And... we’re back! My wife Sarah and I spent the long holiday weekend here in the States up in rustic Portland, Oregon, where—through the power of the Interwebs—I officiated my niece’s wedding. It was a lovely ceremony, a wonderful trip, and a good time was had by all, as they say.

But, while I was away, The Bits’ team turned in a bunch of great new disc reviews, including...

Stephen’s take on The Incredible Melting Man (1977) in 4K UHD, and Creature from Black Lake (1976), the Vampyr: Limited Edition (1932), and Fire in the Sky (1993) on Blu-ray.

Tim’s thoughts on The Beast (1988) and The Black Phone (2021) on Blu-ray, and Child’s Play (1988) in 4K UHD.

And Dennis’ look at Bright Victory (1951), The Last Train from Madrid (1937), and Samson and the 7 Miracles of the World (1961) all on Blu-ray.

As always, lots more new disc reviews are on the way over the coming days so be sure to keep your eyes peeled for them.

We’ve also got some pretty significant catalog 4K release news to catch you all up on this afternoon, and some TV Blu-ray news too... [Read on here...]

All right, folks. This will be our last post until Wednesday next week, as it’s not only the long Labor Day weekend here in the States but by wife and I are also celebrating our thirty-second wedding anniversary. So we’re going to take a little time to relax here in sweltering-in-a-heatwave Southern California.

But, we’ve got a TON of release news to talk about, as well as a pair of new disc reviews to start things off today...

Stephen has turned in his thoughts on Gaspar Noe’s intriguing and doubly-experimental Lux Aeterna (2019) on Blu-ray from Yellow Veil Pictures via Vinegar Syndrome.

And Tim has posted his thoughts on Jeffrey Obrow and Stephen Carpenter’s The Kindred (1987), now available in a new Special Edition Blu-ray release from Synapse Films.

And we’ve got lots more disc reviews coming over the weekend and early next week, so be sure to check back for them.

Meanwhile, our friends at Via Vision Entertainment down under are releasing a Saw: The Ultimate Collection 4K Ultra HD and Blu-ray set on 11/9 that’s not only comes in an exclusive “reverse bear trap” replica, but is limited to just 1500 copies. The 13-disc set includes Saw, Saw II, Saw III, Saw IV, Saw V, Saw VI, Saw 3D: The Final Chapter, Jigsaw, Spiral: From the Book of Saw, plus a Bonus Disc packed with extras. You can see the packaging at left. Be sure to visit their website here for all the details and to pre-order. [Read on here...]

All right, I’ve just spent all week reviewing every single one of the new Star Trek 4K Ultra HD releases, save for the new 6-Movie Collection. So you can now read my thoughts on: The 3-disc Star Trek: The Motion Picture – Director’s Edition: The Complete Adventure, the 2-disc wide release of the Star Trek: The Motion Picture – Director’s Edition, and the 2-disc wide releases of Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, Star Trek III: The Search for Spock, Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home, Star Trek V: The Final Frontier, and Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country, all in 4K Ultra HD from Paramount.

For those who might be wondering, the new 6-Movie Collection includes everything except for the Special Longer Version of Star Trek: The Motion Picture which is exclusive to the Complete Adventure box set. So adjust your purchase plans accordingly. All the details on the other SKUs are in the reviews linked above. I hope you enjoy them all!

Now then... as you can see by the image on the left there, the Universal Classic Monsters: Icons of Horror Collection – Volume 2 box set is now official and (more importantly) available for pre-order! [Read on here...]

Welcome to Monday, Bits readers!

I’ve been hard at work all weekend going through all of the content on the new Star Trek 4K titles, which street on 9/6, and as such I now have three in-depth reviews for you all to enjoy...

Available now on The Bits are my thoughts on William Shatner’s Star Trek V: The Final Frontier, Nicholas Meyer’s Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country, and Robert Wise’s long awaited 4K upgrade of the Star Trek: The Motion Picture – Director’s Edition as found in the new 3-disc The Complete Adventure Limited Edition box set. All three releases are terrific and should please the veteran Star Trek diehards among you. Paramount has really done right by these films.

For the record, I will indeed be reviewing the single-film 4K UHD SKUs of Star Trek II, III, IV, and also the movie only Star Trek: TMP – DE when they become available, but I probably will not have those discs until much closer to street date.

In the meantime, there’s plenty to dig into in this first batch of reviews. [Read on here...]

I’m working on some major new 4K Ultra HD reviews here at The Bits this afternoon, the first of which may get posted tonight. So I only have time for another very quick news update today. BUT... there’s a bit of breaking catalog release news that’s well worth mentioning here.

First, our friends at Arrow Video have just revealed their November Blu-ray and 4K slate, which includes a few gems...

It starts with Martin Scorsese’s The Wolf of Wall Street on 11/17 in both Blu-ray and 4K Ultra HD (a UK only title, but it’s already been released here in the States on both formats by Paramount). Also coming that day are Quentin Dupieux’s Incredible But True (2022) and Robert Wise’s Audrey Rose (1977), each on Blu-ray only. The former is a UK only title, while the latter will be released in the US, UK, and Canada.

Next up is their previously-announced Shawscope: Volume Two – Limited Edition Blu-ray box set on 11/21, which will also debut in the US, UK, and Canada. The 10-disc set will include The 36th Chamber of Shaolin, Return to the 36th Chamber, Disciples of the 36th Chamber, Mad Monkey Kung Fu, Five Superfighters, Invincible Shaolin, The Kid with the Golden Arm, Magnificent Ruffians, Ten Tigers of Kwangtung, My Young Auntie, Mercenaries from Hong Kong, The Boxer’s Omen, Martial Arts of Shaolin, and The Bare-footed Kid. Two of the set’s discs will also be CDs with music from the films. There’s a 60-page book of essays and liner notes on each film as well. [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...]

We’re back as promised this evening with more upcoming catalog 4K Ultra HD news and rumors from our studio, industry, and retail sources. Keep in mind, some of these titles are not yet officially announced, so the dates and details are subject to change.

First of all, this is a title we’ve known is coming for a few months now and while it’s not yet been officially announced by the studio, we do have the final cover artwork from retailers: Universal Studios Home Entertainment is expected to release their Universal Classic Monsters: Icons of Horror Collection – Volume 2 box set in 4K Ultra HD on 10/11.

The set will include The Mummy (1932), The Bride of Frankenstein (1935), Phantom of the Opera (1943), and Creature from the Black Lagoon (1954). You can see the cover artwork at left and also below.

It’s also believed that the titles in the studio’s Volume 1 set—Dracula (1931), Frankenstein (1931), The Wolf Man (1941), and The Invisible Man (1932)—will finally be released as single-film SKUs, for sure in the UK and possibly in the US as well. We’ll post more as soon as the studio makes any of this official. [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...]

“Quite simply, A Clockwork Orange is significant because it’s a Stanley Kubrick film.” – Raymond Benson, Cinema Retro

The Digital Bits and History, Legacy & Showmanship are pleased to present this retrospective commemorating the golden anniversary of the release of A Clockwork Orange, Stanley Kubrick’s (Dr. Strangelove, 2001: A Space Odyssey) critically acclaimed film based upon Anthony Burgess’s novel and starring Malcolm McDowell (Time After Time, O Lucky Man!) as gang leader Alex whose principal interests of rape, ultra-violence and Beethoven occupy his life before the government attempts a rehabilitation.

The film was nominated for four Academy Awards (including Best Picture), and in 2020 the Library of Congress selected A Clockwork Orange for preservation in the National Film Registry as being “culturally, historically or aesthetically significant.” Its most recent home media release, on 4K UHD, was in 2021 (and is reviewed here). [Read on here...]

We’ve got news, news, and only news here at The Bits today, and we’re starting with the big announcement: Criterion has just unveiled their November Blu-ray, DVD, and 4K Ultra HD release slate...

It kicks off with Věra Chytilová’s 1966 Czech New Wave classic Daisies (Spine #1157 – Blu-ray only) and a 4K update of Wong Kar Wai’s evocative 2000 gem In the Mood for Love (Spine #147 – 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray, and DVD) on 11/1. Following on 11/8 is Jane Campion’s cold but captivating The Power of the Dog (Spine #1158 – 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray, and DVD). On 11/15, look for Andrew Lau Tak-wah and Alan Mak’s The Infernal Affairs Trilogy (Spine #1159 – Blu-ray only – includes Infernal Affairs, Infernal Affairs II, and Infernal Affairs III). Finally, Spike Lee’s Malcolm X round out the month’s slate on 11/22 (Spine #1160 – 4K Ultra HD and Blu-ray).

Note that Malcolm X and The Power of the Dog will include Dolby Vision HDR (In the Mood for Love appears to be HDR10 only), while The Power of the Dog will also feature Dolby Atmos audio.

You can see the cover artwork for all of these titles at left and also below. We’ve also updated our Criterion Spines Project and 4K Ultra HD Release List pages here at the site accordingly. And more detail about the special features included on these titles is available here at the Criterion website. [Read on here...]