Posted February 25, 2024 07:55 PM by Sean Greenwood
For the week of February 26th, Warner Bros. Home Entertainment will release Paul King's Wonka, starring Timothée Chalamet, Olivia Colman, Keegan-Michael Key, Rowan Atkinson, Sally Hawkins and Jim Carter.
Description: Based on the extraordinary character at the center of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Roald Dahl's most iconic children's book and one of the best-selling children's books of all time, "Wonka" tells the wondrous story of how the world's greatest inventor, magician and chocolate-maker became the beloved Willy Wonka we know today.
Warner's Blu-ray releases of Wonka contain the film's Dolby Atmos audio, with Dolby Vision HDR on the 4K UHD edition. Extras include the featurettes Unwrapping Paul King's Vision, The Whimsical Music of Wonka, Welcome to Wonka Land, Hats Off to Wonka and Wonka's Chocolatier as well as Musical Moments. In addition to standard packaging, a Target Exclusive Blu-ray with Art Cards and a Walmart Exclusive 4K UHD / Blu-ray SteelBook will also be available. For full disc breakdowns, read Randy Miller's 4K UHD review and Blu-ray review.
Also coming from Warner is a 4K UHD upgrade for Steven Soderbergh's Contagion (2011), starring Marion Cotillard, Matt Damon, Laurence Fishburne, Jude Law, Gwyneth Paltrow and Kate Winslet. Sourced from a 4K scan of the original camera negative (overseen by Steven Soderbergh), Warner presents Contagion with DTS-HD MA 5.1 audio and HDR. Extras include three featurettes. For a full disc breakdown, read Randy Miller's 4K UHD review
New on Blu-ray from Lionsgate Home Entertainment is Kristoffer Borgli's Dream Scenario, starring Nicolas Cage, Julianne Nicholson, Michael Cera, Dylan Baker, Tim Meadows and Dylan Gelula.
Description: A family man finds his life turned upside down when millions of strangers suddenly start seeing him in their dreams. However, when his nighttime appearances take a nightmarish turn, he's forced to navigate the consequences of his newfound stardom.
Lionsgate's Blu-ray of Dream Scenario contains audio commentary with Kristoffer Borgli, a making of featurette and deleted scenes. For a full disc breakdown, read Jeffrey Kauffman's Blu-ray review.
Also from Lionsgate is a Blu-ray for Paul G. Volk's The Night They Came Home, starring Brian Austin Green, Tim Abell, Sam Bearpaw, Patrick Durham, Phillip Andre Botello and Hugh McCrae Jr.
Description: Inspired by true events, The Night They Came Home chronicles the ruthless exploits of the Rufus Buck Gang, a group of outlaws who clashed with the Indian Territory of Middle America at the tail end of the 19th century. The combined force of local lawmen and Indian police aim to take down a coldhearted band of fugitives with vengeance on their minds in a Western-thriller starring Brian Austin Green, Robert Carradine, and Danny Trejo.
New on 4K UHD and Blu-ray from Universal Pictures Home Entertainment is Benjamin Renner's Migration (2023) starring Kumail Nanjiani, Elizabeth Banks, Keegan-Michael Key, Awkwafina and Danny DeVito.
Filled with Illumination's signature subversive humor, authentic heart, and unforgettable characters, and hailed as "something the whole family can enjoy" (Collider), MIGRATION is a hilariously funny, feathered family vacation like no other! Fans can join the Mallard family, as they embark on a journey south for the winter to Jamaica via New York City, only for their well-laid plans to go awry, leading to new friends and unknown horizons.
Warner's Blu-ray releases of Migration contain the film's Dolby Atmos audio, with Dolby Vision HDR on the 4K UHD disc. Extras include three mini-movies: Fly Hard, Mooned, and Midnight Mssion as well as Meet the Cast, Microphone Madness, the making of featurette Taking Off, The Art of Flight, The Sound of Flight and more.
New on Blu-ray from Walt Disney Home Entertainment and Searchlight Pictures is Taika Waititi's Next Goal Wins (2023), starring Michael Fassbender, Oscar Kightley, Kaimana, David Fane, Rachel House and Beulah Koale.
Based on a true story, this heartfelt underdog comedy follows the American Samoa soccer team, infamous for their brutal 31-0 FIFA loss in 2001. With the World Cup qualifiers fast approaching, the team hires down-on-his- luck, maverick coach Thomas Rongen (Michael Fassbender), hoping he will turn the world's worst soccer team into winners.
Disney's Blu-ray of Next Goal Wins contains the making of featurette The Pitch of Life and a deleted scene. For a full disc breakdown, read Jeffrey Kauffman's Blu-ray review.
