Displaying items by tag: Tim Salmons

We’ve got some good stuff for you here at the site today! So let’s get right into it.

First of all, we’ve posted a trio of new 4K Ultra HD reviews...

Late last night, I posted my in-depth thoughts on John Landis’ The Blues Brothers, new in 4K Ultra HD from Universal. I love this film and the good news is that it’s never looked and sounded better. Check it out here.

Also today, Tim has posted reviews of Blue Underground’s new 4K Ultra HD editions of William Lustig’s Maniac (1980) and Lucio Fulci’s Zombie (1979). These too have never looked better, but do be aware that the cover artwork pictured here on The Bits is NOT the final artwork.

We have to censor the cover art on some of these horror titles or Google flags them as offensive, which crushes our advertising. And we need advertising to survive, so there it is. Anyway, enjoy the titles! Blue Underground does great work. [Read on here...]

All right, we’ve got more disc reviews for you today...

First up, Tim has turned in his thoughts on Wes Anderson’s The Grand Budapest Hotel now on Blu-ray from The Criterion Collection. Tim has also looked at the new Top Secret!: Special Edition Blu-ray from Via Vision Entertainment. It’s a REGION FREE import from Australia.

Meanwhile, Dennis has taken a look at a pair of new titles from Kino Lorber Studio Classics, including Stanley Kramer’s The Runner Stumbles (1979) and Leslie Norman’s The Long and the Short and the Tall (1961). Both are worth a look.

And finally, I’ve finished my review of Tony Scott’s Days of Thunder in 4K Ultra HD from Paramount. Whatever you may think of the film, the new 4K presentation is pretty good and a nice upgrade for fans.

More reviews are in the offing, so be sure to check back tomorrow. [Read on here...]

Today, we’ve got just a very quick My Two Cents update for you, however not with release news.

But as promised, we’ve got a bunch of new disc reviews...

First, our own Tim Salmons has checked out Via Vision Entertainment’s new region-free Blu-ray import version of Police Squad! The Complete Series. (Note that the CBS/Paramount Blu-ray version has also been reviewed here.)

Speaking of Paramount, Dennis has turned in his thoughts on their new Alfred Hitchcock/Paramount Presents title, To Catch a Thief (1955). [Read on here...]

We’re starting today with more new Blu-ray reviews, including Dennis’ take on Roy William Neill’s Black Angel (1946) from Arrow Academy.

Tim has also posted his thoughts on Jacques Tourneur’s The Leopard Man (1943) on Blu-ray from Shout! and Scream Factory. Enjoy!

In announcement news today, Warner Bros. Home Entertainment has just set The CW’s Batwoman: The Complete First Season for Blu-ray and DVD release on 8/18. The 5-disc set will include all 20 episodes, plus a “limited edition bonus disc” that features all 5 episodes of the DC Crossover Event Crisis on Infinite Earths and “6 Crossover Bonus Features.” Extras on the main set will include On the Set, The Best of DC TV’s Comic-Con Panels San Diego 2019, deleted scenes, and a gag reel. You can see the cover artwork at left. [Read on here...]

All right, we’ve got a few new reviews of for you to enjoy today...

Tim has turned in his thoughts on Takashi Miike, Renpei Tsukamoto, and Manabu Aso’s One Missed Call Trilogy, recently released on Blu-ray by Arrow Video. He’s also got a look at Roman Polanski’s The Fearless Vampire Killers, released late last year on Blu-ray from The Warner Archive Collection.

And Dennis has got a look at Glenn Danzig’s Verotika on Blu-ray as sell, new from Cleopatra Entertainment.

Meanwhile, I’m finally recovered from my post-Star Wars review blitz, so I’ll have some new Blu-ray and 4K reviews toward the end of this week as well. [Read on here...]

All right, we’ve got a couple things to report today...

First up, NBCUniversal’s Fandango service is going to purchase Vudu from Walmart, according to reports in the trades today (see this link at Variety). This is interesting and it doesn’t surprise me. I expect there will be lots of consolidation in the Digital space in the months and years ahead, and I also expect every major studio to try and grow their own footprint in the digital space or to team up with others who have. And of course the Digital category includes not just streaming/subscription services but transactional purchases too. So it makes a lot of sense.

Also today, I’ve been invited—and have just begun—to check out the high-end digital movie service Kaleidescape. I’ll have more on that experience here at The Digital Bits in a few weeks, after I’ve really given it a thorough test and tryout. [Read on here...]

All right, after months of “we knew it was coming” to last week’s early studio leak that was quickly pulled back, Universal has finally made it official: Steven Spielberg’s Jaws is coming to 4K Ultra HD on 6/2 in honor of the film’s 45th anniversary. The package will include the film on 4K and Blu-ray with a Digital code, lenticular packaging and a 44-page booklet with introductions, rare photos, storyboards and more from the archives.

Both the 4K UHD disc and the Blu-ray will include The Making of Jaws, The Shark Is Still Working: The Impact & Legacy of Jaws, Jaws: The Restoration, deleted Scenes and outtakes, From the Set, and the film’s theatrical trailer. The Blu-ray will add storyboards, production photos, Marketing Jaws, and The Jaws Phenomenon.

The 4K Ultra HD disc will also include HDR10, HDR10+, and Dolby Vision high dynamic range, along with Dolby Atmos audio. Additional audio options will include DTS and Dolby Digital 2.0 mono. And yes, that IS correct: There’s no DTS-X. Also, our sources tell us that the Atmos mix is a 12-channel expansion of the revisionist 7.1 mix done in 2013. The good news is that the original mono options are included. You can see the cover artwork above left and also below. [Read on here...]

The big news today is going to make some of you very happy. The Criterion Collection has just unveiled its full July slate of Blu-ray titles, and it’s set to include the classic War of the Worlds! The full slate is as follows...

Look for Byron Haskin’s War of the Worlds (Spine #1037 – Blu-ray and DVD) on 7/7, the previously-announced Bruce Lee: His Greatest Hits box set (Spine #1036 – includes The Big Boss, Fist of Fury, The Way of the Dragon, Enter the Dragon, and Game of Death – Blu-ray only) and Preston Sturges’ The Lady Eve (Spine #103 – Blu-ray and DVD) on 7/14, and Noah Baumbach’s Marriage Story (Spine #1038 – Blu-ray and DVD) and Abbas Kiarostami’s Taste of Cherry (Spine #45 – Blu-ray and DVD) on 7/21. [Read on here...]

It’s kind of a slow news day today, but we do have some more disc reviews for you to check out...

Dennis has posted his thoughts on Franklin Gollings’ Connecting Rooms (1970) on Blu-ray from Kino Lorber Studio Classics. The film stars Bette Davis and Michael Redgrave.

Also, Tim has taken a look at Ovidio G. Assonitis’ Beyond the Door (1974) on Blu-ray from Arrow Video.

In announcement news today, Fox has set Chris Sanders’ The Call of the Wild for release on Blu-ray, DVD, and 4K Ultra HD on 5/12. The 4K will include English Dolby Atmos, while the Blu-ray will feature DTS-HD MA. Extras on both will include 4 featurettes (Origins, The On-Set Experience, State of the Art, and The World of the Wild), along with a Digital-only featurette (A Man and His Dog). [Read on here...]

All right, we’re closing out another week in pandemic isolation with some new reviews and a bit more announcement news...

First up those reviews... Tim has checked in with a look at FIVE recent Blu-ray titles from our friends at Severin Films—running the gamut from Eurosleaze to erotic to the rarely-seen and undervalued—so here are his thoughts on Just Jaeckin’s Gwendoline (1984 – aka The Perils of Gwendoline in the Land of the Yik Yak), the Russian genre film Viy (1967), Jess Franco’s Cries of Pleasure (1983) and Night of Open Sex (1983), and Leopoldo Savona’s Byleth: The Demon of Incest (1972).

And yes, we recognize that some of these aren’t for the faint of heart or for mainstream audiences (particularly those titles we had to blank out the cover art on or Google advertising will flag it), but the range of cinema on disc is wide and far-reaching. There’s something for everyone. And they can’t all be Star Wars or Marvel films. So there you go. [Read on here...]