Displaying items by tag: Shout! Factory

Welcome to the first full week of December, Bits readers!

We’ve got a couple interesting items to report here today, but first a pair of new disc reviews:

I’ve turned in my thoughts on Quentin Tarantino’s Pulp Fiction (1994) in 4K Ultra HD from Miramax, via Paramount. The good news is, whether you buy the Steelbook or the regular Amaray version, the 4K remastering is fantastic. Fans should be very pleased.

I’ve also reviewed Andrew Stanton’s CG-animated classic WALL•E (2008) in 4K UHD from Pixar via the Criterion Collection. The highlight here is that it’s a terrific package and the film looks and sounds great, but the new 4K presentation isn’t really dramatically different than the previous Disney 4K edition—it simply now adds HDR10+ and Dolby Vision metadata. But some of the new special features are wonderful.

More new Blu-ray and 4K UHD reviews are coming soon, as always, so please keep checking back for them! [Read on here...]

Well, today is Cyber Monday, which means there are still a number of good deals to be had on things around the Internet. So rather than repeating my comments from last week about Black Friday, I’ll just remind you that if you go looking for deals on Amazon today, please be sure to use one of our affiliate links (if you’d care to support our work here at The Bits in the process).

Now then, our own holiday was lovely here in SoCal. My wife’s cousin joined us for Thanksgiving, which involved eating some great food (both the usual turkey and stuffing, as well as mighty fine barbecue the day after), watching a lot of football as well as some terrific movies (including revisiting David Mackenzie’s Hell or High Water and James Mangold’s Ford v Ferrari) and a few TV series too (the season finale of Andor is fantastic—I haven’t enjoyed Star Wars this much since 1983). I also did a little bit of actual shopping, which amounted to picking up a hooded vest to wear in the office when it gets chilly and upgrading my old Pixel 3a phone to a new 6a thanks to an offer from Google that was too good to refuse. Finally, we got our Christmas tree up and decorated. So all in all, it was an enjoyable long weekend. And I certainly hope you all had a good one as well!

We’re starting today with a pair of new disc reviews for you to enjoy this afternoon...

Tim has posted his thoughts on the Terry Jones comedy Monty Python’s The Meaning of Life (1983) in 4K Ultra HD from Universal, as well as John Badham’s Saturday Night Fever (1977) in 4K Ultra HD from Paramount. Sadly, that latter is something of a disappointment. But I’ll let Tim explain that to you.

Again, watch for more new disc reviews all this week here on The Digital Bits. [Read on here...]

Yes, it’s true!

This is information I first heard from industry insiders about six months ago, but was asked to keep quiet about to allow the work to be completed. But retailers are just now starting to catch wind of it, so I can unofficially confirm it here:

Warner Bros. Home Entertainment is planning to release Superman II, Superman III, and Superman IV: The Quest for Peace in 4K Ultra HD in early 2023!

Superman II will include both the original theatrical version and the Richard Donner Cut.

Our sources suggest that—like Superman: The Movie in 4K—all three of these will feature Dolby Vision HDR and Dolby Atmos audio, but we’ll have to wait and see.

Street date is still TBA on these officially, however we’ve been hearing Q2 2023, and Amazon UK has just leaked a 3 April street date for Superman III on their website (click here for that).

Do keep in mind that none of this should be considered 100% kosher and official until the studio makes their actual announcements in the weeks and months ahead. But Superman fans should be very happy around April of next year. [Read on here...]

We’re starting things off this week with several more new disc reviews and LOTS of announcement news! First up, those reviews...

Stephen has taken an in-depth look at John Carpenter’s supernatural horror classic The Fog (1980) in 4K Ultra HD from Scream Factory, and we have separate reviews for both the wide-release Collector’s Edition and the Steelbook version as well.

Stephen has also offered his thoughts on Taika Waititi’s latest MCU installment, Thor: Love and Thunder, in 4K Ultra HD from Marvel and Disney.

Meanwhile, Dennis has turned in his take on a pair of classic films on Blu-ray, including Sydney Salkow’s Twice Told Tales (1963) starring Vincent Price from Kino Lorber Studio Classics and also John Cromwell’s Abe Lincoln in Illinois (1940) from the Warner Archive Collection.

And Tim has delivered a look at Warner and DC’s long-awaited Deluxe Edition of the animated Batman: The Long Halloween (2021) as well as Random Space Media’s import 4K/Blu-ray 3D double feature of Jumanji: The Next Level (2019) and Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle (2017).

As always, more reviews are on the way for tomorrow and all this week, so be sure to keep your eyes peeled for them. [Read on here...]

We’ve got a big title announcement to report on today, but first another new disc review...

Stephen has turned in his thoughts on Mamoru Hosoda’s Belle: Collector’s Edition in 4K Ultra HD from GKids via Shout! Factory. It sounds like a pretty incredible collection of content, both disc and swag-based, so it’s well worth a look for fans of anime and this particular film.

Speaking of animation, Criterion has just dropped something of a surprise: They’ve licensed Pixar’s WALL•E from Disney and will be releasing it as a 4K UHD + Blu-ray combo title on 11/22, with both Dolby Vision HDR (which was not available on the previous Disney 4K release) and HDR10, as well as Dolby Atmos audio.

The package will include both existing and new special features. You can see the cover artwork at left and also below. [Read on here...]

We’ve got only a quick news update for you today, as we’re busy working on more new disc reviews. Speaking of which...

Stephen has just posted his thoughts on Hirokazu Kore-eda’s Air Doll (2009) on Blu-ray from Dekanalog via Vinegar Syndrome.

More Blu-ray and 4K UHD reviews are definitely on the way.

Now then, the big news this afternoon is that Disney Media & Entertainment Distribution has officially announced that Taika Waititi’s latest Marvel Cinematic Universe entry, Thor: Love and Thunder, will arrive on Blu-ray, DVD, and 4K Ultra HD on 9/27. The Digital and Disney+ streaming release is set for 9/8. As always, the 4K will feature Dolby Atmos audio and HDR10 high dynamic range. [Read on here...]

All right, sorry for the lack of an update over the last couple of days. We’ve been very busy here at the site, working on reviews, preparing for some big upcoming reviews, and finishing a few more site upgrades. But the major reason is that there’s a ton of breaking and evolving release news to cover, and getting to the bottom of it all—collating all the details, checking in with sources, confirming key pieces of release information—takes a huge amount of time. But I’m always up for a challenge.

Before we get to that, however, let’s share those disc reviews we’ve been working on over the past few days...

First up, I’ve posted my thoughts on John Milius’ Red Dawn (1984) from Shout! Factory and also Colin Trevorrow’s Jurassic World: Dominion (2022) from Universal, both in 4K Ultra HD.

Tim has delivered a look at Joel Schumacher’s Flatliners (1990) in 4K UHD from Arrow Video, as well as John Carpenter’s Escape from New York (1981) in 4K from Scream Factory.

Dennis has reviewed a number of regular Blu-ray titles in the last few days, including Lon Chaney: Before the Thousand Faces – Volume 2 from Undercrank Productions, Josh and Benny Safdie’s Daddy Longlegs (2009) from Criterion, and Jack Gold’s The Tenth Man (1988) and Ken Hughes’s The Trials of Oscar Wilde (1960) from Kino Lorber Studio Classics.

And finally, Stephen has delivered in-depth looks at Paul W.S. Anderson’s Event Horizon (1997)—a Steelbook release that’s getting hard to find here in the States—and Jeff Fowler’s Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (2022) both in 4K Ultra HD from Paramount, along with Michael Findlay’s Shriek of the Mutilated (1974) on Blu-ray from American Films via Vinegar Syndrome.

As always more disc reviews are on the way in the coming days. [Read on here...]

We’ve got a great new disc review for you this afternoon, and we’ve got some significant release news to report as well. First up, that review...

Tim has just turned in his in-depth look at Rod Serling’s Night Gallery: Season Two (1971-1972) on Blu-ray from Kino Lorber Studio Classics as expected. Sounds like it’s another great release that’s loaded with special features, including audio commentary on many episodes. Don’t miss it.

Now then... file this in the “better late than never” category, but Universal has finally made their Blu-ray, DVD, 4K Ultra HD, and Digital release of Colin Treverrow’s Jurassic World: Dominion official, and it is indeed expected to street next Tuesday (8/16). Extras on the Blu-ray SKUs will include the Battle at Big Rock short film, the A New Breed of VFX featurette, and the multi-part Dinosaurs Among Us: Inside Jurassic World Dominion 45-minute documentary. You’ll also get both the Theatrical Version and a new 14-minute longer Extended Edition, which includes an alternate opening and more.

Both Blu-ray SKUs will include DTS-X object-based surround sound, and the 4K Ultra HD release will feature both HDR10 and Dolby Vision high dynamic range. You can see the cover artwork at left and also below. [Read on here...]

All right, we’ve got some great catalog 4K Ultra HD news to report today, but first we have one more new review...

I spent some time this weekend looking at Stanley Kubrick’s landmark war film Paths of Glory (1957) thanks to a fine new 4K Ultra HD release from our friends at Kino Lorber Studio Classics. For the first time, the image has been scanned from the original camera negative in native 4K—Criterion’s 2010 Blu-ray release was only a 2K scan of a fine-grain master positive—so this is unquestionably the best the film has ever looked at home. It’s a beautiful presentation and not to be missed by Kubrick fans and cinephiles.

All right, now for that catalog news... VCI Entertainment has set Bob Clark’s Children Shouldn’t Play With Dead Things (1972) for release on 4K Ultra HD on 10/11 as a new 50th Anniversary Edition. The release will include a new video introduction and Q&A with actor Alan Ormsby, along with a new 90-minute documentary on Clark’s horror films called Dreaming of Death. You’ll get lots of legacy special features as well. And you can see the cover artwork below the break. [Read on here...]

All right, sorry for the lack of an update yesterday, but I had a bunch of personal life stuff to take care of, as happens now and again. We’ve got some more disc reviews for you today, along with a bunch of good catalog 4K Ultra HD news. So let’s get to those reviews first, as always...

Stephen has turned in his thoughts on Moustapha Akkad’s The Message (1976) on 4K Ultra HD from Shout! Factory.

Dennis has offered his thoughts on Robert Z. Leonard’s Ziegfeld Girl (1941) on regular Blu-ray Disc from our friends at the Warner Archive Collection.

And Tim has checked in with a look at Nathan H. Juran’s The Brain from Planet Arous (1957) newly restored on Blu-ray from the good folks at The Film Detective.

All three titles are worth a look and more disc reviews are on the way.

Now then, we’ve got some 4K UHD announcement news for you today... [Read on here...]