Displaying items by tag: Sergio Leone
Criterion's March includes Lynch's Inland Empire, plus Texas Chain Saw Massacre in 4K from Dark Sky, new Warner Archive Blu-ray titles & more
We've got some breaking release news to cover today here at The Bits, so let's get right to it...
Criterion has just announced their new March 2023 titles, and fans of David Lynch should be very pleased. The slate includes a 4K upgrade of Michael Curtiz's classic noir Mildred Pierce (Spine #860 – 4K + Blu-ray Combo) on 3/7, John Woo's Last Hurrah for Chivalry (Spine #1174 – Blu-ray only) on 3/14, David Lynch's long awaited remaster of Inland Empire (Spine #1175 – Blu-ray only) on 3/21, and Joan Micklin Silver's Chilly Scenes of Winter (Spine #1176 – Blu-ray only) on 3/28.
We've been hoping for an actual 4K UHD release of Lynch's Inland Empire, but like so many of the other Criterion titles that have been remastered in 4K yet released on Blu-ray first (only to be upgraded later), we suspect that an Ultra HD edition will come in time.
Also coming to 4K Ultra HD from Dark Sky Films on 2/28 is Tobe Hooper's Texas Chain Saw Massacre, with Dolby Vision HDR, Dolby Atmos audio, and a new documentary called The Legacy of the Texas Chain Saw Massacre. [Read on here...]
Dragonslayer 4K
Once Upon a Time in the West 4K
Criterion March 2023 slate
Mildred Pierce 4K
Texas Chain Saw Massacre 4K
Chilly Scenes of Winter
Last Hurrah for Chivalry
Arsène Lupin Collection
Silent Avant Garde
Wife vs Secretary
The Long Long Trailer
Goodbye Mr Chips
Wednesday, 14 December 2022 15:33
Strange World, The Fabelmans, Crimes of the Future, The Adventures of Batman & updates on Dragonslayer & Once Upon a Time in the West in 4K
We start with two more new disc reviews today (and there might be one more from me later this evening, but it should certainly be up by tomorrow morning)...
Tim has reviewed Crane Wilbur's The Bat (1959), which is available in a fine new Blu-ray edition from our friends at The Film Detective.
And Dennis has offered his thoughts on Lynne Littman's Testament (1983), a post-apocalyptic drama from PBS' American Playhouse and Paramount Pictures that includes William Devane, Jane Alexander, Kevin Costner, Rebecca De Mornay, and Lukas Haas. That's new on Blu-ray from the good folks at Imprint Films.
Now then, the big announcement news today is that Disney has just officially set Don Hall and Qui Nguyen's animated Strange World for release on Blu-ray, DVD, and 4K Ultra HD on 2/14. Look for the Digital and Disney+ streaming release to happen on 12/23. Audio will be Dolby Atmos on the 4K and DTS-HD MA on Blu-ray, as always. Extras will include 4 featurettes (Anatomy of a Scene: Creating A Strange World, Strange Science, Creature Feature, and The Hidden Secrets of Strange World), outtakes, and 4 deleted scenes (The Ballad of Jaeger Clade, Lightning Lynx, Funerals and Promises, and Ethan and Searcher). You can see the cover artwork at left and also below. [Read on here...]
Strange World 4K
The Fabelmans 4K
Crimes of the Future 4K
The Adventures of Batman BD
The Film Detective
The Bat BD review
Imprint Films
Testament BD review
Tar BD
Legion of Super Heroes 4K
The Adventures of Batman: The Complete Collection BD
Filmmation
The Dunwich Horror BD
Heat (1986)
If I Had a Million
Bones and All, Prey for the Devil, Jackie Chan: Volume 1 & more, plus updates on To Live and Die in LA & Once Upon a Time in the West in 4K
Today's My Two Cents update begins as always with more new disc reviews...
Tim and I have taken a look at Kino Lorber Studio Classics' new 4K Ultra HD upgrade of the classic Joseph Sargent heist thriller The Taking of Pelham One Two Three (1974), which stars Robert Shaw and Walter Matthau. Among other things, it's a great New York City movie and if you've ever wondered where director Quentin Tarantino got the idea for his character names in Reservoir Dogs, look no further.
Also today, we've gone in-depth on Via Vision's new Dirty Dancing: Limited Edition Steelbook 4K Ultra HD release, which takes Lionsgate's already fine remastering work on the title and adds a few more extras via their own exclusive bonus Blu-ray Disc.
And Tim has also reviewed Bob Clark's Children Shouldn't Play with Dead Things: 50th Anniversary Edition in 4K Ultra HD from VCI Entertainment, which includes a new 4K scan and remaster but only Standard Dynamic Range, as well as Nico Mastorakis's Nightmare at Noon (1988) on Blu-ray from our friends at Arrow Video.
More reviews are on the way tomorrow and beyond, so be sure to watch for them. [Read on here...]
Bones and All BD
The Taking of Pelham One Two Three 4K review
Dirty Dancing: Limited Edition Steelbook 4K review
Nightmare at Noon BD review
Prey for the Devil 4K
Warm Bodies Best Buy 4K Steelbook
Detective Knight: Redemption BD
To the End
The Prince of Egypt 4K
The Return of Tanya Tucker
Gerry Anderson: A Life Uncharted DVD
To Live and Die in LA 4K
The Magnificent Seven 4K
Three Colors Trilogy 4K
Friday, 11 March 2022 16:26
KLSC reveals more Man with No Name 4Ks, plus Hitchcock Vol. 2, Shinkai from GKids, Police Around the World & more!
We're working on new disc reviews here at The Bits at the moment, and we have a few recently-posted ones to catch you all up on today...
