Displaying items by tag: Universal

We’re closing out the week today here at The Bits with a bit of announcement news, word of a few 4K title delays, and more new disc reviews.

First up, Tim has turned in reviews of Stephen King’s Children of the Corn (1984), directed by Fritz Kiersch and newly released on 4K Ultra HD by Arrow Video, as well as Quentin Tarantino’s Inglourious Basterds which is new on 4K Ultra HD from Universal.

Also, Stephen has reviewed Nick Murphy’s The Awakening (2011) on Blu-ray from the Cohen Media Group, along with Nadia Tass’ Malcolm (1986) on Blu-ray from Umbrella Entertainment.

More reviews are on the way, so be sure to keep your eyes peeled for them.

Now then, the big announcement news today is that Criterion has just revealed their January 2022 release slate, which is set to include Thomas Vinterberg’s The Celebration (Spine #1108 – Blu-ray) on 1/11, Garrett Bradley’s Time (Spine #1109 – Blu-ray and DVD) and Richard Lester’s A Hard Day’s Night (Spine #711 – Blu-ray, DVD, and 4K) on 1/18, and Kirsten Johnson’s Dick Johnson Is Dead (Spine #111 – Blu-ray and DVD) and Jane Campion’s The Piano (Spine #1110 – Blu-ray and 4K) on 1/25. We’ve updated our 4K Ultra HD Release List and Criterion Spines Project pages accordingly. [Read on here...]

We’ve a little bit of release news to start the new week today.

First up, Shout! Factory has announced its December slate of titles, which is set to include...

Shirobako: The Movie (Blu-ray), Neon Genesis Evangelion (wide-release Blu-ray), and Krampus: The Naughty Cut (4K Ultra HD) on 12/7.

David Steinberg’s Going Berserk: Shout Select (1983 – Blu-ray) and Cartoon Saloon’s Irish Folklore Trilogy (Blu-ray – includes The Secret of Kells, Song of the Sea, and Wolfwalkers) on 12/14.

And The Vampire Lovers: Collector’s Edition (1970 – Blu-ray), Trog (1970 – Blu-ray), No Way to Treat a Lady (1968 – Blu-ray), and Lady in a Cage (1964 – Blu-ray) on 12/21.

Meanwhile, Warner Bros. Home Entertainment has set Superman & Lois: The Complete First Season for Blu-ray and DVD release on 10/19. [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...]

All right, we have two things for you today…

The first, is that I’ve just posted my in-depth review of Spike Lee’s Do the Right Thing (1989), newly released on 4K Ultra HD by Universal Studios Home Entertainment. It’s a great disc, with a beautifully-remastered transfer and a great new DTS:X sound mix as well. Do check it out here.

The other thing is a recommendation for a great TV series that’s streaming right now on Apple TV+: Ron Moore’s For All Mankind.

Trust me when I say that if you’re a fan of science fiction, or human spaceflight, or alternate history, or just great character drama, this is absolutely a series that you should be watching. So let me tell you why you should be, and I promise there will be no spoilers. [Read on here...]

All right Bits readers, we’ve got a pretty significant news update for you today...

We’ve been tracking many of these titles, but a few of the 4K catalog titles we’re going to talk about today are breaking news, thanks to our old friends over at Media Play News.

They’ve just issued the September 2020 Digital edition of their magazine, which features an extensive look at the recent surge of 4K Ultra HD catalog releases. The publication’s editor, Stephanie Prange (who, full disclosure, I’ve known for many years), wrote a great longform piece for the issue called 4K Ultra HD: Into the Vaults about the process of preparing classic catalog films for release on the format.

Not only is it informative (and I should note that I was among the people interviewed therein), it includes some great news about forthcoming titles. [Read on here...]

All right, we’ve got one new disc review for you today: Tim has taken a look at John Hughes’ Sixteen Candles on Blu-ray from Arrow Video. Sounds like it’s a pretty nice release, so do check out his thoughts here.

In announcement news today, Warner Bros. Home Entertainment has just set DC’s Legends of Tomorrow: The Complete Fifth Season for release on Blu-ray on DVD on 9/22. You’ll get all 15 episodes along with deleted scenes, a gag reel, and the DC’s Legends of Tomorrow Season 5 Post Production Theater featurette. As is the case with many of Warner’s recent DC live action releases, you’ll also get the Blu-ray bonus disc with all 5 episodes of the DC Crossover Event Crisis on Infinite Earths plus additional extras.

he big catalog 4K news today is that Second Sight in the UK has just finally revealed the specs of—and launched the pre-orders for—their long awaited 4K Ultra HD and Blu-ray restoration of George Romero’s Dawn of the Dead. But there’s good news and bad news. [Read on here...]

Before we get started today, we have a pair of new Blu-ray reviews for you from Dennis—he’s taken a look at George Cukor’s Holiday, newly available on disc from The Criterion Collection, and also Judy from Lionsgate. Enjoy!

In announcement news today, we’ve got word that Universal plans to release Bong Joon-ho’s Parasite on Blu-ray and DVD on 1/28. The disc will include the Q&A with Director Bong Joon-ho featurette. There are no plans yet for a UK 4K Ultra HD release here in the States, though the film is coming to physical 4K in France, German, and elsewhere. Unfortunately, those discs will not have English subtitles for the original Korean language audio. Fingers crossed that Universal will decide to release a 4K if sales of the Blu-ray are strong. You can see the Blu-ray artwork above left.

Also today, we’ve updated our 4K Ultra HD Release List to reflect a bunch of new street dates and pre-order information we’ve gotten in from retail and industry sources. Here’s the gist (and if you click on the titles links provided, you can pre-order the titles on Amazon if available)... [Read on here...]

We mentioned this title a few days ago, but now we can officially confirm that Universal Pictures Home Entertainment and Neon will be releasing Todd Douglas Miller’s acclaimed large format documentary, Apollo 11, on Blu-ray, DVD, and Digital on May 14th.

From the studio’s press release:

“Crafted from a newly discovered trove of 65mm footage, and more than 11,000 hours of uncatalogued audio recordings, Apollo 11 takes us straight to the heart of NASA’s most celebrated mission—the one that first put men on the moon, and forever made Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin into household names. Immersed in the perspectives of the astronauts, the team in Mission Control, and the millions of spectators on the ground, we vividly experience those momentous days and hours in 1969 when humankind took a giant leap into the future ” [Read on here...]

All right, we’ve got a couple of things for you today, including a little bit of follow-up on this Disney/Guardians Vol 2 4K Dolby Vision thing. More on that in a moment...

First, Michael Coate has a great new History, Legacy & Showmanship column for you today that celebrates Sir Roger Moore and the 40th Anniversary of the classic Bond installment The Spy Who Loved Me. Michael is joined by another fine roundtable of Bond experts to discuss the film and I think you’ll really enjoy reading what they have to say. So you’ll find that here.

Now then... some announcement news: Universal has officially set The Mummy (2017) for Blu-ray, DVD, and 4K Ultra HD release on 9/12, with the Digital HD release expected on 8/22. [Read on here…]

All right, folks... this is one of those posts it’s fun to write. None of this news has been officially announced, it comes from retail sources. But we know from our other industry sources that this information is legit. The street dates may change, but the titles should all be forthcoming.

The Swedish video retailer CDON.com has just listed for pre-order a number of catalog titles that we’ve known were either in production or planning for a while now, but the news is starting to break. They include (listed by studio and European street date):

Universal – The Mummy (1999 – 5/22), The Mummy Returns (5/22), The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor (5/22), Despicable Me (6/12), Despicable Me 2 (6/12), Gladiator (6/12)

Sony – The Bridge on the River Kwai (6/19), Spider-Man (6/26), Spider-Man 2 (6/26), Spider-Man 3 (6/26), The Amazing Spider-Man (6/26) [Read on here…]