Displaying items by tag: Frankenstein 4K

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’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...]

We’re very pleased this morning to bring you some great breaking release news...

Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment has just officially set director Robert Zemeckis’ ground-breaking animation/live action comedy Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988) for release on 4K Ultra HD on 12/7! You can see the cover artwork at left and also below.

We first reported that this title was coming over a year ago here at The Digital Bits, with studio sources originally providing us with a street date of 10/12. More recently those same sources had suggested to us that the title could slip into early 2022. (The other 4K title we were told to expect along with it—Michael Mann’s Heat (1995)—is likely to be so delayed.) So it’s great to see that work on the Roger Rabbit 4K release has finally been completed in time for a release this year. [Read on here...]

All right, we’re starting today with a quick new disc review, and then we’ve got some big new release news to report on...

First though, I’ve just reviewed Rian Johnson’s excellent 2012 science-fiction thriller Looper on 4K Ultra HD, as recently released in the UK by Entertainment One. The title is expected on UHD here in the States from Sony later this year or early next, but in the meantime, if you’re willing to import for just the 4K experience, this eOne release is a great option.

Now then, the big breaking news today is that Universal Pictures Home Entertainment has finally officially announced their long-expected Universal Classics Monsters: Icons of Horror Collection for release on 4K Ultra HD on 10/5.

The set will include the 90th anniversary editions of Dracula and Frankenstein, along the 80th anniversary edition of The Wolf Man, and also The Invisible Man, all in 4K Ultra HD. There’s no indication of Dolby Vision, so we expect HDR10 high dynamic range along with the existing audio mixes. [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...]