Lionsgate's 2013 science-fiction adventure Ender's Game starring Asa Butterfield, Viola Davis, Ben Kingsley, Abigail Breslin, Hailee Steinfeld, and Harrison Ford is returning to 4K UHD Blu-ray in a SteelBook only at Best Buy next month. Look for it in the retailer's stores and online on August 7.
As fears of an alien invasion grow, Earth’s International Fleet recruits an unlikely leader — a young and brilliant boy — to command its forces and fight for the future of the human race. Based on the worldwide bestseller and featuring an all-star cast, Ender’s Game bursts with epic adventure and stunning visual effects.
Ender's Game - 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray (Best Buy Exclusive SteelBook)
The 4K UHD Blu-ray/Blu-ray/Digital combo pack appears to be the same as the previous release with Dolby Atmos and the following supplements (Blu-ray only):
Audio Commentary
“Ender’s World: The Making of Ender’s Game” Featurette
“Inside the Mind Game” Featurette
Deleted/Extended Scenes with Optional Audio Commentary by Writer-Director Gavin Hood
If you're a fan of Ender's Game the 4K UHD Blu-ray SteelBook pre-order is live and you can check out the full press release here:
Street Date: 8/8/23
4K Ultra HD™ + Blu-ray™ + Digital Best Buy Exclusive SteelBook® SRP: $27.99
PROGRAM DESCRIPTION
Ender’s Game, the science fiction action-adventure with an all-star cast, arrives on 4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray™ + Digital SteelBook® release on August 8 from Lionsgate, exclusively at Best Buy. The SteelBook also features special bonus content including audio commentaries and featurettes, and will be available for the suggested retail price of $27.99.
OFFICIAL SYNOPSIS
As fears of an alien invasion grow, Earth’s International Fleet recruits an unlikely leader — a young and brilliant boy — to command its forces and fight for the future of the human race. Based on the worldwide bestseller and featuring an all-star cast, Ender’s Game bursts with epic adventure and stunning visual effects.
CAST
Academy Award® nominee
Harrison Ford Star Wars, The Fugitive, Witness, Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny
Asa Butterfield TV’s “Sex Education,” Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children
Academy Award® nominee
Hailee Steinfeld True Grit, The Edge of Seventeen, Pitch Perfect 3
Academy Award® winner
Viola Davis Fences, The Help, TV’s “How to Get Away with Murder”
Academy Award® nominee
Abigail Breslin Little Miss Sunshine, August: Osage County, Definitely, Maybe
Academy Award® winner
Ben Kingsley Sexy Beast, Gandhi, Iron Man 3
Pre-order Link: https://bit.ly/EndersGameSteelBook
SPECIAL FEATURES (Blu-ray™ Only)
• Audio Commentary
• “Ender’s World: The Making of Ender’s Game” Featurette
• “Inside the Mind Game” Featurette
• Deleted/Extended Scenes with Optional Audio Commentary by Writer-Director Gavin Hood
PROGRAM INFORMATION
Year of Production: 2013
Title Copyright: Ender’s Game © 2013 Ender’s Game Holdings LLC. Artwork & Supplementary Materials ™ & © 2023 Summit Entertainment, LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Type: Catalog Re-Release
Rating: Rated PG-13
Genre: Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi
Closed-Captioned: N/A
Subtitles: English, Spanish, English SDH
Feature Run Time: 114 Minutes
4K Format: 2160p Ultra High Definition, 16x9 (2.40:1) Presentation
4K Audio: English Dolby Atmos, English 2.0 Dolby Audio Optimized for Late-Night Listening, English Descriptive Audio, Spanish 5.1 Dolby Audio
Blu-ray Format: 16x9 (2.40:1) Presentation
Blu-ray Audio: English 7.1 DTS-HD Master Audio™, English 2.0 Dolby Audio Optimized for Late-Night Listening, English Descriptive Audio, Spanish 5.1 Dolby Audio
Artist Information: Ruiz Burgos
Your collection of guilty pleasure exploitation and sexploitation titles is about to get a whole lot... bigger!
Do you remember going to your local video rental shop back in the day and there was that mysterious adjacent room just past the Horror section full of "Adult Only" titles? Back then the only thing that separated you from those alluring flicks was a soft velvety curtain. For fans of classic exploitation and sexploitation cinema, you may just want to recreate that fabled room in your home complete with curtain and red twinkle lights now that Vinegar Syndrome and Distribpix are joining forces to bring some of the biggest, best, and kinkiest titles to home video!
Full details of which titles haven't been fully hashed out but we're talking about hundreds of titles potentially coming to Blu-ray and 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray - let alone picking up their very first disc releases ever! With a new distribution partner comes some exciting new labels populating the already broad swath of genres and labels under the Vinegar Syndrome umbrella.
Take a look at the press release for all the details:
Bridgeport, Connecticut - Vinegar Syndrome is excited to announce an exclusive distribution partnership with legendary NYC-based exploitation and sexploitation producer and distributor, Distribpix Inc.
