All right, we’re starting things off this week with more new disc reviews. Four of them, in fact...

Tim has posted his thoughts on Billy Wilder’s The Lost Weekend (1945) on Blu-ray from Kino Lorber Studio Classics, as well as Michel Lemoine’s Seven Women for Satan (1975) on Blu-ray from Mondo Macabro, and John Guillermin’s 1976 remake of King Kong, a Paramount title on Region B-locked Blu-ray from our friends down at Umbrella Entertainment.

And Dennis has turned in his thoughts on The Buster Keaton Collection: Volume 4 on Blu-ray from the Cohen Film Collection, an excellent release that includes Go West (1925) and College (1923).

All of the above are worth a look if you’re interested. And we’ve got more reviews on the way all week, so be sure to watch for them. [Read on here...]

We’re starting things off today with two more new Blu-ray reviews...

Tim has checked out Luigi Cozzi’s The Black Cat (1989) on BD from Severin Films.

And Dennis has shared his thoughts on Frank Darabont’s Buried Alive (1990) on BD from Kino Lorber Studio Classics. Enjoy!

The big announcement news today is that Paramount Home Entertainment has officially revealed the 4K Ultra HD release of Cecil B. DeMille’s The Ten Commandments (1956), staring Charlton Heston, on 3/30 just as we expected. Per the studio’s press release, the original VistaVision negative was scanned in 6K as part of the 2010 restoration effort and those files were the basis for this new Dolby Vision presentation. “In addition, Paramount spent well over 150 hours doing new color work and clean-up on the scan. The move to Dolby Vision created the opportunity to further improve the look of the film: blacks are enhanced and improvements were made to smooth out special effects mattes to create the most vibrant and pristine image possible. The 4K film presentation contains an introduction by DeMille, an intermission, an overture/exit music card, and an entr’acte card, along with a DTS-HD 5.1 lossless soundtrack.” [Read on here...]

We’ve got three more reviews for you today, plus some industry news. And we’re going to give you a preview of the final home media sales numbers for 2020. But first those reviews...

Tim has posted his thoughts on William Nigh’s The Ape (1940), staring Boris Karloff, and the joint-effort comedy Amazon Women on the Moon (1987) both now available on Blu-ray from Kino Lorber Studio Classics.

Meanwhile, Dennis has offered up his thoughts on Cornel Wilde’s Beach Red (1967), also new on Blu-ray from Kino Lorber Studio Classics.

More reviews are on the way, so be sure to watch for them. [Read on here...]

Evening, folks. We’ve got a quick news update for you here today at the site.

But first, a new disc review: Tim has just posted his thoughts on William Lustig’s Vigilante (1982) on 4K Ultra HD from the good folks at Blue Underground. And it sounds like it’s a pretty terrific release if you like the film, which stars Robert Forster and Fred Williamson. Do check it out.

Also a reminder today: We posted a new History, Legacy & Showmanship column from our own Michael Coate on Friday—a piece that was delayed from the very end of 2020 due to all of the site maintenance we’ve been doing over the past several weeks. This one is a look back at the early 70mm cut of The Empire Strikes Back, featuring a new roundtable discussion with historian and soundtrack producer Mike Matessino along with director Saul Pincus. We think you’ll really enjoy it, so do give that a look here if you missed it.

Now then... there’s not a lot of release news to report today, but we do have a few things worth mentioning. [Read on here...]

Hey everyone! Well... another week is officially in the can and, as promised, I’ve got an update for you on some release news and whatnot.

First up, I wanted to alert you to a 4K Ultra HD deal: Amazon currently has Bong Joon-ho’s Parasite available in 4K for just $11.00 for a limited time only. So click here to order a copy if you’re interested.

Also today, we’ve got a great new History, Legacy & Showmanship column from our own Michael Coate—one that was delayed from the very end of 2020 due to all of the site maintenance we’ve been doing over the past several weeks. This one is a terrific look back at the early 70mm cut of The Empire Strikes Back, featuring a new roundtable discussion with historian and soundtrack producer Mike Matessino along with director Saul Pincus. We think you’ll really enjoy it, so do give that a look here.

Now then, in announcement news today, Severin Films has revealed that it’s working on a new 4K Ultra HD release of Alejandro Jodorowsky’s Santa Sangre (1989) that’s due on 4/27. The title will also be released on Blu-ray and DVD. You can see the cover artwork for the 4K at left. Click here to pre-order on Amazon: 4K, Blu-ray, DVD.

But that’s not the only 4K catalog title we now know is coming from our retail sources... [Read on here...]

“On my thirteenth viewing, which was the first time I saw it at a different theater than the one I’d gone to since opening day, I knew there were noticeable changes when the final scene began with different music.” — film music historian Mike Matessino

The Digital Bits and History, Legacy & Showmanship are pleased to present a continuation of our 40th anniversary coverage of the release of The Empire Strikes Back, the middle act of George Lucas’s original Star Wars trilogy and one of the most celebrated and beloved sequels of all time. Part One of our Empire 40th coverage appeared back in May.

George Lucas’s penchant for making revisions to his work is about as legendary as his movies. The majority of Lucas’s alterations have occurred years after his films’ original releases. With The Empire Strikes Back, however, the first (of several rounds of) revisions were actually made while the movie was in first release, and it is this lesser-known aspect of the otherwise very-well-known production that is the subject of this column. [Read on here...]

All right, thanks for your patience everyone. As you’ve probably noticed, news updates here at the site have been sparing over the past week or two, and there’s been a couple of reasons for that.

First, we’ve had to do a round of software updating and patching on The Bits website software—routine maintenance type of stuff, required to keep the site going—but every time we do that it inevitably breaks a couple of things that have to be hunted down and fixed. So that process has been ongoing.

Also, we’ve switched to a great new advertising network partner that we hope is going to bring in more revenue, which in turn will helps us to keep the site going indefinitely. We’re tweaking the layout on some of that, and trying to figure out the right amount and placement of ads that do what we need them to without being obtrusive. But obviously times are tight and we need to survive, so we appreciate your understanding. [Read on here...]

[Editor’s Note: This interview was originally posted on The Digital Bits on 9/17/02, coinciding with the Columbia TriStar Home Video DVD release of Enough and Enigma. We would like to dedicate it to the memory of Michael Apted.]

There are some directors who find a genre they’re particularly comfortable with or adept at and make an entire career out of it. Think Wes Craven with horror movies or the Farrelly brothers in comedy. Michael Apted is not one of these directors. Apted is a jumper, having tackled everything from courtroom dramas to comedy to rock and roll. When you look at his filmography, the phrase you are most likely to repeat over and over is, “He directed that, too?”

Apted began his career as a researcher and director for British television. In the 1970’s, he crossed over to theatrical films with movies like Stardust, a terrific, criminally underrated movie that traces the rise and fall of a rock group (note to the studios: Stardust needs to be released on DVD and the sooner the better). His major American breakthrough came in 1980 with Coal Miner’s Daughter, for which Sissy Spacek won the Oscar as Best Actress. Since that time, Apted has worked with some of the best actors in recent memory, including Sigourney Weaver (also Oscar nominated for her work in Apted’s Gorillas in the Mist), Jodie Foster (Nell), Val Kilmer (Thunderheart), and Gene Hackman (Class Action and Extreme Measures). Oh yeah, he also helmed one of the most recent adventures of some guy named James Bond (The World is Not Enough). [Read on here...]

Afternoon, folks. We’ve got another new disc review for you today, and some more interesting release news as well.

First up, that review: Tim has taken a look at Henry Levin and Mario Bava’s The Wonders of Aladdin (1961), now available on Blu-ray from Kino Lorber Studio Classics.

In terms of announcement news, Visual Entertainment is releasing Stargate Universe: The Complete Series on Blu-ray Disc on 1/15. This includes all 40 episodes, plus over 2 hours of extras. This, by the way, follows in the wake of the company’s recent release of Stargate SG-1: The Complete Series on Blu-ray. The latter features the early seasons upscaled, while the later seasons were native HD. We believe Stargate Universe was produced in HD, so it should be of fairly good quality. [Read on here...]

Afternoon, folks. And welcome to 2021!

The news in the home video industry is pretty slow this week, as we’d expect given the recent holiday and the still unfolding (and industry-slowing) pandemic.

But we do have a couple new 4K Ultra HD reviews for you all to enjoy this afternoon.

First, Tim has taken a look at Don Coscarelli’s The Beastmaster (1982), as newly-remastered in 4K by our friends over at Vinegar Syndrome. The limited release appears now to be back in stock at the Vinegar Syndrome website, and we expect it to eventually be released in more traditional Amaray packaging on Amazon at some point in the coming months. [Read on here...]