This Week on Blu-ray: August 12-18

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This Week on Blu-ray: August 12-18

Posted August 12, 2024 01:20 AM by Sean Greenwood

For the week of August 12th, Warner Bros. Home Entertainment will release a Blu-ray and 4K UHD of Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga, starring Anya Taylor-Joy, Chris Hemsworth, Tom Burke, Alyla Browne, George Shevtsov and Lachy Hulme.

Description: Anya Taylor-Joy and Chris Hemsworth star in Academy Award-winning mastermind George Miller's "Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga," the much-anticipated return to the iconic dystopian world he created more than 30 years ago with the seminal "Mad Max" films. Miller now turns the page again with an all-new original, standalone action adventure that will reveal the origins of the powerhouse character from the multiple Oscar-winning global smash "Mad Max: Fury Road." The new feature from Warner Bros. Pictures and Village Roadshow Pictures is produced by Miller and his longtime partner, Oscar-nominated producer Doug Mitchell ("Mad Max: Fury Road," "Babe"), under their Australian-based Kennedy Miller Mitchell banner.

As the world fell, young Furiosa is snatched from the Green Place of Many Mothers and falls into the hands of a great Biker Horde led by the Warlord Dementus. Sweeping through the Wasteland, they come across the Citadel presided over by The Immortan Joe. While the two Tyrants war for dominance, Furiosa must survive many trials as she puts together the means to find her way home.

Warner's Blu-ray releases of Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga contain the film's Dolby Atmos audio, with Dolby Vision HDR on the 4K UHD edition. Extras include the documentary Highway to Valhalla: In Pursuit of Furiosa and the featurette Furiosa: Stowaway to Nowhere, while the 4K UHD edition adds the three featurettes Darkest Angel: Anya Taylor-Joy as Furiosa, Motorbike Messiah: Chris Hemsworth as Dementus and Metal Beasts & Holy Motors. In addition to standard Blu-ray or 4K UHD editions, a Limited Edition Dual Format 4K UHD / Blu-ray SteelBook will also be available. For full release breakdowns, read Randy Miller's Blu-ray review, 4K UHD review and Dual Format SteelBook review.

Also coming from Warner are several more Blu-rays from the Warner Archive Collection. They are:

Clarence Brown's Idiot's Delight (1939), starring Norma Shearer, Clark Gable, Edward Arnold, Charles Coburn, Joseph Schildkraut and Burgess Meredith. Sourced from a 4K scan of best preservation elements, Warner Archive presents Idiot's Delight with DTS-HD MA 2.0 Mono audio. Extras include the Looney Tunes shorts The Good Egg and It's an Ill Wind (both 1939) and a theatrical trailer.

King Vidor's Northwest Passage (1940), starring Spencer Tracy, Robert Young, Walter Brennan, Ruth Hussey, Nat Pendleton and Louis Hector. Sourced from a 4K scan of the original nitrate Technicolor negatives, Warner Archive presents Northwest Passage with DTS-HD MA 2.0 audio. Extras include the vintage promotional featurette Northward Ho! (1940) and a theatrical trailer.

Gene Nelson's Harum Scarum (1965), starring Elvis Presley, Mary Ann Mobley, Fran Jeffries, Michael Ansara, Jay Novello and Phillip Reed. Sourced from a 4K scan of the original camera negative, Warner Archive presents Harum Scarum with DTS-HD MA 2.0 audio. Extras include the Tom and Jerry shorts The Cat's Me-Ouch! and Of Feline Bondage (both 1965) and a theatrical trailer.

Roger Donaldson's Marie: A True Story (1985), starring Sissy Spacek, Jeff Daniels, Keith Szarabajka, Morgan Freeman, Fred Dalton Thompson and Lisa Banes. Warner Archive presents Marie: A True Story with DTS-HD MA 2.0 audio. Extras include a theatrical trailer.

John Roberts' War of the Buttons (1994), starring Gregg Fitzgerald, Gerard Kearney, Darragh Naughton, Brendan McNamara, Kevin O'Malley and John Cleere. Warner Archive presents War of the Buttons with DTS-HD MA 2.0 audio. Extras include a theatrical trailer.

James Keach's The Stars Fell on Henrietta (1995), starring Robert Duvall, Aidan Quinn, Frances Fisher, Brian Dennehy, Lexi Randall and Francesca Eastwood. Sourced from a new 2024 HD master, Warner Archive presents The Stars Fell on Henrietta with DTS-HD MA 5.1 audio. Extras include a theatrical trailer. For a full disc breakdown, read Randy Miller's Blu-ray review.

A Hanna-Barbera double-feature: Scooby-Doo and the Witch's Ghost / Scooby-Doo and the Alien Invaders (1999-2000), starring the voices of Scott Innes, Mary Kay Bergman, Frank Welker, B.J. Ward, Tim Curry, Jennifer Hale. Warner Archive presents both features with DTS-HD MA 5.1 audio. Extras include making of featurettes and promotional trailers.

Finally from Warner are three 4K UHD upgrades, for Scott Cooper's Black Mass (2015), starring Johnny Depp, Joel Edgerton, Benedict Cumberbatch, Dakota Johnson, Kevin Bacon and Peter Sarsgaard, for John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein's Game Night (2018), starring Jason Bateman, Rachel McAdams, Kyle Chandler, Sharon Horgan, Billy Magnussen and Lamorne Morris, and for Destin Daniel Cretton's Just Mercy (2019), starring Michael B. Jordan, Jamie Foxx, Brie Larson, Rob Morgan, Tim Blake Nelson and Rafe Spall. All three films are making their worldwide debuts on 4K UHD.

Coming to Blu-ray and 4K UHD from Universal Pictures Home Entertainment is Jeff Nichols' The Bikeriders, starring Jodie Comer, Austin Butler, Tom Hardy, Michael Shannon, Boyd Holbrook and Norman Reedus.

Description: THE BIKERIDERS captures a rebellious time in America when the culture and people were changing. After a chance encounter at a local bar, strong-willed Kathy (Comer) is inextricably drawn to Benny (Butler), the newest member of Midwestern motorcycle club the Vandals, led by the enigmatic Johnny (Hardy). Much like the country around it, the club begins to evolve, transforming from a gathering place for local outsiders into a dangerous underworld of violence, forcing Benny to choose between Kathy and his loyalty to the club.

Universal's Blu-ray releases of The Bikeriders contain the film's Dolby Atmos audio, with HDR on the 4K UHD edition. Extras include filmmaker commentary, the featurettes Johnny, Benny, & Kathy and The Era of the Bikeriders and more.

Also from Universal is a Blu-ray for Chucky: Season Three (2023-2024). The two-disc set contains all eight episodes, plus deleted scenes.

New on Blu-ray and 4K UHD from Paramount Home Media Distribution is John Krasinski's IF (2024), starring Cailey Fleming, Ryan Reynolds, John Krasinski, Fiona Shaw, Phoebe Waller-Bridge and Steve Carell.

Description: Starring Cailey Fleming, Ryan Reynolds, and John Krasinski, IF is a heartwarming and hilarious tale about a girl who discovers that she can see everyone's imaginary friends, known as IFs. She embarks on a magical journey to reconnect forgotten IFs with their kids, before they disappear. An adventure you'll need to believe to see, IF is perfect for the whole family. Written and directed by John Krasinski, the film also features a stellar voice cast including Phoebe Waller-Bridge and Steve Carell.

Paramount's Blu-ray releases of IF contain the film's Dolby Atmos audio, with Dolby Vision HDR on the 4K UHD edition. Extras include the featurettes The Imagination Behind IF, Imagining Imaginary Friends, Blending The Real and the Imaginary and Learn to Draw Blue from IF.

New on Blu-ray from Grasshopper Film is Kleber Mondonça Filho's documentary Pictures of Ghosts (Retratos Fantasmas).

Description: Brazil's official selection for the 2024 Academy Awards, PICTURES OF GHOSTS, from acclaimed director Kleber Mendonça Filho (BACURAU, AQUARIUS and NEIGHBORING SOUNDS), is a multidimensional journey through time, sound, architecture and filmmaking, set in the urban landscape of Recife, Brazilian coastal capital of Pernambuco: a historical and human territory, examined through the great movie theatres that served as spaces of conviviality during the 20th century. Having hosted dreams and progress, these places have also embodied a major transformation on social practices. Combining archive documentary, mystery, film clips and personal memories, PICTURES OF GHOSTS is a map of a city through the lens of cinema.

Grasshopper Film's Blu-ray of Pictures of Ghosts contains an interview with Kleber Mondonça Filho and a trailer.

New from Lionsgate Home Entertainment is a Blu-ray for Asif Akbar's Boneyard (2024), starring Mel Gibson, Curtis Jackson, Nora Zehetner, Brian Van Holt, Gabrielle Haugh and Michael Sirow.

Description: When the skeletal remains of eleven women and girls are discovered in the New Mexico desert, an extensive investigation is launched. Inspired by true crime stories, this chilling crime-thriller follows Detective Ortega (Brian Van Holt), Police Chief Carter (Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson), and Agent Petrovick (Mel Gibson) in a multi-agency effort to identify and apprehend the killer. As each of their agendas and methods clash, a tangled web of intrigue casts suspicion in all directions.

New on Blu-ray from Cohen Media Group is Jake Paltrow's June Zero, starring Tzahi Grad, Ydav Levi, Tom Hagy, Ami Smolarchik and Joy Rieger.

Description: The 1961 preparations for the execution of Adolf Eichmann, a principal architect of the Holocaust, is revisited in a gripping and surprising new vision from American filmmaker Jake Paltrow. Based on true accounts, June Zero is told from the unique perspectives of three distinct figures: Eichmann's Jewish Moroccan prison guard, an Israeli police investigator who also happens to be a Holocaust survivor and a precocious and clever 13-year-old Libyan immigrant.

Entirely shot on 16mm film, Paltrow's vividly textured work brings to life the varied experiences of these characters, emphasizing that the same historical events are often perceived differently by people around the world. June Zero underscores the notion that shared traumas have the power to forge the strongest bonds and give rise to unexpected moments of triumph and connection. As the film delves into the complexities of the human experience during this pivotal trial, it serves as a poignant reminder that history's impact can be both diverse and unifying.

Cohen Media Group's Blu-ray of June Zero contains trailers.

Turning to catalog titles, Kino Lorber has a Blu-ray for John S. Robertson's Annie Laurie (1927), starring Lillian Gish, Norman Kerry, Creighton Hale, Joseph Striker, Hobart Bosworth and Patricia Avery. Sourced from a new 4K master by the Library of Congress, Kino presents Annie Laurie with a score by Robert Israel in 5.1 sound. Extras include audio commentary by film historian Anthony Slide.

Also from Kino is a Blu-ray for Alberto Cavalcanti's Nicholas Nickleby (1947), starring Cedric Hardwicke, Derek Bond, Mary Merrall, Sally Ann Howes, Bernard Miles and Athene Seyler. Kino presents Nicholas Nickleby with an interview with BFI Dickens Season curators Adrian Wootton and Michael Eaton, the short film Nicholas Nickleby (1903) and a trailer.

Then from Kino is a Blu-ray reissue for Phil Karlson's 99 River Street (1953), starring John Payne, Evelyn Keyes, Brad Dexter, Frank Faylen, Peggie Castle and Jay Adler. Previously released by Kino in 2016, this new edition is encoded on dual-layered BD-50 discs and add English subtitles for the main feature. Extras include audio commentary by film historian and host of TCM's Noir Alley Eddie Muller and a theatrical trailer. Packaging includes a slipcover.

Also from Kino are two 4K UHD upgrades of Jean-Pierre Melville films. First is Bob le flambeur (1956), starring Roger Duchesne, Daniel Cauchy, Isabelle Corey, Guy Decomble, Claude Cerval and Gérard Buhr. Sourced from a 4K master by StudioCanal, Kino presents Bob le flambeur with optional English subtitles and in 4K SDR on the 4K UHD disc. Extras include audio commentary by film critic Nick Pinkerton and the documentary Diary of a Villain, as well as a theatrical trailer.

Then on 4K UHD from Kino comes Le Doulos (1963), starring Jean-Paul Belmondo, Serge Reggiani, Jean Desailly, René Lefèvre, Philippe Nahon and Philippe March. Sourced from a 4K master by StudioCanal, Kino presents Le Doulos with optional English subtitles and in 4K SDR on the 4K UHD disc. Extras include audio commentary by film historian Samm Deighan, an interview with First Assistant Director Volker Schlöndorff, the documentary The Birth of the Detective Story Melville Style, as well as a theatrical trailer.

Finally from Kino is a Blu-ray reissue for Sergio Corbucci's Navajo Joe (1965), starring Burt Reynolds, Aldo Sambrell, Nicoletta Machiavelli, Fernando Rey, Tanya Lopert and Lucia Modugno. Previously released by Kino in 2015, this new edition is encoded on dual-layered BD-50 discs and add English subtitles for the main feature. Extras include a new audio commentary by filmmaker Alex Cox, a scene-specific commentary by Ennio Morricone historian Gary Palmucci and a theatrical trailer. Packaging includes a slipcover.

Coming to Blu-ray from Sony Pictures Home Entertainment is The Three Stooges Collection (1934-2000). The 20-disc box set contains "100 treasured Stooges shorts" along with "over 20 additional shorts with Shemp Howard, Joe Besser and Joe DeRita, plus cartoons and The Three Stooges Scrapbook" and the feature films Time Out for Rhythm (1941), Rockin' in the Rockies (1945), Have Rocket, Will Travel (1959), The Three Stooges Meet Hercules (1962), The Three Stooges in Orbit (1962), The Three Stooges Go Around the World in a Daze (1963), The Outlaws Is Coming (1963) and the television film The Three Stooges (2000). Finally the set comes in "gift set packaging [which] features [a] button-activated sound chip with classic Stooges noises".

Coming to Blu-ray from the Criterion Collection is Brief Encounters / The Long Farewell: Two Films by Kira Muratova (1967-1971), a two-disc set. Both films are sourced from new 4K masters and presented with LPCM Mono audio tracks. Extras include interviews with scholars Elena Gorfinkel and Isabel Jacobs, as well as an archival interview with Kira Muratova. Also included is an essay by film critic Jessica Kiang.

And coming to 4K UHD from Criterion is Bernardo Bertolucci's The Last Emperor (1987), starring John Lone, Joan Chen, Peter O'Toole, Ruocheng Ying, Victor Wong and Dennis Dun. Sourced from a 4K master, Criterion presents The Last Emperor in a 2.35:1 aspect ratio, with DTS-HD MA 2.0 Surround audio and Dolby Vision HDR. Extras match the previous Blu-ray edition and include filmmaker commentary, the television version of the film, interviews and more. For a full release breakdown, read Svet Atanasov's 4K UHD review.

Finally this week, Shout Factory have two catalog titles coming. First is a 4K UHD upgrade for Menahem Golan's The Delta Force (1986), starring Chuck Norris, Lee Marvin, Martin Balsam, Joey Bishop, Robert Forster and Lainie Kazan. Sourced from a new 4K scan of the original camera negative, Shout presents The Delta Force with DTS-HD MA 2.0 and 5.1 audio options and Dolby Vision HDR on the 4K UHD disc. Extras include a theatrical trailer.

Also from Shout is a remastered Blu-ray for Jody Hill's Observe and Report (2009), starring Seth Rogen, Ray Liotta, Michael Peña, Anna Faris, Dan Bakkedahl and Jesse Plemons. Sourced from a new 2K scan of the interpositive (approved by Jody Hill), Shout presents Observe and Report with a new interview with Jody Hill, as well as legacy extras from the previous Blu-ray, including a PiP commentary by Seth Rogen, Anna Faris and Jody Hill, two featurettes, a security recruitment video, additional scenes and a gag reel.