fassbender as Thomas RongenOscar Kightley as TavitaKaimana as Jaiyah SaeluaDavid Fane as AceRachel House as RuthBeulah Koale as Daru TaumuaUli Latukefu as Nicky SalapuChris Alosio as Jonah SemuFilipo as RamboIoane Goodhue as SmileyLehi Falepapalangi as PisaHio Pelesasa as SamsonWith Will Arnett as Alex MagnussenAnd Elisabeth Moss as GailDirected byTaika WaititiWritten byTaika Waititi, Iain MorrisProduced byJonathan Cavendish p.g.a.Garrett Basch p.g.a.Taika Waititi p.g.a.Mike BrettSteve JamisonMusic byMichael GiacchinoProduct SpecificationsStreet DateDigital: January 16, 2024Physical: February 27, 2024 Product SKUsDigital: 4K UHD, HD, SDPhysical: Blu-ray (Blu-ray + Digital Code) & DVD Feature Run TimeApprox. 104 minutes RatingU.S. Rated PG-13**For some strong language and crude materialAspect RatioDigital: 2.00:1Physical: 2.00:1 Disc SizeBlu-ray: 50GBDVD: 8.5GBU.S. AudioBlu-ray: English 5.1 DTS-HDMA and 2.0 Dolby Digital Descriptive Audio, Spanish and French 5.1 Dolby DigitalDVD: English, Spanish and French 5.1 Dolby Digital, English 2.0 Dolby Digital Descriptive AudioDigital: English Dolby (UHD only, some platforms), English 5.1 (Dolby Digital) & 2.0, Spanish 5.1 (Dolby Digital) & 2.0, French 5.1 (Dolby Digital) & 2.0, English Descriptive Audio 2.0U.S. SubtitlesBlu-ray: English SDH, Spanish, FrenchDVD: English SDH, Spanish, FrenchDigital: English SDH, French, Spanish (some platforms)Posted Thu Jan 4, 2024 at 09:52 AM PST by: -
New Year, New Discs - HDD's Final 4K UHD & Blu-ray Shopping Guide (of 2023) - Week of Dec. 31Happy 2024 everyone, or rather it will be 2024 come Monday. Extra Dry. Frigid. Antarctica type conditions describe the release calendar this week. And a fun fact, the largest desert on the planet is actually Antarctica with only 2 inches of precipitation a year. Welcome to Volume 4 Episode 31 of our weekly release guide. A look at the highlights of what's coming to disc the week of December 31st - January 6th, as well as a look at announcements from last week. 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray Releases- There is just one title in this category this week, The Apu Trilogy from The Criterion Collection. I cannot fluff this one up, I know nothing about it except that if it fits your interest, it's a Criterion release, go for it! Next week, we beging to ramp up, if ever so slowly, with Blood Simple, Bloodrayne and Varsity Blues. Blu-ray releases- Blu-ray counterparts of the above 4K releases? NOTHING, but that's OK, Apu Trilogy came out from Criterion in 2015. LionsGate has a 2023 crime/mystery film titled The Marsh King's Daughter. Universal has new comedy this week, The Holdovers. Bryan rates this one pretty high, check it out. If you were a boutique label, this week would be the time to pounce with a title release. Shout Factory brings us Chuck Norris action with Forced Vengeance. The lone anime title this week is The Quintessential Quintuplets Movie. MGM has two catalog releases for us, Popi and Romantic Comedy. Fret not at this pithy of titles, Imprint Films' December batch of titles is available at Amazon US this week, they include: >Directed By… Sidney Lumet – Volume One (1964 – 1973) – Imprint Limited Edition >Film Focus: Marlon Brando – Volume One (1957 – 1967) – Imprint Limited Edition >Islands In The Stream (1977) – Imprint Limited Edition >King Of The Gypsies (1978) – Imprint Limited Edition >Lenny (1974) – Imprint Limited Edition Things to do to pass the time when you are not watching a movie on your big screen or perusing High-Def Digest's Site? Glad you asked. You can visit us on FaceBook or on our YouTube Channel. The latter has some interesting videos that you may have seen when reading our reviews or news stories. I have a few music video suggestions while I am at it. Some days I want pop music, other days dance, or even metal. Did you know Michael Jackson's Thriller and Beat It Videos got official 4K remasters? When you watch Beat It, take a close look at the pool tables in the pool hall. With the Thriller video there is minimal banding, 100% most likely due to the compression requirements of YouTube. If you have the ability to play videos in the AV1 codec the quality is a little bit better. And then if ya want to listen to some loud and heavy stuff, check the group State of Mine. This video (Careless Whisper), Devil Went Down To Georgia, Thunder Rolls (Third Verse Edition), In The Air Tonight and more: And remember the Cranberries? Here's is a loud and heavy cover album from another metal group! Let's also remember THIS happens this week!! Looks like I will be re-upping based on what I have seen thus far. Notable announcements from last week: Kino has updated a bunch of upcoming 4K titles with street dates and details, as well as a handful of other surprises. I know, the suspense is killing you right? Try Rampage (1987), Leviathan, Gunfight at the O.K. Corral, Fear and Desire and The Last Castle. 4K Release Calendar 2K/BD Release Calendar 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?Posted Sun Dec 31, 2023 at 09:00 AM PST by: -
