Displaying items by tag: Mark A Altman

Afternoon, Bits readers! We’re back after the long 4th of July holiday here in the States with more reviews and announcements. As always, we’ll start with reviews...

Stuart has reviewed a pair of new Blu-ray titles, including Gregory La Cava’s Lady in a Jam (1942) and also Mervyn LeRoy’s Moment to Moment (1966) from Kino Lorber Studio Classics.

Stephen has checked in with his take on William Cameron Menzies’ Invaders from Mars (1953) on 4K Ultra HD from Ignite Films.

And Dennis has offered his look at Vincente Minelli’s The Courtship of Eddie’s Father (1963) on Blu-ray from the Warner Archive Collection.

Now then, in announcement news today, the big news is that our friends at Shout! and Scream Factory have just unveiled their September Blu-ray, DVD, and 4K Ultra HD release slate, and—as always—there are some gems to report. [Read on here...]

Today’s update will be quick, because we’re all neck-deep in new disc reviews, myself included. I’ve just completed an in-depth look at Richard Donner’s Superman: The Movie, as newly-released in Warner’s Superman: 5-Film Collection in 4K Ultra HD. This a slightly different disc than the version released back in 2018 (and reviewed here) so be sure to check out the new review for all the relevant details.

FYI, I’m going to be working my way through every film in the set. In fact, I was up until 2 AM last night watching Richard Lester’s Superman II and also Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut in 4K Ultra HD back to back. So watch for the next reviews in the series here at The Bits tomorrow.

Meanwhile, Tim has turned in his thoughts on Nick Castle’s The Last Starfighter (1984) in 4K Ultra HD from Arrow Video, along with Norman Jewison’s original Rollerball (1975) in 4K Ultra HD from Scream Factory.

Stuart has taken a look at Frank Tuttle’s Lucky Jordan (1942) on Blu-ray from Kino Lorber Studio Classics.

And Stephen—working jointly with Tim—has offered his take on Tobe Hooper’s The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974) again, this time has released in regular and Limited Edition 4K Ultra HD from Second Sight Films in the UK. [Read on here...]

We’re rounding out the week here at The Bits with more new disc reviews, some new announcements, and a long-overdue column as well.

Starting with those reviews, Stephen and Tim have taken a look at Penelope Spheeris’ Wayne’s World: 30th Anniversary Edition that came out recently on 4K Ultra HD from Paramount Home Entertainment.

Stephen has also reviewed Dominick Barascia, Jr’s Evil Laugh (1986) on Blu-ray from Vinegar Syndrome.

And Dennis has turned in his thoughts on Steven Spielberg’s The Fabelmans (2022) on Blu-ray from Universal. A 4K UHD review of that title is forthcoming as well.

Also here at the site today, our old friend (and erstwhile Inglorious Trekspert) Mark A. Altman has checked in with a new MOD DEF column looking back at his personal picks for The Best Blu-ray and 4K Ultra HD Titles of 2022. I think you’ll find it a good read, so do give it a look. [Read on here...]

While all the talk about digital and the implosion of some of the most high-profile streamers purging content from their services faster than Stalin and his politburo, it’s worth spotlighting the fact that it was still a fairly impressive year for physical media whose death, much like Mark Twain, has been greatly exaggerated.

While there’s still too many A-list titles that are MIA that haven’t migrated to 4K Ultra HD yet and other films in desperate need of upgraded hi-def masters (including, self-promotion alert, Free Enterprise), several labels have stepped up their games in a big way ranging from Shout to Arrow and, most impressively, Kino-Lorber.

And, of course, as always, Warner Bros has brought it with their classic titles (although I still have to wonder where the hell North By Northwest is). So even though it’s almost March 2023, these are some of the stellar titles of 2022 that will undoubtedly stand the test of time.

If there’s only one vexing trend in the home entertainment market today, it’s how rare it is to find many re-issues featuring compelling new bonus material instead consistently relying on re-purposing old VAM. [Read on here...]

“E.T. is the perfect balance between epic and intimate. It is an incredible example of how cinema can transport us into a world of limitless possibilities through imagination, and it showcases filmmaking at the highest level in its use of technology, skill, and craft.” — Brian Herzlinger, director of My Date with Drew

The Digital Bits and History, Legacy & Showmanship are pleased to present this retrospective commemorating the 40th anniversary of the release of E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, Steven Spielberg’s classic family film about the friendship between a boy and an alien visitor who is afraid, totally alone, and three million light years from home.

E.T. was the winner of four Academy Awards (visual effects, sound, sound editing, and John Williams’ original score) and starred Dee Wallace (The Howling), Henry Thomas (Cloak & Dagger), Robert MacNaughton (I Am the Cheese), Drew Barrymore (Firestarter), and Peter Coyote (Timerider). [Read on here...]

