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January 31 : Paramount does Hepburn; 'Elliot' due from Universal; 'Dinosaurs' redux From Hepburn with love Boy, don't I feel kinda dumb. On Monday I mentioned Paramount's April slate of announcements, and lamented that those Audrey Hepburn titles due in March weren't announced. So, sure enough, there they were in the announcement the whole time, I just missed that page. Doh! Anyway, on 4/10, Paramount will be releasing 3 Hepburn classics on DVD. Sabrina features a new transfer in the film's original 1.33:1 aspect ratio, English and French mono tracks, a 12-minute "Sabrina documentary," a photo gallery and the trailer. Also coming is Paris When It Sizzles, in anamorphic widescreen, English and French mono and with the trailer, and Funny Face, also in anamorphic widescreen, English 5.1 surround and English and French mono, a 9-minute "Paramount In The 50's" featurette, a photo gallery and the trailer. Retail for each is $29.95. Also, the previously posptoned Wonder Boys disc is now set for 3/13, just in time for the Oscars... By the way, I must say that while I generally like Paramount's DVD output, I'm a bit disappointed that their initial experiment with lower-priced DVDs (such as the lower-than-usual $24.95 "football" titles in January ) seems to have been halted. Along with their other April announcements (see the January 29 update below), I think $29.95 is kinda high. Really, unless you are a devout John candy or Stuart Smalley fan, are you really going to pay $30 for a bare bones version of Summer Rental or Stuart Saves His Family? Personally, I think Paramount would sell a lot more of these catalog titles by lowering prices or adding features (or, better yet, both.) Just a thought. Fox April spec update Fox has just announced the full specs for their April catalog titles, and in addition to the features already announced, 9 To 5 will also include an English 2.0 surround track, Norma Rae has a new featurette "Backstory: Norma Rae," and Nine Months and Working Girl include additional TV spots. Retail for all is $24.95 each.
A real sleeper Universal has just set a retail date of 4/17 for the arrival of the sleeper hit Billy Elliot. This is a true feel-good film in the best sense, and the DVD should be a good one. The disc includes an anamorphic widescreen transfer, an audio commentary and more to be announced. Expect the full specs very soon. Walking With dinosaurs Lastl but not least, Warner has announced a 4/10 date for their reissue of the BBC documentary Walking With Dinosaurs. You may recall that the BBC originally had a distribution deal with Fox for the U.S., but have since signed on with Warner. This new release of Walking With Dinosaurs will feature the exact same specs as the previous Fox version, including a 1.78:1 anamorphic widescreen transfer, making of and deleted scenes. Warner's price for this 2-disc set will be $34.95.
Extra contest goodies Just a quick note that in addition to the five copies of Dreamworks' What Lies Beneath that we're giving away as part of our Top Pick contest this week, Dreamworks' has also provided us with free T-shirts to go along with each disc as well. So check out the contest for you chance to win! The Crow flies at midnight... Some details have finally come for The Crow Collection box set due from Buena Vista. Originally released as bare bones editions back in 1998, both The Crow and The Crow: City Of Angels were pretty sparse releases, and the first Crow boasted a pretty lacking transfer. However, this new box set looks to correct most of these wrongs, though note that similar to the recent Ultimate Scream Collection, these new reissues will only be available in the box set for the time being (though The Crow: Salvation will also be available separately.) The Crow Collector's Series features a behind-the-scenes featurette, a 30-minute interview with creator James O'Barr, three extended scenes, a gallery of photographs and deleted footage, storyboards and the "Devil's Night Retribution Trivia" game. The disc will also feature a new anamorphic widescreen transfer and a 5.1 surround track. The Crow: City Of Angels Collector's Series disc is also in anamorphic widescreen and with a 5.1 track, as well as an audio commentary with Jeff Most, Graeme Revell, Richard Brooks, and Alex McDowell, three featurettes "Behind The Scenes," "Costume Design" and "Production Design," a still gallery with promotional materials, and storyboards. Finally, The Crow: Salvation includes an anamorphic transfer, 5.1, mix, audio commentary with Bharat Nalluri, Eric Mabius, Jeff Most and composer Macro Beltrami, two featurettes "Behind The Scenes" and "Behind The Makeup," a still gallery on the production design and more storyboards, and the "Who's The Bird?" feature with the crow trainer (!) All the discs also include the trailer, and extensive DVD-ROM features including a script viewer with direct scene access and additional production material. Retail for The Crow: Salvation is $29.95, and the box set will set you back $89.95. As for the release date, expect the discs to arrive 3/20. The trouble with tribbles In yesterday's news update on Paramount's April slate, we forgot to add the next two volumes of Star Trek: The Original Series. Volumes 21 (featuring the episodes "I, Mudd" and "The Trouble With Tribbles") and Volume 22 ("Bread And Circuses" and "Journey To Babel"). Like all the other Star Trek discs, the episodes are full frame and with English 5.1 surround soundtracks, English captions and no supplements. Retail is $19.95 each. Columbia Agent Red Columbia has just announced another new title for 4/10, the Dolph Lundgren action extravaganza Agent Red. The disc features a non-anamorphic 1.85:1 widescreen transfer, English 5.1 and 2.0 Dolby Surround tracks, English and Spanish subtitles, an audio commentary with director Damien Lee, and the trailer. Retail is $29.95. Criterion adds another one in March, and where's 'The Rock'? Another new announcement from Criterion for March, a 3/13 bow of Bertrand Tavernier's Coup De Tochon. The disc features a 1.66:1 anamorphic widescreen transfer, the original French mono track with new English subtitles, an exclusive video interview with Director Bertrand Tavenier, the alternate ending and the theatrical trailer. Retail is $29.95. Also, we've received many inquiries about a 3/13 street date for the upcoming special edition of The Rock that has appeared on some retailer's preorder lists. However, Criterion has not announced this date, and have no date currently set. Of course, should we receive any sort of official date from Criterion, we'll post it! 'Lost Souls' update Finally today, we've received confirmation that the upcoming Lost Souls DVD, due on 2/27 will indeed include a DTS track along with the Dolby Digital. Features are the same and retail remains $24.95.
New Top Pick Contest This week's Top Pick contest is another winner from Dreamworks, who have scared up another great disc for Robert Zemeckis's latest, What Lies Beneath. The disc includes a commentary, making of, and more. We'll be giving away five copies of this one, so don't miss it. Enter here for your chance to win, and check out our review here. And congrats goes out to last week's winner, Alan Vanah from Baltimore, Maryland. Alan took home a copy of Fox's Me, Myself & Irene. Great job! Paramount's April slate Strangely, though Paramount hinted at a batch of romantic classics starring Audrey Hepburn would appear in March, they haven't announced their DVD catalog release slate for that month yet. However, their April catalog titles have arrived, and it is another mix of romance and comedy. Coming on 4/17 is Coneheads, Stuart Saves His Family and the John Candy comedy Summer Rental. All are 1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen with English 5.1 and English and French 2.0 surround tracks (except for Summer Rental, which is English and French mono only) and include their respective trailers. Then on 4/24 comes the new release Ladies' Man, in anamorphic widescreen, English 5.1 and English and French 2.0 surround tracks and the trailer. Also coming is the box office megahit and Best Picture Oscar nominee Ghost, in anamorphic widescreen, English 5.1 and English and French 2.0 surround tracks, an audio commentary with Director Jerry Zucker and Writer Bruce Joel Rubin, the "Ghost: Remembering The Magic" featurette, and the trailer. And if you're really in a romantic mood, also on tap is the 70's weepie Love Story, in anamorphic widescreen and English and French mono tracks, and with an audio commentary with Director Arthur Hiller, the "Love Story: A Classic Remembered" featurette, and the trailer. All of the above are $29.95 each. 'Million Dollar' DVD Though it has been in release for over a year overseas, Wim Wenders's latest The Million Dollar Hotel will finally arrive on DVD here in Region 1 on 4/3. This Sterling Millennium Collection release features a 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen transfer, Dolby Digital 5.1 and 2.0 surround tracks, an audio commentary with director Wim Wenders and screenwriter Bono, a never-before-seen U2 music video for "Ground Beneath Her Feet" (also directed by Wenders), a cast and crew interview gallery and the theatrical trailer.Û Retail will be $24.99.
January 26 through 28 : 102 Dalmatians!; 'Circus' from Columbia
If the first one wasn't torture enough, last winter Disney subjected audiences to 102 Dalmatians, though it's lack of big box office hopefully kills any chance of a 103 Dalmatians. Disney is really going all out with the DVD, releasing separate Pan & Scan and Widescreen special editions, both THX certified. Both versions have the same features, including Dolby Digital and DTS 5.1 tracks (note that 102 Dalmatians was a Dolby EX release theatrically), an audio commentary by director Kevin Lima and animal coordinator Gary Gero, "Creating Cruella," "Animal Actors," and "Designing Dalmatians" featurettes, deleted footage, the "Puppy Action Overload" (!) with puppy auditions and outtakes, the trailer, and extensive DVD-ROM features including segments on "Cruella Costume Designer;" "Visual Effects 102;" and "Dalmatians 101," all narrated by Waddlesworth. Retail for each is $29.95, and street date is 4/3. Three-ring 'Circus' Columbia has announced another title for 4/3, the indie release Circus. In addition to the 1.85:1 anamorphic transfer, the disc is quite featured-loaded, including an audio commentary with Producer Alan Latham and Writer David Logan, deleted scenes, making-of featurette, talent files and the trailer. Retail is $24.95. Also, in good news from Columbia, we've finally heard back that a corrected version of Annie is forthcoming. As you may recall, there were some problems with the widescreen transfer, which was noticeably cropped in numerous shots. No set date for the arrival of new version, but stay tuned...
New from Criterion I guess it has been a while since we've had a new announcement from Criterion, but they've just added Neil Jordan's acclaimed drama Mona Lisa to their March slate. Due on 3/13, the disc includes a 1.77:1 widescreen transfer (no anamorphic status yet know), an English 2.0 mono track, an audio commentary with Director Neil Jordan and Actor Bob Hoskins, linear notes and the trailer. Retail is $39.95. Timeless! If you are a Barbra Streisand fan, then the DVD format has probably been a pretty big disappoint to you. While Sony Music originally announced some older Streisand releases would appear on DVD, they never showed up. And some of "Babs" biggest motion pictures (such as Funny Girl, Yentl and What's Up, Doc?) remain missing in action. A legendary perfectionist, sources say that the lack of Streisand product on DVD has largely been a result of anything related to Babs taking forever to be approved! So, what's a Streisand fan to do? Well, finally, at one Streisand DVD is on the way, Timeless: Live In Concert. Due on 2/20, the disc is full frame with 5.1 Dolby Digital and 2.0 PCM tracks, and a discography. Retail is $29.95. Even more terrifying, on 2/7 comes The Best Of Wham!, featuring all of the group's "classic videos," in Dolby Digital 5.1 and PCM 2.0 stereo, a discography and English and French lyrics. Retail is $24.95. Hey, you're getting "Wham Rap!" in all its digital glory, what more could you ask for? Buena Vista disc problems? We've gotten a number of emails regarding problems popping up on recent Buena Vista discs, and given the number of them lately, this appears to be a problem that unfortunately doesn't seem to want to go away. Initial reports from readers came in regards to Scary Movie and Gone In 60 Seconds, which on many players, including the Samsung DVD-709, RCA GE1105P and the Sanyo DWM-360, the disc would simply lock up after the FBI Warning. Now, we've begun to receive reports that Disney's The Kid also sports this problem, and unfortunately there doesn't seem to be any known workaround at this time. However, Buena Vista is aware of the problem, so hopefully we can get some sort of response from them on what consumers having problems should do with their discs. Stay tuned.
January 24 : New Fox and Warner titles; 'Natural' spec update; new Buena Vista street dates Two from Fox In addition to the already announced The Sand Pebbles DVD, Fox has added two more war-themed classics to its 5/15 slate. Watch for Twelve O'Clock High, staring Gregory Peck, in 1.33:1 and 2.0, along with cast filmographies, and Frank Sinatra in Von Ryan's Express, in 2.35;1 anamorphic widescreen, 2.0, and features including cast filmographies and the trailer. Retail is $24.95 each. Two from Warner Warner has just announced a couple of special interest titles due this April. First up on 4/10 is a look at the Allosaurus, including a 30-minute exploration "how we know what we know about Al," two galleries of storyboards and photos, and an interactive fun and fact section. The disc is 4:3 full frame and 2.0 stereo, and retail only $14.95. Next up on 4/24 is a box set of Wives And Daughters, an epic tale of an English family in the 19th century, presented 1.33:1 full frame and 2.0 stereo, with extras including the 20-minute "The Making of Wives and Daughters" featurette, and a 55-minute documentary on writer Elizabeth Gaskell. Retail is $59.95 for the 3-disc set. Two from Buena Vista Just a quick one on two anticipated new day & date releases from Buena Vista, who have announced a 4/10 street date for both the Mark Wahlberg drama The Yards, as well as the Ben Affleck and Gwenyth Paltrow romance Bounce. Both are anamorphic widescreen with English and French 5.1 tracks, and Bounce also has a commentary. Expect more features TBA, and retail is $29.95 each. 'Natural' spec update Finally, the full specs for the upcoming The Natural disc from Columbia have arrived, and in addition to the anamorphic widescreen transfer, the release includes English 4.0 surround (not 5.1 as we originally reported) and English, French, Spanish and Portuguese 2.0 surround tracks, the new "The Heart of the Natural" documentary, a book insert with reproductions of archival newspapers, talent files and the trailer. Retail is $24.95.
January 23 : Paramount moves 'Ordinary People'; 'Madman' spec change; new box cover art New Columbia announcements Well, it just wouldn't be another week of release news without some new Columbia announcements to get excited about. Columbia has just set a 5/1 date for Postcards From The Edge, which features yet another Academy Award-nominated performance by Meryl Streep. The disc includes anamorphic widescreen and full frame transfers, English, French, Spanish and Portuguese 2.0 surround and subtitle tracks, an audio commentary with writer Carrie Fisher, talent files and "bonus trailers" (i.e., tons of other trailers except one for the actual movie itself.) Also, yet more specs on that Krull special edition due on 4/3 (see the box art below as well). In addition to all the already-announced specs, the audio commentary on the disc will include Director Peter Yates, Editor Ray Lovejoy and actors Ken Marshall and Lysette Anthony, as well as an additional "behind-the-scenes commentary." Also on 4/3, Columbia will be releasing another Peter Yates film, For Pete's Sake. This is one of Barbra Streisand's lesser-known comedies, and the DVD features anamorphic widescreen and full screen versions, English and French mono tracks, an audio commentary with Director Peter Yates, talent files and trailers. Finally on 4/3 comes the thriller True Believer, which includes anamorphic widescreen and full frame transfers, English, French, Spanish and Portuguese 2.0 surround and subtitle tracks, talent files and the trailer. All of the above are $24.95. People who need 'People' While street date changes and delays are almost always a bummer, in some cases in the end they can be a good thing. Case in point is news from Paramount that the Ordinary People disc, originally due next month, has been bumped all the way to 8/28. But, in good news, Director Robert Redford has agreed to contribute his first-ever commentary track to the disc, so it should be worth the wait. Other spec updates include a change to yesterday's announcement of Madman from Anchor Bay. Alas, the disc will not be anamorphic, though it still will be 1.85;1 widescreen. Lastly, there has been some discrepancies in the listings for New Line's upcoming release of the horror thriller Lost Souls. While the press release states it is only being presented in English 5.1 and 2.0 Dolby Digital surround, most ads for the disc say it will also include a DTS track. We've sent off a request for clarification on just what soundtracks are on the disc and will post as soon as we get a reply. Box art spectacular! Oh, alright, this is total filler, but on relatively slow release news days like today, we have to resort to posting box art to fill the void. But, hey, I know many of you like these, so here are a few new scans that have come our way, so enjoy em!
January 22 : New Top Pick contest; Warner blasts off with 'Red Planet'; New Anchor Bay titles; Trimark becomes Lion's Gate and disc updates New Top Pick Contest This week's Top Pick contest is the latest from Fox, a feature-laden special edition of the recent Jim Carrey comedy Me Myself & Irene. In addition to the typical great Fox transfer, the disc features a commentary, loads of deleted scenes, a making-of and more. Enter here for your chance to win. And congrats goes out to last week's winner of the Oliver Stone Collection 10-pack, Kevin Wachter of Aurora, IL. Great job! Major detonation Hot on the heels of the DVD release of Battlefield Earth (which Warner suspiciously didn't even bother to send us for review), Warner has just announced a 3/27 date for the even bigger bomb Red Planet. While this grossed far less than even last winter's other Mars action flick Mission To Mars, I actually thought it was a little bit better. Anyway, given the film's excellent technical credits, at least it should make for a good audio and visual DVD experience. The disc features a 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen transfer, English and French 5.1 surround mixes, deleted scenes, cast bios and the trailer. Warner is pricing this one at a low $19.95 retail. Warner has also announced a 3/20 release called The Apostate, a thriller which I'm honestly not familiar with. The disc is full screen with an English 2.0 surround track, and the trailer. Retail is also $19.95. New Anchor Bay winter announcements Ahh, fans of 80's horror cult favorites, rejoice. Anchor Bay has announced more titles for February, March and April, with quite a few long-requested titles among them. On 2/13 comes one of the better "slasher in the woods" flicks Madman, in anamorphic widescreen and English 2.0 mono and with an audio commentary with writer/director Joe Giannone, writer/producer Gary Sales, & stars Tony Fish and Paul Ehlers, trailers and TV spots, and production notes. Then on 3/13 comes the Indiana Jones wanna-be Jake Speed, in anamorphic widescreen, 2.0 "ultra" stereo and with some trailers and production notes. Then we have Jane And The Lost City, also in anamorphic widescreen, 2.0 stereo and with a trailer, and Reform School Girls, in anamorphic widescreen, 2.0 mono, and with an audio commentary with director Tom DeSimone and humorist Martin Lewis, a still gallery with rare photos, production notes and the trailer. Finally on 3/13, in the musical arena we have Michael Nesmith: Live At The Britt, in full frame and 5.1 Dolby surround, and with a 4-page insert. All of the above are $24.95 each.
Finally, in April come two long-awaited 80's horror guilty pleasures. On 4/10 comes Creepshow 2 (aka "Thanks for the ride, lady!"), which I never thought was half bad. The disc is relatively featureless aside from a still gallery with behind-the-scenes photos and the trailer, but does feature a new 1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen transfer and 2.0 stereo mix. Also on 4/10 is Stephen King's directorial debut (and so far the only film he's directed) Maximum Overdrive. While originally scheduled years and years ago as a laserdisc special edition, after such a long wait, the DVD has no extras aside from a Stephen King bio and the trailer. But the disc does include the film's first-ever 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen presentation, a new English 5.1 surround mix, and not to mention new cover art. Retail for the above are $24.95 each. Trimark morphs into Lion's Gate As you may or may not have heard that one of the 90's leading indie video distributors, Trimark (home of such favorites as the Leprechaun series and Daryl Hannah direct-to-video classics) has been acquired by Lion's Gate, and hence will now fall under the Lion's Gate Home Entertainment. However, a bit confusingly, Trimark will still function as a video distributor, so watch for the announcments to continue. Anyway, we received word from Lion's Gate last week with corrected info on some titles announced on Friday. The upcoming Urbania disc due on 3/13 is in anamorphic widescreen and English 5.1 surround, along with an audio commentary with director Jon Shear and actors Dan Futterman and Alan Cummings, deleted scenes, two making-of featurettes and the trailer. The What's Cooking disc also includes an audio commentary with director and the cast, Killer Bud is in widescreen and with some deleted scenes, and finally Once In The Life also features an isolated music score. Retail remains $24.95 each. |
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Out,
out damn spot!
A
couple more March titles include Tuff Turf and Lust In The Dust,
due on 3/27. Both are in anamorphic widescreen and feature 2.0 mono tracks,
trailers and production notes, and Lust In The Dust also includes the
featurette "More Lust, Less Dust!" And if you ever told me I'd
one day see Tuff Turf in anamorphic widescreen, I'd have never believed
you in a million years.