This partnership will bring Distribpix’s extensive catalog of close to 300 feature films to Home Video, including countless never-on-disc titles as well as classic exploitation films from genre masters such as Michael and Roberta Findlay, the Amero Brothers, Joe Sarno, Chuck Vincent, Radley Metzger, Ron Sullivan, and Shaun Costello, among dozens more. Additionally, Distribpix’s unprecedented archive of key 1960s and early 70s exploitation rarities, many of which have been completely unavailable since the VHS and early DVD era, will, at last, be making their return to disc, all newly restored and presented in the type of deluxe, collector-centric editions that both Distribpix and Vinegar Syndrome are known for creating.
Vinegar Syndrome co-founder Joe Rubin, in describing the collaboration said, “Vinegar Syndrome and Distribpix have worked together before Vinegar Syndrome existed. This venture has been a long time coming and I couldn’t be more excited to be working on preserving, restoring and releasing this collection. So many of the best and most significant sexploitation and early hardcore features were produced by Distribpix and it is an honor to finally be able to consider them part of the Vinegar Syndrome family.”
Head of Distribpix Inc, Steven Morowitz responded “The gang at Vinegar Syndrome is wonderful; they opened their doors and welcomed me into their family. I am honored and grateful for this opportunity and together we are going to produce some absolutely amazing packages. Vinegar Syndrome is the best at what they do, from the highest quality restorations, to top-notch physical releases, so this really is a perfect match and the best spot for Distribpix. Our companies not only thrive on excellent restorations and releasing, but there is a major emphasis on film preservation and archiving, which was equally attractive to me.”
While schedule specifics are still being worked out, Radley Metzger and Gerard Kikoine’s, The Tale of Tiffany Lust (1981), starring Veronica Hart, Vanessa Del Rio, Desiree Cousteau, Samantha Fox, George Payne, and Dominique St Clair, will be making its world 4K UHD and Blu-Ray debut late this summer, while Michael Findlay’s notorious Flesh Trilogy is being prepared for a Blu-Ray release this fall, in partnership with Something Weird Video. Additionally, the Command Cinema line which has been distributed by Distribpix for the last several years will also be joining the Distribpix/Vinegar Syndrome family and will see both Blu-ray and 4K debuts of producer/director, Cecil Howard’s acclaimed erotica.
This monumental merger coincides with the launch of Mélusine, a new online marketplace for premium home video editions of sexploitation and hardcore cinema primarily produced during both genres’ golden ages: the early 1960s through the late 1980s. In addition to serving as the new retail home for Command Cinema, several other brandings will be launched:
Mélusine, which will serve as the flagship brand, will offer deluxe 4K UHD/Blu-ray combo pack editions of some of the landmark works in hardcore theatrical features, with an emphasis on works by the genre’s most acclaimed filmmakers.
Quality X, the name of which pays homage to what was one of the most esteemed early home video distributors of erotic entertainment, will offer single film Blu-ray editions of standout and hidden gem theatrical hardcore features from around the globe.
Distribpix itself will become home to all things sexploitation, pulling from both Vinegar Syndrome and Distribpix’s vast libraries and ranging from the earliest nudie cuties all the way through the tail end of theatrical softcore. Releases will be single, double and triple feature Blu-rays.
Finally, Vinegar Syndrome’s acclaimed hardcore feature branding, Peekarama, will continue to offer double feature Blu-rays of hardcore films in all genres. In keeping with Vinegar Syndrome and Distribpix’s focus on film preservation, releases under all branding will meet the highest standards in presentation quality and the most comprehensive available extras.
The union between the two companies will produce the widest and most diverse catalog of exploitation, sexploitation, and classic hardcore features, available on disc anywhere in the world.
Buckle up and get ready for some "family-friendly" action - Vin Diesel's high-octane franchise speeds onward with Fast X coming to 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray and Blu-ray on August 8th... after a rather lackluster global box office pull.
Speedbumps for this latest entry in the Speedy and Angry franchise hit early when Louis Leterrier was brought in to replace stand-by franchise director Justin Lin after a little more than a week into filming because of reported creative differences. Then you have the whole Vin Diesel/Dwayne Johnson beef or no beef stuff only to have Jason Momoa completely steal the show. I mean it's a heist film, there's supposed to be some thievery but a newcomer villain probably shouldn't run away as the most entertaining piece of the film. Nevertheless, the film was not well received by critics and was a bit of a box office dud barely cracking $704 million globally against a $340 million budget. But with a swift exit from theaters comes a quick turn to home video. Now after enjoying a long stretch on digital services like Vudu and iTunes, fans can gas up to add Fast X to their Blu-ray and 4K UHD collections!
Fast X - Walmart Exclusive 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray
Fast X - Best Buy Exclusive SteelBook 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray
Seriously, if the franchise doesn't end with Vin Diesel screaming "I Am FAMILY!!!!" before driving his car into a nuclear blast that launches his car back in time to give the child version of himself his first set of car keys, I'll be sad. Until the end comes, we can enjoy Fast X from the comfy cushions of our couch. For all of the gory details, check out the press release below:
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"Why this film, why only release it in the UK?"
"I think the point is to make collectors despair. To see ourselves as animal and ugly. To make us reject the possibility that Warner Bros. could love us."
Warner Bros. is unleashing William Friedkin's iconic The Exorcist on 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray in October (Just in time for Exorcist: Believer). However, in what's becoming an all-too-familiar happening of late in the realm of physical media collecting, the bigger and better deluxe edition release of this high-demand horror classic will be released only overseas. While there's a good chance of Best Buy or some retailer getting a slick SteelBook and maybe a deluxe package option, Warner Bros. has been especially kind to U.K. residents. Zavvi's exclusive "Ultimate Collector's Edition" is already sold out - but right now on Amazon UK, you can pre-order the bigger, better, and fully-packed "Deluxe Edition" ... if you're willing to shell out about $100 USD including shipping.
While we don't have full disc specifics, HDR, Audio, or what-if-any legacy bonus features, we do know that both the original Theatrical Cut and Friedkin's Director's Cut will be included. But to make this set even more epic on a biblical scale, this set features a "unique leather grain outer slipcase and clamshell box" - honestly this looks just like my Catholic grandmother's bible! Inside is a SteelBook case replicating the classic poster art along with a double-sided reproduction poster, Mark Kermode's The Exorcist BFI FIlm Classics book, reproduction lobby cards, art cards, another 40-page booklet, and a sticker of authenticity.
Now the pre-order price on this set is pretty high for a single title, about $89.99 before shipping - but it's certainly a showstopping art piece for any collector's shelf. Comparatively, this is what Zavvi had in their already sold out set:
So it may be a little bit more upfront, but you're getting the same stuff - albeit different slipcase art - but also picking up a couple of additional extra swag items along the way. And best of all - it's still available to order!
So dig in some couch cushions and see what you can find and get that order in. The set is apparently limited to 2000 units globally so maybe we'll see a similar edition come up for sale here in the States, but if past is truly prologue, I can see this being yet another exciting Warner Bros. deluxe set that we'll have to import.
As soon as we get official word from Warner Bros about this release, we'll update with disc specs and hopefully, we'll also see some awesome US-Based retailer exclusives too.
"Ray Malcolm? That's my brother's boy. I gotta finish feedin' these chickens. It's gettin' hot as hell around here at noontime." ( Old Man Malcolm - One False Move)
If you are in the market for 4K titles, this week definitely has a few to pick from. From a new DC animated, we also get Needful Things, get married to an axe murderer, World War Z gets upgraded, more Bill Paxton and much more! Now if you are looking for blu-ray this week, prepare to deflate your wallet because there are close to 100 skus to pick from!
Welcome to Volume 4 Episode 8 of our weekly release guide. A look at the highlights of what's coming to disc the week of July 23rd - July 29th, as well as a look at announcements from last week.
As far as New Releases this week, Sony brings us a SteelBook of Resident Evil: Death Island.
Next, we get another DC animated title from Warner Bros, Justice League: Warworld.
Moving on to catalog titles, in alphabetical order (more or less) let's start with a horror titled Black Magic Rites from Powerhouse Films. Be aware that the blu-ray is delayed a month, I expect this to be delayed as well.
From Vinegar Syndrome and their related partner labels, we get general releases of The Boogey Man, Effects, Night Screams and Undefeatable. Site exclusives of Gorgo and Terror at Tenkiller, which are only available direct from their site, and typically become general releases on Amazon and other merchants 2 months later.
Another appreciated boutique label, Kino Lorber brings us Needful Things.
Criterion Collection releases One False Move this week, a crime/thriller with Bill Paxton. Since Paxton's death, it's nice to see more of his films on disc, 4K no less!
Sony Pictures has So I Married an Axe Murderer, a romcom thriller.
Shout! Factory upgrades World War Z to 4K this week.
Not quite a double-dip, Paramount releases The War of the Worlds (1953). This go round it's just the single film package with no bonus blu-ray for When World Collide.
Next week, Bueller, Bueller, Bueller, GOTG3, James Dean and Dean Martin classics, more Disney 100 SteelBooks, and so much more!
Blu-ray counterparts of the above releases include Resident Evil: Death Island from Sony Pictures, Justice League: Warworld from Warner Bros, Needful Things from Kino Lorber and One False Move from Criterion.
The remainder of this category is very crowded this week even when we omit any reissues. Doing our best to bring the highlights, the daunting task of where to begin starts now.
Arrow Video presents Blood Money - Four Western Classics Vol. 2. No doubt another top rated presentation from Arrow.
New sports documentary titled It Ain't Over. With a cast of Yogi Berra, Bob Costas, Billy Crystal, Joe Garagiola, Derek Jeter and Vin Scully, this one sounds interesting.
Anime highlights include The Ancient Magus' Bride: The Boy from the West and the Knight of the Blue Storm, Animal Treasure Island, High School of the Dead Complete Collection, Iria: Zeiram the Animation, Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken! Complete Collection and Sailor Moon S: Complete Third Season.
TV on disc includes just Gangs of London: Season Two. Feast or famine is what this category is all about.
Warner Archive Collection's primary drop of July titles is this week and the titles are The Broadway Melody (1929), Cimarron (1931), Du Barry Was a Lady (1943), The Fastest Gun Alive (1956), Helen of Troy (1956) and The Last Time I Saw Paris (1954).
