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HDD Cool Stuff: 'Men in Black Trilogy Limited Edition Giftset with Worm Figurine' Blu-ray Announced[teaser]All three films in the hit franchise will be packaged together in a collector's boxed set this November! [/teaser] In any early announcement to retailers, Sony has revealed 'Men in Black Trilogy Limited Edition Giftset with Worm Figurine' will be released on November 30. The release will include 'Men in Black,' 'Men in Black II,' and 'Men in Black III' as well as a collectible worm alien drinking coffee figurine. The discs are expected to be the same as the individual counterpart releases. Suggested retail price for this box set is $95.99. You can find the latest specs for 'Men in Black Trilogy Limited Edition Giftset with Worm Figurine' linked from our Blu-ray Release Schedule, where it's indexed under November 30.Posted Fri Sep 21, 2012 at 10:00 AM PDT by: -
'Wake in Fright' Found and Restored[teaser]After 40 years, Ted Kotcheff's long lost Australian thriller has been found and painstakingly restored for a theatrical re-release. [/teaser] “iWake In Fright' is a deeply – and I mean deeply – unsettling and disturbing movie. I saw it when it premiered at Cannes in 1971, and it left me speechless. Visually, dramatically, atmospherically and psychologically, its beautifully calibrated and it gets under your skin one encounter at a time, right along with the protagonist played by Gary Bond. I’m excited that Wake In Fright has been preserved and restored and that it is finally getting the exposure it deserves.”–Martin Scorsese, 2012 “Powerful, Genuinely Shocking & Rather Amazing!”-Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun Times “The Best & Most Terrifying Film About Australia In Existence.”-Nick Cave Alongside 'Mad Max' and 'Walkabout,' 'Wake In Fright' is widely acknowledged as one of the seminal films in the development of modern Australian cinema. Combining the backwoods horror of 'Deliverance' and the gritty nihilism of 'Straw Dogs,' the film tells the story of a British schoolteacher's (Gary Bond) descent into personal demoralization at the hands of drunken, deranged derelicts (including a very inebriated "doctor" played by Donald Pleasence), while stranded in a small town in outback Australia. The film made its world premiere at the 1971 Cannes Film Festival where it was nominated for a Palme D'Or and its US distribution rights were sold. Retitled 'Outback' and hurried into a few theaters across the country, the film barely played for more than a week before it was yanked from circulation due to poor attendance and lack of advertising. 'Wake In Fright' vanished into obscurity, barely reviewed by American critics and never appearing on domestic VHS or DVD. For over three decades the film materials were thought to be lost until the film's persistent cinematographer unearthed the original negative elements in Philadelphia in canisters marked for destruction just one week away from its impending incineration. The materials were painstakingly restored frame-by-frame at Sydney's At Lab Deluxe with the support of the National Film And Sound Archive of Australia. The new restoration was invited back to Cannes by guest curator Martin Scorsese, where it held the honor of being one of two films to ever screen twice at the festival (the other being Antonioni's L'Avventura). Virtually unseen in the US and renowned in its home country after years of neglect for its daring criticism, 'Wake In Fright' is ripe for rediscovery, and returns after 40 years to reclaim its title as one of the most awe-inspiring, brutal and stunning films of all time. 'Wake in Fright' is the story of John Grant (Gary Bond), a bonded teacher who arrives in the rough Australian outback mining town of Bundanyabba, planning to stay overnight before catching the plane to Sydney. But, as his one night stretches to five, he plunges headlong toward his own destruction. When the alcohol-induced mist lifts, the educated John Grant is no more. Instead there is a self-loathing man in a desolate wasteland, dirty, red-eyed, sitting against a tree and looking at a rifle with one bullet left. Theatrical Release Date: New York, October 5, 2012 at Film Forum; Los Angeles, October 19, 2012 Landmark NuArt Theatre; Nationally Oct/Nov 2012.Posted Fri Sep 21, 2012 at 08:00 AM PDT by: -
'Mrs. Miniver' Blu-ray Announced[teaser]The Oscar-winning classic is bound for Blu-ray in January! [/teaser] In an early announcement to retailers, Warner Brothers is preparing 'Mrs. Miniver' for Blu-ray on January 8. Winner of six Academy Awards including Best Picture, this memorable spirit-lifter about an idealized England that tends to its prize-winning roses while confronting the terror of war struck a patriotic chord with audiences and became 1942's #1 box-office hit. Greer Garson gives a formidable Oscar-winning title-role performance, comforting children in a shelter, capturing an enemy parachutist and delivering an inspirational portrait of stiff-upper lip British resolve. When Hitler did his worst, Mrs. Miniver did her best. Specs and supplements have yet to be revealed, but suggested list price for the Blu-ray is $19.98. You can find the latest specs for 'Mrs. Miniver' linked from our Blu-ray Release Schedule, where it's indexed under January 8.Posted Fri Sep 21, 2012 at 06:00 AM PDT by: -
'Grand Hotel' Blu-ray Dated[teaser]The 1932 Oscar winning film has been dated for Blu-ray in January. [/teaser] In an early announcement to retailers, Warner Brothers will release 'Grand Hotel' on Blu-ray on January 8. In this great screen drama, the glitz and glitter of Berlin's opulent 'Grand Hotel' comes alive with its star-studded guests and employees: Greta Garbo, John Barrymore, Joan Crawford, Wallace Beery and Lionel Barrymore. Specs and supplements have yet to be revealed, but suggested list price for the Blu-ray is $19.98. You can find the latest specs for 'Grand Hotel' linked from our Blu-ray Release Schedule, where it's indexed under January 8.Posted Thu Sep 20, 2012 at 12:00 PM PDT by: -
'Rescue - 3D' Blu-ray Announced[teaser]Another IMAX documentary hits the Blu-ray 3D format this November. [/teaser] In an early announcement to retailers, Image Entertainment is working on 'Rescue - 3D' for Blu-ray 3D (2D included) on November 6. 'Rescue' plunges audiences into the grueling, highly technical work of saving lives in the face of a natural disaster and introduces a few of the heroes who step up to make it happen. The film follows first responders as they train at sea, in the air and on the ground preparing for the worst that can happen. And then it does... When a magnitude 7.0 earthquake strikes the Caribbean nation of Haiti, emergency teams jump into action. Within days, a massive effort is launched that brings military and civilian responders and hardware from around the world, and then the real work begins. 'Rescue' is an odyssey of real-world disaster and emergency response captured (in 3D) with unprecedented scale and impact. Specs and supplements have yet to be revealed, but suggested list price for the Blu-ray is $24.98. You can find the latest specs for 'Rescue - 3D' linked from our Blu-ray Release Schedule, where it's indexed under November 6.Posted Thu Sep 20, 2012 at 10:00 AM PDT by: -
'Driving Miss Daisy' Blu-ray Announced[teaser]The Academy Award winning drama has found a place to park on Blu-ray this January. [/teaser] In an early announcement to retailers, Warner Brothers will release 'Driving Miss Daisy' in a Blu-ray digibook on January 8. Alfred Uhry's moving Pulitzer Prize-winning play became 1989's Academy Award-winning Best Picture. 'Driving Miss Daisy' tells of genteel but strong-willed Atlanta matron Daisy (Best Actress Oscar winner Jessica Tandy) and her patient but equally determined chauffeur Hoke (Morgan Freeman). For two people so different, they have a lot in common. And the bumpy road they travel ultimately leads to the friendship of a lifetime. From the film's nine Oscar nominations, it drove off with two more awards: Best Adaptation Screenplay (Uhry) and Makeup. Specs have yet to be revealed, but supplements will include a new featurette, audio commentary, vintage documentaries, and a trailer. Suggested list price for the digibook is $27.98. You can find the latest specs for 'Driving Miss Daisy' linked from our Blu-ray Release Schedule, where it's indexed under January 8.Posted Thu Sep 20, 2012 at 08:00 AM PDT by: -
Oppo Announces a Pair of High-End Universal Blu-ray Players[teaser]The BD-103 and BD-105's newly added HDMI ports mean you can route other devices through your player to take advantage of the scaling and processing. [/teaser] It's been a while since we've seen anything out of Oppo, but the company has finally announced updates to the BDP-93 and BDP-95 Blu-ray players that they're so well known for. The new models add some updates for new tech and new content, as well as offering up some unexpected bonuses. On the visual side of things, you'll get Marvell Qdeo processing to help video look its best. In addition to 1080 upscaling like you'd expect, both the BD-103 and BD-105 take video up to 4K. They'll also convert 2D to 3D and provide you with the plenty of options to tweak video to your liking. A particularly cool addition to these players is a pair of HDMI inputs, one of which is located on the front and the other of which is located on the back. You can attach a set-top box, game console or whatever else you like and the player will apply the same processing and upscaling. And you're in luck if you want to watch content from a tablet or smartphone – the front HDMI input doubles as an MHL input. As you might imagine, both of Oppo's new players can handle decoding of the latest HD formats. Both the BDP-103 and 105 give you configurable 7.1 channel analog outs, but the BDP-105 steps thing up with a pair of ESS Sabre32 Reference DACs, a Toroidal linear power supply, dedicated RCA and XLR stereo outputs and even a headphone amplifier that connects directly through the DAC. The BDP-103 is expected to launch sometime in October at a price of $499. The BDP-105 is expected by the end of the year at a price of $1,199. Source: OppoPosted Thu Sep 20, 2012 at 07:00 AM PDT by: -
