Also today here at the site, our own Russell Hammond has posted the weekly update of the Release Dates & Artwork section with all the latest Blu-ray and DVD cover artwork and Amazon.com pre-order links. Anything your order from Amazon after clicking through our links goes to help support our work here at The Bits and we truly appreciate it.
Now then, let’s get to that news…
First up, Warner Home Video has set Falling Skies: The Complete Fourth Season for Blu-ray and DVD release on 6/2.
20th Century Fox Home Entertainment has announced a Tak3n: Unrated Edition for Blu-ray and DVD release on 4/21, starring Liam Neeson and Dougray Scott. The BD will include both the theatrical cut and the unrated version.
Fox has also set The Pyramid for Blu-ray and DVD release on 5/5.
Speaking of Fox, here’s something awesome: Fox EVP of Home Entertainment James Finn has confirmed that the X-Men: Days of Future Past – Rogue Cut is coming to Blu-ray later this summer, though not in 3D because the extended material wasn’t finished in 3D. Special thanks to Bits reader Adam M. for the heads-up!
One last Fox note: It looks as if the Best Buy version of the Exodus: Gods and Kings – Deluxe Edition Blu-ray 3D Combo will have some kind of exclusive content. We’re not sure what, but Best Buy has a label on the listing on their website that says “Only @ Best Buy.”
Meanwhile, Shout! Factory has announced that they’re going to be releasing Gerry Anderson’s classic Thunderbirds: The Complete Series on Blu-ray and DVD on 6/9 (SRP $69.97 for the BD and $49.97 for the DVD). The set will include all 32 episodes, plus the Launching Thunderbirds documentary and a Vintage Thunderbirds Publicity Brochure (via BD-Rom and DVD-Rom).
HBO will release Boardwalk Empire: The Complete Series on Blu-ray and DVD on 5/19.
Lionsgate has announced Orange Is the New Black: Season Two for BD and DVD release on 5/19 as well.
Universal has set a pair of new BD catalog titles for release on 5/12, including Wet Hot American Summer and Orgazmo.
Universal has also set The Boy Next Door for BD release on 4/28.
And Universal and Focus Films will release Kevin MacDonald’s The Black Sea on Blu-ray and DVD on 5/5.
On the animation front, Section 23 will release Patlabor: The Movie on Blu-ray on 5/5.
Discotek Media has also finally set 4/28 as the U.S. release date for Hayao Miyazaki’s Lupin the Third: The Castle of Cagliostro – Collection’s Edition on Blu-ray (SRP $29.95). in addition, the company will release the Free! Iwatobi Swim Club: Season 1 Collection, the Samurai Troopers TV Series DVD Collection, and the Samurai Pizza Cats DVD Collection reissue that same day.
Also today, Kino Lorber has announced more great catalog titles for Blu-ray release in May, including The Secret Invasion on 5/5, The McKenzie Break, The Premature Burial, They Call Me Mister Tibbs!, The Organization, and X: The Man with the X-ray Eyes on 5/12, and Enter the Ninja, Revenge of the Ninja, Kings of the Sun, River of Death, Invitation to a Gunfighter, and The Escapees on 5/26.
We may have mentioned this before, but Olive Films has Firewalker, Bio-Dome, Blue Sky, Cooley High, and the Abbott and Costello film Dance with Me Henry coming to BD on 4/21, followed by Lord of the Flies, Teachers, Hollywood Shuffle, Little Man Tate, and Harry & Son on 4/28.
And last, but surely not least, our friends at Twilight Time have revealed terrific minimalist reverse cover artwork for their new BD releases of First Men in the Moon and Journey to the Center of the Earth. These titles and more are now available for pre-order on Screen Archives Entertainment. Take a look. Gorgeous!
In other news today, Ars Technica has posted an interesting story on a new hack, revealed by a security consultant at NCC Group, that allows Blu-ray Disc media to compromise the security of Windows PCs and most standalone Blu-ray players. The hack apparently takes advantage of BD-Java to run malicious executable files. Such exploits could then take advantage of the PC or player’s Internet connection for nefarious purposes. You can read more here.
Finally today, as you’re all no doubt aware, actor Leonard Nimoy – best known as Mr. Spock of TV’s classic Star Trek – passed away this past Friday. There have been many, many tributes posted online in the days since, but I wanted to take a moment to share my own thoughts here. I originally posted this on my Facebook page over the weekend:
“When I was a young boy, I learned that you could be different and still find your place. That in fact it’s the sum our differences – infinite diversity in infinite combinations – that makes us stronger together. I learned you should always try to do the right thing, even when no one else is looking and especially when it’s hard. I learned that to be a moral person is to respect other’s thoughts, feelings, and ideas, and to always consider them – to try and balance your positions with theirs rather than simply imposing your beliefs on them – to find a common ground that works for everyone. I learned that everyone deserves the freedom to find their own way, but you shouldn’t be selfish about it, because the needs of the many are greater than the needs of the few… or the one. I learned that fighting is always the last resort, not the first. I learned that science and knowledge are empowering, that the spirit of discovery is a fundamental part of what makes us human, and that engaging in the exploration of the unknown – peacefully, together, and for the benefit of all – is among the most noble pursuits that human beings can engage in. Surprisingly, I learned all of this before I ever set foot in a school, because I learned it from Star Trek, where Leonard Nimoy was one of my favorite teachers. And I know I wasn’t alone. That’s a helluva great legacy, if you ask me.”
Thank you, Leonard, and farewell.
We’ll leave you today with a look at a bunch of new Blu-ray cover artwork. Click on the links to pre-order on Amazon (if available)…
Back tomorrow. Stay tuned…
- Bill Hunt