Items filtered by date: August 2015

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All right, we’ve got kind of a slow news day today, but we do have one thing for you…

Sony has just announced a partnership with Dolby Labs for the use of its Dolby Vision High Dynamic Range (HDR) mastering process in forthcoming Sony 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray releases (read the press release here at Business Wire). No titles have been announced yet, but based on the studio’s recent 4K remastering work you can reasonably expect such titles as The Fifth Element, Léon: The Professional, Bram Stoker’s Dracula, American Hustle, The Amazing Spider-Man 2, Fury, Lawrence of Arabia, and more… eventually.  [Read on here…]

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More new announcements and updates for this afternoon...

Paramount has made South Park: The Complete Eighteenth Season official for 2-disc Blu-ray and DVD release on 10/6 (SRP $42.99 and $29.99). Extras are set to include deleted scenes, #SocialCommentary on all episodes and the usual “mini” commentaries on all the episodes by Trey Parker and Matt Stone.  [Read on here…]

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We’ve got a quick one for you today...

First up, we have a trio of new disc reviews. Tim Salmons has checked out Shout! Factory’s new Mystery Science Theater 3000: Volume 1 DVD reissue a look. Jim Hemphill has done the same for Kino Lorber’s recent Blu-ray release of The Reivers (1969), starring Steve McQueen. Finally, I’ve given Disney’s new Star Wars: Rebels – Complete Season One a spin on Blu-ray and found it to be surprisingly fun and engaging, not just for kids of classic trilogy fans of all ages. Do give them a look.  [Read on here…]

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All right, we have some new release news for you today...

Here’s a surprise: The Monkees: The Complete TV Series is coming to Blu-ray on 1/29/2016, including all 58 episodes and the film Head. Mastered from the original negatives, and featuring extras that include audio commentary from all four of the Monkees, plus outtakes, original Kellogg’s TV spots and more. The 7-disc, region free set will be available in Fan only and regular packaging and will be limited to 10,000 units. It’s available for pre-order only on their official website here.  [Read on here…]

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It’s a slow news day today, given the Labor Day holiday here in the States. All the studios are closed and there’s no announcements being made today. Still, we do have a couple items for you...

A number of you have asked about Warner’s The Hobbit Trilogy 3D: Extended Edition in Blu-ray 3D. Amazon.com hasn’t started taking pre-orders on the set yet, but strangely you can already pre-order the German version here on Amazon.de. Supposedly Amazon has the exclusive on the 3D version, but we don’t know when they’re going to start promoting it.  [Read on here…]

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We’ll be back with more later today, but we wanted to quickly chime in here today with additional word on Ultra HD Blu-ray out of IFA in Berlin. We understand now that Samsung’s newly announced 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray player is targeted for release in the 1st Quarter of 2016 (we’re hearing late January or February). We’re also hearing that the player’s price is “going to pleasantly surprise people.”  [Read on here…]

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All right, Star Wars fans… at least one of the days you’ve been waiting for is finally here. Disney has just rolled out a huge batch of all-new Star Wars toys, action figures, games, collectibles, and other products – many tied to the release of the new film, The Force Awakens – and you can finally get your hands on them today on Amazon.com. [Read on here…]

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The big news today is that Samsung has just announced the very first 4K UHD Blu-ray player at the IFA 2015 conference in Berlin: the UBD-K8500. It’s expected to be available in Europe early in 2016, but a U.S. version will be available as well. No pricing information has yet been given, but we think it’s reasonable to look for prices in the $500 - 1000 USD range to start.  [Read on here…]

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All right, we’ve got a bit of ground to cover today. As you may be aware, I’ve been away for a few days. Specifically, my wife and I were attending a family gathering (of my brothers and sister, plus significant others) in Chicago this past weekend. Sarah and I also just celebrated our 25th wedding anniversary yesterday. So things have been a little busy here, as you can imagine, but good busy!

Meanwhile, our own Jim Hemphill did post a review of Kino Lorber’s Defiance on Blu-ray on Friday afternoon. Tim Salmons also took some time on Monday to honor the passing of a director and horror film legend we all greatly admire here at The Bits: Wes Craven. The man who gave us The Last House on the Left, The Hills Have Eyes, Nightmare on Elm Street, Scream, and many more died of cancer on Sunday. He was 76 and will be dearly missed. (Read more here at NPR.) So you should check out both of those posts if you haven’t already.  [Read on here…]