The general release for Robot Monster - 3-D is available this week.
The next Vestron Video Collector's Series release, My Best Friend is a Vampire debuts to blu-ray this week via LionsGate.
Honorable Mention: Barring any last second delay, Screen Media/Cinedigm has a special interest release that sounds intriguing, Hollywood Dreams and Nightmares: The Robert Englund Story.
Next week in this category, a polar opposite. Aside from the reissues, there are probably less than ten titles.
Criterion Collection has announced their October 2023 slate, and although there are no Halloween themed movies, it is quite a list nonetheless. Check out the news story here.
A24 has an over the top collector's edition for Everything Everywhere All at Once, both blu-ray and 4K releases with an August 7 street date. The A24 shop uses the same page for blu-ray and 4K versions, just be certain which version you are proceeding with before checking out.
Which titles are you buying this week? Which ones are on your wishlist, be it to buy as an impulse buy or to wait for the right price?
It isn't the Halloween season without a bunch of slick repackages of our favorite horror movies!
We all have a favorite scary movie... well, maybe more than one. In some cases, we have entire franchises we obsessively collect. Being dutiful physical media fanatics, chances are pretty good we've already bought them a time or two. But when Lionsgate and Walmart team up to give us slick new packaging of our old favorites - what's one more copy right? Leprechaun, Firefly Family, Halloween, Saw, and the Blair Witch are each getting new multi-film Blu-ray SteelBooks and I gotta say as someone who already owns most of these, it's damned tempting to pick them up again with the really fun artwork updates. Each of these SteelBooks should hit store shelves on September 12th.
Leprechaun Collection - Walmart Blu-ray SteelBook
Rob Zombie's Firefly Trilogy - Walmart Blu-ray SteelBook
Rob Zombie's Halloween I & II - Walmart Blu-ray SteelBook
Blair Witch & The Blair Witch Project - Walmart Blu-ray SteelBook
Saw Collection 1-8 - Walmart Blu-ray SteelBook
All of these are up and ready to pre-order - Happy Collecting!
Below is the full press release:
Only at Walmart
SteelBooks® in Blu-ray™ + Digital multi-film available 9/12/23
SAW 1-8 Blu-ray™ + Digital multi-film SteelBook® SRP: $49.99
Leprechaun 1-8 Blu-ray™ + Digital multi-film SteelBook® SRP: $49.99
Rob Zombie Triple Feature Blu-ray™ + Digital multi-film SteelBook® SRP: $39.99
Rob Zombie’s Halloween 1 & 2 Double Feature Blu-ray™ + Digital
multi-film SteelBook® SRP: $34.99
Blair Witch and The Blair Witch Project Double Feature Blu-ray™ + Digital
multi-film SteelBook® SRP: $34.99
PROGRAM DESCRIPTION
Curate the ultimate horror collection before Halloween when these exclusive SteelBooks® arrive September 12th from Lionsgate at a Walmart near you on Blu-ray™ + Digital. Each frightful SteelBook® memorializes these iconic titles through an all-new stylized and ageless look, with artwork created by the artist Bond. The featured titles include SAW 1-8 for the suggested retail price of $49.99, Leprechaun 1-8 for the suggested retail price of $49.99, Rob Zombie Triple Feature (House of 1000 Corpses, The Devil’s Rejects, and 3 from Hell) for the suggested retail price of $39.99, Rob Zombie’s Halloween I & II Double Feature for the suggested retail price of $34.99, and Blair Witch Project Double Feature for the suggested retail price of $34.99.
OFFICIAL SYNOPSIS
Celebrate the scariest time of year – Halloween – with a set of spine-tingling, hair-raising SteelBooks®! Lionsgate’s series of Walmart-exclusive Blu-rayTM + Digital multi-film SteelBooks®, inspired by the vivid, eye-catching artwork of vintage pulp novels, rises from the grave on September 12. Included in this collection are the terror-tinged The Blair Witch Project and its evil twin, Blair Witch; the reimagined Halloween I & II and unhinged Firefly trilogy (House of 1000 Corpses, The Devil’s Rejects, and 3 from Hell) from fright master Rob Zombie; and an 8-film round of repulsion care of SAW (including Jigsaw) and the devilish hijinks of the Leprechaun. It’s an endless SteelBook® scare-a-thon!
CAST
Tobin Bell Mississippi Burning, The Firm
Warwick Davis Willow, The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy
Sheri Moon Zombie The Munsters, The Lords of Salem
Sid Haig The Big Bird Cage, Spider Baby or, the Maddest Story Ever Told
Tyler Mane Penance Lane, Playing with Fire
Heather Donahue Seven and a Match, TV’s “Taken”
PROGRAM INFORMATION
Year of Production: Various
Title Copyright: See below for all titles
SAW 1-8: SAW © 2004 Saw Productions. SAW II, SAW III, SAW IV, SAW V, SAW VI, SAW: The Final Chapter, Jigsaw © 2005-2017, Artwork & Supplementary Materials ®, ™ & © 2023 Lions Gate Entertainment Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Leprechaun 1-8: Leprechaun, Leprechaun 2, Leprechaun 3, Leprechaun 4 in Space, Leprechaun in the Hood © 1992-1999 Trimark Pictures, Inc. Leprechaun: Back 2 tha Hood © 2003 Lions Gate Films Inc. Leprechaun: Origins © 2013 Lions Gate Films Inc. and WWE Studios, Inc. Leprechaun Returns © 2018 Leprechaun Returns. Artwork & Supplementary Materials ®, TM & © 2023 Lions Gate Entertainment Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Rob Zombie Triple Feature: House of 1000 Corpses © 2002 House of 1,000 Corpses, LLC, The Devil’s Rejects © 2005 Cinelamda Internationale Filmproduktionsgesellschaft mbH & Co. 1 Beteiligungs-KG, 3 from Hell © 2019, Artwork & Supplementary Materials ®, TM & © 2023 Lions Gate Entertainment Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Rob Zombie’s Halloween I & II Double Feature: Halloween © 2007, Halloween II © 2009, Artwork & Supplementary Materials ®, TM & © 2023 Lions Gate Entertainment Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Blair Witch Double Feature: The Blair Witch Project © 1999 Blair Witch Film Partners, Ltd. “The Blair Witch Project” and “Stickman” are the registered trademarks and service marks of Lions Gate Entertainment Inc. Artwork & Supplementary Materials ®, TM & © 2023 Lions Gate Entertainment Inc. Blair Witch © 2016, Artwork & Supplementary Materials ® & © 2023 Lions Gate Entertainment Inc.
Genre: Horror
Type: Catalog Re-Release
Rating: SAW 1-8: Unrated; Leprechaun 1-8 R; Rob Zombie Triple Feature: House of 1000 Corpses R, The Devil’s Rejects Unrated, 3 from Hell Unrated; Rob Zombie’s Halloween I & II Double Feature Unrated; Blair Witch Project Double Feature R
Genre: Horror
Closed-Captioned: N/A
Blu-ray™ Subtitles: Various
Blu-ray™ Format: Various
Blu-ray™ Audio: Various
Artist Information: Bond
We've gathered some of the latest title announcement highlights and have digested (pun intended) them for you into a quick read for you here.
What are your favorites?
The biggest recent news as of late is The Criterion Collection has announced and detailed a creepy quintet of 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray and Blu-ray releases for the month of October. They are Nikyatu Jusu's Nanny and Freaks / The Unknown / The Mystic: Tod Browning’s Sideshow Shockers (both on Blu-ray), David Cronenberg's Videodrome on 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray, as well and Nicolas Roeg's Don't Look Now and Alejandro Amenábar's The Others on both formats. For more details, check out our full coverage on those here.
Warner Brothers has announced The Flash starring Ezra Miller and Michael Keaton (bringing his 1989 Batman back out of retirement) on 4K UHD Blu-ray and Blu-ray on August 29.
Warner Archive has also revealed their August Blu-ray slate: Wichita (1955), Spinout (1966), Little Women (1933), The Life of Emile Zola (1937), Gay Purr-ee (1962) and Father's Little Dividend (1951). All six Blu-ray releases arrive at the end of August.
Disney's live-action The Little Mermaid will be swimming to Blu-ray and 4K UHD Blu-ray on September 19. The fantasy/musical starring Halle Bailey as Ariel and Melissa McCarthy as Ursula is from director Rob Marshall. Wal-Mart will be carrying an exclusive edition, and Best Buy will also have an exclusive 4K UHD Blu-ray SteelBook.
Speaking of SteelBooks, Best Buy is set to release Lionsgate's The Expendables, The Expendables 2, and The Expendables 3 in matching 4K UHD Blu-ray SteelBooks on September 5.
Lionsgate and Tim Story's The Blackening will slaughter home video on 4K UHD Blu-ray as well as Blu-ray on August 22.
Arrow has a few more limited edition releases coming soon that have been added to our release calendar. They are: Ringu - 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray (Arrow Limited Edition), Carlito's Way - 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray (Arrow Limited Edition), Borsalino (Arrow Limited Edition), Blood and Black Lace - 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray (Arrow UK Limited Edition), The Prodigal Son (Arrow Limited Edition) and The Psycho Collection - 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray (Arrow UK Limited Edition). The latter will be a boxed set containing four films starring Anthony Perkins. Check out the box art below:
Although there is no official release date yet, Kino is preparing M. Night Shyamalan's The Visit for 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray later this year.
Paramount is working on a 70th anniversary 4K UHD Blu-ray release of William Wyler's classic Roman Holiday starring Audrey Hepburn and Gregory Peck on August 15. The studio is also prepping Transformers: Rise of the Beasts for Blu-ray and 4K UHD Blu-ray on October 10.
For diehard fans of the Oscar-winning Everything Everywhere All at Once, A24 has a Collector's Edition 4K UHD Blu-ray and Blu-ray up for sale the on their website for $50 and $45, respectively. Both come loaded with features and some swag and they are shipping August 7.
Of course, we didn't cover everything here so be sure to check out our release calendars for the full list of upcoming 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray and Blu-ray releases.
This October, The Criterion Collection is set to release Nikyatu Jusu's Nanny and Freaks / The Unknown / The Mystic: Tod Browning’s Sideshow Shockers on Blu-ray, a 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray upgrade of David Cronenberg's Videodrome, plus Nicolas Roeg's Don't Look Now as well as Alejandro Amenábar's The Others on both formats.
You can usually count on Criterion to punch out one or two horror gems for the spooky season but in recent memory Criterion's October 2023 horror-drenched slate has to be one of their most aggressively committed to the genre. There's a lot coming in so let's dive right in.
Arriving on October 3 on 4K UHD Blu-ray (and returning to Blu-ray) is Nicolas Roeg's classic Don't Look Now.
Don't Look Now - The Criterion Collection 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray
Donald Sutherland and Julie Christie mesmerize as a married couple on an extended trip to Venice following a family tragedy. While in that elegantly decaying city, they have a series of inexplicable, terrifying, and increasingly dangerous experiences. A masterpiece from Nicolas Roeg, Don’t Look Now, adapted from a story by Daphne du Maurier, is a brilliantly disturbing tale of the supernatural, as renowned for its innovative editing and haunting cinematography as for its naturalistic eroticism and its unforgettable climax and denouement—one of the great endings in horror history.
4K UHD + BLU-RAY SPECIAL EDITION FEATURES
Next on October 10, David Cronenberg's Videodrome starring James Woods and Deborah Harry will be getting a 4K UHD Blu-ray.
Videodrome - The Criterion Collection 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray
When Max Renn goes looking for edgy new material for his sleazy cable TV station, he stumbles across the pirate broadcast of a hyperviolent torture show called “Videodrome.” His attempts to unearth the program’s origins send him on a hallucinatory journey into a shadow world of right-wing conspiracies, sadomasochistic sex games, and bodily transformation. Starring James Woods and Deborah Harry, Videodrome is one of the most original and provocative works from writer-director David Cronenberg, and features groundbreaking makeup effects by Academy Award winner Rick Baker.
DIRECTOR-APPROVED 4K UHD + BLU-RAY SPECIAL EDITION FEATURES
Freaks / The Unknown / The Mystic: Tod Browning’s Sideshow Shockers - a trio of freaky silent-era features will arrive on Blu-ray on October 17.
Freaks / The Unknown / The Mystic:
Tod Browning’s Sideshow Shockers - The Criterion Collection
The world is a carnival of criminality, corruption, and psychosexual strangeness in the twisted pre-Code shockers of Tod Browning. Early Hollywood’s edgiest auteur, Browning drew on his experiences as a circus performer to create subversive pulp entertainments set amid the world of traveling sideshows, which, with their air of the exotic and the disreputable, provided a pungent backdrop for his sordid tales of outcasts, cons, villains, and vagabonds. Bringing together two of his defining works (The Unknown and Freaks) and a long-unavailable rarity (The Mystic), this cabinet of pre-Code curiosities reveals a master of the morbid whose ability to unsettle is matched only by his daring compassion for society’s most downtrodden.
Freaks (1932)
The most transgressive film produced by a major American studio in the 1930s, Tod Browning’s crowning achievement has haunted the margins of cinema for nearly one hundred years. An unforgettable cast of real-life sideshow performers portray the entertainers in a traveling circus who, shunned by mainstream society, live according to their own code—one of radical acceptance for the fellow oppressed and, as the show’s beautiful but cruel trapeze artist learns, of terrifying retribution for those who cross them. Received with revulsion by viewers upon its initial release, Freaks effectively ended Browning’s career but can now be seen for what it is: an audacious cry for understanding and a singular experience of nightmarish, almost avant-garde power.
The Unknown (1927)
The most celebrated and exquisitely perverse of the many collaborations between Tod Browning and his legendary leading man Lon Chaney, The Unknown features a wrenchingly physical performance from “the Man of a Thousand Faces” as the armless Spanish knife thrower Alonzo (he flings daggers with his feet) whose dastardly infatuation with his beautiful assistant (Joan Crawford)—a woman, it just so happens, who cannot bear to be touched by the hands of any man—drives him to unspeakable extremes. Sadomasochistic obsession, deception, murder, disfigurement, and a spectacular Grand Guignol climax—Browning wrings every last frisson from the lurid premise.
The Mystic (1925)
A fantastically atmospheric but rarely seen missing link in the development of Tod Browning’s artistry, set amid his favored milieu of shadowy sideshows and clever criminals, The Mystic provides a striking showcase for silent-era diva Aileen Pringle, who sports a series of memorably outré looks (courtesy of art-deco designer Erté) as Zara, a phony psychic in a Hungarian carnival who, under the guidance of a Svengali-like con man (Conway Tearle), crashes—and proceeds to swindle—American high society. Browning’s fascination with the weird is on full display in the eerie séance sequences, while his subversive moral ambiguity extends surprising sympathy to even the most seemingly irredeemable of antiheroes.
Hitting stores on October 24 on both Blu-ray and 4K UHD Blu-ray is the chilling 2001 film The Others starring Nicole Kidman.
The Others - The Criterion Collection 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray
A remote manor; hushed, candlelit atmosphere; and shivery, supernatural menace. With his first English-language feature, Chilean Spanish writer-director-composer Alejandro Amenábar resurrected the classic gothic chiller to create a ghost story of uncommon emotional resonance. Nicole Kidman stars as a World War II–era mother whose imperiousness masks a terrifying pain, as she keeps her light-sensitive children enshrouded in darkness on her country estate. The arrival of three new servants punctures her insular world—and seems to disturb the balance between the living and the dead. With each stunning twist and turn, Amenábar immerses us more deeply in a realm haunted not only by spirits but also by guilt, trauma, and repression.
DIRECTOR-APPROVED 4K UHD + BLU-RAY SPECIAL EDITION FEATURES
And finally on October 31st, Nanny - the debut feature film from Nikyatu Jusu will join The Criterion Collection on Blu-ray.
Nanny (2022) - The Criterion Collection
A spellbinding blend of social observation and artful shocks, the debut feature from Nikyatu Jusu plunges into the increasingly fractured consciousness of Aisha (Anna Diop), a Senegalese immigrant who takes a job as a nanny for a wealthy white family in New York City. Separated from her own son and casually exploited by her employers, Aisha finds herself consumed by unsettling visions and a growing rage—one that could either destroy or empower her. This visually captivating tour de force—the first horror movie to win the Grand Jury Prize at the Sundance Film Festival—distills complex ideas about motherhood, inequality, and cultural dislocation into a work of dreamlike dread.
DIRECTOR-APPROVED BLU-RAY SPECIAL EDITION FEATURES
Pre-order links will be updated as soon as they go live.
With Prime Day in the rearview, and other retailers also having tried to get a piece of the pie, how well did you do? Yes, Movies and TV is my primary category on Prime Day, but Books, Toys and Games and Computers & Accessories always gets a look from me. You? Amazon announced they had their best Prime Day event ever.
For 4K this week we get a most excellent Bruce Lee import, that Evil Dead Rise SteelBook I told you to wait for, TWO Criterion releases, and so much more.
Welcome to Volume 4 Episode 7 of our weekly release guide. A look at the highlights of what's coming to disc the week of July 16th - July 22nd, as well as a look at announcements from last week.
Import Monday new release begins with Evil Dead Rise in a SteelBook package, the US domestic release of a standard case edition was a couple of weeks ago.
No waiting a couple of weeks for the SteelBook release of The Last of Us: The Complete First Season, and our links bring you over to Amazon UK.
Import Catalog title of Bruce Lee at Golden Harvest should grab your attention. Some of Bruce Lee's finest work, all in 4K. At present, the US market is only getting Enter The Dragon in 4K on August 8th, and I really doubt the rest of these films will, so it might be wise to import this set. Alternately, the Arrow Video Store has their store exclusive set for purchase as well.
Moving on to Domestic Tuesday, there's one new release, HBO's The Last of Us: The Complete First Season. Best I can tell, there is no digital copy included in this set, so go with whichever case/cover art you prefer. It would be ironic that a TV series based on a video game would be played on a gaming console that the actual game is installed on. Be careful, you might cause dimensional paradox right there.
Criterion Collection has Jean-Luc Godard's Breathless, a new-wave crime film.
TWO Criterion 4K releases the same week? Yup, next let's snatch The Ranown Westerns: Five Films Directed by Budd Boetticher, a collection of five Western films from director Budd Boetticher starring Randolph Scott. With the Barnes & Noble Criterion Sale going on right now, almost every one of these Criterion titles is half price at B & N physical stores, online, and on Amazon.com as well.
From Arrow Video, 2011's Martin Scorsese hit Hugo gets a 4K upgrade. This one has the 3D disc inside as well.
Universal releases Les Misérables (2012). If you can figure out the formula in which Uni uses to determine which releases they do themselves and which ones Shout! Factory gets to do, you might be on to something, please let us know.
Kino Lorber keeps cranking out what movie buffs want, this week William Friedkin's To Live and Die in L.A..
Next week more Resident Evil, another DC animated, more Kino, more in general!
Blu-ray counterparts of the above titles include The Last of Us: The Complete First Season from HBO, Hugo 2D/3D from Arrow Video and To Live and Die in L.A. from Kino Lorber.
Look for some fresh comedy from LionsGate titled Fool's Paradise.
New romcom from Sony Pictures with Love Again.
Delayed from a couple of weeks ago, Land of the Pharaohs is now available from Warner Archive. Reading David's review makes me chuckle, an exposed navel was considered obscene back then.
TV on disc includes Moonhaven: Season One and South Park: Seasons 21-25.
Anime highlights include The Devil Is a Part-Timer!: Season 2, Medaka Box (Seasons 1 & 2) Complete Collection and Thus Spoke Kishibe Rohan.
In the zero-day advance notice category (I'm sure you can tell I am talking about Universal again!), action/thriller Kandahar with Gerard Butler comes to blu-ray. Can't say for certain if this film merits a 4K disc, but undoubtedly the digital release will be 4K and in general, this type of movie would sell as a 4K disc.
Honorable Mention: Kino's Audie Murphy Collection II is available this week.
Next week, if you shop a lot of blu-rays, Tuesday alone currently has just under a hundred skus listed, prepare yourself!
East of Eden 4K and Rio Bravo 4K got moved to August 1st. Warner Bros has seemingly done this a fair amount of times for older catalog titles, no doubt for all the right reasons.
Warner Bros has announced the 2023 film for The Flash to have a disc street date of August 29th.
LionsGate has announced Tim Story's The Blackening to disc release on August 22.
Although not officially announced, Fast X appears on track, on, track, for an August 8th street date. Expect an announcement by August 5th.
Parts 4-7 of the Chucky movies have been pushed back a month to August 29.
Last week, the SAG joined the WGA in a strike. How is this going to affect the entertainment industry in general?
Which titles are you buying this week? Which ones are on your wishlist, be it to buy as an impulse buy or to wait for the right price?
The final Snyderverse DCU movie starring Ezra Miller as The Flash and featuring Michael Keaton's long-awaited return as Batman will make its 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray and Blu-ray debut on August 29. Digital is a few steps ahead arriving on July 18th.
Read our review for The Flash here.
Worlds collide in “The Flash” when Barry uses his superpowers to travel back in time in order to change the events of the past. But when his attempt to save his family inadvertently alters the future, Barry becomes trapped in a reality in which General Zod has returned, threatening annihilation, and there are no Super Heroes to turn to. That is, unless Barry can coax a very different Batman out of retirement and rescue an imprisoned Kryptonian... albeit not the one he’s looking for. Ultimately, to save the world that he is in and return to the future that he knows, Barry’s only hope is to race for his life a. But will making the ultimate sacrifice be enough to reset the universe?
Specs have yet to be revealed, however supplements seem to differ between Digital, Blu-ray, and 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray. Check below the cover art for each physical release's supplements.
"The Flash” Premium Digital, 4K Ultra HD, and Blu-ray Bonus Features
The Flash - 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray
The Flash - 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray Best Buy SteelBook
Order your copy today and here is the full press release:
“The Flash is fabulous.”
PEOPLE / Tom Gliatto
THE FLASH
DC Super Hero Film Debuts For
Premium Digital Ownership on July 18
4K UHD, Blu-ray and DVD arrive on August 29
“The Flash” Web3 Movie Experience also available on July 18
Burbank, CA, July 12, 2023 – Prepare for the time-bending adventure of a lifetime when “The Flash” arrives for purchase Digitally at home on July 18. The film is directed by Andy Muschietti with Ezra Miller reprising their role as The Flash/Barry Allen in the DC Super Hero’s first-ever standalone feature film. The film will also be available to purchase on 4K UHD, Blu-ray and DVD on August 29.
“The Flash” ensemble also includes rising star Sasha Calle, Michael Shannon, Ron Livingston, Maribel Verduì, Kiersey Clemons, Antje Traue and Michael Keaton. “The Flash” is produced by Barbara Muschietti and Michael Disco. The screenplay is by Christina Hodson, with a screen story by John Francis Daley & Jonathan Goldstein and Joby Harold, based on characters from DC. The executive producers are Toby Emmerich, Walter Hamada, Galen Vaisman and Marianne Jenkins.
Synopsis:
Worlds collide in “The Flash” when Barry uses his superpowers to travel back in time in order to change the events of the past. But when his attempt to save his family inadvertently alters the future, Barry becomes trapped in a reality in which General Zod has returned, threatening annihilation, and there are no Super Heroes to turn to. That is, unless Barry can coax a very different Batman out of retirement and rescue an imprisoned Kryptonian... albeit not the one he’s looking for. Ultimately, to save the world that he is in and return to the future that he knows, Barry’s only hope is to race for his life. But will making the ultimate sacrifice be enough to reset the universe?
Additionally, on July 18 “The Flash” will be available as a Web3 Movie Experience, a multimedia NFT allowing fans to own and to engage with the 2023 DC Super Hero film in an exciting way. Through dynamic menu options based on locations from the film, owners can watch the film in 4K UHD on desktop, mobile, tablet or TV, access special features, collect standard or motion key art, discover digital easter eggs, uncover hidden AR collectibles, and more. The Flash Web3 Movie Experience will be available for purchase at https://web3.wb.com.
Also included with “The Flash” purchase on Digital is the six-part original scripted podcast “The Flash: Escape the Midnight Circus.” An original, standalone audio series, the podcast features Max Greenfield (TV’s “New Girl”) as the voice of The Flash/Barry Allen. The podcast is also available to follow on Apple Podcasts at https://apple.co/
DIGITAL, 4K, BLU-RAY & DVD ELEMENTS
“The Flash” Premium Digital Ownership contain the following special features:
DIGITAL, 4K, BLU-RAY & DVD ELEMENTS
“The Flash” Blu-ray contain the following special features:
DIGITAL, 4K, BLU-RAY & DVD ELEMENTS
“The Flash” 4K UHD contain the following special features:
