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'The Agony and the Ecstasy' Dated for Blu-ray[teaser]Carol Reed's 1965 film is bound for Blu-ray in March. [/teaser] In an early announcement to retailers, 20th Century Fox will be releasing 'The Agony and the Ecstasy' on Blu-ray on March 4. Charlton Heston and Rex Harrison portray two of the Renaissance's most colorful figures in this historical drama based on Irving Stone's best-seller set in the early 16th century. When Pope Julius ll (Harrison) commissions Michelangelo (Heston) to paint the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, the artist initially refuses. Virtually forced to do the job by Julius, he later destroys his own work and flees to Rome. Eventually resumed, the project becomes a battle of wills fueled by artistic and temperamental differences that form the core of this movie. Nominated for an Oscar Cinematography and named one of the year's best films by the National Board of Review. Specs, supplements, and suggested list price haven't been revealed yet. You can find the latest specs for 'The Agony and the Ecstasy' linked from our Blu-ray Release Schedule, where it's indexed under March 4.Posted Thu Dec 26, 2013 at 08:00 AM PST by: -
'Sherlock: Season Three' Dated for Blu-ray[teaser]Three more mysteries from the hit series will arrive on Blu-ray in February. You can order season three here! [/teaser] In an early announcement to retailers, BBC is preparing 'Sherlock: Season Three' for Blu-ray on February 11. (Spoiler Alert): Two years after the devastating fallout of "The Reichenbach Fall," Dr. John Watson has moved on with his life. New horizons, romance and a comforting domestic future beckon. But with London under threat of a huge terrorist attack, Sherlock Holmes is about to return with all the theatricality that comes so naturally. It's what his best friend wanted more than anything, but for John Watson it might well be a case of "be careful what you wish for." If Sherlock thinks everything will be just as he left it, though, he's in for a very big surprise. The game is on for Holmes and Watson in three mysteries: "The Empty Hearse," "The Sign of Three" and "His Last Vow." Specs have yet to be revealed, but supplements will include: Behind-the-Scenes Featurette: The Fall; Fans, Villains & Speculation: The Legacy of Sherlock Holmes; and Shooting Sherlock. Suggested list price for the Blu-ray is $39.98. You can find the latest specs for 'Sherlock: Season Three' linked from our Blu-ray Release Schedule, where it's indexed under February 11.Posted Tue Dec 24, 2013 at 12:00 PM PST by: -
Theatrical Reviews: 'Lone', 'Wolf' and 'Mitty'Among other things, Christmas brings a bunch of new movies to theaters this week, and we have some reviews to let you know which are worth seeing. Head over to the blog for our coverage of 'The Secret Life of Walter Mitty', 'The Wolf of Wall Street' and 'Lone Survivor'.Posted Tue Dec 24, 2013 at 10:00 AM PST by: -
'The Great Beauty' Heads to Blu-ray[teaser] Paolo Sorrentino's acclaimed 2013 film is now available for Blu-ray pre-orders at Amazon! [/teaser] In an early announcement to retailers, Criterion has revealed 'The Great Beauty' is planned for Blu-ray on March 25. For decades, journalist Jep Gambardella has charmed and seduced his way through the glittering nightlife of Rome. Since the legendary success of his only novel, he has been a permanent fixture in the city's literary and elite social circles. But on his sixty-fifth birthday, Jep unexpectedly finds himself taking stock of his life, turning his cutting wit on himself and his contemporaries, and looking past the lavish nightclubs, parties, and cafés to find Rome itself, in all its monumental glory: a timeless landscape of absurd, exquisite beauty. Featuring sensuous cinematography, a lush score, and an award-winning central performance by the great Toni Servillo, this transporting experience by the brilliant Italian director Paolo Sorrentino is a breathtaking Fellini-esque tale of decadence and lost love. The Blu-ray/DVD Combo Pack will feature a 1080p 2K digital transfer supervised by Paolo Sorrentino, a lossless 5.1 soundtrack, and supplements include: Conversation between Sorrentino and Italian cultural critic Antonio Monda; New interview with actor Toni Servillo; New interview with screenwriter Umberto Contarello; Deleted scenes; Trailer; and a booklet featuring an essay by critic Philip Lopate. Suggested list price for the Blu-ray is $39.95. You can find the latest specs for 'The Great Beauty' linked from our Blu-ray Release Schedule, where it is indexed under March 25.Posted Tue Dec 24, 2013 at 08:00 AM PST by: -
'An American Tail' Announced for Blu-ray[teaser]Don Bluth's 1986 animated masterpiece will immigrate to Blu-ray in March! Pre-orders are now available! [/teaser] In an early announcement to retailers, Universal is set to release 'An American Tail' on Blu-ray on March 4. In 1885, a family of immigrant mice -- the Mousekewitzes -- make the arduous journey from Russia to the United States. There, young Fievel (Phillip Glasser) is lost, and has to search for his parents (Nehemiah Persoff and Erica Yohn) and older sister (Amy Green) through the streets of New York, meeting unexpected friends every step of the way. The Blu-ray will feature 1080p video, a lossless 5.1 soundtrack, and supplements will include: Somewhere Out There Sing-Along; Theatrical Trailer, and an Ultraviolet Digital Copy. Suggested list price for the Blu-ray is $19.98. You can find the latest specs for 'An American Tail' linked from our Blu-ray Release Schedule, where it's indexed under March 4.Posted Tue Dec 24, 2013 at 06:00 AM PST by: -
'Persona' Announced and Detailed for Blu-ray[teaser] Another favorite from Ingmar Bergman heads to Blu-ray in March. Pre-orders are also now available! [/teaser] In an early announcement to retailers, Criterion says 'Persona' will be available on Blu-ray on March 25. By the mid-sixties, Ingmar Bergman had already conjured many of the cinema's most unforgettable images. But with the radical 'Persona,' this supreme artist attained new levels of visual poetry. In the first of a series of legendary performances for Bergman, Liv Ullmann plays an actress who has inexplicably gone mute; an equally mesmerizing Bibi Andersson is the garrulous young nurse caring for her in a remote island cottage. While isolated together there, the women perform a mysterious spiritual and emotional transference that would prove to be one of cinema's most influential ideas. Acted with astonishing nuance and shot in stark shadows and soft light by the great Sven Nykvist, 'Persona' is a penetrating, dreamlike work of profound psychological depth. The Blu-ray/DVD Combo Pack will feature a new 1080p 2K digital restoration, a uncompressed mono soundtrack, and supplements include: New visual essay on the film's prologue by Ingmar Bergman scholar Peter Cowie; New interviews with actor Liv Ullmann and filmmaker Paul Schrader; Excerpted archival interviews with Bergman and actors Bibi Andersson and Ullmann; On-set footage, with audio commentary by Bergman historian Birgitta Steene Liv & Ingmar, a 2012 feature documentary directed by Dheeraj Akolkar; Trailer; and a booklet featuring an essay by film scholar Thomas Elsaesser, an excerpted 1969 interview with Bergman, and an excerpted 1977 conversation with Andersson. Suggested list price for the Blu-ray is $39.95. You can find the latest specs for 'Persona' linked from our Blu-ray Release Schedule, where it is indexed under March 25.Posted Mon Dec 23, 2013 at 12:00 PM PST by: -
'Cutie and the Boxer' Dated for Blu-ray[teaser]The acclaimed documentary from filmmaker Zachary Heinzerling is planned for Blu-ray in February. Pre-order here! [/teaser] In an early announcement to retailers, Starz/Anchor Bay will be releasing 'Cutie and the Boxer' on Blu-ray on February 4. In New York City in 1969, 19-year-old art student Noriko fell in love with 41-year-old avant-garde artist Ushio Shinohara and put her career on hold to marry and support this rising star of the Manhattan art world. But 40 years later and still struggling, Ushio remains consumed with reinforcing his legacy via his ‘boxing’ paintings while Noriko is now finding her own creative voice through a series of drawings entitled “Cutie And Bullie” that depict their chaotic relationship and transforming roles of assistant and artist. 'Cutie and the Boxer' is a powerful and poignant documentary about creativity, sacrifice, and a love that is its own unique work of art. Specs haven't been revealed yet, but supplements include: Deleted Scenes, Shinohara: The Last Artist by Rod McHall, Q&A At The Sundance Film Festival, and Action Is Art: A Study of Ushio Shinohara's Boxing Painting. Suggested list price for the Blu-ray is $29.99. You can find the latest specs for 'Cutie and the Boxer' linked from our Blu-ray Release Schedule, where it is indexed under February 4.Posted Mon Dec 23, 2013 at 10:00 AM PST by: -
'Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa' Dated and Detailed for Blu-ray[teaser]One of the funniest movies of the year is arriving on Blu-ray next month and is now available for pre-order. [/teaser] In an early announcement to retailers, Paramount will be bringing 'Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa' on Blu-ray on January 28. 'Jackass' ringleader Johnny Knoxville reprises his role as 86-year-old Irving Zisman in the story of a crotchety old man unexpectedly saddled with the care of his 8-year-old grandson, Billy (Jackson Nicoll). The two generations of troublemakers soon develop a bond, as they hustle their way across the heartland of America pursuing hijinks and pulling pranks on unsuspecting, real-life people—all of whom had no idea they were starring in a hidden camera film and “one of the sharpest comedies of the year.”(Scott Bowles, USA Today). “We had so much hilarious footage that we had to cut for various reasons, so I’m psyched that people are going to get to see everything, especially when it’s unrated and on Blu-ray. Woohoo!!” said Johnny Knoxville. “Plus I think fans will get a kick out of seeing how we pulled off some of the pranks in the behind-the-scenes footage. As Irving would say, ‘The show’s not over until I hogwrench the fat lady's spatooly.'" The Blu-ray/DVD/Digital Copy Combo Pack will feature both the Theatrical and Unrated cuts of the film with 1080p video, a lossless 5.1 soundtrack, and supplements include Behind-the-Scenes Featurettes and Deleted Scenes. Suggested list price for the Blu-ray is $39.99. You can find the latest specs for 'Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa' linked from our Blu-ray Release Schedule, where it's indexed under January 28.Posted Mon Dec 23, 2013 at 08:00 AM PST by: -
Blu-ray Highlights: Week of December 22nd, 2013It's Christmas time and the holiday slowdown is in full effect. Nevertheless, a handful of new Blu-rays will be released this week. Check out our coverage in the blog.Posted Mon Dec 23, 2013 at 07:00 AM PST by: -
'The Freshman' Announced for Blu-ray[teaser]The 1925 silent comedy classic is bound for Blu-ray in March. [/teaser] In an early announcement to retailers, Criterion has revealed 'The Freshman' will head to Blu-ray on March 25. Harold Lloyd's biggest box-office hit was this silent comedy gem, featuring the befuddled everyman at his eager best as a new college student. Though he dreams of being a big man on campus, the freshman's careful plans inevitably go hilariously awry, be it on the football field or at the Fall Frolic. But he gets a climactic chance to prove his mettle—and impress the sweet girl he loves—in one of the most famous sports sequences ever filmed. This crowd-pleaser is a gleeful showcase for Lloyd's slapstick brilliance and incandescent charm, and it's accompanied here by a new orchestral score by Carl Davis. The Blu-ray/DVD Combo Pack will feature a New 4K digital transfer from a restoration by the UCLA Film and Television Archive, an uncompressed stereo soundtrack, and supplements include: Audio commentary featuring director and Harold Lloyd archivist Richard Correll, film historian Richard Bann, and film critic and historian Leonard Maltin; Lloyd's prologue to the film, created for the 1966 rerelease; Three newly restored Lloyd shorts: The Marathon (1919), with a new score by Gabriel Thibaudeau, and An Eastern Westerner and High and Dizzy (both 1920), with new scores composed and conducted by Davis; Big Man on Campus, a new visual essay on the film's locations by silent-film historian John Bengtson; Conversation between Correll and film historian Kevin Brownlow; Footage from a 1963 Delta Kappa Alpha tribute to Lloyd, featuring comedian Steve Allen, director Delmer Daves, and actor Jack Lemmon; Lloyd's 1953 appearance on the television show What's My Line; and a booklet featuring an essay by critic Stephen Winer. Suggested list price for the Blu-ray is $39.95. You can find the latest specs for 'The Freshman' linked from our Blu-ray Release Schedule, where it's indexed under March 25.Posted Mon Dec 23, 2013 at 06:00 AM PST by:
