Displaying items by tag: Akira Kurosawa

Cheers, Bits readers!

We’ve got one last My Two Cents update for you this week with some great new disc reviews, as well as some great new Blu-ray and 4K Ultra HD release news. Let’s hit those reviews first…

I’ve just updated our dear late friend Barrie Maxwell’s review of William Wyler’s Ben-Hur (1959) to cover Warner’s stunning new 4K Ultra HD restoration of the film, which streets next week. It’s truly one of the great classic film presentations we’ve seen on this format to date, and certainly not to be missed.

Dennis and Tim have checked in with thoughts on a pair of Agatha Christie film adaptations in 4K Ultra HD from Kino Lorber Studio Classics, including John Guillerman’s Death on the Nile (1978) and Guy Hamilton’s The Mirror Crack’d (1980).

Dennis has also reviewed Michael Winner’s The Mechanic (1972) and Antonia Bird’s Priest (1994) on Blu-ray from Kino Lorber Studio Classics and Imprint, respectively.

Tim has posted his own reviews of Alberto Cavalcanti, Charles Crichton, Basil Dearden, Robert Hamer’s Dead of Night (1945) anthology on Blu-ray from KLSC as well as Chor Yuen’s The Jade Tiger (1977) from Arrow’s Shawscope: Volume 3 Blu-ray box.

Stephen has reviewed Emma Seligman’s Bottoms (2023) on Blu-ray from KLSC.

And Stuart has taken a look at Hideo Gosha’s Gate of Flesh (1988) on Blu-ray from Toei via 88 Films.

We have lots more great 4K reviews cooking for next week as well, believe me.

Also here at The Bits today, we’ve posted an update of our Release Dates & Artwork section featuring all the latest Blu-ray, DVD, and 4K Ultra HD cover artwork with Amazon pre-order links. As always, whenever you order anything after clicking to Amazon though one of our links (like this one) you’re helping to support our work here at the site and we appreciate it!

Now then, first things first: Our retail and industry sources have informed us that Warner Bros. Discovery Home Entertainment’s much anticipated 4K Ultra HD release of the Wachowski’s Speed Racer (2008) should street on or about 5/19. So adjust your plans accordingly. Go Speed Go!

Of course, the big news today is that our friends at the Criterion Collection have just unveiled their May slate of Blu-ray and 4K titles. And any slate that includes more Kurosawa in 4K UHD is a good one. [Read on here...]

We’ve got a bunch of new disc reviews to share with you today here at The Bits, including…

My tag-team review (with Tim Salmons) of John Boorman’s Arthurian epic Excalibur (1981) in a long-awaited 4K Ultra HD release from Arrow Video.

Stephen’s thoughts on Jonathan Demme’s Married to the Mob (1988), Rachel Talalay’s Tank Girl (1995), and Satoshi Kon’s Perfect Blue (1997) each in 4K Ultra HD, from Cinématographe via Vinegar Syndrome, Vinegar Syndrome, and GKIDS via Shout! Studios, respectively.

Dennis’ look at Blake Edwards’ The Pink Panther (1963) in 4K Ultra HD from Kino Lorber Studio Classics.

And finally it’s back to Tim again for his thoughts on Jim Abrahams, David Zucker, and Jerry Zucker’s Top Secret! (1984) in 4K UHD from Paramount.

More reviews are coming this week, so definitely be sure to check back for them.

Now then… we’ve got a bunch of great announcement news to cover here today as well!

We’ll start with official word that Lionsgate is distributing Quentin Tarantino’s Kill Bill: The Whole Bloody Affair widely on Digital next week, on 2/17. In fact, you can find it available for pre-order on Apple TV right now. We’re told the Blu-ray and 4K Ultra HD physical release is coming later this year from Lionsgate.

A24 has just announced that Josh Safdie’s Best Picture-nominated film Marty Supreme (2025) is coming soon to Blu-ray and 4K Ultra HD. [Read on here...]

All right, we’ve got a ton of new disc reviews that we’ve shared here at The Bits over the past week, including…

My reviews of the fixed Superman: The Movie, Superman II, and Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut 4K Ultra HD discs from Warner Bros.

