Vampire in Brooklyn lands on Blu-ray September

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The 1995 Wes Craven directed film “Vampire in Brooklyn“ starring Eddie Murphy is finally coming to Blu-ray Disc for the very first time on September 15th, via Paramount. The film is considered a perhaps cult-classic yet was also widely hated by critics. It featured a supporting cast of Angela Bassett, Allen Payne, Kadeem Hardison, John Witherspoon, and Zakes Mokae. Tech specs for the release include a 1080p HD video presentation in the 1.85:1 aspect ratio and DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 surround sound. You can now find the Blu-ray available for preorder over at Amazon and retailer Best Buy. No bonus materials are set to be included on this release, according to the back package art.

– Amazon Commissions Earned –

Howard Stern’s Private Parts on Blu-ray September

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The 1997 film “Private Parts“ starring Howard Stern is finally coming to the Blu-ray Disc format on September 15th, via Paramount. The Betty Thomas directed film, an adaptation of the novel of the same title about the shock jock radio host’s life, featured him playing himself, along with a cast of (co-host) Robin Quivers, Fred Norris, Jackie Martling, Gary Dell’Abate, Mary McCormack, and Paul Giamatti. Tech specs for the release include a 1080p HD video presentation in the original 1.85:1 aspect ratio and DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 sound. You can now find the Blu-ray available for preorder over at Amazon and retailer Best Buy. No bonus materials are set to be included with the release, according to the back package art.

– Amazon Commissions Earned –

Star Trek: Picard Season One on Blu-ray October

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The TV series “Star Trek: Picard – Season One“ will be making its debut to Blu-ray Disc in SteelBook packaging on October 6th, via CBS and Paramount, according to retailers. The show, which premiered this year exclusively on the CBS All Access paid streaming platform, continues on the story with [the former captain] “Jean-Luc Picard” from the previous “Star Trek: The Next Generation” TV series.  The cast for the first season of Star Trek: Picard includes Patrick Stewart, Alison Pill, Isa Briones, Michelle Hurd, Santiago Cabrera, Harry Treadaway, Evan Evagora, Peyton List, and maybe a few other familiar faces.

Tech specs and bonus materials for the release have not yet been detailed, but I’ll reach out to both CBS and Paramount individually later today — if a press release isn’t issued beforehand. In the meantime, you can find the Blu-ray SteelBook of the first season is now available for preorder over Amazon and retailer Best Buy. Stay tuned for further details about this upcoming release. Lastly, you can find a nice glimpse at the interior of the steelbook and its artwork below.

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1953 film Roman Holiday on Blu-ray September

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The 1953 film “Roman Holiday“ will officially be making its debut to Blu-ray Disc on September 15th, via Paramount Presents – as spine #9. The film, directed by William Wyler and winner of 3 “Oscars” (Academy Awards), starred Gregory Peck, Audrey Hepburn, and Eddie Albert. The tech specs for the release have not yet fully been detailed but it is known that the release has received a new 4K restoration, as detailed in the press release.

The original negative was processed at a local film lab in Rome and was unfortunately badly scratched and damaged.  The film had to be pieced back together, but the splices were so weak due to the damage that extensive amounts of tape had to be used to allow the negative to make it through a printing machine.  Because of the fragile state of the negative, a Dupe Negative was made and then blown up a few thousandths of an inch to cover all the splice tape that held the original negative together.

In anticipation of this new Blu-ray release, the film was digitally restored using the Dupe Negative and a Fine Grain element to capture the best possible image.  Every frame was reviewed, and the film received extensive clean up to remove thousands of scratches, bits of dirt, and other damage.  Because audio elements to properly up-mix to 5.1 do not exist, the original mono track was remastered, and minor anomalies were corrected.  The result is a film returned to its original vibrancy and beauty that remains true to director William Wyler’s vision.

You can now find the Blu-ray listed for preorder over at Amazon and retailer Best Buy. The release will include a digital copy of the film and the following bonus materials.

  • Filmmaker Focus: Leonard Maltin on Roman Holiday            
  • Behind the Gates: Costumes
  • Rome with a Princess
  • Audrey Hepburn: The Paramount Years 
  • Dalton Trumbo: From A-List to Blacklist 
  • Paramount in the ’50s: Remembering Audrey
  • Theatrical Trailers
  • Four Photo Galleries:  Production, The Movie, Publicity, The Premiere  

Below, after the break, you can find the full details regarding this upcoming release.

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Friday the 13th Collection Deluxe Edition Blu-ray

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One well-known horror franchise is about to get a definitive box set fans have longed for. “Friday The 13th Collection [Deluxe Edition]“ is officially coming to Blu-ray Disc on October 13th, via Scream Factory. The twelve total films included in the 16-disc box set are listed below:

    • Friday the 13th (1980)
    • Friday the 13th Part 2 (1981)
    • Friday the 13th Part 3 (1982)
    • Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter (1984)
    • Friday the 13th Part V: A New Beginning (1985)
    • Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives (1986)
    • Friday the 13th Part VII: The New Blood (1988)
    • Friday the 13th Part VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan (1989)
    • Jason Goes To Hell: The Final Friday (1993)
    • Jason X (2001)
    • Freddy vs. Jason (2003)
    • Friday the 13th (2009)

Tech specs here for this upcoming set include new 4K scans for the first four films in the franchise as well as a new 2K scan of the “Jason Goes To Hell: The Final Friday” film. The various aspect ratios and audio formats set to be here on the films have not yet been fully detailed by Scream, but stay tuned for an update.

UPDATE: You can now find this Blu-ray set available for preorder over at Amazon.

The Blu-ray set is also available for preorder directly via ShoutFactory.com. It is certainly worth noting that this set will be limited in its run to a total of 13,000 units (according to the distributor’s press release). Physically it features a rigid slipcase to hold the discs in their individual cases with newly commissioned artwork. The set will include a collectible 40-page booklet as well.

Also, I’ve managed to learn directly the folks at Scream that you will be getting the third film (Friday the 13th: Part 3) for the very first time in digital 3D via the Blu-ray 3D format (as well as in 2D). That means there will be no cardboard red/cyan glasses or such are set to be included for that film, as were previously with the original Blu-ray from Paramount. Some of the new extras have been finished and announced, however, some of them are still in the works and will actually be detailed at a later point. So, you can expect to hear about that in the coming months — via an update to this post and on social media.

After the break, you can find the full details regarding this highly-anticipated upcoming Blu-ray box set.

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The Alfred Hitchcock Classics Collection on 4K

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“The Alfred Hitchcock Classics Collection“ is officially coming to 4K UHD Blu-ray in a box set on September 8th, via Universal. The set includes four films by the legendary director, chronologically including: “Rear Window” (1954), “Vertigo” (1958), “Psycho” (1960), and “The Birds” (1963). The tech specs for each film will vary and I’ll be noting them in a moment. Most importantly, they’ll be presented in 2160p with the HDR10 form of High Dynamic Range along with a variety of DTS:X and DTS-HD Master Audio sound.  Specifically: Rear Window will be in the 1.66:1 aspect ratio with DTS-HD MA 2.0 Mono sound. Vertigo will be in the 1.85:1 aspect ratio with DTS:X and Dolby Digital 2.0 mono sound. Psycho will be in the 1.85:1 aspect ratio with DTS:X and Dolby Digital 2.0 mono sound. The Birds will be in the 1.85:1 aspect ratio with DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 mono sound. Lastly, it is noted that each film will be receiving a BD-100 (100 gigabytes) disc.

The release will come as a “combo pack” meaning that it will include a Blu-ray Disc counterpart and a digital code (copy) of each film. This release will also be presented in a collectible DiscBook packaging, as shown below.

the_alfred_hitchcock_classics_collection_4k_discbook_thumbClick for a larger view.

UPDATE: You can now find The Alfred Hitchcock Classics Collection 4K UHD Blu-ray set available for preorder over at Amazon.

It is also known that there will be a 60th Anniversary Edition 4K UHD Blu-ray SteelBook release of the film “Psycho” (1960) on 4K UHD Blu-ray, which is listed for preorder again over at retailer Best Buy. I’m not sure yet if that will be an exclusive and if any of the other four films will get SteelBook treatment. It’s likely only this film will, as it is celebrating an anniversary. You can find this 4K UHD Blu-ray SteelBook for Psycho pictured below.

psycho_1960_60th_anniversary_edition_4k_steelbookThe bonus materials set to be included on this box set include hours of content, which you can find listed in full detail (for each film) further below after the break — in the press release.

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