My Two Cents
Tuesday, 04 June 2019 15:16

Gremlins 4K, Tim Burton’s Dumbo, The Alienist, Jon Pertwee’s Doctor Who, Shazam! in 3D, and TONS more new announcements

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Sorry for our absence yesterday. We’ve been dealing with various and sundry server issues over the weekend and we’re just starting to get back to normal. Honestly, it’s a wonder the Internet still works at all these days. So anyway, thanks for your patience.

We have a bunch of title announcements to cover today, but first, today marks the 20th anniversary of our friends Robert Meyer Burnett and Mark A. Altman’s film Free Enterprise. So we wanted to call your attention to Michael Coate’s retrospective on the film from its 15th anniversary back in 2014. You can read Still Loving Long & Partying: Remembering Free Enterprise on its 15th Anniversary right here. The film isn’t on Blu-ray yet and so it’s always surprising how many people haven’t see it. But if you’re a fan of classic Star Trek, pop culture, and actors William Shatner and Eric McCormack, we think you’ll really enjoy it.

Meanwhile, we’re starting to get back to reviews. I still have two more Batman 4Ks coming, plus Tim and Dennis have some Blu-rays they’ve reviewed for you too. I’ve also got a trio of science fiction Blu-ray releases I’m going to try to cover soon as well. So be sure to watch for those. [Read on here...]

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Now then... the big news today is that Warner has set Joe Dante’s Gremlins for release on 4K Ultra HD on 10/1, as we’ve been expecting. Extras will include filmmaker commentary, the cast commentary, 4 featurettes (Gremlins: Behind the Scenes, Cute. Clever. Mischievous. Intelligent: Making Gremlins, From Gizmo to Gremlins: Creating the Creatures, and Hangin’ with Hoyt), additional scenes, a photo gallery, 2 motion comics (The Last Gremlin and Gremlins: The Gift of the Mogwai), and trailers. You can see the… decidedly weird… cover artwork above left.

BBC Home Video has announced that they’re releasing Doctor Who: Jon Pertwee – Complete Season Four on Blu-ray on 10/15. You’ll get all 26 episodes newly-remastered on 6 Blu-rays, plus a bunch of new and legacy extras including the new and feature-length documentary on the Third Doctor’s era.

Disney has officially set their live action Dumbo for release on Blu-ray, DVD, and 4K Ultra HD on 6/25. Audio will be Dolby Atmos on the 4K and 7.1 DTS-HD Master Audio on Blu-ray. Extras on the discs will include Circus Spectaculars, The Elephant in the Room, Built to Amaze, 8 Deleted Scenes, Easter Eggs on Parade, Clowning Around, and the Baby Mine video by Arcade Fire. The Digital only release will include an additional exclusive featurette, Dreamland: Anatomy of a Scene. You can see the cover artwork above left and also below. We’ve updated the 4K Ultra HD Release List here at The Bits to include that and more.

TNT and Paramount have set The Alienist for release on Blu-ray and DVD on 9/10, with the Pixel by Pixel documentary included.

Warner will release The Flash: The Complete Fifth Season on Blu-ray and DVD on 8/27. The company also has Titans: Season One arriving on both formats on 7/16, as well as Gotham: Season Five on 7/9.

Speaking of Warner, it looks like Shazam! will have a Blu-ray 3D release on 7/17 in addition to Blu-ray, DVD, and 4K. You can pre-order it here and see the cover artwork below.

And Amazon is now taking pre-orders for Warner’s eventual Blu-ray, DVD, and 4K Ultra HD release of Godzilla: King of the Monsters, likely in September. You can see that here.

Don’t forget, Shout! Factory is releasing Space: 1999 – The Complete Series on Blu-ray on 7/16.

HBO’s From the Earth to the Moon miniseries is still set for its long-awaited Blu-ray release on 7/16. You can see that here. We know that it will include at least one new featurette and a Digital Copy.