'The Qatsi Trilogy' Announced and Detailed for Blu-ray[teaser]A boxed set containing Godfrey Reggio's film trilogy will arrive on Blu-ray in December. [/teaser] In an early announcement to retailers, Criterion has slated 'The Qatsi Trilogy' for Blu-ray on December 11. 'Koyaanisqatsi' - Godfrey Reggio's 'Koyaanisqatsi' is an astonishing collage; the film shuttles the viewer from one jaw-dropping vision to the next, moving from images of untouched nature to others depicting human beings' increasing reliance on technology. 'Powaqqatsi' - Five years after Godfrey Reggio stunned audiences with 'Koyaanisqatsi,' he joined forces again with composer Philip Glass and other collaborators for a second chapter. Here, Reggio turns his sights on third world nations in the southern hemisphere. 'Naqoyqatsi' - With a variety of cinematic techniques, including slow motion, time-lapse, and computer-generated imagery, the film tells of a world that has completely transitioned from a natural environment to a human-made one. The 3-disc Blu-ray set will feature 1080p video, DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 soundtrack, and supplements include: Essence of Life, an interview program with Reggio and composer Philip Glass on Koyaanisqatsi; New interview with cinematographer Ron Fricke about Koyaanisqatsi; Early forty-minute demo version of Koyaanisqatsi with a scratch soundtrack by Allen Ginsberg, along with a new introduction by Reggio; New interview with Reggio about Koyaanisqatsi's original visual concept, with behind-the-scenes footage; Impact of Progress, an interview program with Reggio and Glass on their collaboration; Inspiration and Ideas, an interview with Reggio about his greatest influences and teachers; Anima Mundi (1992), Reggio's twenty-eight-minute montage of images of over seventy animal species, scored by Glass; Video afterword by Reggio on the trilogy; The Making of "Naqoyqatsi," a brief documentary featuring interviews with the production crew; Panel discussion on Naqoyqatsi from 2003, with Reggio, Glass, editor Jon Kane, and music critic John Rockwell; Music of "Naqoyqatsi," an interview with Glass and cellist Yo-Yo Ma; Television spots and an interview with Reggio relating to his 1970s multimedia privacy campaign in New Mexico; Trailers ; and a booklet featuring essays on the trilogy by film scholar Scott MacDonald, Rockwell, and author and environmentalist Bill McKibben. Suggested list price for the Blu-ray is $79.95. You can find the latest specs for 'The Qatsi Trilogy' linked from our Blu-ray Release Schedule, where it's indexed under December 11.Posted Thu Sep 20, 2012 at 06:00 AM PDT by: -
'Brazil' Criterion Collection Blu-ray Dated and Detailed[teaser]Terry Gilliam's 1985 dystopian classic is getting the Criterion Blu-ray treatment this December! [/teaser] In an early announcement to retailers, the Criterion Collection will proudly present 'Brazil' on Blu-ray on December 4. This cautionary tale by Terry Gilliam, one of the great films of the 1980s, now ranks alongside antitotalitarian works by the likes of George Orwell, Aldous Huxley, and Kurt Vonnegut Jr. The Blu-ray will feature the director's cut of the film with a 1080p digital transfer, an English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 soundtrack, and supplements include: Audio commentary by Terry Gilliam; What Is "Brazil"?, a thirty-minute on-set documentary by Rob Hedden; The Battle of "Brazil": A Video History, a sixty-minute documentary by author and film writer Jack Mathews about the controversy surrounding the film's release; The "Love Conquers All" version of Brazil, a ninety-four-minute cut of the film produced by the studio in an attempt to make it more commercial, with commentary by Brazil expert David Morgan; The Production Notebook, a collection of supplements featuring a trove of Brazil-iana from Gilliam's personal collection: a short documentary on the screenplay, featuring interviews with screenwriters Gilliam, Charles McKeown, and Tom Stoppard; Gilliam's storyboards for unfilmed dream sequences, animated and narrated by Morgan; visual essays on the film's production design and special effects; a visual essay on Brazil's costumes, narrated by costume designer James Acheson; and interviews with Gilliam and composer Michael Kamen on the score; Trailer; and a booklet featuring an essay by film critic David Sterritt. Suggested list price for the Blu-ray is $49.95. You can find the latest specs for 'Brazil' linked from our Blu-ray Release Schedule, where it's indexed under December 4.Posted Wed Sep 19, 2012 at 12:00 PM PDT by: -
Sony Redesigns the PlayStation 3 – Announces 250GB and 500GB Models for U.S.[teaser]There’s also a special edition ‘Assassin’s Creed 3’ bundle in the works. [/teaser] At the Tokyo Game Show, Sony just announced another redesign for the PlayStation 3 that slims the system down yet again. There are two different sizes coming – 250GB and 500GB. The 500GB model will run $299 when it launches October 30th. The 250GB version will initially be offered as a bundle, which will come with the ‘Uncharted 3’ Game of the Year Edition and $30 worth of content in ‘Dust 514.’ The bundle will run $269 when it comes out on September 25th while the standalone system will cost $249. Sony has not yet announced a release date for the standalone system. Europe and Hong Kong get one more option that we don’t – a 12GB version that uses flash memory instead of a standard hard drive. That’s going to run the equivalent of $389. Source: JoystiqPosted Wed Sep 19, 2012 at 10:30 AM PDT by:
