Posted Tue Aug 24, 2021 at 08:10 AM PDT by Matthew Hartman
You gotta hand it to Francis Ford Coppola, for a guy who likes to revisit his films and make changes or improvements, he makes a grand event of things. Warner Bros. and Studio Canal are teaming up to bring fans of Coppola's iconic 1983 coming of age film The Outsiders: The Complete Novel the true definitive 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray. Not content with just his extended cut, the Theatrical Version will also be enjoying the same 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray upgrade.
The film will be getting a theatrical re-release starting September 26 followed by the 4-Disc 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray release on November 9th ahead of its arrival on HBO Max on November 16th.
We don't have full specs for HDR grade, audio format, or price point we've reached out for clarification and will update our listing as we get it and when the pre-orders go live.
Here's the full press release from Warner Brothers & Studio Canal:
WARNER BROS. AND STUDIOCANAL ANNOUNCE
A BRAND NEW 4K RESTORATION
OF
FRANCIS FORD COPPOLA’S
THE OUTSIDERS THE COMPLETE NOVEL
IN ASSOCIATION WITH AMERICAN ZOETROPE
Burbank, CA – August 24, 2021 – Warner Bros., STUDIOCANAL, and American Zoetrope today announce the forthcoming 4K restoration of the 1983 American coming-of-age drama, THE OUTSIDERS THE COMPLETE NOVEL, from Academy Award®-winning visionary director Francis Ford Coppola. Created to give fans more of the action that took place in S.E. Hinton’s celebrated book, Coppola’s latest, definitive version includes new music, as well as several scenes cut from the theatrical version which were reconstructed from original camera negatives. Warner Bros. will release THE OUTSIDERS THE COMPLETE NOVEL theatrically in the US and Canada beginning on September 26th with tickets going on sale this week. Details are available at Fandango.com. Warner Bros. will also make both it and the original version available in a 4K UHD Collector’s Edition and on digital platforms starting November 9th. Additionally, THE OUTSIDERS THE COMPLETE NOVEL will be available on HBO Max beginning on November 16th and will also air this fall on Turner Classic Movies (TCM).
Said Coppola, ‘“The Outsiders The Complete Novel’ came about after meeting students over the years who repeatedly asked me why certain scenes from S.E. Hinton’s wonderful book were missing from the theatrical version. These questions reminded about my inspiration for the film—in 1980, a contingent of 12- to 14-year-old students wrote and asked me to make it. I listened to those young fans back then, and I continue to listen to young people now and believe in their opinions, so this complete film version of the novel is for them.”
STUDIOCANAL is handling the release internationally and will release THE OUTSIDERS THE COMPLETE NOVEL theatrically in the UK, and will make both it and the original version available in a 4K UHD Collector’s Edition and on Blu-Ray, DVD and digital platforms starting November 8th.
Based on the 1967 best-selling young-adult novel by S. E. Hinton, THE OUTSIDERS is considered the first “Brat Pack” movie, as it stars then-unknown young actors in many of their first break-through roles, including C. Thomas Howell (E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial), Rob Lowe (“The West Wing,” “Parks and Recreation”), Emilio Estevez (St. Elmo's Fire, The Breakfast Club, Young Guns), Matt Dillon (Crash, There's Something About Mary), Tom Cruise (Top Gun, Mission Impossible series, Jerry Maguire), Patrick Swayze (Dirty Dancing, Point Break, Ghost), Ralph Macchio (The Karate Kid, Cobra Kai), and Diane Lane (Unfaithful, Under the Tuscan Sun), who went on to superstar-caliber careers.
THE OUTSIDERS takes place in '60s Oklahoma, centering on two rival teen gangs: The “Greasers,” a class term that refers to the young men on the East Side, the poor side of town, and the “Socs,” short for Socials, who are the “West-side rich kids.” Ponyboy (C. Thomas Howell), a tender-hearted and kind teenager’s life is changed forever one night when a scuffle with his friend Johnny (Ralph Macchio) inadvertently leads to the death of a rival gang member, and the boys are forced to go into hiding to avoid arrest. Soon Ponyboy and Johnny, along with Dallas (Matt Dillon) and their other Greaser buddies, must contend with the consequences of their violent lives. While some Greasers try to achieve redemption, others meet tragic ends.
Inspired by Jo Ellen Misakian, a librarian who had sent Coppola a letter signed by over 300 students explaining that the book was cult reading among local teens, Coppola captures adolescent teen emotions and the growing realization of life’s cruelties and a yearning for a life not attainable.
“For ‘The Outsiders The Complete Novel’ as well as the original theatrical version, we wanted to create and maintain the highest level of visual quality possible for these restorations,” commented James Mockoski, Film Archivist and Restoration Supervisor at American Zoetrope. “We took the unusual path of locating all the various elements that went into creating the film's most elaborate visual effects sequences and re-scanned them. Luckily, Mr. Coppola is an archivist at heart and he kept every piece of film he shot, so we were able to unify scenes from the film using the original camera negative as much as possible. It was important to Mr. Coppola to give this release its best quality presentation, and no one has ever seen this film looking as beautiful and pristine as it does now.”
U.S. and International Release Dates:
NORTH AMERICA (Warner Bros.) – Theatrical September 26, Home Entertainment November 9, HBO Max November 16, TCM Fall 2021
UK HOME (STUDIOCANAL) – Theatrical TBC, Home Entertainment November 8
AUSTRALIA & NEW ZEALAND (STUDIOCANAL) – Home Entertainment November 10
GERMANY (STUDIOCANAL) – Home Entertainment November 11
The stunning 4-disc 4K UHD Collector’s Edition will include both restored features - The Outsiders The Complete Novel and The Outsiders:
Plus, an impressive array of extra features:
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