Well Go USA is a Blu-ray for Kim Yong-hwa's The Moon (더 문), starring Byung Mo Choi, Kyung-soo Do, Jo Han-chul, Kim Hee-ae, Byeong-eun Park and Sol Kyung-gu.
Description: Seven years after Korea's first fully manned mission to the moon ends in disaster, a second human spaceflight is launched successfully—until a strong solar wind causes the spacecraft to malfunction. With an astronaut left stranded in space and quickly running out of oxygen, the Naro Space Center turns to its former managing director to avert yet another fatal catastrophe.
Well Go USA's Blu-ray of The Moon contains a behind-the-scenes featurette, character bios and a trailer. For a full disc breakdown, read Jeffrey Kauffman's Blu-ray review.
Also from Well Go USA is a Blu-ray for Kim Seong-sik's Dr. Cheon and the Lost Talisman (천박사 퇴마 연구소: 설경의 비밀), starring Gang Dong-won, Joon-ho Huh, Esom, Dong-hwi Lee, Yi-Hyun Cho and Lee Jeong-eun.
Description: Despite being the grandson of a famed village shaman, Dr. Cheon doesn't actually believe in ghosts, yet makes a living performing fake exorcisms on camera. But when a mysterious client arrives at his door, Dr. Cheon is drawn into a series of strange and unexplainable events that will challenge everything he has ever believed—and resurface childhood horrors he's tried to forget.
Well Go USA's Blu-ray of Dr. Cheon and the Lost Talisman contains character bios and a trailer. For a full disc breakdown, read Jeffrey Kauffman's Blu-ray review.
New on Blu-ray from Samuel Goldwyn Films is Martin Bourboulon's The Three Musketeers: D'Artagnan (Les Trois Mousquetaires: D'Artagnan), starring Vincent Cassel, Romain Duris, Pio Marmaï, François Civil, Eva Green and Louis Garrel.
Description: From the Louvre to Buckingham Palace, to the gutters of Paris to the siege of La Rochelle… In a kingdom divided by religious wars and under threat of British invasion, a handful of men and women will cross swords and tie their fate to that of France.
D'Artagnan, a spirited young man, is left for dead after trying to save a young woman from being kidnapped. When he arrives in Paris, he tries by all means to find his attackers. He is unaware that his quest will lead him to the heart of a real war where the future of France is at stake. Allied with Athos, Porthos and Aramis, three musketeers of the King with an audacious contempt for danger, D'Artagnan faces the dark machinations of the Cardinal of Richelieu. But it is when he falls madly in love with Constance Bonacieux, the Queen's confidante, that D'Artagnan truly puts himself in danger. For it is this passion that leads him into the wake of the one who becomes his mortal enemy: Milady de Winter.
Turning to catalog titles, the Criterion Collection has a 4K UHD and Blu-ray release for Raoul Walsh's The Roaring Twenties (1939), starring James Cagney, Priscilla Lane, Humphrey Bogart, Gladys George, Jeffrey Lynn and Frank McHugh. Sourced from a new 4K master, Criterion presents The Roaring Twenties with LPCM Mono audio and Dolby Vision HDR on the 4K UHD disc. Extras include audio commentary with film historian Lincoln Hurst, a new interview with critic Gary Giddins, a clip from The Men Who Made the Movies: Raoul Walsh (1973) featuring an interview with Walsh and a trailer. Also included is an essay by film critic Mark Asch. For full disc breakdowns, read Svet Atanasov's 4K UHD review and Blu-ray review.
Coming from Raro Video is a Blu-ray for Jean Renoir's The Golden Coach (Le Carrosse d'or) (1952), starring Anna Magnani, Odoardo Spadaro and Nada Fiorelli. Raro's Blu-ray contains an alternate French audio track and audio commentary by film critic Adam Nayman.
Coming from Kino Lorber is a 4K UHD and remastered Blu-ray for Stanley Kubrick's Fear and Desire (1953), starring Frank Silvera, Kenneth Harp, Paul Mazursky, Stephen Coit and Virginia Leith. Sourced from a new 4K scan of the original camera negative and a fine grain, Kino presents Fear and Desire in both its 70-minute premiere cut and its 62-minute theatrical version with Dolby Vision HDR on the 4K UHD disc. Extras include new audio commentary by film historian Eddy Von Mueller (on the premiere cut) and new audio commentary by film historian / screenwriter Gary Gerani (on the theatrical version). Also included on the 4K UHD disc are Kubrick's short films Flying Padre (1951), Day of the Fight (1951) and The Seafarers (1953) all from 4K masters and included on both the 4K UHD and Blu-ray discs. The Blu-ray additionally includes a trailer for the film and Kubrick's feature films Killer's Kiss (1955), The Killing (1956) and Paths of Glory (1957).
Also from Kino is a Blu-ray box set: Film Noir: The Dark Side of Cinema XVII (1953-1956), which contains Blu-rays of Arnold Laven's Vice Squad (1953), Hugo Fregonese's Black Tuesday (1954) and Maxwell Shane's Nightmare (1956). Kino presents all three films from new 2K masters. Extras include audio commentaries for Vice Squad and Black Tuesday by film historian / screenwriter Gary Gerani and audio commentary for Nightmare by professor and film scholar Jason A. Ney, as well as a trailer for Black Tuesday.
Then from Kino is a 4K UHD and remastered Blu-ray for John Sturges' Gunfight at the O.K. Corral (1957), starring Burt Lancaster, Kirk Douglas, Rhonda Fleming, Jo Van Fleet, John Ireland and Lyle Bettger. Sourced from a new 4K scan of the original camera negative, Kino presents Gunfight at the O.K. Corral 2.0 and 5.1 lossless audio tracks and Dolby Vision HDR on the 4K UHD disc. Extras include new audio commentary by author / screenwriter C. Courtney Joyner and film historian Henry Parke, while the Blu-ray additionally includes a theatrical trailer.
Finally from Kino is a Blu-ray box set for Monk: The Complete Fourth Season (2005-2006), starring Tony Shalhoub. The four-disc set contains all 16 episodes, sourced from new 4K masters and includes two legacy featurettes as extras.
Coming from Radiance Films is a Blu-ray for Yasuharu Hasebe's Black Tight Killers (俺にさわると危ないぜ) (1966), starring Akira Kobayashi, Chieko Matsubara, Bokuzen Hidari, Hiroshi Nihon'yanagi and Eiji Gô. Sourced from an HD master, Radiance presents Black Tight Killers with Japanese: DTS-HD MA 2.0 Mono audio and optional English subtitles. Extras include audio commentary by Jasper Sharp, an interview with Yasuharu Hasebe (2000) and a trailer. Packaging includes reversible artwork and a "limited edition booklet featuring new writing by Japanese cinema expert Chris D.". For a full disc breakdown, read Jeffrey Kauffman's Blu-ray review.
Also from Radiance is a Blu-ray for Paolo Taviani and Vittorio Taviani's Allonsanfan (Allonsanfàn) (1974), starring Marcello Mastroianni, Lea Massari, Mimsy Farmer, Laura Betti, Claudio Cassinelli and Benjamin Lev. Sourced from a new 2K master, Radiance presents Allonsanfan with LPCM 2.0 Mono audio and optional, newly translated English subtitles. Extras include audio commentary critic Michael Brooke, an archival interview with the Taviani brothers and a trailer. Packaging includes reversible artwork and a "booklet featuring new writing by Italian cinema expert Robert Lumley and a newly translated contemporary interview with the Taviani brothers".
Note: Raidance's Blu-ray of Allonsanfan is a "single pressing" release. From Radiance Films: "Unlike our limited editions a single pressing will not be re-issued as a standard edition, this is the only pressing made and will be deleted once sold out. Single pressing releases are made available under special circumstances of our license agreements."
Coming to Blu-ray from Carlotta Films U.S. is a Blu-ray box set: Jeanne Moreau, Filmmaker (1976-1984), which contains Moreau's films Lumière (1976), The Adolescent (L'Adolescente) (1979) and Lillian Gish (1984). Kino presents Lumière and The Adolescent from 4K masters and Lillian Gish from an HD master. Extras include archival interviews.
Finally this week, coming to 4K UHD and Blu-ray from Cinématographe Films is Ron Maxwell's Little Darlings (1980), starring Tatum O'Neal, Kristy McNichol, Armand Assante, Matt Dillon, Margaret Blye and Nicolas Coster. Sourced from a new 4K scan of an interpositive, Cinématographe presents Little Darlings with DTS-HD MA 2.0 audio and HDR on the 4K UHD disc. Extras include audio commentary with Ron Maxwell, audio commentary with Millie De Chirico (I Saw What You Did podcast), Art and Business: An hour-long video interview with Ron Maxwell, an audio interview with Maxwell about the TV version of the film, alternate scenes with commentary by Ron Maxwell, a video essay Don't Let the Title Fool You: Little Darlings Beyond the Teen Sex Comedy, by Samm Deighan and a 40-page booklet with essays by writers Kate Hagen and Quatoyiah Murry, as well as a comic strip by Nicole Testa LaLiberty. For a full disc breakdown, read Brian Orndorf's 4K UHD review.