My review (with Todd Doogan) of Akira Kurosawa’s Stray Dog (1949) on Blu-ray from the BFI, as well as my review (with Tim) of the new Back to the Future: 40th Anniversary Limited Edition Gift Set in 4K from Universal.

Stephen’s thoughts on Arūnas Žebriūnas’s The Devil’s Bride (1974) on Blu-ray from Deaf Crocodile, Hideaki Anno and Shinji Higuchi’s Shin Godzilla: Deluxe Collector’s Edition (2016) from GKids, and Abel Ferrara’s Ms. 45 (1981) on 4K Ultra HD from Arrow Video.

Tim’s reviews of Hanna-Barbera’s Wacky Races: The Complete Series on Blu-ray from the Warner Archive Collection, StudioCanal’s Dead of Night: 80th Anniversary Collector’s Edition in 4K Ultra HD, the first titles—One-Armed Swordsman (1967) and Return of the One-Armed Swordsman (1969)—from Arrow’s Shawscope: Volume Three Blu-ray box set.

Dennis’ look at Mark L. Lester’s The Ex (1996) on Blu-ray from Kino Lorber Studio Classics and John Cromwell’s The Racket (1951) on Blu-ray from the Warner Archive Collection.

And Stuart’s take on Stuart Heisler’s I Died a Thousand Times (1955) and the Bette Davis Collection (which includes The Letter, Dark Victory, Jezebel, and The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex) on Blu-ray from the Warner Archive Collection as well as José Giovanni’s Last Known Address (1970) on Blu-ray from Kino Lorber Studio Classics.

We’ve also got lots more new disc reviews coming today and all this week, so be sure to check back for them!

Now then… in announcement news today, the good people at Radiance Films have revealed that they’re releasing Richard Rush’s The Stunt Man (1980) in 4K Ultra HD on 2/23/26. The film will feature Dolby Vision HDR, and the package will include a bevy of new and legacy special features, including the acclaimed documentary The Sinister Saga of Making The Stuntman (2001). You can see the cover work above left. [Read on here...]

All right, we’ve got a bunch of great announcement news to start the week, but as always we begin first with new disc reviews. Today we have for you…

My reviews of Akira Kurosawa’s High and Low (1953) in 4K Ultra HD from Criterion, as well as Steve Lisberger’s TRON (1982) and Joseph Kosinski’s TRON: Legacy (2010) in 4K Steelbook from Disney via Sony.

Tim’s review of DC Studios and HBO Max’s The Penguin (2024) spin-off limited series in 4K Ultra HD from Warner Bros. Home Entertainment.

Dennis’ look at John Adams, Zelda Adams, and Toby Poser’s Hellbender (2021) on Blu-ray from Arrow Video and Sydney Pollack’s This Property is Condemned (1966) on Blu-ray from Imprint Films.

Stuart’s thoughts on Elliott Nugent’s The Great Gatsby (1949) on Blu-ray from Kino Lorber Studio Classics.

And Stephen’s take on Savage Steve Holland’s Better of Dead: 40th Anniversary Edition (1985) in 4K Ultra HD from Paramount.

As always, more disc reviews are forthcoming, so be sure to stay tuned for them!

Now then, the big news today is that our friends at The Criterion Collection have officially announced their complete December slate, which is set to include Return to Reason: Four Films by Man Ray (2023) (Spine #2191 – Blu-ray only) and Howard Hawks’ His Girl Friday (1940) (Spine #849 – 4K + Blu-ray) on 12/2, Mira Nair’s Salaam Bombay! (1988) (Spine #1292 – 4K + Blu-ray and Blu-ray) and Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger’s I Know Where I’m Going (1945) (Spine #94 – 4K + Blu-ray and Blu-ray) on 12/9, and Tim Burton’s Pee-wee’s Big Adventure (1985) (Spine #1293 – 4K + Blu-ray and Blu-ray) and Spike Lee’s David Byrne’s American Utopia (2020) (Spine #1294 – 4K + Blu-ray, Blu-ray, and DVD). [Read on here...]

Morning, everyone!

Before we get started today, we’ve got a few more new disc reviews to share with you…

I’ve turned in my thoughts on Lewis Gilbert’s You Only Live Twice (1976) in 4K from the MGM’s new Connery Bond 4K set, as well as Akira Kurosawa’s Yojimbo & Sanjuro (1961-62) in 4K from the BFI (a review co-written with Todd Doogan), and also Matt Schrader’s Score: A Film Music Documentary (2016) on Blu-ray from Gravitas Ventures.

Tim has reviewed Bob Clark’s Murder by Decree (1979) on Blu-ray from Kino Lorber Studio Classics.

Dennis has checked in with a look at John Sturges’s Mystery Street (1950) on Blu-ray from the Warner Archive Collection, as well as Bruce Robinson’s Withnail and I (1987) on Blu-ray from Criterion.

And finally, Stephen has offered his take on Shaka King’s Judas and the Black Messiah (2021) in 4K Ultra HD from Warner Bros., as well as Andrei Tarkovsky’s final film The Sacrifice (1986) in 4K from Kino Lorber Studio Classics.

And we’ve got lots more great new reviews planned for posting all next week here at The Bits, so be sure to check back then. [Read on here...]

We have more announcement news for you today, and more new disc reviews as well…

First, Tim has turned in his thoughts on Jim Isaac’s Jason X (2001) in 4K Ultra HD from New Line via Arrow Video, as well as the Warner Archive Collection’s excellent new Looney Tunes: Collector’s Vault – Volume 1 on Blu-ray!

I’ve posted a new review (with longtime Bits contributor Todd Doogan) of Akira Kurosawa’s Throne of Blood (1957) in 4K Ultra HD from the BFI.

And Stephen has delivered his thoughts on Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett’s Abigail (2024) in 4K Ultra HD once again, but this time as released by Turbine Media in Germany.

Also here at the site today, we’ve posted another update of our Release Dates & Artwork section here at The Bits, featuring all the latest Blu-ray, DVD, and 4K Ultra HD cover artwork and Amazon.com pre-order links. Don’t forget: The Bits is an Amazon affiliate, so anytime you order literally anything from them after clicking to them through one of our links (like this one), you’re helping to support our work here and we appreciate it! [Read on here...]

We’re starting the week here at The Bits with more new disc reviews and some great announcement news as well!

But first, I just wanted to let you all know that we’ve stabilized the website to address some software and loading issues that we’ve been experiencing recently. We’re not 100% back to normal, but the site should at least be loading faster now than it was before. We’ll be doing some additional upgrades in the week ahead, so more on that topic soon.

In the meantime, we’ve shared a bunch of great new disc reviews here on the site today and over the weekend. Among them are…

My review (with longtime Bits contributor Adam Jahnke) of William Friedkin’s Sorcerer (1977) in 4K Ultra HD from the Criterion Collection! The disc streets on 6/24, and the A/V quality is superb.

I’ve also reviewed the new UFO: The Complete SHADO Files Blu-ray box set from our friends at Imprint Television, which contains the best HD quality of any Blu-ray release of Gerry Anderson’s UFO (1970-71) to date, along with the most complete collection of special features.

Also new today is Dennis’ look at Jaume Collet-Serra’s The Woman in the Yard (2025) on Blu-ray from Blumhouse and Universal Pictures Home Entertainment.

And Stephen has taken an in-depth look at Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett’s Abigail (2024) in 4K Ultra HD from Universal via Scream Factory.

More new disc reviews are definitely on the way all this week, so be sure to watch out for them! [Read on here...]

Afternoon, folks! I wanted to check in here today with some news, and few more reviews, and an update.

Some of you have probably noticed that The Bits website has been slow this week. We’ve been having some software issues and our tech support team is on it. The good news is, they’ve identified the cause. We’re working on a solution which is going to involve a bunch of software upgrades, but it’s likely to going to take a week or two to sort out. So I just wanted to apologize for the inconvenience and ask for your patience in the meantime. Rest assured, Scotty and the crew down in Engineering are on the case and we should be back to normal soon!

In the meantime, we have some new disc reviews for you...

Stephen has taken a look at Bill Plympton’s I Married a Strange Person! (1997) on Blu-ray from Deaf Crocodile Films, as well as David Allen’s The Primevals (2023) on Blu-ray from Full Moon Features.

Dennis has offered his take on Steven Soderbergh’s The Good German (2006) in 4K Ultra HD from Warner Bros. Discovery Home Entertainment (with an assist on the 4K side from Tim Salmons), as well as Dougal Wilson’s Paddington in Peru (2024) on Blu-ray from Sony Pictures Home Entertainment, and Charles Walters’ Lili (1953) on Blu-ray from the Warner Archive Collection.

And Tim has reviewed Gordon Flemying’s Daleks’ Invasion Earth 2150 A.D. (1996) on Blu-ray from Severin Films.

Lots more disc reviews are definitely on the way, so be sure to watch for them. And I also wanted to let you know in advance that if news updates or social media posts are a little light over the next few days, it’s because I just got my hands on Warner and MGM’s new 007: James Bond – Sean Connery 6-Film Collection in 4K Ultra HD. So I’m going to crack that open and start working on detailed reviews of the films therein, but it’s probably going to take me through the weekend to get them all covered.

But if a cursory examination of Dr. No and From Russian with Love is any indication, these new 4K remasters are pretty terrific. They’re on 100GB discs, they feature very high data rates, and the color, detail, and grain are all very nice indeed. Fingers crossed, I think the Warner remastering team has nailed it. These are definitely a big improvement over the old Lowry Digital 4K masters. So watch for more on that in my reviews soon! [Read on here...]

We have a few more new announcements to share with you today, and a little bit of an update...

First, A24 has just announced new A24 Shop-exclusive Blu-ray and 4K Ultra HD editions of Halina Reijn’s Babygirl (2024) that are expected to ship in March (street date TBA). The 4K includes HDR10 high dynamic range, while both feature Dolby Atmos audio. Extras on each version will include audio commentary with writer/director Halina Reijn, 2 featurettes (Directing Desire with Halina Reijn and Power Looks: Dressing the Cast of Babygirl), deleted scenes, and a gallery of BTS photography by Niko Tavernise. You can pre-order both versions here.

Meanwhile, our friends at the BFI have just announced new 4K editions of Akira Kurosawa’s Throne of Blood (1957) and Mathieu Kassovitz’s La Haine (1995). The former is set to street on May 19, while the latter arrives on April 14. Both will feature Dolby Vision HDR. You can find those here.

A quick update on those Clint Eastwood 4K titles we mentioned Tuesday, including Pale Rider (1985), Dirty Harry (1971), and The Outlaw Josey Wales (1976): They’re now available for pre-order on the Gruv website, but with no street date listed. We expect official details from Warner Bros. Discovery Home Entertainment in the coming weeks. [Read on here...]

All right, we’re closing out the short holiday week here at the site with more new disc reviews, including...

My reviews of Fede Álvarez’s Alien: Romulus (2024) in 4K Ultra HD from 20th Century Studios, as well as the BFI’s edition of Akira Kurosawa’s Seven Samurai (1954) in 4K Ultra HD.

Tim’s reviews of Clint Eastwood’s The Eiger Sanction (1975) in 4K UHD and also Monk: Season Three (2004-2005) on Blu-ray, both from Kino Lorber Studio Classics.

Dennis’ look at Martin Ritt’s Cross Creek (1983) on Blu-ray from KLSC.

And finally, Stuart’s take on Sidney Lumet’s Garbo Talks (1984) also on Blu-ray from KLSC.

We’ll have more reviews on Friday and over the weekend as well.

In news today, 20th Century Studios has just announced that Jared Hess’ Napoleon Dynamite (2004) is now available Digitally in 4K UHD. There’s no word yet on a physical 4K release, but given the title’s popularity, it’s definitely possible that one could follow in the new year. [Read on here...]