Tag Archives: Frank Capra

George Stevens: A Filmmaker’s Journey on 4K in April

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Blu-ray cover of 'George Stevens: A Filmmaker's Journey' featuring a cowboy hat and a vintage film set in a desert landscape.
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The 1984 autobiography “George Stevens: A Filmmaker’s Journey“ is coming to 4K UHD Blu-ray on April 28th via Warner Archive (Warner Bros. Discovery Home Entertainment).

George Stevens, Jr. directed and wrote the documentary. It features interviews with Fred Astaire, Warren Beatty, Montgomery Clift, James Dean, Cary Grant, Katharine Hepburn, Rock Hudson, Alan Ladd, Spencer Tracy, Frank Capra, Douglas Fairbanks Jr., Elizabeth Taylor, Max von Sydow, Shelley Winters, Hal Roach, and many others.

The tech specs for the 4K UHD Blu-ray include a 2160p video presentation in a 1.37:1 aspect ratio in Dolby Vision (HDR10 compatible) high dynamic range with lossless DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono sound, on a BD-66 disc. The release will come as a 2-disc “combo pack” with its Blu-ray Disc counterpart included.

The 4K UHD Blu-ray is now available for preorder at Amazon and MovieZyng. The bonus material included with the release is listed below.

  • Christopher Nolan speaks of Stevens’ creativity and the humanistic ethics of Shane
  • Guillermo del Toro speaks of Stevens as a modern auteur and The Greatest Story Ever Told as his most ambitious work
  • Martin Scorsese speaks of Stevens’ intensity and artistry and of The Greatest Story Ever Told as the final movement of Stevens’ multi-picture symphony

Frank Capra at Columbia Collection on Blu-ray

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The “Frank Capra at Columbia Collection” is officially coming to Blu-ray Disc on November 19th via Sony Pictures Home Entertainment. The massive box set will include nine out of twenty films on 4K UHD Blu-ray and Blu-ray Discs. You cannot yet find the Blu-ray box set available for preorder at Amazon but stay tuned for an update. Check below for a full list of the films, if they’ll be in 4K and/or HD resolution (via Blu-ray), and extras.

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It’s A Wonderful Life is getting a 4K SteelBook

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its_a_wonderful_life_4k_steelbook_flat– Amazon Commissions Earned –

The 1946 classic Frank Capra film “It’s A Wonderful Life“ starring James Stewart is getting a 4K UHD Blu-ray SteelBook release on November 17th, via Paramount. This film has previously been released, last year, on the 4K format. You can find 4K screenshots of it here.

UPDATE: The release date for this 4K UHD Blu-ray SteelBook of the film has been pushed back by a total of two weeks from its originally slated release. To avoid confusion, I’ll only be mentioning the new updated release date here.

The film co-starred Donna Reed, Lionel Barrymore, Thomas Mitchell, Henry Travers, and Beulah Bondi. The tech specs for the release include Black & White restored 2160p 4K video with Dolby Vision and HDR10 forms of High Dynamic Range and Dolby TrueHD Mono sound. The release will come with a Blu-ray Disc of the colorized version of the film, and a digital code (copy) of the film. You can now find the 4K SteelBook is available for preorder over at Amazon. The bonus materials set to be included on the release are identical to those on the original 2019 4K and consist of the following on the 4K UHD Blu-ray Disc:

  • “Restoring a Beloved Classic” [in 4K]
  • “Secrets from the Vault”
  • “It’s A Wonderful Wrap Party”

Below, you can find a glimpse at the contents of this limited edition 4K UHD Blu-ray SteelBook version of the film which includes a mini reproduction of a vintage film poster.

its_a_wonderful_life_4k_steelbook

Further below, after the break, you can find the official announcement regarding this SteelBook release of the film on 4K UHD Blu-ray, as well as info about the restoration the film originally received.

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“Columbia Classics” Volume 1 set on 4K in June

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BREAKING: Six well-known films have all been restored in 4K and will be getting an exclusive release on the 4K UHD Blu-ray format via what is being called the “Columbia Classics: 4K Ultra HD Collection – Volume 1“ box set, which is set for a June 16th release, via Sony. The set, a limited-edition collection, will be literally limited with only what is said to be fewer than 8 thousand units produced — as quoted below from the press release:

The six films in the COLUMBIA CLASSICS 4K ULTRA HD COLLECTION are only available on 4K Ultra HD disc within this special collector’s set with a limited-edition run of fewer than 8,000 units in the U.S

This 4K box set includes the following films:

  • “A League of Their Own” (1992)
    • directed by Penny Marshall
  • “Dr. Stranglelove: Or How…” (1964)
    • directed by Stanley Kubrick
  • “Gandhi” (1982)
    • directed by Richard Attenborough
  • “Jerry Maguire” (1996)
    • directed by Cameron Crowe
  • “Lawrence of Arabia” (1962) [Restored]
    • directed by David Lean
  • “Mr. Smith Goes to Washington” (1939)
    • directed by Frank Capra

UPDATE: I have now talked with the folks at Sony and have the full details on this release for you, via an extremely lengthy press release that you’ll be able to read in its entirety, further below after the break. The tech specs for the films include 4K video with HDR10 form of High Dynamic Range and a variety of Dolby Atmos and DTS-HD Master Audio sound mixes on the six different films. Lastly, regarding tech specs, it is worth noting that the film Gandhi will actually receive Dolby Vision and HDR10, in terms of video. You can find this 4K UHD Blu-ray box set already listed for preorder over at Amazon. Below (as mentioned) are the full details about this upcoming very limited box set.

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It’s A Wonderful Life on 4K UHD Blu-ray October

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its_a_wonderful_life_4k_tilted– Amazon Commissions Earned –

The classic Frank Capra directed 1946 film “It’s A Wonderful Life“ starring James Stewart is coming to 4K UHD Blu-ray on October 29th via Paramount. The film co-starred Donna Reed, Lionel Barrymore, Thomas Mitchell, Henry Travers, and Beulah Bondi. The 4K tech specs for the release include restored video with HDR10 form of High Dynamic Range. No information has been given yet in regards to the sound format. UPDATE: The 4K UHD Blu-ray is now available for pre-order over at Amazon. Paramount has undertaken some painstaking efforts here in restoring this film and you can find more info about that further below, after the break.

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