Speaking of HBO, did any of you see Deadwood: The Movie? Personally, I found it to be a rare gem. Having revisited the series these last few weeks, I’m in awe of David Milch’s ability to render flawed-but-noble and deeply human characters. He may have the best instincts for it of any writer in the medium. What makes the movie so refreshing is that it embraces the passage of time, returning the richness of its world to life in just two hours while delivering a fitting end for those characters. And it does so by stubbornly refusing to let them take a back seat to plot. Especially in the wake of Game of Thrones, another fine sociological ensemble series that—regrettably—left so much of its essence behind as it raced for a spectacle-driven ending, Deadwood stayed true to itself to the final bittersweet moments. Deadwood: The Movie will surely be announced soon for release on Blu-ray, and here’s the interesting thing: Actor W. Early Brown recently revealed that there’s 30 minutes of deleted footage. We’re sure hoping to see it.

In other release news, Dread Central will drop Lasso on Blu-ray on 9/17.

Kino Lorber Studio Classics has announced a whole bunch of great new catalog Blu-ray titles, including The Gun in Betty Lou’s Handbag (1992) on 8/4, Another Stakeout (1993) on 8/11, The Marrying Man (1991) on 8/18, Billy the Kid vs. Dracula (1966), Dinosaurus! (1960 – from a 4k restoration), and 4D Man (1959 – also from a 4K restoration) on 8/20, Aspen Extreme (1993) on 8/27, Kind Hearts and Coronets (1949), The Lavender Hill Mob (1951), and The Man in the White Suit (1951) on 9/3, Reap the Wild Wind (1942), The Spoilers (1942), Pittsburgh (1942), Mirage (1965), and Blindfold (1965) on 9/10, Support Your Local Sheriff (1969), Support Your Local Gunfighter (1970), The Bounty Man (1972 TV movie) DVD only, The Trackers (1971 TV movie) DVD only, and Daughters of Joshua Gabe (1972 TV movie) DVD only on 9/17, and Not Wanted (1940), Never Fear (1950), The Hitch-Hiker (1953), The Bigamist (1953), and the Ida Lupino: Filmmaker Collection Boxed Set on 9/24.

The company also has Baby Blood (1990 – aka The Evil Within), Sudden Terror (1970 – aka Eyewitness), The Sting II (1983), Thunderbolt and Lightfoot (1974 – from a new 4K restoration), Winter Kills (1979 – from a new 4K restoration), and The Day of the Dolphin (1973 – from a new 4K restoration) all coming soon.

Arrow Video will release William Friedkin’s Cruising, starring Al Pacino, on Blu-ray on 8/20. The company has also set Alice, Sweet Alice for release on Blu-ray on 8/6, and Weird Science coming to Blu-ray on 7/23.

Flicker Alley has set Marcel L Herbier’s L’Argent (1928) for release on Blu-ray on 8/13. The film stars Brigitte Helm, better known for her role as Maria in Fritz Lang’s Metropolis. The company also has Fridrikh Ermler’s Fragment of an Empire coming on Blu-ray on 8/9.

FUNimation has set Attack on Titan: Season 2, Part 1 for Blu-ray and DVD release on 8/6.

Cinedigm will release Donnybrook on Blu-ray and DVD on 8/6.

Universal will release The Magicians: Season Four on Blu-ray on 7/9.

And finally, Studio Canal is releasing Nicholas Roeg’s Don’t Look Now on 4K Ultra HD on 7/29, at least in Europe.

Here’s a look at the cover artwork for a few of the titles mentioned above (click on the images to pre-order them on Amazon.com and remember that doing so helps to support our work here at The Bits and we appreciate it!)...

Dumbo (4K Ultra HD) Dumbo (Blu-ray Disc) Shazam! (Blu-ray 3D)

That’s all for now. Stay tuned...

(You can follow Bill on social media at these links: Twitter and Facebook)

 

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