All right, we’re closing out the week with a big news update. But first, we have some new disc reviews for you...

I’ve just finished my look at Taika Waititi’s Oscar-winning satire Jojo Rabbit in 4K Ultra HD from 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment.

I’ve also taken a look at Mike Flanagan’s surprisingly good sequel to The Shining, Doctor Sleep, now in Ultra HD from Warner Bros. Home Entertainment. (This one is a reference-quality 4K A/V experience.)

Tim has turned in his thoughts on Don Sharp’s Rasputin the Mad Monk (1966) on Blu-ray from Scream Factory.

And in case you missed it the other day, we have a review of Paramount’s new Steelbook 4K edition of The Hunt for Red October that’s being released in honor of the film’s 30th anniversary. [Read on here...]

All right, we’ve got two more new reviews for you all to enjoy today...

First up, I’ve turned in my thoughts on Ruben Fleischer’s long-awaited sequel Zombieland: Double Tap in 4K Ultra HD from Sony Pictures Home Entertainment.

And a quick heads-up: I’ll have a review of Mike Flanagan’s Doctor Sleep in 4K Ultra HD from Warner Bros. Home Entertainment done soon as well.

Also, Tim has just finished his in-depth look at Scream Factory’s outstanding new Universal Horror Collection: Volume 3 Blu-ray box set, which includes Rowland V. Lee’s Tower of London, George Waggner’s Man Made Monster and Horror Island, and Albert S. Rogell’s The Black Cat. [Read on here...]

All right, I certainly hope you all had a great weekend and that those of you who watched last night’s Oscar telecast enjoyed it and found all of the winners disserving.

For my money, the Academy actually got it right for a change: Bong Joon-ho’s Parasite was far and away the most original and interesting of the Best Picture-nominated films this year and it’s richly deserving of its win. If you haven’t seen the film yet, you should correct that oversight as soon as you can.

I reviewed the film on Blu-ray Disc a few weeks ago here at The Bits (you can read my thoughts here) and I’ve already contacted Universal to ask if the Best Picture win makes it more likely that the studio will finally give the film the physical media 4K release it deserves. We’ll see. [Read on here...]

All right, today’s post will be quick, because we’re working on some new reviews for you. To that effect...

I’ve just posted my in-depth thoughts on Roland Emmerich’s Midway (2019), new on 4K Ultra HD from Lionsgate.

I’ve also posted a full review of the Warner Archive Collection’s amazing new Tex Avery Screwball Classics: Volume 1 Blu-ray, which is worth every penny.

And Tim has added his thoughts on Scream Factory’s My Bloody Valentine: Collector’s Edition on Blu-ray.

All three of those title street in the next two weeks, so we hope you enjoy them. [Read on here...]

So the big news this morning is that Shout! Factory has dropped an out-of-left-field 4K Ultra HD announcement: They’re gotten the US release rights to Michael Cimino’s 1978 Best Picture winner The Deer Hunter. As some of you will know, this was a Studio Canal release last year in the UK on 4K Ultra HD, but there was no U.S. distributor.

Shout! will be releasing it on 5/26 as a Shout Select 4K/Blu-ray Collector’s Edition. SRP is $34.93, but you can pre-order it direct from the Shout website for just $28.43 with an exclusive poster. There will apparently be some new extras, which will be announced at a later date. We have no details yet on HDR or audio specs, but the Studio Canal package included Dolby Vision and HDR10, with 2.0 and 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio. [Read on here...]

All right, we’ve got major new announcements from Shout! Factory and Scream for you today...

For March, the companies have added Jack Smight’s British production of Frankenstein: The True Story (1973) to their 3/24 slate. Shout! is also releasing The Transformers: The Complete Original Series DVD box set on 3/31.

In April, in addition to the Escape from L.A.: Collector’s Edition Blu-ray on 4/28, Shout! and Scream will release Swift and Knives and Skin (for IFC) on 4/7, Homeboy and Captain Kronos: Vampire Hunter on 4/14, The Spider (1958) and The Curse of the Werewolf: Collector’s Edition (1961) on 4/21, and Underdog: The Complete Series Collector’s Edition (DVD), Shatter (1974), and The Lost Continent (1968) on 4/28. [Read on here...]

Afternoon, folks! We’ve got a couple things for you today here at The Bits...

First of all, our own Michael Coate has just turned in a new History, Legacy and Showmanship column featuring a look back at Franklin J. Schaffner’s classic George C. Scott war epic Patton in honor of its 50th anniversary.

Michael is joined this time by author and historian Steven Jay Rubin for a discussion on the film and its legacy. We think you’ll really enjoy it, so do give that a look. [Read on here...]

“Patton is the best epic bio pic ever produced.” — Steven Jay Rubin, author of Combat Films: American Realism, 1945-2010

The Digital Bits and History, Legacy & Showmanship are pleased to present this retrospective commemorating the golden anniversary of the release of Patton, the Best Picture-winning biopic of General George S. Patton starring George C. Scott (Dr. Strangelove, The Exorcist III) in the title role.

Patton — directed by Franklin J. Schaffner (Planet of the Apes, Papillon) and which also starred Karl Malden (A Streetcar Named Desire, The Streets of San Francisco TV series) as General Omar N. Bradley — opened 50 years ago this month. For the occasion, The Bits features an historical reference listing of the film’s major-market roadshow engagements and a Q&A with film historian Steven Jay Rubin, who reflects on the film five decades after its debut. [Read on here...]

We’ve got just a quick update today, as we’re working on reviews.

On that note, our own Tim Salmons has just turned in a look at Paramount’s new Blu-ray only Beverly Hills Cop: 3-Movie Collection. The 3-disc set includes new HD presentations of all three films (mastered from new 4K scans, which are only available digitally), including the first-ever Blu-ray presentation of Beverly Hills Cop II and III. The set also carries over the previous extras, most of which cover the original film. You can read more about it all here.

Also today, we’ve updated our 4K Ultra HD Release List to include forthcoming (and/or recently released) German UHD titles (available on Amazon.de) including Angel Heart (from Studio Canal), Oldboy and the original Rollerball (from Capelight Pictures), The Texas Chainsaw Massacre and The Princess Bride (from Turbine Media), Evil Dead II (from Jakob GmbH) and Parasite (from Koch Media GmbH). Note that Oldboy appears to have English subtitles, but Parasite does not. [Read on here...]

All right, many of you have asked about (or otherwise understandably bemoaned) the lack of big or significant announcements relating to catalog films on 4K Ultra HD lately. So today’s update here at The Digital Bits is about addressing that concern.

And while we still have little in the way of official announcements at the moment, I can confidently report that at least some of titles you’re waiting for are on the way in 2020.

The information in today’s post should be considered unofficial until the studios in question make their actual announcements. But we believe it to be a reliable gauge of titles currently in the production pipeline or planning stages.

First, we know for sure that Disney is going to be releasing Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga on 4K coinciding with the Blu-ray and 4K release of Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, likely in March. [Read on here...]