May Your Collecting Be Merry - HDD's 4K UHD & Blu-ray Shopping Guide Dec. 24, 2023If it is your thing, Merry Christmas! Perhaps you have already celebrated your respective holidays. Either way, this is the last full week of the calendar year and the release calendar is slowing down significantly. Like, VERY significantly. Welcome to Volume 4 Episode 30 of our weekly release guide. A look at the highlights of what's coming to disc the week of December 24th - December 30th, as well as a look at announcements from last week. 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray Releases- Leading off the week, with the best title of the category, The Man In The Iron Mask gets a 4k Shout Select release. I think most of us know Leonardo DiCaprio, Jeremy Irons and John Malkovich, right? If I posted a smaller cover art for the same movie, would that help understand how few titles there are this week? Yeah, probably not. Next week Criterion holds the gauntlet for having the only release of the week, a small hint, it resembles the name of the store clerk's name in The Simpsons. Blu-ray releases- Blu-ray counterparts of the above 4K releases include. N o t h i n g, n a d a, z i l c h. New(ish) Western from Sony Pictures with Nicolas Cage, Butcher's Crossing. Anime highlights include Eureka Seven Hi-Evolution: Movie 3, Fist of the North Star: The Legend of the True Savior - Legend of Raoh: Chapter of Fierce Fight and Overman King-Gainer: The Complete Series. From 88 Films and currently on the revised schedule to release Tuesday, The Inspector Wears Skirts, a martial arts action film. The sequel has been announced for a March release date. Time to upgrade that DVD of your for some 90s Bruce Willis action with Last Man Standing. Notable announcements from last week: Given the holiday frame studios and labels start to go quiet ahead of Christmas so there wasn't anything really "new" announced we didn't already see coming the weeks ahead. 4K Release Calendar 2K/BD Release Calendar 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?Posted Sun Dec 24, 2023 at 09:00 AM PST by: -
2023's "Journey to Bethlehem" Treks to Blu-ray January 16thThe latest Christmas musical event about the birth of Christ casts the first stone for Blu-ray on January 16th After entering and leaving theaters with little fanfare, Sony gives Adam Ander's Christmas musical some room in the barn to birth a miraculous physical media release. Here's the story as we all know it: A young woman carrying an unimaginable responsibility. A young man torn between love and honor. A jealous king who will stop at nothing to keep his crown. This live-action Christmas musical celebration for the entire family, weaves classic Christmas melodies with new pop songs in a music-infused retelling of the greatest story ever told, the story of Mary and Joseph and the birth of Jesus. A unique new entry into the collection of holiday classic movies, this epic Christmas musical is unlike any before it. Journey to Bethlehem - Blu-ray SPECIAL FEATURESDVD & BLU-RAY™ Special Features Meet Mary and Joseph The Heart of The Journey to Bethlehem Meet Fig Meet Mary’s Sisters Meet Antipater Deleted Scenes: A Great Navigator Deleted Scenes: Travel Montage Deleted Scenes Joseph’s Catapult CAST AND CREWDirected by: Adam AndersScreenplay by: Adam Anders & Peter BarsocchiniProduced by: Brandt Andersen, Adam Anders, Ryan Busse, Stephen Meinen, Alan Powell, Steve BarnettExecutive Producers: Vicky Patel, Peter Barsocchini, Nikki AndersCast: Fiona Palomo, Milo Manheim, Antonio Banderas, Omid Djalili, Rizwan Manji, Geno Segers, MŌRIAH, Joel Smallbone, Lecrae, Stephanie Gil SPECSRun Time: 98 minutesRating: PG for Thematic Elements Blu-ray™: 1080p High Definition / 2.39:1 • Audio: English & Spanish 5.1 DTS-HD MA • Subtitles: English, English SDH, French, SpanishDVD: 2.39:1 Anamorphic Widescreen • Audio: English 5.1 Dolby Digital • Subtitles: English, English SDH, French, Spanish Journey to Bethlehem is now up for preorder - Happy Collecting!Posted Tue Dec 19, 2023 at 06:39 AM PST by: -
It's a Sign, You've Been Chosen... to Shop From HDD's 4K UHD & Blu-ray Shopping Guide Dec. 17, 2023With our last full week before the Christmas holiday, there are still several ways to lighten that wallet a bit. From James Cameron asking for more cash, (I'm a) Believer, Bloodlines, Kino Cult, JFK and more. Welcome to Volume 4 Episode 29 of our weekly release guide. A look at the highlights of what's coming to disc the week of December 17th - December 23rd, as well as a look at announcements from last week. 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray Releases- Just like last week, new releases first, sorted by Rotten Tomatoes ratings, new(ish) releases and then catalog titles. First up, with an RT score of 22 and an audience score of 59, The Exorcist: Believer from Warner Bros. This one comes as a standard edition, a Best Buy Exclusive SteelBook and a Walmart Exclusive SteelBook. If scores of 22/59 led the category, it only goes down from there. Pet Sematary: Bloodlines sees an RT score of 22 and an audience score of 45. I saw it on Paramount+ and think those ratings are a bit harsh, but to each their own. Listed at the top rated release of the week two weeks ago, Star Trek: Strange New Worlds - Season Two gets a standard (non-SteelBook) release this week. On to the new(ish) release category, Avatar: The Way of Water gets a Collector's Edition. Is this the shortest time frame we have double-dipped on a James Cameron release? Don't get me wrong, with each dip we get a lot more. And now sort of bridging our way to catalog titles, the original Avatar also gets a Collector's Edition. And NOT a colector's edition, Avatar gets that SteelBook we should have seen in June when they also released The Way of Water to Best Buy SteelBook. This is the same transfer as the one in June as well, same extras and such. Some sites are posting it as the 'Collector's Edition', which, except for the SteelBook, it is not. Shout Factory has a pair of releases this week, Stephen King's The Dead Zone, directed by David Cronenberg. I had watched the TV series long before the movie, both are fun. Would love to see the TV series get an HD release as well (hello LionsGate, or boutique label). And, Oliver Stone's JFK. This one looks like a fat-pack, but the four discs more than anything give it that size. Still, I think the wait for 'that' edition is over with this release. How about a Kino Cult release, but in 4K? Underworld (1985) debuts this week. From Arrow Video, a fat-pack release for The Warriors. And just like a few other recent releases, the traditional cover art is available as an Arrow Store exclusive. Next week we have to s p r e a d o u r w o r d s a bit with just one single title on the docket. Maybe I will post a couple of extra pictures too. Blu-ray releases- Blu-ray counterparts of the above 4K releases include The Exorcist: Believer, Pet Sematary: Bloodlines and The Warriors. A loose counterpart, Avatar gets a remastered 3D special edition release. Some new, some reprints, MGM this week has AmericanEast, The Cutting Edge: Going for the Gold, Eureka (1983) and The Rachel Papers. The Sandpiper label with the same mission, this week they release High Spirits, Invaders from Mars and The Sure Thing. LionsGate's thriller of the week is Rumble Through the Dark. Anime highlights include Carole & Tuesday (Limited Edition), Farming Life in Another World - Complete Collection, Masaaki Yuasa: Five Films and My Hero Academia: Season 6 Part 1. TV on disc this week brought to us from Kino Lorber includes Columbo: Seasons 1-7 and Monk: Season Two. Arrow Video has a box set for us this week, Savage Guns: Four Classic Westerns Vol 3. Shout Factory releases their next Shaw Brothers box set, Shaw Brothers Classics: Vol. Four. Worthy Mentions: Following the footsteps of the first most excellent box set release, Severin Films this week offers Danza Macabra Vol. Two: The Italian Gothic Collection. Meg Ryan 2023 romcom What Happens Later comes to us via Decal Releasing. And if you have been following the Kino Cult series, the next blu-ray of the series releases this week, that title is Sinner. The blu-ray category (unlike the 4K category) is actually quite normal next week, despite the Christmas holiday. Notable announcements from last week: For those that were waiting for the third movie, Beverly Hills Cop 3 in 4K has finally been announced for February 20th, as well as the trilogy, in 4K. Arrow Video has revealed its March 2024 slate. US/Canada title The Shootist, US/Canada/UK includes Dark Water 4K and Dark Water 4K (Arrow Video Store Exclusive), and the UK only title City of the Living Dead 4K. The latter title was already done in the USA by Synapse, with a couple of different options available. Criterion Collection has also revealed their March slate, for blu-rays, All the Beauty and The Bloodshed, The Runner and Saint Omer. For 4K and blu-ray editions, To Die For. 4K Release Calendar 2K/BD Release Calendar 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?Posted Sun Dec 17, 2023 at 09:00 AM PST by: -
Done Shopping For Others? It's Time To Import Something Good For Yourself From Turbine's Holiday SaleThe price of importing can be a pain. Between exchange rates and shipping, you need to really want something when you order.Germany's Turbine Medien is having a massive sale on some of their biggest hits. Sale ends 12/17/23! If you've been following Turbine's social posts, over the last couple of weeks they have been marking down a lot of their releases with some nice discounts. Each sale was a limited frame for a small selection of titles and you had to move fast before you missed out. But now that we're in the final run for the holiday shopping, Turbine is doing fans a huge favor by opening up all of the previous sale price deals on those select titles now through December 17th. We dug through the list and found some great gems that we had reviewed in the past that are well worth adding to the collection: Television Series On Sale: The Six Million Dollar Man Originally $87.99 - now only $65.99 The Bionic Woman Originally $87.99 - now only $58.99 Now if you want both series, the deal gets really nice - The Bionic Box: Six Million Dollar Man and The Bionic Woman Originally $163.99 - now only $109.99 Northern Exposure: The Complete Series (Includes the correct music!)Originally $87.99 - now only $58.36 4K UHD and Blu-rays On Sale: The Princess Bride - 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray (Standard Edition)Originally $28.99 - now only $18.99 An American Werewolf in London - 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray (Standard Edition) Originally $38.99 - now only $25.99 Blu-ray Media Books Also Available:An American Werewolf In London German Artwork Blu-ray Mediabook An American Werewolf In London German VHS Artwork Blu-ray Mediabook Candyman - 4k Ultra HD Blu-ray Mediabook Cover BOriginally $38.99 - now only $25.99 The Hills Have Eyes - 4k Ultra HD Blu-ray Mediabook Cover DOriginally $38.99 - now only $25.99 Henry: Portrait of the Serial Killer - 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray Mediabook Video Cover Originally $38.99 - now only $25.99 From a Whisper to a Scream - Blu-ray Mediabook The Offspring Cover Originally $43.99 - now only $24.99 The Texas Chain Saw Massacre - 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray (Standard Edtion)Originally $34.99 - now only $23.99 Leatherface - 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray (Standard Edition)Originally $27.99 - now only $18.99 Other cool stuff we saw on sale that we haven't reviewed: The Return of the Killer Tomatoes Blu-ray Mediabook Cover D Death Machine Blu-ray Texas Chainsaw Massacre - Uncut Triple Feature Blu-ray (TCM, TCM 2, & Leatherface) Bad Boys 40th Anniversary Blu-ray Mediabook And there's a whole lot more on sale, but these were the real highlights of titles we've either reviewed personally or would love to add to the collection. Again the sale ends December 17th so grab the good stuff while you can. Happy Collecting!Posted Sat Dec 16, 2023 at 07:33 AM PST by: -
You Really Didn't Need Money For Christmas Anyway - HDD's 4K UHD & Blu-ray Shopping Guide Dec. 10, 2023We did warn you last week, there is no other way to say it, this week's ultrahd (and blu-ray) guide may be ultra-dangerous to your wallets. We have a couple of notable imports, Cowabunga! (pizza sold separately), more Disney+ to disc, FNAF, Netflix movie to disc, and a ton more, and that's just 4K. Blu-rays are also coming out the ears with more than 60 titles. Welcome to Volume 4 Episode 28 of our weekly release guide. A look at the highlights of what's coming to disc the week of December 10th - December 16th, as well as a look at announcements from last week. 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray Releases- Import Monday kicks off with a new release first, The Wandering Earth II as a UK SteelBook from Cine-Asia. According to their FaceBook page, there will be an English dub on this release, just like their prior blu-ray release. It is unknown at this time if Well Go USA will follow through with a 4K release in the near future, but for now they have just a blu-ray scheduled. Next, not a long wait from the Part 1 release, Nadia: Secret of the Blue Water: Part 2 is available on Monday. After a short delay, Child's Play Collection from Arrow UK is also available on Monday. Read the disclaimer before buying. It's a nice looking set, adding a 4K disc from Shout Factory for the first movie would be a pretty simple solution. Delayed until January, Second Sight's release of High Tension. Maybe by then Criterion (or LionsGate) will also announce a US release. On to domestic releases, and starting with new releases first, and sorted by Rotten Tomatoes rankings seems the be a good way to proceed. If you were ready to shout cowabunga!, you were correct in the rankings. Scoring at 96%, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem. This one is available as a Standard Edition, a Standard SteelBook Edition and as a Walmart Exclusive SteelBook Edition. Odd that both SteelBooks have the same cover art, but that's OK. Next, another streaming exclusive coming to disc, Disney's The Mandalorian, which gets a RT score of 90%. This series is available as a SteelBook, season sold separately, Season One and Season Two. Next, scoring a 66 at RT, sci-fi/war film The Creator, available via 20th Century Studios. The final new release of the week is Five Nights at Freddy's. This one scored a 31 at RT, but audiences felt it was an 87. It's that critic<>average Joe disparity we are seeing here. Work of art, NO, fun film, YES. How about a new(ish) release section this week? Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio comes to us from Netflix and via the Criterion Collection. And another streaming to disc feature, Weird: The Al Yankovic Story comes to us from The Roku Channel and via Shout Factory. Thank me for this release, I imported the Umbrella Entertainment version way back when. Now for catalog titles, Clue (1985) comes to us via Shout Factory. Kino Lorber has a pair of releases this week, John Woo's action/crime film Face/Off, and the horror/mystery Suspect Zero. Well Go USA has 4K upgrades of The Man from Nowhere and The Wailing. Decal Releasing is offering up Oldboy (2003/Directed by Park Chan-wook) on a Collector's 4K disc as well that looks very much like an A24 shop release. Previous blu-ray releases did contain English dubs, so there is a good chance this one will as well. From Sony Pictures, Spike Lee's School Daze: 35th Anniversary. Arrow Video's The Warriors got a pushback to December 19th. Turbine Media Group has The Last Emperor available on Friday in several different options. Next week, Believer, Bloodlines, Kino Cult, JFK, more Avatar! Blu-ray releases- Blu-ray counterparts of the above 4K releases include Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem, The Mandalorian: The Complete First Season, The Complete Second Season, The Creator, Five Nights at Freddy's, Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio, Weird: The Al Yankovic Story and Suspect Zero. Sony Pictures has the 2023 comedy/drama Dumb Money this week. New this week from Paramount, PAW Patrol: The Mighty Movie. Glad to see a blu-ray of this and not DVD only, unlike the two most recent live-action Monster High movies. This isn't 1995, our big screens demand blu-ray or better, thank you. From the Warner Archive this week, Anna Christie, Gentleman Jim, The Great Ziegfeld, Looney Tunes Collector's Choice: Volume 2, Madame Bovary, A Midwinter's Tale, Saving Grace and Tarzan, the Ape Man. Anime highlights include A Couple of Cuckoos Season 1 Part 2, I'm the Villainess So I'm Taming the Final Boss and One Piece - Collection 33. From Criterion this week, The Red Balloon and Other Stories: Five Films by Albert Lamorisse. Debuting to blu-ray via Arrow Video, The Day of the Locust. Arrow Video Shaw Brothers sets this week include Shaw Brothers Presents: The Basher Box, Shaw Brothers Presents: Four Films by Chang Cheh and Shaw Brothers Presents: Four Films by Lau Kar-Leung. If you have been piecing it together one at a time, this week Shout Factory has Shaun The Sheep: The Complete Series. Worthy mention: If you seek all things 3D, this week Kino Lorber releases The Man Who Wasn't There to the format. As before, digital 3D and analyph. Next week in the blu-ray category, a return to normal volume. Notable announcements from last week: I won't say NOTHING happened last week, but it was slow, as expected for the time of year. Lots of onesie twosie reveals, mostly from boutique labels. 4K Release Calendar 2K/BD Release Calendar 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?Posted Sun Dec 10, 2023 at 09:00 AM PST by:
