Displaying items by tag: Sergio Leone

We have no less than four new disc reviews for you to enjoy today, and--surprise!--I even managed to finish one for a change...

First, Tim has taken a look at Sidney Lumet’s excellent Murder on the Orient Express (1974) in 4K Ultra HD from Kino Lorber Studio Classics, as well as Hanna-Barbera’s animated Top Cat: The Complete Series (1961-1962) on Blu-ray from the Warner Archive Collection.

Also, Dennis has reviewed another Warner Archive title: Norman Foster’s Journey Into Fear (1943) on Blu-ray.

And finally today, I’ve shared my thoughts on M. Night Shyamalan’s Signs (2003), a tense and effective alien invasion thriller, on 4K Ultra HD from Touchstone Pictures, Disney, and Buena Vista Home Entertainment.

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

In announcement news this afternoon, there is just not much to report. But we do have a couple things for you...

First, Paramount is reissuing Sergio Leone’s Once Upon a Time in the West (1968) as a 4K Ultra HD and Blu-ray combo on 1/14, simply without the Paramount Presents packaging. It also looks like the studio is doing the same thing with Roman Polanski’s Chinatown (1974) that same day. We assume they’re the same 4K discs as before. (If otherwise, we’ll confirm and post an update here.) You can see the new cover art for the former at left and also below. [Read on here...]

Good afternoon, folks! We’re starting the week off with four new disc reviews...

Stuart has given Via Vision’s On the Buses Film Collection box set a review, which includes On the Buses (1971), Mutiny on the Buses (1972), and Holiday on the Buses (1973) all on Blu-ray. These of course are based on the popular British TV sitcom from the late 1960s and early 70s.

Dennis has taken a look at Raoul Walsh’s They Drive by Night (1940) on Blu-ray from the Warner Archive Collection.

Stephen has offered his thoughts on Andrei Tarkovsky’s Nostalghia (1983) in 4K Ultra HD from Kino Lorber Studio Classics.

And finally, I’ve completed an in-depth review of one of my favorite films: Sergio Leone’s magnificent Western epic Once Upon a Time in the West (1968) in 4K Ultra HD from Paramount via their Paramount Presents line. And I’m afraid the disc is... complicated.

In any case, more new disc reviews are on the way this week, so be sure to keep your eyes peeled for them! [Read on here...]

Well, yesterday was kind of a big day in terms of industry news, but as it happens, there have been quite a lot of interesting 4K Ultra HD and Blu-ray announcements in the last 24 hours too!

But before we get to those, we have a few more new disc reviews for you...

I’ve just taken a look at John Sturges’ Gunfight at the O.K. Corral (1957) in 4K Ultra HD from Kino Lorber Studio Classics, as well as Ron Maxwell’s cult classic Little Darlings (1980) in 4K UHD from Vinegar Syndrome’s new Cinématographe Films label.

Stephen has turned in his thoughts on Nia DaCosta’s The Marvels (2023) in 4K Ultra HD from Marvel and Disney, along with Yoshimitsu Banno’s Godzilla vs. Hedorah (1971) on 4K UHD (sans English subs) from Toho Studios in Japan.

Dennis has given Ted Kotcheff’s Split Image (1982) a look on Blu-ray from Kino Lorber Studio Classics, along with Vincente Minnelli’s Madame Bovary (1949) on Blu-ray from the Warner Archive Collection.

And Stuart has reviewed Andrew V. McLaglen’s The Devil’s Brigade (1968) on Blu-ray from Kino Lorber Studio Classics and Steve Zaillian’s Searching for Bobby Fischer (1993) on Blu-ray from Imprint Films.

Many more reviews are forthcoming, including Footloose, Conan the Destroyer, and Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths – Part One in 4K, so be sure to keep your eyes peeled for them.

Now then... in terns of title announcements, Paramount’s just dropped a couple of big ones starting with confirmation of a title we’ve mentioned here at The Bits recently: Alex Proyas’ The Crow (1994) officially streets on 4K Ultra HD and 4K Steelbook on 5/7. The 4K disc will include Dolby Vision and HDR10 high dynamic range. [Read on here...]

Welcome to the first week of April, everyone!

As you might expect, over the weekend we’ve posted several more new disc reviews for you all to enjoy, including...

My reviews of Jonathan Frakes’ Star Trek: Insurrection (1998) and Stuart Baird’s Star Trek: Nemesis (2002) in 4K Ultra HD from Paramount. That completes my look at all four of the newly-remastered Star Trek: The Next Generation feature films in 4K.

Stuart’s thoughts on Clarence Brown’s Wife vs. Secretary (1936) on Blu-ray from the Warner Archive Collection and Milton Moses Ginsberg’s The Werewolf of Washington (1973) on Blu-ray from Kino Classics.

And last but certainly not least, Stephen’s in-depth review of Wilfred Jackson, Hamilton Luske, and Clyde Geronimi’s original classic animated Cinderella (1950) in 4K Ultra HD from Disney, currently available from the Disney Movie Club, but coming widely later this year.

Key note about Cinderella—it looks like Disney’s actually done this one right, with a stunning 4K remaster that respects the film’s original photochemical production by leaving its line-work, fine detail, and grain structure fully intact! This really bodes well for future 4K animated titles from the studio, and one certainly hopes that all of these original animated classics will be revisited on the format going forward. [Read on here...]

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...]

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...]

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...]

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...]

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...]

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...]