Displaying items by tag: The Criterion Collection

All right, we’ve had a big week here at The Bits. As you can probably tell, I’ve spent most of the week checking in with studio and industry sources, which led to yesterday’s scoop on Tombstone coming to 4K Ultra HD next month. And trust me when I tell you that there’s a lot more great 4K catalog news to come in the months ahead. Given that we’ve been a part of—and reporting on—the home entertainment industry for more than twenty-eight years, I can confidently promise you that we have the best sources in this industry period. So when it comes to confirmed and reliable breaking news, you’re likely to hear about it first here at The Digital Bits.

Given that reality, I would highly recommend that you follow us on social media, which is where we tend to post breaking news first. As the editor-in-chief of The Bits, you’ll find me here on X, Facebook, and Bluesky. You’ll find The Digital Bits on X, Facebook, and Bluesky as well. And you can also find Tim (X, Facebook, and Bluesky) and Stephen (X, Facebook, and Bluesky) on all three social platforms too.

What’s more, if you’re not already a subscriber of our Digital Bits Patreon, please consider doing so! There are very affordable options for subscribing, it’s a great way to support our work here at the site, and we’re offering our Patreon supporters additional news posts, video blogs, the option to ask us questions regularly, and sneak peeks at upcoming titles. Whether you’ve been a Bits reader since the very beginning of the website back in 1997, or you’ve just come to learn of us with 4K Ultra HD, we work our asses off here every day to make your experience of physical media better, to encourage the studios to release great catalog titles, and help support fans of physical media and the industry at large. Regular reader or not, if you’re an avid disc fan you have definitely benefited from our efforts over the years. So if you value that, supporting us on Patreon is a great way to help make sure that we can keep doing this work on behalf of you and everyone who loves movies, TV shows, and music on disc. We’re building a great community over there and we’d love for you all to be a part of it! [Read on here...]

We’ve got one more new disc review to round out the week here at The Bits this afternoon...

Dennis has taken a look at Robert Day’s Two-Way Stretch (1960) on Blu-ray from Kino Lorber Studio Classics, a classic heist caper starring Peter Sellers.

The big release news today is that our friends at The Criterion Collection have just announced their June slate, which is absolutely fantastic! Look for 4K Ultra HD upgrades of Terry Gilliam’s Brazil (1985) (Spine #51) and Paul Schrader’s Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters (1985) (Spine #432) on 6/3, followed by Sidney Lumet’s The Wiz (1978) (Spine #1264) in 4K UHD and Blu-ray on 6/10, Charlotte Zwerin’s Thelonious Monk Straight, No Chaser (1988) (Spine #1265) and Mitchell Leisen’s Midnight (1939) (Spine #1266) both on Blu-ray on 6/17, and François Girard’s Thirty Two Short Films About Glenn Gould (1993) (Spine #1268) and William Friedkin’s Sorcerer (1977) (Spine #1267) in 4K Ultra HD and Blu-ray on 6/24. Of these, Brazil, The Wiz, and Sorcerer will have Dolby Vision HDR. You can read more here and you can see the cover art for these above left and also below the break. [Read on here...]

We have more new disc reviews to share here at The Bits today, including...

Tim’s look at Kenji Kamiyama’s animated The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim (2024) in 4K Ultra HD from Warner Bros, and Greg Ford and Terry Lennon’s Daffy Duck’s Quackbusters (1988) on Blu-ray from the Warner Archive Collection.

My review of Edward Zwick’s Legends of the Fall: 30th Anniversary (1994) in 4K Ultra HD from Sony Pictures Home Entertainment, featuring a stunning restoration of John Toll’s magnificent cinematography and a great Atmos mix as well.

Stuart’s reviews of Henry Hathaway’s The Lives of a Bengal Lancer (1935) on Region B Blu-ray from Indicator, and Michel Brault’s Orders (1974) on Blu-ray from Canadian International Pictures and Vinegar Syndrome.

And finally, Stephen’s look at Stephan Elliott’s The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert (1994) in 4K Ultra HD from the good people at Via Vision’s Imprint Films.

As always, more reviews are on the way here at the site, so be sure to keep checking back for them.

Also today, we’ve posted our latest update of our Release Dates & Cover Artwork section here at The Digital Bits, featuring all the latest Blu-ray, DVD, and 4K Ultra HD cover artwork and Amazon.com pre-order links. Don’t forget that anytime you order from Amazon through our links, you’re helping to support our work here at The Bits and we really appreciate it! [Read on here...]

Today’s new disc reviews here at The Digital Bits include...

Stephen’s review of Michael Ritchie’s Prime Cut (1972) in 4K Ultra HD from Kino Lorber Studio Classics.

Dennis’ review of Budd Boetticher’s The Killer is Loose (1956) on Blu-ray from Kino Lorber Studio Classics.

Tim’s reviews of Fred Walton’s April Fool’s Day (1986) in 4K Ultra HD from Kino Lorber Studio Classics and Arch Oboler’s Domo Arigato (1973) on Blu-ray 3D from BayView Entertainment with the help of the 3-D Film Archive.

And Stuart’s look at William A. Fraker’s Monte Walsh (1970) on Blu-ray, also from Kino Lorber Studio Classics.

Here at The Bits today, we’re also sharing new updates of our Release Dates & Artwork section (with all the latest cover artwork and Amazon.com pre-order links) as well as our 4K Ultra HD Release List. So be sure to watch for those shortly.

In terms of announcement news, we expect Disney to release their CG-animated Moana 2 (2024) on Blu-ray, DVD, 4K Ultra HD, and 4K Steelbook formats on 3/18. [Read on here...]

Afternoon, friends! We have three new disc reviews for you today, including...

Stephen’s look at Ramón Menéndez’s Stand and Deliver (1988) on Blu-ray from the Warner Archive Collection.

An update of our old friend Todd Doogan’s 2010 Blu-ray review of Akira Kurosawa’s Yojimbo (1961) and Sanjuro (1962) by Tim Salmons, to cover the Criterion Collection’s new 4K Ultra HD release.

And finally today, Dennis’ look at Anand Tucker’s The Critic (2023) on good old fashioned DVD from Greenwich Entertainment and Kino Lorber.

In terms of announcement news this afternoon, the big news is that HBO has made its planned 4K Ultra HD Steelbook Limited Edition re-release of The Last of Us: The Complete First Season official for 3/18, in anticipation of the debut of Season Two on Max in April.

Also, the A24 shop is releasing an exclusive Blu-ray version of Greg Kwedar’s Sing Sing (2023) with an expected street date TBA for March. You can pre-order it here. The disc will include audio commentary with the director, producer, editor, and cinematographer, 2 featurettes (Trust the Process and Sing Sing Correctional Facility Premiere), deleted scenes, and a gallery of behind-the-scenes photography by Greg Kwedar, Dominic León, Daniel Order, and Pat Scola. [Read on here...]

Cheers, Bits readers! Here’s our latest batch of new disc reviews for today…

Stephen has taken a look at Michael Mann’s The Keep (1983) in 4K Ultra HD from Vinegar Syndrome.

Dennis has reviewed Robert Florey’s The Beast with Five Fingers (1946) and Anthony Mann’s The Tall Target (1951), both on Blu-ray from the Warner Archive Collection.

Stuart has offered his thoughts on Zoltán Korda’s Sahara (1943) on Blu-ray from Indicator and George Seaton’s The Proud and Profane (1956) on Blu-ray from Kino Lorber Studio Classics.

And not to be outdone, Tim has shared his look at Russ Meyer’s Beneath the Valley of the Ultravixens (1979) on Blu-ray from Severn Films.

More reviews are forthcoming, as always, so be sure to keep your eyes peeled for them!

Now then, the big release news today is that Universal has officially set Robert Eggers’ Nosferatu (2024) for release on Blu-ray, DVD, 4K Ultra HD, and 4K Steelbook on 2/18. The Digital version is now available. You can see the cover artwork at left and also below. [Read on here...]

We’ve got a couple of good things to share with you today, starting with new discs reviews. Among them are…

My look at John Ford’s legendary Western classic The Searchers (1956) in 4K Ultra HD from the Warner Archive, an absolutely stunning title that I think deserves to be considered the 4K Disc of the Year.

Stephen’s review of Sydney Pollack’s Tootsie (1982) in 4K Ultra HD from Sony via their excellent Columbia Classics: Volume 5 box set, as well as David Chung’s Royal Warriors (1986) on Blu-ray from 88 Films.

And Dennis’ review of Buster Keaton’s Seven Chances (1925) and Sherlock Jr. (1924) on Blu-ray from Kino Classics.

All three are well worth a look, and we’re going to have more new disc reviews here on Wednesday.

Also today, our own Michael Coate has just shared a new History, Legacy & Showmanship column today featuring film historian and author Nat Segaloff as they celebrate the 50th anniversary of John Guillermin’s The Towering Inferno (1974). It’s a short read, but still well worth your time. [Read on here...]

All right, we’ve got two new long-form disc reviews to share with you today...

The first is my look at Aaron Sorkin’s The West Wing: The Complete Series (1999-2006), which is finally available in a new 28-disc Blu-ray box set from Warner Bros. Discovery Home Entertainment. The package is far from perfect, but for fans it’s still mostly be worth a look.

Also today, Stephen is celebrating yesterday’s 70th anniversary of Ishirō Honda’s original Godzilla (1954) by reviewing the new 4K Ultra HD release from Toho Studios via the Criterion Collection here in the US, a title that officially streets tomorrow.

In announcement news today, Kino Lorber Studio Classics has just revealed that John Frankenheimer’s Reindeer Games (2000) is coming soon to 4K Ultra HD. In addition, Melville Shavelson’s Houseboat (1958) is coming soon to Blu-ray Disc. [Read on here...]

We have three new disc reviews for you this afternoon, including...

Sam’s take on Glenn Ficarra and John Requa’s Focus (2015) in 4K Ultra HD from Warner Bros.

Tim’s review of the new Scooby-Doo! and the Witch’s Ghost (1999) and Scooby-Doo and the Alien Invaders (2000) on Blu-ray from the Warner Archive Collection.

And Stuart’s thoughts on Sidney Lanfield’s You’ll Never Get Rich (1941) on Region B only Blu-ray from Powerhouse Films’ Indicator label in the UK.

As for release news, there’s not a ton of it to report today, however we do have a couple of fun items for you...

First, Paramount has officially set the animated Transformers One for release on Blu-ray and 4K Ultra HD on 12/17, with the Digital release expected tomorrow on 10/22. Extras will include 5 behind-the-scenes featurettes (including In the Beginning, World Building on Cybertron, Together As One, The Iacon 5000, and The Battle for Cybertron). You can see the cover artwork below the break.

Speaking of Paramount, they along with CBS have set Blue Bloods: The Final Season and Blue Bloods: The Complete Series for DVD only release on 12/17 as well. Extras on the final season will include deleted scenes, 2 featurettes (The Story of the Reagans and May the Road Rise Up to Greet You), and a gag reel. [Read on here...]

We’ve got three more new disc reviews for you to enjoy today as we close out the week, including...

Stephen’s look at the new I Walked with a Zombie/The Seventh Victim: Produced by Val Lewton 4K Ultra HD release from Criterion.

Dennis’ take on John Farrow’s Botany Bay (1953) on Blu-ray from our friends at Kino Lorber Studio Classics.

And Stuart’s thoughts on William Dieterle’s Red Mountain (1951) on Blu-ray also from Kino Lorber Studio Classics.

In announcement news today, Imprint Films has just revealed a new trio of Imprint Asia Blu-ray releases for release in January (street date 1/8/25) that includes Jia Ling’s Yolo (2024), Sun Zhou’s Zhou Yu’s Train (2002), and the Erotic Ghost Story Trilogy (1990–1992) box set, which offers Lam Ngai Kai’s Erotic Ghost Story (1990), Peter Ngor’s Erotic Ghost Story II (1991), and Kai-Ming Lai’s Erotic Ghost Story III (1992). Those first two are available here in their very first appearances on Blu-ray anywhere.

Not to be outdone, Umbrella Entertainment’s February slate will include Jon S. Baird’s Filth (2013), Neil Jordan’s The Crying Game (1992), Kim Ki-duk’s Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter, and Spring (2003), and E.L. Katz’s Azrael (2024) on Blu-ray, along with Lynne Ramsay’s You Were Never Really Here (2017) in 4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray, all on 2/5. [Read on here...]