Displaying items by tag: Robert Wise

Heads up, Digital Bits faithful: The Walt Disney Company, 20th Century Studios, and Concord Theatricals and Originals have just officially announced the 4K restoration, theatrical re-release, and physical 4K Ultra HD release of Robert Wise’s The Sound of Music (1965)! The actual anniversary is on 3/2, but the theatrical and physical media release is currently set for “later this year.”

And if you’re a regular reader of The Bits, you’ll know that we first revealed that this title was coming in 4K UHD all the way back on November 5th of last year, so this will come as no surprise to you! (We also revealed a whole bunch of other 4K catalog titles that day, so you might want to go back and review the entire My Two Cents column from that day if you missed it.)

Here’s the full text of Disney’s press release from this morning...

CELEBRATING SIXTY YEARS OF THE SOUND OF MUSIC

BURBANK, CA (February 20, 2025) – This March 2, 2025 will mark 60 years since the tunes of Rodgers & Hammerstein brought theatrical hills alive with the cinematic treasure The Sound of Music. This year, fans of all ages will experience the heart-warming sights and sing-along sounds of the classic film in a beautifully restored and remastered version to be released in 4K image resolution, courtesy of the precise work endeavored by the Walt Disney Film Restoration team. Over the course of 9 months, the restoration team oversaw digital scanning of preserved film footage and expert clean-up efforts to correct any dirt, warping or other issues encountered. “Our team is honored to care for and re-deliver this classic film to audiences around the world so they can enjoy it in all its originally intended visual and audio glory,” says Kevin Schaeffer, Director, Restoration & Library Management. Weaving artistic skills with innovative technology in a process more delicate than the petals of an edelweiss, the 60th anniversary restoration of The Sound of Music sings with both vibrant color and resounding melody, sharing the cinematic legacy anew for generations to come. [Read on here...]

Morning, everyone! We start today with no less than three new disc reviews, including...

Stephen’s in-depth look at Stuart Rosenberg’s Cool Hand Luke (1967) in 4K Ultra HD from Warner Bros. Home Entertainment, as well as his thoughts on John Frankenheimer’s Black Sunday (1977) on Blu-ray from Arrow Video.

We’ve also got my take on Paramount’s new Star Trek: The Next Generation 4-Movie Collection box set in 4K Ultra HD—just an overall summary to go along with my detailed reviews of each of the individual films in 4K.

Now then, we’ve got a bunch of great announcement news today, and some updates on titles we’ve mentioned previously here at The Bits, starting with news from the Warner Archive Collection!

On the latest installment of Tim Millard’s excellent The Extras podcast, our friend George Feltenstein has revealed more of Warner Archive’s May Blu-ray titles, which will include Rouben Mamoulian’s Queen Christina (1933), Joseph Losey’s The Boy with Green Hair (1948), Compton Bennett and Andrew Marton’s King Solomon’s Mines (1950), Vincente Minnelli’s The Courtship of Eddie’s Father (1963), and Joseph Barbera and William Hanna’s Hey There, It’s Yogi Bear! (1964). All of these are new negative scans (The Boy with Green Hair and King Solomon’s Mines from the original Technicolor negatives).

Also coming later this year are Howard Hawks’ Land of the Pharaohs (1955) and Robert Wise’s Helen of Troy (1956). [Read on here...]

All right, I’ve just spent all week reviewing every single one of the new Star Trek 4K Ultra HD releases, save for the new 6-Movie Collection. So you can now read my thoughts on: The 3-disc Star Trek: The Motion Picture – Director’s Edition: The Complete Adventure, the 2-disc wide release of the Star Trek: The Motion Picture – Director’s Edition, and the 2-disc wide releases of Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, Star Trek III: The Search for Spock, Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home, Star Trek V: The Final Frontier, and Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country, all in 4K Ultra HD from Paramount.

For those who might be wondering, the new 6-Movie Collection includes everything except for the Special Longer Version of Star Trek: The Motion Picture which is exclusive to the Complete Adventure box set. So adjust your purchase plans accordingly. All the details on the other SKUs are in the reviews linked above. I hope you enjoy them all!

Now then... as you can see by the image on the left there, the Universal Classic Monsters: Icons of Horror Collection – Volume 2 box set is now official and (more importantly) available for pre-order! [Read on here...]

Welcome to Monday, Bits readers!

I’ve been hard at work all weekend going through all of the content on the new Star Trek 4K titles, which street on 9/6, and as such I now have three in-depth reviews for you all to enjoy...

Available now on The Bits are my thoughts on William Shatner’s Star Trek V: The Final Frontier, Nicholas Meyer’s Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country, and Robert Wise’s long awaited 4K upgrade of the Star Trek: The Motion Picture – Director’s Edition as found in the new 3-disc The Complete Adventure Limited Edition box set. All three releases are terrific and should please the veteran Star Trek diehards among you. Paramount has really done right by these films.

For the record, I will indeed be reviewing the single-film 4K UHD SKUs of Star Trek II, III, IV, and also the movie only Star Trek: TMP – DE when they become available, but I probably will not have those discs until much closer to street date.

In the meantime, there’s plenty to dig into in this first batch of reviews. [Read on here...]

First things first this afternoon: I posted a review here at The Bits yesterday of John Sturges’ 1969 spaceflight drama Marooned on all-region import Blu-ray from the good folks at Imprint Films. It’s definitely worth tracking down for fans.

And I’ll have more new reviews this week as well, including my take on Criterion’s For All Mankind in 4K, which will be posted here on The Bits tomorrow.

Now then, let’s get to the main event for today’s My Two Cents update...

Last night I had the privilege of attending the debut screening of Robert Wise’s 4K-remastered Star Trek: The Motion Picture – Director’s Edition at Paramount, some 21 years after attending the premiere of the 2001 DVD version in the same theater. And I’m thrilled to report that it’s absolutely spectacular. [Read on here...]

All right, folks... it’s finally official! Here’s Paramount’s full press release for the Star Trek title we’ve all been waiting for...

Fully Restored Director’s Edition of Star Trek: The Motion Picture Makes Its Long-Awaited Debut

The Definitive Vision of Director Robert Wise Debuts Exclusively on Paramount+ April 5, 2022, in Celebration of First Contact Day

Film Arrives on 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray in September with Extensive New Bonus Content

LOS ANGELES, Calif. – March 24, 2022 – Eagerly anticipated by Star Trek fans for over two decades, Star Trek: The Motion Picture – The Director’s Edition will make its long-awaited debut exclusively on Paramount+ on April 5, 2022, in celebration of First Contact Day. [Read on here...]

We’ve got more new disc reviews for you today, starting with Tim’s look at the animated Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse in 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray, and Blu-ray 3D Combo from Random Space Media in Australia.

Also, Dennis has checked in with his thoughts on Robert Aldrich’s The Flight of the Phoenix (1965) on Blu-ray from the Criterion Collection.

And I’ve turned in my thoughts on Umbrella Entertainment’s new all-region Blu-ray release of the Frank Herbert’s Dune Collection, which includes both Frank Herbert’s Dune (2000) and also Children of Dune (2003).

More reviews are on the way for tomorrow and all throughout the week, so be sure to check back for them.

Now then, neither Paramount, nor Paramount+, nor StarTrek.com have posted that trailer for the Star Trek: The Motion Picture – Director’s Edition yet, but they keep blocking trailer leaks on YouTube and social media, so one assumes it’s coming soon. In any case, we’ll be sure to share it here and on our social when it’s finally official. [Read on here...]

All right, we’ve got some great new disc reviews for you today, along with some terrific announcement news as well. But first, as always, those reviews...

I’ve just posted my in-depth look at Francis Ford Coppola’s legendary The Godfather Trilogy in 4K Ultra HD from Paramount. And let me tell you, the image restoration is breathtaking—as good as the 2008 Blu-rays were, this is almost a night and day difference. It’s really something. Best of all, the set includes all three films, including Coda (and two alternate versions of Part III as well), not to mention a wealth of new and legacy special features. There’s even restored mono audio on The Godfather and The Godfather Part II. This may very well be the 4K release of the year, so don’t miss it.

Also today, I’ve taken a look at Volume 3 and Volume 4 of ClassicFix’s 2K restorations of The Little Rascals shorts on Blu-ray. It appears that there will be 7 volumes total to release all 80 of the classic Hal Roach sound shorts, and Volume 5 is already slated for release on 4/5.

We’ve got more new disc reviews coming tomorrow and all this week, including Madman and The Sword and the Sorcerer in 4K and much more, so be sure to keep your eyes peeled for those. [Read on here...]

We’ve got three more new disc reviews for you to enjoy today, starting with Tim’s look at Tom Tykwer’s Run Lola Run (1998), as recently released on Blu-ray from Umbrella Entertainment. It’s an Aussie import title, but all-region.

Also today, Dennis has turned in his thoughts on Alan J. Pakula’s The Parallax View (1974), which is newly released on Blu-ray from Imprint Films in Australia, also a region-free disc.

And Stephen has offered his thoughts on Shinsuke Terasawa’s animated Catwoman: Hunted in 4K Ultra HD from Warner Bros. Home Entertainment, the latest installment in their DC Animated Universe.

What’s more, we have another “bonus” film retrospective from our own Michael Coate today in his History, Legacy and Showmanship column, as he takes a look back at Robert Wise’s original West Side Story (1961) in honor of the film’s 60th anniversary. Michael is joined by film and musical experts Matthew Kennedy, Bruce Kimmel, and Mike Matessino for a great roundtable discussion. Enjoy! [Read on here...]

“West Side Story stands as a prime example of successfully rendering a stage musical in cinematic terms.” – Matthew Kennedy, author of Roadshow!

The Digital Bits and History, Legacy & Showmanship are pleased to present this retrospective commemorating the 60th anniversary of the release of West Side Story, Robert Wise (The Sound of Music, Star!) and Jerome Robbins’ (The King and I, Gypsy) screen adaptation of the popular musical stage production inspired by Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet and starring Natalie Wood (Rebel Without a Cause, Brainstorm) as Maria and Richard Beymer (The Diary of Anne Frank, Twin Peaks) as Tony.

The winner of ten Academy Awards including Best Picture, the most popular movie of 1961 and one of the most popular musicals ever also featured Russ Tamblyn (Seven Brides for Seven Brothers) as Riff, Rita Moreno (The King and I) as Anita, and George Chakiris (The Young Girls of Rochefort) as Bernardo. [Read on here...]