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4K Ultra HD Blu-ray & Blu-ray Release Guide - April 10, 2022 - April 16, 2022I begin this week's disc article with another piece of sad news to physical media collectors. Barnes & Noble appears to be removing the physical media area from their stores. Although many of us waited until there was an actual sale, such as the Criterion or Arrow Video ones, it's still troubling to see that area go. The fact they have survived this long as a book store is something in itself, but as far as the footprint, what can they possibly do with that area in the future? If your local store is making changes, post a comment below. Welcome to Volume 2 Episode 47 of our weekly release guide. A look at the highlights of what's coming to disc this week, as well as a look at announcements from last week. 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray Releases- This week's new release is all about Spider-Man: No Way Home. The plethora of skus available includes the Standard Edition, the forever SOLD OUT Best Buy Exclusive SteelBook, the Target Exclusive Fan Art Edition and the Walmart Exclusive Artwork release. As far as cover arts, I feel that the Walmart edition wins me over, hands down. On to catalog releases, Arrow Video offers a 4K release for Robocop. Actualy, two options, the 2-Disc Limited Edition and the single-disc Limited Edition SteelBook. Surprised to not see a Deluxe SteelBook which includes the best of both editions.I did get my dreaded "Delivery estimate update" for my Robocop order from Amazon, which is odd because I know reviewers got copies a week or two ago and folks online got their copies early from other merchants. As mentioned two weeks ago, Mary Shelley's Frankenstein was only delayed for Amazon, Best Buy, etc but available from the direct dealers like Grindhouse and Diabolik on time. Just a heads up that there is no slipcover on this one. Blu-ray releases- On to blu-ray releases, and just like we do every week, the blu-ray counterparts out of the way first. Spider-Man: No Way Home gets a release, as well as a 3-movie release of Homecoming / Far From Home / No Way Home. Robocop has had multiple releases over the years, so there's nothing new this week, but Mary Shelley's Frankenstein gets a blu-ray counterpart. Paramount has a few catalog and Miramax reissues worthy of mentioning. Titles include 45 Years, Jersey Girl, The Shipping News and Zatoichi: The Blind Swordsman. Warner Archive has a pair of Kevin Costner releases, American Flyers and Fandango. From A24, a Joaquin Phoenix drama titled C'mon C'mon. More TV on disc this week from Universal, Chucky: Season One. Criterion Collection's release this week is a biopic of man that became dictator, William Walker. The film is titled Walker for short. Anime highlights include Drifting Dragons - Season 1, Food Wars! The Fifth Plate - Complete Collection, KING's RAID: Successors of the Will - Part 2, Knights of Sidonia: Love Woven in the Stars, One Piece - Collection 29 and Street Sharks. LionsGate's entry this week is an action/horror/thriller titled WarHunt. Honorable Mention: Kino Lorber brings us Dr. Phibes Double Feature starring Vincent Price. Not done there, also a monster movie titled Tentacles with some well known talent on screen and snazzy cover arts (3)! Notable announcements from last week: Severin Films has added a 4K to the mix for the movie Out of the Blue (1980). Available 5/31 direct and 7/26 via Amazon. GKids will be releasing several titles via Shout Factory in June, they include Panda! Go Panda!, Only Yesterday, The Tale of The Princess Kaguya, 5 Centimeters Per Second, Children Who Chase Lost Voices and Fire In The Sky. Disney's Turning Red looks to be getting a release in May. Official announcement and exact date coming soon. Thus far it will be available as a standard blu-ray, standard 4K and a Best Buy Exclusive 4K SteelBook. No doubt a Target art edition will be added, and who knows, possibly a Walmart exclusive as well. The same can be told for The Batman as well, May release, standard blu-ray, standard 4K and a Best Buy Exclusive SteelBook. 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 Apr 10, 2022 at 12:00 PM PDT by: -
4K Ultra HD Blu-ray & Blu-ray Release Guide - April 3, 2022 - April 9, 2022How did the first quarter treat you and your wallet? I feel as though even the indie houses like Vinegar Syndrome, Arrow Video and Kino Lorber have been releasing a lot of great 4K titles as well as even some worthy blu-rays. Welcome to Volume 2 Episode 46 of our weekly release guide. A look at the highlights of what's coming to disc this week, as well as a look at announcements from last week. 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray Releases- This category is dominated by New Releases this week. First from 20th Century Studios/Disney, murder-mystery Death on the Nile. If you're looking for retailer exclusives such as a SteelBook you will have to import one from Zavvi. Go figure, because the cover art on the SteelBook looks better in my opinion. And next from Miramax/Paramount, the 2022 film Scream. This one has a few options to choose from, a standard edition, a Best Buy Exclusive SteelBook, a Walmart exclusive and of course a double feature which includes the 2022 film and the original 1996 film by the same name. And lastly for 4K, a catalog reissue of Jack Reacher, but as a Best Buy Exclusive SteelBook. Blu-ray releases- This category is a bit slow this week. There's still a few gems to consider though. First, the blu-ray counterparks of the above titles. Death on the Nile gets a single release, and Scream (2022) gets a single release as well as a 2-film collection similar to the releases above. Subject to change but on track for Tuesday, Arrow Video releases The 8 Diagram Pole Fighter. Although not a Shaw Brothers release, it was still made during that era. Do you like it when the studios release TV on blu-ray? To continue the trend people need to buy these releases because it is simply about making a profit. This week Paramount is releasing CSI: Vegas - Season One. Funny that the original CSI all those years ago wasn't called this, despite being set in Vegas. Catalog comedies Let it Ride starring Richard Dreyfus and an all-star casted movie called Soapdish debut to blu-ray this week. From Sony Pictures Classics, 2021 dramas Jockey and Parallel Mothers. Anime highlight includes just Megalobox 2: Nomad - The Complete Season. LionsGate releases a Western this week titled Desperate Riders. If you have been collecting classic TV, The Little Rascals: Volume Five comes to us this week via Classicflix. Honorable Mention: Ken Burns and PBS bring us Ken Burns: Benjamin Franklin. For Friday releases, an arts release and a concert. Imprint Films' March titles are available on Amazon. >Audrey Rose - Imprint Films Limited Edition >China Gate - Imprint Films Limited Edition >Conquest of Space - Imprint Films Limited Edition >Johnny Got His Gun - Imprint Films Limited Edition >Marooned - Imprint Films Limited Edition >The Hunter - Imprint Films Limited Edition >The Osterman Weekend - Imprint Films Limit Notable announcements from last week: Paramount is doing another wave of Miramax reissues, which means some of these will be affordable again. Expect to see them released on April 12th. Some of the titles include Jersey Girl, The Shipping News and Zatoichi: The Blind Swordsman. I expect to see more added at the last second. Also, listed but no street date yet, The Contractor (2022) will be getting a blu-ray release as well as 4K disc. Vinegar Syndrome has revealed a bunch of titles for May and called it their "halfway to Black Friday" flash sale. On the 4K fron titles include Thriller: A Cruel Picture, Cloak & Dagger and Miami Connection. Then just announced are their April titles. For 4K, there's Death Wish II and FleshEater, and a Peekarama titled Stiff Competition. Their long blu-ray for April will be Alien Private Eye. Multiple partner labels have been added as well. Arrow Video had revealed multiple versions of True Romance for a June 28th release date. For blu-rays look for Edge of Sanity and The Initiation of Sarah with a June 21 street date. James Wan's Malignant will be getting a domestic 4K disc release on May 24th. 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 Apr 3, 2022 at 12:00 PM PDT by: -
4K Ultra HD Blu-ray & Blu-ray Release Guide - March 27, 2022 - April 2, 2022April Showers, Bring May Flowers, or at least, that's what we were taught. Hard to say what to expect each yer. April thus far is looking a little bit slower than March for disc releases, but it's still early. Welcome to Volume 2 Episode 45 of our weekly release guide. A look at the highlights of what's coming to disc this week, as well as a look at announcements from last week. 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray Releases- Closing out the month, there's a short list of 4K releases for the week. First, the new release this week is Sing 2 and it is brought to you via Universal. Unlike the first movie, there is no accompanying SteelBook at Best Buy, and the cool set from Target is NOT 4K. Speaking of animated -- what happened to the Hotel Transylvania: Transformania release from Sony? On to catalog releases next. First from Arrow Video and not likely releasing this week, Mary Shelley's Frankenstein. This one has a standard release that appears to be delayed to April 12th, but the Zavvi Exclusive USA SteelBook is still dated for this week. I suspect the SteelBook date will be changed to April 12 as well. The Last Waltz gets a Criterion Collection 4K nod this week. Blu-ray releases- Getting the blu-ray counterparts of the above releases listed first, Sing 2 comes as a standard edition blu-ray as well as a 2-Movie (Sing / Sing 2) release, and the Target Exclusive that I would have bought if it were a 4K. What Gives Universal? The Last Waltz also comes to Criterion Collection blu-ray. While still on the subject of Criterion Collection, the 1997 drama/romance Love Jones get a blu-ray release on Tuesday as well. This week's blu-ray category has a bunch of standard edition releases from Vinegar Syndrome and Partner Labels, as well as Severin standard edition releases. These titles were released earlier on their respective sites, often times with exclusive slipcovers. Follow our provided links to their shops if you still wish to pursue those editions. From Universal and Peacock TV comes a comedy/romance titled Marry Me. J Lo, Owen Wilson, that's all you need to know, probably decent for its genre. And also from Universal TV, Young Rock: Season One comes to disc as well. The next Paramount Presents release is on track for Tuesday, look for Ordinary People then. Warner Archive releases two titles this week, A Star Is Born (1937) and The Wonderful World of the Brothers Grimm. The latter title has a 'Cinerama Smilebox' angle, which I cannot figure out how this will work for a home theater. LionsGate's entry this week is an action film titled Pursuit. Not done there, a shark thriller titled The Requin. Anime highlights include The Day I Became a God - The Complete Season, Haikyu!! To the Top (Season 4), Ingress the Animation, My Hero Academia: Season Five Part One, One Piece: Season Eleven - Voyage Seven and Otherside Picnic - The Complete Season. After a delay and barring any more, Magnum P.I.: The Complete Series *might* be coming out this week via Mill Creek Entertainment. Interesting title from Kino Lorber, Edgar G. Ulmer Sci-Fi Collection. Honorable Mention: Every year Cinedigm releases the Super Bowl from that year on disc. This year is no exception. NFL Super Bowl LVI Champions: Los Angeles Rams is all yours! I cannot tell if the half-time show is included, if it is, it might be worth a gander. Notable announcements from last week: FUNimation has announced their June releases, and they have also appeared to quasi-merge with Crunchyroll. Titles include Hetalia: World Stars Season 7, One Piece: Season Eleven - Voyage Eight, Life Lessons with Uramichi Oniisan - The Complete Season, BEM: Become Human - Movie and BACK ARROW - Part 1. As far as the merger, I cannot tell if there are no longer digital codes in the package. Sentai Filmworks has also revealed their June titles, which by the way include BTOOOM! Complete Collection, Student Council's Discretion: Season 1 - Complete Collection, Student Council's Discretion: Season 2 - Complete Collection, IRODUKU : The World in Colors Complete Collection, Getter Robo Arc - Complete Collection and Place to Place: Complete Collection. The next Vestron Video release will be Extreme Prejudice, with a street date of May 17th. This title comes via LionsGate. Also coming from LionsGate in June, a follow up to the 'hit' 2021 movie Fortress, Fortress: Sniper's Eye. Kino Lorber has revealed they are working on a pair of Clive barker 4K editions, Rawhead Rex and Underworld (1985). The latter is also known as Transmutations. Arrow Video has revealed that True Romance will be getting a U.S. release on June 28th. The available 4K options are a Limited Edition, Limited Edition SteelBook and a Deluxe Limited Edition SteelBook, as well as a Limited Edition blu-ray. It literally was a year before that the UK got their release, so hats off to Arrow for pursuing the rights. Arrow's other June domestic releases include Edge of Sanity and The Initiation of Sarah. 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 Mar 27, 2022 at 12:00 PM PDT by: -
Paramount Announces Jackass Forever for Digital on March 29 and on Blu-ray April 19The Certified Fresh® film Jackass Forever on Rotten Tomatoes® will hit Blu-ray on April 19 and on Digital March 29. The Jackass Collection will also be available as part of a 4-movie digital bundle (Jackass: The Movie, Jackass: Number Two, Jackass 3, jackass forever) for a special bundle price. The home video release of the outrageous comedy starring Johnny Knoxville, Steve-O, Chris Pontius, and more includes nearly 40 minutes of additional footage not shown in theatres. Read our theatrical review here. Older and grayer but not wiser, Johnny Knoxville and the gang are back for another outrageous round of stunts and bad ideas. with new friends and loads of celebrity guest stars, the crew take pranks to ridiculous lengths where absolutely no one is safe and all senses are frayed. from exploding port-a-potties to hockey pucks to the nuts and performing magic for an unamused bull, Jackass Forever is a hilarious roller coaster ride like you’ve never experienced before. Jackass Forever Pre-Orders for the Blu-ray are now available and here is the full press release: HOLLYWOOD, Calif. – Embraced by critics and audiences alike, the sublimely inspired and seriously messed up jackass forever arrives for purchase on Digital* March 29, 2022 with exclusive footage of more ill-advised and outrageous stunts not seen in theatres. In addition, a 4-movie Jackass Collection (Jackass: The Movie, Jackass: Number Two, Jackass 3, jackass forever) will be available on Digital for a special bundle price and jackass forever will debut on Blu-ray and DVD April 19 from Paramount Home Entertainment. The film will also be available to watch on Paramount+ beginning March 22. Certified Fresh® on Rotten Tomatoes®, jackass forever brings the crew together with new friends and celebrity guests for a whole lot of stunts, pranks, and bad ideas. The Digital* and Blu-ray releases are loaded with nearly 40 minutes of outrageous and hilarious stunt footage not seen in theaters: Tarantula Bite Face Your Rear Dark Shark & The Bear Fire In The Hole Broke Zach Mountain Virtual Reality Plug And Arrow The Breakaway Soccer Ball Surprise Poopies Only Wipes Twice Fire Extinguisher Wee Man Throws Zach Under The Bus Toilet Geyser Telephone Pole (Susan) Telephone Pole (Millie) Telephone Pole (A.D.) The jackass forever DVD includes the feature film in standard definition. jackass forever synopsisOlder and grayer but not wiser, Johnny Knoxville and the gang are back for another outrageous round of stunts and bad ideas. with new friends and loads of celebrity guest stars, the crew take pranks to ridiculous lengths where absolutely no one is safe and all senses are frayed. from exploding port-a-potties to hockey pucks to the nuts and performing magic for an unamused bull, jackass forever is a hilarious roller coaster ride like you’ve never experienced before. JackassMovie.com TW: @jackassworld FB: @jackass IG: @jackass #jackassforever PARAMOUNT PICTURES and MTV ENTERTAINMENT STUDIOS Present A DICKHOUSE Production “JACKASS FOREVER” JOHNNY KNOXVILLE STEVE-O CHRIS PONTIUS DAVE ENGLAND WEE MAN DANGER EHREN PRESTON LACY Co-Producers STEVE-O CHRIS PONTIUS Costume Designer EMILY TING Edited by MATTHEW KOSINSKI MATTHEW PROBST SASCHA STANTON-CRAVEN Production Designer JxPx BLACKMON Director of Photography DIMITRY ELYASHKEVICH Executive Producers SHANNA ZABLOW NEWTON GREG IGUCHI Produced by JEFF TREMAINE SPIKE JONZE JOHNNY KNOXVILLE Directed by JEFF TREMAINE Paramount Home Entertainment Paramount Home Entertainment (PHE) is part of Paramount Pictures Corporation (PPC), a global producer and distributor of filmed entertainment. PPC is a unit of Paramount (NASDAQ: PARA, PARAA), a leading global media and entertainment company that creates premium content and experiences for audiences worldwide. The PHE division oversees PPC’s home entertainment and transactional digital distribution activities worldwide. The division is responsible for the sales, marketing and distribution of home entertainment content on behalf of Paramount Pictures, Paramount Animation, Paramount Television Studios, Paramount Players, MTV, Nickelodeon, Comedy Central and CBS and applicable licensing and servicing of certain DreamWorks Animation titles. PHE additionally manages global licensing of studio content and transactional distribution across worldwide digital distribution platforms including online, mobile and portable devices and emerging technologies. jackass forever Street Dates: March 29, 2022 (Digital) April 19, 2022 (Blu-ray, DVD) U.S. Rating: R for strong crude material and dangerous stunts, graphic nudity and language throughout *Availability of bonus content varies by digital retailer Endorsement Guidelines: Paramount Pictures Corporation and Paramount Home Entertainment (collectively “Paramount”) are not requesting or requiring any online or social media coverage, publication, or posting (i) in connection with this press release or (ii) in exchange for any products, materials, services, or any other benefit provided to recipient (“Recipient”) by Paramount in connection herewith. Recipient agrees that any social media posts or public statements made by Recipient in connection with this press release, any products, materials, services, or benefit provided to Recipient by Paramount will comply with all applicable laws, rules, regulations, guidelines, and/or policies (collectively, the “Laws”), including, without limitation, those concerning endorsements and testimonials in advertising in the territory(ies) in which Recipient resides and/or in which Recipient’s posts will be featured (for example, in the United States: Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) endorsement disclosure guidelines, FTC FAQs, and “Disclosures 101 for Social Media Influencers,” all available at https://www.ftc.gov/influencers)). To the extent required by any Laws, Recipient shall include an accurate, clear, and conspicuous disclosure of any relationship between Recipient and Paramount in language that is easy to understand and in a noticeable manner. “ROTTEN TOMATOES” is a registered trademark of Fandango Media, LLC. © 2022 Fandango Media LLC. All Rights ReservedPosted Mon Mar 21, 2022 at 10:20 AM PDT by: -
4K Ultra HD Blu-ray & Blu-ray Release Guide - March 20, 2022 - March 26, 2022Bring on Spring! In the Northern Hemisphere, that moment begins this week. What it means for movie watching at home? Probably no heater or cooler noise during the feature. I love to watch a great film with no distractions from outside the movie environment! Welcome to Volume 2 Episode 44 of our weekly release guide. A look at the highlights of what's coming to disc this week, as well as a look at announcements from last week. 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray Releases- If you thought you would have a reprieve in spending this week after last week, ha ha ha, think again. New release first, Nightmare Alley directed by Guillermo del Toro. Surprisingly this one only has two skus, a standard release and a Best Buy Exclusive SteelBook. Now on to catalog titles. First, from Kino Lorber, David Cronenberg crime/thriller Eastern Promises. From LionsGate, literally a year after the blu-ray release, a 4K release for Fatale. Was I dreaming when I thought I had seen a reboot of Femme Fatale coming? And how about a double-dip next? The Hunger Games comes in a handsome Best Buy Exclusive SteelBook set, with cover art that is certainly a little more original than the repetitive picture of the bird inside the emblem. I purposely saved this one for last because no doubt, it's going to be absolutely huge! I am referring to The Godfather Trilogy. Available as a standard edition box set and as a Limited Collector's Edition. Either set you can't go wrong with! This Friday Turbine Media is releasing new special editions of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. You will have to import them, which is not an issue when dealing directly with them. >The Texas Chain Saw Massacre - 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray [Turbine SteelBook Slipcase A] >The Texas Chain Saw Massacre - 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray [Turbine SteelBook Slipcase B] >The Texas Chain Saw Massacre - 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray [Turbine SteelBook Slipcase C] >The Texas Chain Saw Massacre - 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray [Turbine SteelBook Slipcase D] Blu-ray releases- The blu-ray category is quite a bit busier than it was last week. Counterparts first, Nightmare Alley gets a single sku release, Eastern Promises gets a new edition, The Godfather gets a new trilogy release, and new single movie releases for The Godfather and The Godfather II. From Warner Archive Collection, Captains of the Clouds starring James Cagney. Paramount brings us a Showtime TV event, Dexter: New Blood, available as a standard release and a SteelBook release. More TV on disc, but from Universal, Dr. Death: Season One. LionsGate's For the Love of Money comes to disc this week. From Arrow Video comes Come Drink With Me, just think Shaw Brothers type film, but before the actual Shaw Brothers. Also slated this week, Japanese fantasy To Sleep So As To Dream. Shout Select's version of The Core debuts this week, donning a new 4K scan. The monthly batch of Indicator Series releases falls on this week. Titles include La Llorona, Mad Dog Morgan, The Phantom of the Monastery and A Time for Dying. 88 Films next batch of Kung Fu Film releases include Monkey Kung Fu and Shaolin Mantis. Criterion Collection's release this week is The Flight of the Phoenix (1965). In the honorable mention category, when you group Bing Crosby, Fred Astaire, Joan Caulfield in a musical, you get Blue Skies, released by Kino Lorber. Shirley Temple fans can see her in Now and Forever which also releases this week from Kino Lorber. Notable announcements from last week: Criterion Collection's June titles have been announced. The titles are Farewell Amor, Pink Flamingos, Rogue, Shaft (1971)(as a standard blu-ray and a 4K edition with Dolby Vision HDR), The Tales of Hoffmann and The Worst Person in the World. See our news story here. 20th Century Studios has officially announced the release of Death on the Nile (2022) and will be coming to disc on April 5th, as a blu-ray edition and a 4K combo edition. There will likely be a SteelBook release at Best Buy, but that has not been confirmed yet. See our news story here. Universal has announced The Alfred Hitchcock Classics Collection Vol. 2 for a May 10th release, this is a box set of Saboteur, Shadow of a Doubt, The Trouble with Harry, Marnie and Family Plot. This time around though, each film will be available individually, but the entire box set is currently listed for the price of just two of the individual titles combined. Also from Universal, The Last Kingdom: The Complete Series and The Last Kingdom: Season 5 will be available May 17th. Discotek's May 31 title highlights include Mon Colle Knights (dubbed), Double Dragon The Complete Series, Astro Boy 1980 Series and Darkstalkers: The Complete OVA Collection. 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 Mar 20, 2022 at 12:00 PM PDT by: -
Can Ya Dig It? Criterion Announces June Releases With Shaft on 4K Ultra HD Blu-rayThe Criterion Collection has announced their June release slate that includes Gordon Parks blaxploitation classic starring Richard Roundtree on 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray. Leading the way is Shaft, which will be getting a 4K UHD and Blu-ray release on June 21. While the Black Power movement was reshaping America, trailblazing director Gordon Parks made this groundbreaking blockbuster, which helped launch the blaxploitation era and gave the screen a new kind of badder-than-bad action hero in John Shaft (Richard Roundtree, in a career-defining role), a streetwise New York City private eye who is as tough with criminals as he is tender with his lovers. After Shaft is recruited to rescue the kidnapped daughter of a Harlem mob boss (Moses Gunn) from Italian gangsters, he finds himself in the middle of a rapidly escalating uptown vs. downtown turf war. A vivid time capsule of seventies Manhattan in all its gritty glory that has inspired sequels and multimedia reboots galore, the original Shaft is studded with indelible elements—from Roundtree’s sleek leather fashions to the iconic funk and soul score by Isaac Hayes. 4K UHD + BLU-RAY SPECIAL EDITION FEATURES • New 4K digital restoration, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack • Alternate uncompressed stereo soundtrack remastered with creative input from Isaac Hayes III • In the 4K UHD edition: One 4K UHD disc of the film presented in Dolby Vision HDR and two Blu-rays with the film and special features • Shaft’s Big Score!, the 1972 follow-up to Shaft by director Gordon Parks • New documentary on the making of Shaft featuring curator Rhea L. Combs, film scholar Racquel J. Gates, filmmaker Nelson George, and music scholar Shana L. Redmond • Behind-the-scenes program featuring Parks, actor Richard Roundtree, and musician Isaac Hayes • Archival interviews with Hayes, Parks, and Roundtree • New interview with costume designer Joseph G. Aulisi • New program on the Black detective and the legacy of John Shaft, featuring scholar Kinohi Nishikawa and novelist Walter Mosley • A Complicated Man: The “Shaft” Legacy (2019) • Behind-the-scenes footage from Shaft’s Big Score! • Trailers • English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing • PLUS: An essay by film scholar Amy Abugo Ongiri 1971 • 100 minutes • Color • Monaural • 1.85:1 aspect ratio Arriving on June 7 on Blu-ray is The Tales of Hoffmann, the fantasy opera by Jacques Offenbach. Michael Powell And Emeric Pressburger create a phantasmagoric marriage of cinema and opera in this one-of-a-kind take on a classic story. In Jacques Offenbach’s fantasy opera The Tales of Hoffmann, a poet dreams of three women—a mechanical performing doll, a bejeweled siren, and the consumptive daughter of a famous composer—all of whom break his heart in different ways. Powell and Pressburger’s feverishly romantic adaptation is a feast of music, dance, and visual effects, and one of the most exhilarating opera films ever produced. BLU-RAY SPECIAL EDITION FEATURES Michael Powell And Emeric Pressburger create a phantasmagoric marriage of cinema and opera in this one-of-a-kind take on a classic story. In Jacques Offenbach’s fantasy opera The Tales of Hoffmann, a poet dreams of three women—a mechanical performing doll, a bejeweled siren, and the consumptive daughter of a famous composer—all of whom break his heart in different ways. Powell and Pressburger’s feverishly romantic adaptation is a feast of music, dance, and visual effects, and one of the most exhilarating opera films ever produced. BLU-RAY SPECIAL EDITION FEATURES • 4K digital restoration by The Film Foundation and the BFI National Archive, in association with STUDIOCANAL, featuring newly rediscovered footage and with uncompressed monaural soundtrack • Audio commentary from 1992 by filmmaker Martin Scorsese and critic Bruce Eder, newly updated by Eder • Interview with filmmaker George A. Romero from 2005 • The Sorcerer’s Apprentice (1956), a short musical film based on the Johann Wolfgang von Goethe story and directed by Michael Powell • Collection of production designer Hein Heckroth’s design sketches and paintings • Gallery of production and publicity photographs • Trailer • English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing • Plus: An essay by film historian Ian Christie 1951 • 133 minutes • Color • Monaural • 1.37:1 aspect ratio Available on June 14th Farewell Amor from Alain Delon. In her luminous feature debut, filmmaker Ekwa Msangi chronicles a broken family’s journey to wholeness with empathy and insight. Seventeen years after his family was separated by the civil war in Angola, a New York taxi driver (Ntare Guma Mbaho Mwine) is reunited with his now devoutly religious wife (Zainab Jah) and teenage daughter (Jayme Lawson) when they are finally able to follow him to America. But after living thousands of miles apart for so long, the three find they must discover one another’s strengths, forgive one another’s weaknesses, and bridge cultural and generational divides in order to build a life together. Told in three perspective-shifting chapters that honor the multitude of struggles and emotions that make up the immigrant experience, Farewell Amor is a bittersweet, compassionate evocation of how it feels when your heart and your home are in different places. DIRECTOR-APPROVED SPECIAL EDITION FEATURES • New 2K master, approved by director Ekwa Msangi, with 5.1 surround DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack on the Blu-ray • New audio commentary featuring Msangi and cinematographer Bruce Francis Cole • Three short films by Msangi: Suspense (2011); The Market King (2014); and Farewell Meu Amor (2016), a prequel to Farewell Amor • New interviews with actors Ntare Guma Mbaho Mwine, Zainab Jah, and Jayme Lawson • Deleted scenes • Trailer • English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing • PLUS: An essay by scholar Tiana Reid 2020 • 102 minutes • Color • 5.1 surround • 2.39:1 aspect ratio On the 21st comes Stanley Kwan's Rouge on Blu-ray. Cantopop superstars Anita Mui and Leslie Cheung display the androgynous magnetism that made them icons as doomed lovers in this emblematic film of Hong Kong’s Second New Wave, directed by pioneering queer melodrama master Stanley Kwan. Rouge bridges past and present in its tragic romance between a humble courtesan and the wayward scion of a wealthy family, who embrace death by suicide pact amid the opulent teahouses of 1930s Hong Kong. Fifty years later, she returns to the city-state to find him, drawing a young contemporary couple (Alex Man and Emily Chu) into her quest to rekindle a passion that may be as illusory as time itself. With its lush mise-en-scène and transcendently melancholy mood, this sensuous ghost story is an exquisite, enduringly resonant elegy for both lost love and vanishing history. DIRECTOR-APPROVED SPECIAL EDITION FEATURES • New 4K digital restoration, approved by director Stanley Kwan, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack on the Blu-ray • Alternate 5.1 surround soundtrack, presented in DTS-HD Master Audio on the Blu-ray • New conversation between Kwan and filmmaker Sasha Chuk • Yang ± Yin: Gender in Chinese Cinema, a 1997 documentary by Kwan exploring the representation of queerness and LGBT identity in Chinese film • Still Love You After All These, a 1997 memoir film by Kwan about his Hong Kong identity • Trailer • New English subtitle translation • PLUS: An essay by film programmer and critic Dennis Lim 1987 • 96 minutes • Color • Monaural • In Cantonese with English subtitles • 1.85:1 aspect ratio John Waters' totally outlandish Pink Flamingos starring Divine, Mink Stole, and David Lochary will arrive on Blu-ray on June 28. John Waters made bad taste perversely transcendent with the forever shocking counterculture sensation Pink Flamingos, his most infamous and daring cinematic transgression. Outré diva Divine is iconic as the wanted criminal hiding out with her family of degenerates in a trailer outside Baltimore while reveling in her tabloid notoriety as the “Filthiest Person Alive.” When a pair of sociopaths (Mink Stole And David Lochary) with a habit of kidnapping women in order to impregnate them attempt to challenge her title, Divine resolves to show them and the world the true meaning of the word filthy. Incest, cannibalism, shrimping, and film history’s most legendary gross-out ending—Waters and his merry band of Dreamlanders leave no taboo unsmashed in this gleefully subversive ode to outsiderhood, in which camp spectacle and pitch-black satire are wielded in an all-out assault on respectability. DIRECTOR-APPROVED BLU-RAY FEATURES • New 4K digital restoration, supervised and approved by director John Waters, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack • Two audio commentaries featuring Waters, from the 1997 Criterion laserdisc and the 2001 DVD release • New conversation between Waters and filmmaker Jim Jarmusch • Tour of the film’s Baltimore locations, led by Waters • Deleted scenes, alternate takes, and on-set footage • Trailer • English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing • And more! • PLUS: An essay by critic Howard Hampton and a piece by actor and author Cookie Mueller about the making of the film, from her 1990 book Walking Through Clear Water in a Pool Painted Black 1972 • 92 minutes • Color • Monaural • 1.66:1 aspect ratio Finally and also on the 28th comes Joachim Trier Academy Award-nominated romantic comedy The Worst Person in the World on Blu-ray. Renate Reinsve won the Best Actress prize at Cannes for the revelatory, complex performance that anchors this sprawlingly novelistic film by Norwegian auteur Joachim Trier, an emotionally intricate and exhilarating character study of a woman entering her thirties. Amid the seemingly endless possibilities of the modern world, Julie (Reinsve) vacillates between artistic passions and professions, the question of motherhood, and relationships with two very different men: a successful comic-book artist (Trier regular Anders Danielsen Lie) and a charismatic barista (Herbert Nordrum). Working with a team of longtime collaborators, Trier and his perennial cowriter Eskil Vogt construct in The Worst Person in the World, the Oscar-nominated third entry in their unofficial Oslo Trilogy, a liberating portrait of self-discovery and a bracingly contemporary spin on the romantic comedy. DIRECTOR-APPROVED SPECIAL EDITION FEATURES • New 2K digital master, with 5.1 surround DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack on the Blu-ray • New interviews with director Joachim Trier; coscreenwriter Eskil Vogt; actors Renate Reinsve, Anders Danielsen Lie, and Herbert Nordrum; cinematographer Kasper Tuxen; and sound designer Gisle Tveito • On-set footage from the creation of the film’s time-freezing sequence • Deleted scenes • PLUS: An essay by critic Sheila O’Malley 2021 • 127 minutes • Color • 5.1 surround • In Norwegian with English subtitles • 1.85:1 aspect ratio All of these titles will likely be up for pre-order shortly and the website will be updated when they are available.Posted Fri Mar 18, 2022 at 11:21 AM PDT by: -
4K Ultra HD Blu-ray & Blu-ray Release Guide - March 13, 2022 - March 19, 2022UGH, ZzZzZzZz. Did we lose an hour of sleep Saturday night thanks to springing our clocks forward? I don't know about you, but I do not know anyone that likes changing their clocks twice a year. Can we please stop this ritual? It's been proven to do more harm than good. Anyway, welcome to Volume 2 Episode 43 of our weekly release guide. A look at the highlights of what's coming to disc this week, as well as a look at announcements from last week. 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray Releases- This category qualifies as a wallet buster this week, there's no other way to say it. There is something here for everyone. Let us begin with the new release first. I am referring to the 2021 version of West Side Story, which comes in four options. A standard edition, a Best Buy Exclusive SteelBook, a Target Exclusive "Art Edition" and a Walmart Exclusive that includes a fabric poster. Alrighty then, catalog titles next, in semi-alphabetical, but grouped by release house order. From Arrow Video, An American Werewolf in London gets a 'fat-pack' release. There were some gorgeous overseas releases of this one movie already, glad that Arrow decided to go all out on this one here. Maybe delayed a week, maybe we had the incorrect info initially, but Kino Lorber is bringing us the classic 1960 comedy/romance The Apartment. Criterion Collection's release this week is the French crime/thriller Le Cercle Rouge. Moving on to Paramount, the 2007 thriller Shooter comes to 4K disc for the first time, as a SteelBook to boot! And, somewhat of a double-dip, but as a deluxe edition release, the 2020 action/comedy Sonic the Hedgehog. A movie that never made it to blu-ray and was stuck on Anchor Bay DVD for quite a few years, The Sword and the Sorcerer gets a 4K disc from Shout! Factory. Lastly, Sony double dips on The Amazing Spider-Man Collection, this time as a standard cased release. Blu-ray releases- Just like we do every week, let's get the blu-ray counterparts out of the way first. West Side Story got enough retailer exclusives above, leaving only enough room for a standard edition. Next, Kino Lorber also releases The Apartment. And lastly, the standard-case edition of The Amazing Spider-Man Collection gets a blu-ray edition too. Paramount catalog titles are becoming a normal thing each week, which is exciting for physical media. Look for The Accused (1988), as well as a pair of Charlie Brown releases, Bon Voyage, Charlie Brown and Race for Your Life, Charlie Brown. LionsGate's next Vestron Video entry, Dream A Little Dream debuts this week on disc. Under their standard label, a highly recommended comedy of sort, Red Rocket. Anime highlights include Dr. Stone: Season 2, available as a standard release and as a Limited Edition release, Monster Girl Doctor - Complete Collection, Princess Principal: Crown Handler - Chapter 1 and Warlords of Sigrdrifa - The Complete Season. Scream Factory has got a Collector's Edition of Nightmare (1964) for you this week. The TV show Vikings comes to a close, and Warner Bros. is bringing us both Season 6: Volume 2 as well as a Complete Series set. Honorable Mention: If you're following Woody Allen, his directed comedy/romance Rifkin's Festival is available this week. Notable announcements from last week: The Disney Movie Club has added two more exclusives to their catalog, The Little People and The Gnome-Mobile. We mentioned these exclusives as one of the club benefits in a previous article. More Paramount catalog titles are in the works for April, some of them include King David, The Beautician and the Beast, He Said, She Said and Thief of Hearts. More no doubt being added this week. A Best Buy Exclusive SteelBook edition has been added to the choices for Moonfall by LionsGate. Supply chain and labor issue no doubt, multiple title delays are coming. For 4K, both Happy Death Day releases have been moved from April 26 to May 31. Several anime titles have been pushed as well, no doubt the big picture isn't quite known. 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 Mar 13, 2022 at 12:00 PM PDT by: -
4K Ultra HD Blu-ray & Blu-ray Release Guide - March 6, 2022 - March 12, 2022Going forward this year, you might just feel the pain as a glut of releases hit us. This is in addition to the multiple announcements made last week just to keep the perpetual cycle going. It's quite a contrast to how things seemed a few months ago. Welcome to Volume 2 Episode 42 of our weekly release guide. A look at the highlights of what's coming to disc this week, as well as a look at announcements from last week. 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray Releases- First, as mentioned a couple of weeks ago, a more proper edition of The Green Mile, albeit an import from Zavvi UK. I wish that when Warner Bros. experimented with gift sets in the U.S. that they offered sets like this one, I guarantee they would have sold well. Now on to domestic release Tuesday. The new release of the week is The Matrix Resurrections. Offered up as a standard edition release and as a Best Buy Exclusive SteelBook with a somewhat bland cover art. Some of the overseas covers are much nicer in my opinion. You can also get all four movies in one collection as well, they're dubbing this one The Matrix 4 Film Deja Vu Collection. On to catalog releases next. From Universal Pictures, Downton Abbey: The Motion Picture get a standard release and a SteelBook release. Synapse Films is releasing the next Dario Argento 'fat pack' release, this time Phenomena, this is a Arrow Video partner release. Last but not least, from Kino Lorber, Touch of Evil gets a 'must own' release. Blu-ray releases- There's a fair amount of titles to look at this week for the blu-ray format. Getting the blu-ray counterparts of the above releases first, The Matrix Resurrections gets a standard edition release and a Target Exclusive edition. Additionally, the The Matrix 4 Film Deja Vu Collection also gets a blu-ray edition. Also from Kino Lorber, Touch of Evil in a 3-disc blu-ray edition. Warner Bros this week gives us Adventure Time: Distant Lands, a collection of four specials. More TV on disc, Supergirl: The Complete Sixth and Final Season and Supergirl: The Complete Series are both available on Tuesday. From Sony Pictures, 2011 drama Courageous Legacy and 2021 drama A Journal for Jordan. Vertical Entertainment brings us American Siege. From Universal Studios, Golden Globe Award-winning Brooklyn Nine-Nine: The Complete Series comes to 17-disc blu-ray. Also, the 2021 sports/drama film National Champions and 2022 drama/romance Redeeming Love both get blu-ray releases. From Amazon Studios via Paramount Home Entertainment, Coming 2 America get a blu-ray only release, even though it was in 4K on Amazon. Paramount also brings us Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius and The Rugrats Trilogy Movie Collection to disc. From Criterion Collection, a Hungarian drama titled Adoption. Anime highlight (singular) includes Broken Blade - Complete Film Series. Honorable mention: Film Detective is bringing us Monster From Green Hell, a memorable 1957 sci-fi schlock film. Notable announcements from last week: There were a ton of announcements last week for upcoming releases. If we covered them all this article would be quite lengthy. Warner Bros. has announced that Singin' In The Rain is getting a 4K release on April 26th. The U.S. release is pretty basic while releases overseas include a book and other swag, even a SteelBook edition. The Paramount Presents label is getting its first 4K release with The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, with a street date of May 17th. I still never understood the thinking of the dual Days of Thunder release, the 4K standard release and the Paramount Presents blu-ray on the same day. Scream Factory's May 4K titles include Escape From New York, Lifeforce, The Craft and Candyman (1992) Collector's Editions. Arrow Video's May releases include several different options for Wild Things, both blu-ray and 4K, as well as a fat-pack for Candyman (1992) in the UK. Candyman again, if you feel the need for a Turbine Media Book instead, they've got that too, but it would appear that their version does NOT have Atmos sound like Arrow and Scream Factory's. 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 Mar 6, 2022 at 12:00 PM PST by: -
4K Ultra HD Blu-ray & Blu-ray Release Guide - February 27, 2022 - March 5, 2022As we transition from February and in to March, what are we most looking forward to in the near future? How will March Madness be this year? Will this year be the year a favorite title comes out on blu-ray/4K disc? Welcome to Volume 2 Episode 41 of our weekly release guide. A look at the highlights of what's coming to disc this week, as well as a look at announcements from last week. 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray Releases- What an easy week it is to list 4K releases. There is one single title available, that being James Bond: The Daniel Craig Collection. This collection is similar to the previous release, but it adds Craig's final (fifth) Bond movie No Time To Die to the set. I had held the 4-movie collection in my hands in the past in a moment of weakness, for once I am glad I held off. Will an all-inclusive box set of all Bond films in 4K come next? Never say never, but I kind of doubt it. Blu-ray releases- Also a rather slow week for blu-ray releases. There is no blu-ray counterpart to the above release, so let's just move on to other titles. From Universal, 2021's drama Belfast. This one touts an acclaimed ensemble cast and acclaimed director, and it did rate pretty good on the various review sites. Delayed at least once but now on track for release, The Batman: The Complete Series (animated) comes to us via Warner Bros. If you've been keeping up with director Neill Blomkamp (District 9), his latest release Demonic comes via RLJ Entertainment. Anime highlights include Dropout Idol Fruit Tart, Is the Order a Rabbit? BLOOM (Season 3) and Naruto: Set 6. Honorable Mention: A foreign WWII film titled The Pilot: A Battle for Survival comes via Well Go USA. It has an English dub if that is a deciding factor. This week you can buy the Imprint Films February slate on Friday. >Jerry Lewis At Columbia - Imprint Films Limited Edition >Out Of Towners - Imprint Films Limited Edition >Return Of The Pink Panther - Imprint Films Limited Edition >The Bad News Bears in Breaking Training - Imprint Films Limited Edition >The Odd Couple Collection - Imprint Films L Notable announcements from last week: Amazon.com order links for West Side Story (2021) appear to be live. Also added to the mix, a Target Exclusive 4K edition as well. Check out our news release here for all the options and order links. LionsGate has announced blu-ray releases for The Exorcism of God and The Humans with an April 19th street date. Kino Lorber has announced 4K editions of The Manchurian Candidate and The Untouchables are being worked on, expect to see them sometime in the second quarter. Again, previous Criterion blu-rays now getting the Kino 4K treatment. Hey, that's fine by me, Kino does a great job too! Beverly Hills Cop II appears to be on track for a 4K disc release on May 17th, awaiting official word from the studio. Sony's Uncharted is available for preorder, thus far blu-ray, 4K and 4K SteelBooks are in the mix, street date likely in May or June. Warner Archive Collection will be releasing a pair of Kevin Costner titles on April 12th, they are Fandango and American Flyers. Arrow Video's next batch includes a couple if good titles. Highlights include multiple ediitons of Wild Things 4K and blu-ray, as well as a UK release for Candyman (1992) in 4K. See our article here for the full slate. 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 Feb 27, 2022 at 12:00 PM PST by: -
4K Ultra HD Blu-ray & Blu-ray Release Guide - February 20, 2022 - February 26, 2022Tell you what, I am over Winter. I do not care what the Groundhog says, seeing Robins tells me that Spring is just around the corner. Looking ahead, March could be pricey for disc buyers, there are five Tuesdays in the month. Welcome to Volume 2 Episode 40 of our weekly release guide. A look at the highlights of what's coming to disc this week, as well as a look at announcements from last week. 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray Releases- WHOA! This week has got a lot of titles to ponder. Where to begin? Let's touch new releases first. From LionsGate, a sports drama titled American Underdog. The next movie in the Kingsman franchise, this one is titled The King's Man, and is a prequel/origins story of the agency we have seen in two previous movies thus far. This one is available as a standard edition, a Target Exclusive edition, a Walmart Exclusive edition and as a Best Buy Exclusive SteelBook trilogy. New to 4K disc catalog titles next; Paramount brings us John Carpenter's Escape from L.A. Hopefully, Shout Factory or the current rights holder of Escape From New York follows up and releases that to 4K disc. I could take one for the team and import it, thus triggering a U.S. announcement. Also be alert to the disc replacement program already in place for this release due to an audio issue - read the linked review for more details. Warner Bros bring us the highly anticipated release for The Green Mile, available in a standard edition and as a Best Buy Exclusive SteelBook release. If you don't care about the digital copy, the UK Zavvi Exclusive SteelBook is a much nicer set, but you'll got to wait two more weeks for it. From Scream Factory, 80s horror thriller Alligator. Kino Lorber brings us Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy. Vinegar Syndrome releases Dead Heat and Madman this week. The latter is currently a VS shop exclusive, with no doubt a standard release in a month or two. And finally, another value priced Best Buy Exclusive slipcover edition SteelBook this week, this time The Hurt Locker. Previously this one was only available in 4K as a digital option. Blu-ray releases- As you've come to expect every week, the blu-ray counterparts first. American Underdog, The King's Man and Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy each get respective blu-ray releases. To go with your Alligator 4K buy, Scream Factory is also releasing Alligator II: The Mutation this week, to blu-ray disc. Deadly Games (1982) from Arrow video is on track to be released on Tuesday. A French film collection titled Lies and Deceit – Five Films by Claude Chabrol also appears on track for this week too. Lionsgate's other appearance on the calendar this week is 2022 thriller Shattered. From Criterion Collection, foreign drama Boat People. From Universal Pictures, 2021 crime/drama House of Gucci. This one is getting a 4K in a couple of countries, including a SteelBook 4K in Italy. Last minute addition from Universal also is a film titled The 355. Animation/Anime highlights this week include Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog: The Complete Series, Angel Cop (remastered)[SteelBook], Attack on Titan - Final Season - Part 1, available as a standard release and as a Limited Edition, NANA - Complete Collection [SteelBook] and Onyx Equinox - Complete Collection. The next chapter (month) for Indicator Series releases include An Unsuitable Job for a Woman, Bartleby, The Devil's Men, The Triple Echo and Voices. Honorable Mentions: For Douglas Sirk fans, the wait is over, The Douglas Sirk Collection II debuts on Tuesday. Also from Kino, their release to Jim Carrey's Man on the Moon. Notable announcements from last week: Kino Lorber announced that 12 Angry Men (1957) will be making it to 4K disc soon. Tom Clancy's Infinite from Amazon Video via Paramount will be coming to 4K disc at some point. Criterion Collection's May 2022 releases include Chan is Missing, Double Indemnity, available as blu-ray and 4K discs, Mr. Klein, The Funeral and Mississippi Masala. FUNimation's May anime releases have been added to the calendar. 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 Feb 20, 2022 at 12:00 PM PST by:
