Displaying items by tag: Anthony Perkins

“Psycho should be remembered as the gold standard of psychological horror thrillers because it respects the audience by paying as much attention to delivering memorable, relatable characters, smart dialogue, a gripping plot, and emotional punch as well as jump scares.” — Stephen Rebello, author of Alfred Hitchcock and the Making of Psycho

The Digital Bits and History, Legacy & Showmanship are pleased to present this retrospective commemorating the 60th anniversary of the release of Psycho, Alfred Hitchcock’s popular psychological horror film starring Anthony Perkins as Norman Bates, owner-manager of the Bates Motel.

Psycho, which also starred Vera Miles, John Gavin, Martin Balsam, John McIntire, and Janet Leigh as Marion Crane, was released sixty years ago this month. For the occasion The Bits features a package of statistics and box-office data that places the movie’s performance in context, along with passages from vintage film reviews, a reference/historical listing of the movie’s major-market first-run presentations, and, finally, an interview segment with a film historian who reflects on the film six decades after its debut. [Read on here...]

“If you have never seen it, don’t expect Star Wars. Watch it for being an ambitious Disney answer to Star Wars. Watch it from the perspective of it signaling a change at Disney at that time. Watch it for the incredible sets, visual effects and a storyline that mimics 20000 Leagues under the Sea, but set in space.” — William Kallay, author of The Making of Tron

The Digital Bits and History, Legacy & Showmanship are pleased to present this retrospective commemorating the 40th anniversary of the release of The Black Hole, the Walt Disney Company’s science-fiction and fantasy adventure directed by Gary Nelson (Freaky Friday) and featuring Oscar-nominated cinematography and visual effects.

Starring Maximilian Schell (Judgment at Nuremberg), Anthony Perkins (Psycho), Robert Forster (Jackie Brown), Joseph Bottoms (Santa Barbara TV series), Yvette Mimieux (The Time Machine), Ernest Borgnine (Marty), Roddy McDowall (Planet of the Apes), and Slim Pickens (Blazing Saddles), The Black Hole opened forty years ago this month, and for the occasion The Bits features a Q&A with Disney authority and The Making of Tron author William Kallay, who discuss the movie’s virtues and shortcomings. [Read more here...]

Today’s Retro Release Day title here at The Bits is none other than Disney’s The Black Hole (1979), directed by Gary Nelson and released by Anchor Bay Entertainment on DVD back on March 30, 1999.

The film stars Maximilian Schell, Robert Forster, Joseph Bottoms, Yvette Mimieux, Anthony Perkins, and Ernest Borgnine, and features a terrific score by composer John Barry.

The single-disc release was a much-dreaded (and double-sided) DVD-10 release, a disc configuration known as a “flipper” to DVD veterans.

The reason for this was that the release included the film in both non-anamorphic (letterboxed) widescreen on one side, and full frame on the other.

Both sides of the disc also includes the film’s theatrical trailer and a gallery of images. Each version of the film also included Dolby Digital 5.1 audio. [Read on here...]