My Two Cents
All right, we’ve got another new review for you today, along with some more announcement news and a bit of sad news to report as well...
First up, that review: Tim has just posted his in-depth take on Terence Fisher’s Hammer Films classic The Curse of Frankenstein (1957), now available on Blu-ray in a new 2-disc Special Edition from the Warner Archive Collection. It’s a great film restoration and it sounds like a great disc too, featuring a new audio commentary by our friend Constantine Nasr with Steve Haberman. This is one you’re not going to want to miss if you love the vintage horror genre.
Speaking of the Warner Archive, they’ve just revealed their featured January Blu-ray titles, which are set to include the classic films The Pajama Game, Good News, Room for One More, After the Thin Man, and The Man Who Would Be King, along with The 100: The Seventh and Final Season. Look also for Speedway and Boogie Nights on DVD only.
Paramount has just officially set Arthur Hiller’s Love Story (1970) newly-restored as a Paramount Presents Blu-ray edition on 2/9. Extras will include “a new Filmmaker Focus with film historian Leonard Maltin, with previously released content including a commentary by director Arthur Hiller, an introduction by film critic Ben Mankiewicz, Love Story: A Classic Remembered, and the theatrical trailer, plus access to a Digital copy of the film.” [Read on here...]
Good evening, everyone! Sorry for the lack of news updates this week, but we’ve been incredibly busy here at The Bits over the past several days. We’ve been doing some important server updates and software patching, but more importantly for you guys we’ve been working hard on new Blu-ray and 4K Ultra HD reviews. So we have a few of those for you this evening...
First, I posted my review of Christopher Nolan’s TENET in 4K Ultra HD from Warner Bros. Home Entertainment on Monday. It’s an ambitious film with stunning image quality and a characteristically Nolan-frustrating surround sound mix. You’ll find all the details here.
And just today, I posted my thoughts on Well Go USA’s brand new Ip Man: The Complete Collection box set, featuring all four films in the series—Ip Man, Ip Man 2: Legend of the Grandmaster, Ip Man 3, and Ip Man 4: The Finale—in 4K Ultra HD with remastered image quality and new Dolby Atmos sound mixes. It’s also worth a look, especially if you’re a fan of Donnie Yen.
Meanwhile, Tim has reviewed Sean Cunningham’s DeepStar Six (1989) on Blu-ray from Kino Lorber Studio Classics.
And Dennis has turned in his looks at Robert Aldrich’s Attack! (1956) and Frank Perry’s Ladybug Ladybug (1963), also on Blu-ray from Kino Lorber Studio Classics. [Read on here...]
This is just a quick update for those keeping score. Disney’s Investor Day included some... ahem... significant content news this afternoon.
First up, the studio revealed that Disney+ has now reached 86 million subscribers worldwide. You recall that Disney18+ rumor we’ve been talking about? Well, it’s true, and it’s called Star, but it will only be integrated with Disney+ internationally—that’s where all the Fox (read 20th Century Studios and Searchlight) content will go for viewers around the world. Here in the States, it will continue to go to Hulu.
Among that content will be original films, ESPN+ programming, and ABC News original content, along with The Handmaid’s Tale: Seasons 4 and 5 (the former due in early 2021), a Rolling Stones limited series drama, four more seasons of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, and a new Alien series from Noah Hawley (Fargo) and Ridley Scott.
Meanwhile, Disney+ will also see “roughly” 10 new Marvel shows, 10 new Star Wars shows, 15 Disney live-action, Disney animation, and Pixar series, and 15 Disney live-action, Disney animation, and Pixar feature films over the next few years. [Read on here...]
We’ve got just a quick post for you today as we’ll be working on reviews for the rest of the day.
But we do have a couple of things to report...
First, today is Disney’s Investor Day, which means the is expected to reveal big plans for Disney+, how the studio will handle its forthcoming theatrical slate for the next year, and what new streaming series and films they have in the pipeline (Star Wars, Marvel, etc). They MIGHT even reveal that long-rumored Disney18+ service expansion, that would see the studio adding R-rated films from Fox to their streaming service (in a section of the service protected from discovery by younger children by a passcode). Whatever news is revealed today, we expect that Disney means to make a big splash—their stock is trading at an all-time high today in anticipation of the news (see this link). Be sure to watch the trades this afternoon as word breaks—Deadline, Variety, and the Hollywood Reporter.
[Editor’s Note: Disney has now confirmed that its Disney+ streaming service has reached over 86 million global subscribers, and that it plans to launch “roughly” 10 new Marvel shows, 10 new Star Wars shows, 15 Disney live-action, Disney animation, and Pixar series, and 15 Disney live-action, Disney animation, and Pixar feature films over the next few years. They’re also integrating a new Star service with Disney+ (for now only internationally) which will include R-rated Fox content. (This appears to be the source of the Disney18+ rumor.) In the US, it appears that R-rated Fox content (from 20th Century Studios and Searchlight) will appear on Hulu.]
Meanwhile, Criterion has just revealed plans to release a new World of Wong Kar-wai Blu-ray collection on March 23, 2021. [Read on here...]
All right, we’ve got an announcement news update for you here at The Bits this afternoon...
First up today, Kino Lorber Studio Classics has officially set their long-awaited Spaceballs (1987) 4K Ultra HD for release on 4/12. The 4K disc will include Dolby Vision HDR and audio commentary by Mel Brooks. Audio will be includes in 5.1 and 2.0 (format TBA) with optional English subs. You’ll also get the film on Blu-ray, which will include lots of additional legacy extras. You can see the 4K art at left. We’ve updated our 4K Ultra HD Release List here at The Bits accordingly.
The company also has a nice March slate of catalog Blu-ray titles, which is expected to include Sidney Lanfield’s My Favorite Blonde (1942), David Butler’s Caught in the Draft (1941), and Elliott Nugent’s Nothing But the Truth (1941) on 3/2 (all Bob Hope films), followed by Don Jones’ The Forest (1982, for Code Red), Sam Peckinpah’s Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia (1974), Robert Aldrich’s The Choirboys (1977), and Richard Fleischer’s The Don is Dead (1973) on 3/9, Jim O’Connoly’s Tower of Evil (1972, for Scorpion Releasing), Andy Anderson’s Positive I.D. (1986), Francis Megahy’s Taffin (1988), Andrei Konchalovsky’s Runaway Train (1985), and Marty Feldman’s The Last Remake of Beau Geste (1977) and In God We Trust (1980) on 3/16, Don Jones’ Schoolgirls in Chains (1973, for Code Red), Frank Perry’s Doc (1971), George Seaton’s Showdown (1973), Henry Hathaway’s Shoot Out (1971), and Richard Fleischer’s Crossed Swords (1977, aka The Prince and the Pauper) on 3/23, and Otto Preminger’s Rosebud (1975), Andrew Bergman’s Isn’t She Great (2000), Édouard Molinaro’s A Pain in the Ass (1973), and Ang Lee’s Lust, Caution (2007) on 3/30. [Read on here...]