Displaying items by tag: Francis Ford Coppola

All right, this is just another quick news update here at The Bits as we continue to work on our back-end software upgrade. We’ll start as usual with new disc reviews...

Tim has posted his thoughts on Walter Hill’s 48 Hours (1982) from Paramount and Paul Donovan and Maura O’Connell’s Siege (1983) from Severin Films, both on Blu-ray, as well as Genndy Tartakovsky’s Hotel Transylvania 3 (2018) on Blu-ray 3D from Random Space Media.

Also, Dennis has checked out Danton Trumbo’s Johnny’s Got His Gun (1971) on Blu-ray from Imprint Films.

And Stephen has reviewed Erie C. Kenton’s You’re Telling Me! (1934) from Kino Lorber Studio Classics and Miklos Jancso’s Round-Up (1966) and The Red and the White (1967) from Kino Lorber, both on Blu-ray.

More disc reviews are on the way soon, so be sure to check back for them. [Read on here...]

We’re starting today with more new disc reviews, and then we have a major piece of catalog 4K news for you here at The Bits. First up...

Tim has taken a look at Sidney Lumet’s Murder on the Orient Express (1974) on Blu-ray from Paramount.

Dennis has reviewed J. Lee Thompson’s Eye of the Devil (1966) and Karl Freund’s Mad Love (1935), both new on Blu-ray from the Warner Archive Collection.

And Stephen has delivered his thoughts on a pair of new Umbrella Entertainment Region-Free Blu-ray releases, including Steve Jodrell’s Shame (1988) and Bruce Beresford’s Puberty Blues (1981).

Now then, let’s get to that big release news: Warner Bros. Home Entertainment has set Gene Kelly and Stanley Donen’s musical comedy Singin’ in the Rain (1952) for 4K Ultra HD release on 4/26, just as we first revealed here at The Bits way back in November. [Read on here...]

We’ve got a bunch of ground to cover today, including a TON of new and recent disc reviews, lots of 4K Ultra HD catalog and new release news, and some regular Blu-ray news as well. I’ve been so distracted over the last week or so, what with all of the major announcements and the time required to track down and confirm release rumors, that I’ve neglected to mention the many disc reviews that we’ve posted here at the site during that time. So, let’s tackle those first...

Stephen has turned in his thoughts on Wes Anderson’s The French Dispatch (2021) and Scott Cooper’s Antlers (2021) from 20th Century Studios, James C Wasson’s Night of the Demon (1980) from Severin Films, and Dario Argento’s Trauma (1993) from Vinegar Syndrome, all on Blu-ray Disc.

Tim has looked at Barry Sonnenfeld’s The Addams Family (1991) from Paramount, David Lynch’s Mulholland Drive (2001) from Criterion, Dennis Donnelly’s The Toolbox Murders (1978) from Blue Underground, and William Lustig’s Maniac Cop 3: Badge of Silence (1993) from Blue Underground, all in 4K Ultra HD, as well as the Nasty Habits: The Nunsploitation Collection from Severin Films, John Hancock’s Let’s Scare Jessica to Death (1971) from Imprint Films, Mike Judge’s Beavis and Butt-Head Do America (1996) from Paramount, and Brian Trenchard-Smith’s Turkey Shoot (1982) from Umbrella Entertainment, all on Blu-ray.

And Dennis has delivered his take on Frank Capra’s It’s a Wonderful Life (1946) as recently re-issued by Paramount, as well as Hal Ashby’s Harold and Maude (1971), also from Paramount and both released on regular Blu-ray.

All of these titles are worth a look and there’s certainly something for everyone in that line-up. If you’re a fan of It’s a Wonderful Life, don’t forget that our own Michael Coate recently profiled the film for its 75th anniversary in his most recent History, Legacy and Showmanship column here at The Bits—it’s definitely worth a look if you missed at Christmas time. [Read on here...]

First things first today: The Criterion Collection has just announced their April Blu-ray and 4K release slate and—as always—it’s another great list of titles.

Look for Alex Cox’s Walker (Spine #423 – Blu-ray and DVD) on 4/12, Vittorio De Sica’s Miracle in Milan (Spine #1119 – Blu-ray and DVD) and Frank Tashlin’s The Girl Can’t Help It (Spine #1120 – Blu-ray only) on 4/19, and Arie and Chuko Esiri’s Eyimofe (This Is My Desire) (Spine #1121 – Blu-ray and DVD), Bertrand Tavernier’s ‘Round Midnight (Spine #1122 – Blu-ray and DVD), and Al Reinert’s For All Mankind (Spine #54 – 4K Ultra HD – Blu-ray and DVD already available) on 4/26. You can see the 4K art for For All Mankind on the left, and we’ll post the rest of the cover artwork over the next few days as the titles become available for pre-order on Amazon.

Here’s some more great breaking news: Our friends at Powerhouse Films have just informed us that their outstanding Indicator label—which already delivers fantastic special edition Blu-ray titles to the UK and European market—is officially coming to the US!

The company has partnered with Distribution Solutions, a division of Alliance Entertainment, to ensure that retailers throughout North America will be able to carry Indicator releases. These will include Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Sunrise, Critics Choice, and DiabolikDVD. The first Indicator titles should start becoming available here in the US starting this week. [Read on here...]

Well, this has been a bit of a head-spinning and confusing series of developments so far today (as I’m sure you’ll all agree).

You see... not long after we posted Paramount’s official press release for The Godfather Trilogy in 4K Ultra HD this morning (see our earlier post here), it quickly became clear that the text didn’t answer all of our questions.

So we’ve had multiple rounds of confirmation emails with the studio, not to mention forensic photo examinations, as well as a significant bit of retailer listing sleuthing to try to sort out all the important details of this 4K release. We originally thought that this Godfather Trilogy 4K release included 3-disc and 5-disc 4K SKUs.

Then surprise... not long after all that investigation, international retailer listings made the situation even more complicated, suggesting that it’s actually 5-disc and 9-disc 4K SKUs!

No kidding.

But... I just got off the phone with Paramount, and they’re now telling me that—at least here in the US—what’s actually coming is a 5-disc set, and the same 5-disc set just with more swag in the packaging.

SO… here’s what we now THINK is included in each version that’s coming to 4K Ultra HD on 3/22... [Read on here...]

Here’s Paramount’s official press release announcing the theatrical and home video release of The Godfather Trilogy...

Paramount Pictures Celebrates the 50th Anniversary of Francis Ford Coppola’s Cinematic Masterpiece

Experience the Acclaimed Classic in Theatres and on Home Entertainment Platforms

HOLLYWOOD, Calif. – January 13, 2022 — In celebration of the 50th anniversary of Francis Ford Coppola’s Academy Award®-winning* masterwork The Godfather, Paramount Pictures announced today that the film will have a limited theatrical release in Dolby Vision beginning February 25, 2022 exclusively in Dolby Cinema at AMC Theatres in the U.S., as well as in international territories around the world. All three films in the epic trilogy have been meticulously restored under the direction of Coppola and will be made available on 4K Ultra HD for the first time ever on March 22, 2022. [Read on here...]

We’ve got some good announcement news to report today...

As we first revealed a couple weeks ago here at The Bits, Warner Bros. Home Entertainment, StudioCanal, and American Zoetrope have just officially announced their new 4K restoration Francis Ford Coppola’s The Outsiders: The Complete Novel. From their joint press release: “Created to give fans more of the action that took place in S.E. Hinton’s celebrated book, Coppola’s latest, definitive version includes new music, as well as several scenes cut from the theatrical version which were reconstructed from original camera negatives.”

Warner will re-release the film in a limited theatrical run starting on 9/26, with a physical 4K Ultra HD Collector’s Edition (that will include both The Complete Novel and the original version) and a Digital release expected on 11/9. StudioCanal will handle a similar 4K UHD and Blu-ray release internationally on 11/8. The Outsiders: The Complete Novel will also appear on HBO Max starting on 11/16. You can see the poster art for the theatrical re-release at the left (4K UHD cover art is not available yet).

Warner’s physical 4K Ultra HD release will be a 4-disc set that includes both The Outsiders: The Complete Novel and The Outsiders in 4K with HDR (likely HDR10). You’ll also get Digital codes for both versions, and substantial new and legacy extras. The new extras will include a restoration interview (with cinematographer Stephen Burum, Zoetrope Head of Archives and Restorations James Mockoski, and colourist Gregg Garvin), plus deleted scenes, an introduction by Coppola, and 2 new featurettes (Anatomy of a Scene and Old House New Home). [Read on here...]

All right folks, this is a day a lot of us have been waiting a very long time for. Let’s get right into what is arguably the year’s biggest news...

Our friends at The Criterion Collection have finally announced that their first titles on the physical 4K Ultra HD format will include David Lynch’s Mulholland Dr., Orson Welles’ Citizen Kane, Jane Campion’s The Piano, Allen and Albert Hughes’s Menace II Society, Emeric Pressburger and Michael Powell’s The Red Shoes, and Richard Lester’s A Hard Day’s Night! The first of these is expected to arrive in November (we believe it will be Mulholland Dr.) and will be officially detailed next week when Criterion announces its full November slate. The rest will follow in subsequent months (starting—we believe—with Citizen Kane in December, given that 2021 is the film’s 80th anniversary). Per Criterion, each of their 4K titles will include the film on both 4K and Blu-ray (with most extras on the Blu-ray, allowing the 4K disc to have maximum room for video and audio data). Select films will also feature Dolby Vision HDR and Dolby Atmos sound.

Any way you slice it, this is outstanding news. We actually knew (thanks to our longtime industry sources) about three of those titles and had a pretty good line on a fourth. But by our reckoning, the fact that the company has announced no less than SIX 4K titles tells us that Criterion is seriously ALL IN on the Ultra HD format at long last. And that is the best news we’ve had all year for physical media.

But that’s not all of the news we have for you today, so let’s keep going! [Read on here...]

Hope you’re all having a great week so far. I was buried in catch-up work yesterday after having a series of family visits here—our first in two years due to the pandemic—so suffice it to say that there was no news post yesterday.

However, I’ve been on the phone a lot in the last couple of days talking with industry sources, and we’ve got some great new Blu-ray and especially 4K catalog updates for you this afternoon.

FYI, there will be more new disc reviews coming later this week as well, so be sure to check back for those. But let’s get right into the 4K news...

First up, I’ve confirmed with multiple industry sources now that Warner Bros. will be releasing Francis Ford Coppola’s The Outsiders (1983) on physical 4K Ultra HD in early November. Coppola and his American Zoetrope have recently been remastering several of the director’s films in 4K (Lionsgate is releasing a remastered Dementia 13 on Blu-ray and 4K Digital on 9/21 as part of their Vestron Video Collector’s Series, and Paramount is going to be releasing the complete Godfather Trilogy in 4K Ultra HD next year in honor of the original film’s 50th anniversary), so perhaps it shouldn’t come as a surprise. [Read on here...]

We’ve got more great new disc reviews for you to enjoy today, as well as more release news too...

First up, Tim has posted his thoughts on Richard Alan Greenberg’s Little Monsters (1989), coming on 9/15 to Blu-ray from Lionsgate via their Vestron Video Collector’s Series.

Tim has also given William Witney’s Master of the World (1961) a look on Blu-ray, a hybrid adaptation of a pair of classic Jules Vern novels (Robur the Conqueror and Master of the World). That arrives on Blu-ray on 8/31 from Kino Lorber Studio Classics.

And finally, Tim has taken Roger Corman’s The Raven (1963) out for a spin on Blu-ray, starring Vincent Price, Peter Lorre, and Boris Karloff. That’s also coming from Kino Lorber Studio Classics on 8/31.

In terms of announcement news today, the big one is that Sony Pictures Home Entertainment has officially revealed a title we’ve had on our 4K List here at The Bits for a while now: J. Lee Thompson’s The Guns of Navarone. Look for it to arrive on 4K Ultra HD on 10/12 in honor of the film’s 60th anniversary. [Read on here...]