I've posted my thoughts on Lana Wachowski's The Matrix Resurrections in 4K Ultra HD from Warner Bros.
Stephen has turned in his review of a Region B Blu-ray double-feature title from All the Anime: Makoto Shinkai's The Place Promised in Our Early Days and Voices of a Distant Star. Hold that thought for a moment.
Tim has checked in with a look at Christophe Gans' Silent Hill and Brian Trenchard-Smith's The Man from Hong Kong on region-free Blu-ray from our friends at Umbrella Entertainment.
And Dennis has offered his take on David Butler's Lullaby of Broadway (1951) on Blu-ray from The Warner Archive Collection.
I'm also working on a review of Steven Spielberg's West Side Story on 4K Ultra HD from 20th Century Studios, and I've just gotten my hands on Francis Ford Coppola's The Godfather Trilogy in 4K from Paramount. So be sure to watch for those reviews to get posted over the weekend and early next week. Rest assured, the rest of the team has more new reviews on tap for the coming week as well. [Read on here...]
Star Wars: Obi Wan Kenobi
The Man with No Name 4K
The Matrix Resurrections 4K review
Voices of a Distant Star BD review
The Place Promised in Our Early Days BD review
Silent Hill BD
The Man from Hong Kong BD
Lullaby of Broadway BD
All the Anime
Lullaby of Broadway BD review
West Side Story 4K
The Godfather Trilogy 4K
A Fistful of Dollars 4K
For a Few Dollars More 4K
The Alfred Hitchcock Classics Collection: Volume 2 4K
Saboteur 4K
Shadow of a Doubt 4K
Marnie 4K
The Trouble with Harry 4K
Family Plot 4K
5 Centimeters Per Second BD
Children Who Chase Lost Voices BD
Darby O'Gill and the Little People BD
The Gnome Mobile BD
The Police Around the World BD
Dracula 4K on Apple TV, Uni Monsters coming to UHD disc, KLSC bows more Leone in Ultra HD & Sony's Underworld 4K box
We're rounding out the week with a bit of new announcement news here at The Bits...
I'll have a review of Akira Kurosawa's Ran in 4K Ultra HD for you later today as well, but first I wanted to jump in early with some breaking news.
Universal Monsters fans may be pleased to learn that Tod Browning's Dracula (1931) is now available for purchase on iTunes/Apple TV in 4K UHD with HDR. And the SRP is just $4.99. It looks fantastic—the high dynamic range really does make a difference in subtle things, like shadow detailing, candle and moonlight luminance, Dracula's glowing white eyes, and the like.
As I mentioned in my review of the complete Universal Monsters Blu-ray Collection back in 2018, all of these films were remastered from new 4K scans. So potentially, they could all be made available in native 4K, both digitally and on disc. And in fact, we've had Dracula on our 4K Ultra HD Release List here at The Bits for many months now. Both Dracula and Frankenstein celebrate their 90th anniversaries this year. The Mummy turns 90 next year, while The Wolf Man celebrates its 80th anniversary in 2021. [Read on here...]
Dracula 4K on AppleTV
Universal Monsters Classics Collection 4K
Dracula 4K
The Wolf Man 4K
Frankenstein 4K
The Mummy 4K
Ran 4K review
The Shawshank Redemption 4K
Underworld: Limited Edition 5Movie Collection 4K
KL Studio Classics bows Good, Bad and Ugly in 4K, plus Stargate SG1 on BD, Akira 4K exchange program, MGM open to sale & more
Hey, looks like we do have a little bit of new announcement news for you today...
First up though, we've got a quick Amazon Deal of the Day to report: Network's Monty Python's Flying Circus: The Complete Series Blu-ray is just $75 for today only on Amazon (42% off). It's the same 7 discs found the Deluxe Edition (reviewed here on The Bits), just without the books and deluxe packaging. So strike fast if you're interested. Here's the Amazon link.
Also today, we have word that FUNimation's Akira 4K Ultra HD release doesn't have HDR. The version released in Japan does, but apparently the discs released in the US and the UK do not. FUNimation has now established an exchange program to get a proper 4K with HDR disc sometime in February via the mail. You can find those details here and here (below):
"For those of you who would like to request the 4K HDR version of AKIRA, please send an email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. (US/CA) or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. (UK/IRE) with "AKIRA 4K" as the subject, and provide your name, mailing address, email address and proof of purchase (receipt or confirmation email and photo of the disc)."
Okay, now for that announcement news: Kino Lorber Studio Classics has just officially set Sergio Leone's The Good, The Bad and The Ugly for release on 4K Ultra HD and Blu-ray combo on 4/27. You can see the cover artwork above left. [Read on here...]
The Good The Bad and The Ugly 4K
Stargate SG1: The Complete Series BD
FUNimation Akira 4K exchange program
Monty Python's Flying Circus: 50th Anniversary BD sale
Amazon Deal of the Day
Ghostbusters: 30th Anniversary Edition, Once Upon a Time in America: Extended Director's Cut – CE & Without Warning
We've got a couple more bits of announcement news for you today...
Sony Pictures Home Entertainment has announced that it's celebrating the 30th Anniversary of Ghostbusters with a new limited (to 700 theaters) theatrical re-release on 8/29 and also new 4K-remastered Blu-ray editions of Ghostbusters and Ghostbusters II on 9/16. Each Blu-ray will be a 2-disc set in Digibook packaging. There will also be a Limited Edition box set of both films, including an exclusive Slimer figurine. It appears that all of the prevoius extras will carry over to the new editions, and you'll get new disc-based content too. [Read on here...]
Ghostbusters: 30th Anniversary Limited Edition
Once Upon a Time in America: Extended Director's Cut Collector's Edition
Ghostbusters II