“As soon as Indy stepped out of the shadows in that first scene and revealed himself to us with that badass confidence and intensity, I feel like in that moment, Harrison Ford truly became a movie star of the highest order.” – Charles de Lauzirika, producer/director of Dangerous Days: Making Blade Runner

The Digital Bits and History, Legacy & Showmanship are pleased to present this multi-page retrospective article commemorating the 40th anniversary of the release of Raiders of the Lost Ark, the Lucas & Spielberg action classic that introduced moviegoers to the globe-trotting adventures of Indiana Jones and spawned a franchise of sequels, prequels, games, and theme park attractions.

Raiders, featuring Harrison Ford as everyone’s favorite cinematic archaeologist, was the most successful movie of its year of release and for a period of time the third highest-grossing motion picture of all time. The Oscar-winning movie also starred Karen Allen as heroine Marion Ravenwood, Paul Freeman as archvillain Belloq, Ronald Lacey as villain Toht, John Rhys-Davies as sidekick Sallah, and Denholm Elliott as colleague Marcus Brody.

In 1999 the Library of Congress selected Raiders of the Lost Ark for preservation in the National Film Registry as being “culturally, historically or aesthetically significant,” and earlier this year, Raiders and the other movies in the series were released for the first time on 4K UHD (reviewed here). [Read on here...]

All right, folks... this is our last post of 2019, the year that Blade Runner finally became the present.

We do have a couple good things for you today...

First, Tim has turned in his in-depth review of Scream Factory’s new The Fly Collection box set, which includes the original The Fly (1958), Return of the Fly (1959), and Curse of the Fly (1965), along with the newer remake The Fly (1986) and The Fly II (1989) as well as a host of extras both new and legacy. It’s a great Blu-ray set, so do give it a look.

Also here at the site today, our own Michael Coate has turned in not one but two new History, Legacy & Showmanship columns to close out the year. [Read on here...]

“Star Trek: The Motion Picture wasn’t a perfect film, but it had a plethora of nearly perfect moments.” — Inglorious Treksperts co-host Mark A. Altman

The Digital Bits and History, Legacy & Showmanship are pleased to present this retrospective commemorating the 40th anniversary of the release of Star Trek: The Motion Picture, the first big-screen adventure based upon Gene Roddenberry’s legendary 1960s television series with William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy and DeForest Kelley reprising the roles that made them famous of Kirk, Spock and McCoy, respectively.

Directed by Robert Wise (West Side Story, The Sound of Music), the film also reunited James Doohan as Scotty, George Takei as Sulu, Majel Barrett as Dr. Chapel, Walter Koenig as Chekov, and Nichelle Nichols as Uhura, and also featured Persis Khambatta as Ilia and Stephen Collins as Decker. [Read more here...]

Heads-up, folks. I’ll have another post later today – I’m back in the office after a day at Comic-Con to appear on the Inglorious Treksperts panel there – and we have some good news for you therefrom.

First up, the panel was great. Mark A. Altman, Daren Dochterman, Ashley Edward Miller, Rob Burnett and I a blast talking about Star Trek: The Motion Picture, a movie near and dear to each of us, which turns 40 this year.

The panel room at the Con was absolutely packed – a good full house – which was awesome to see. We showed rare clips related to the film, told interesting stories, and made a lot of people (including ourselves) laugh.

You will all be able to hear the panel for yourselves in the next few weeks, as it will be released as an official Inglorious Treksperts podcast (listen here or wherever your great podcasts are found). [Read on here...]

Morning folks! This is just a quick post to let you all know that I’m on my way to San Diego Comic-Con today to appear with the Inglorious Treksperts on their excellent panel at 3 PM in Room 5AB, where Mark A. Altman, Daren R. Dochterman, Ashley Edward Miller, Robert Meyer Burnett and Bill Hunt (yours truly) are going to be talking about the 40th anniversary of Robert Wise’s Star Trek: The Motion Picture. It’s going to be a great time, so we hope to see you there!

Meanwhile, a couple of quick housekeeping items: I posted my in-depth review of HBO’s long-awaited and HD-remastered release of From the Earth to the Moon miniseries on Blu-ray, from Tom Hanks and Imagine Entertainment. I think mostly, fans of the series will be pleased with the release, with a few caveats. Read on here.

Also, our friends over at the Home Theater Forum have learned that Disney is finally going to be releasing The Black Hole on Blu-ray later this year... but unfortunately, like the recent 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, as a barebones Disney Movie Club exclusive release. So... yay? Ugh? I guess at least it’s coming.

All right, that’s it for now. Back tomorrow with more news and for those of you in San Diego, we’ll see you at the Con later today. Cheers!

-Bill Hunt

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