Tag Archives: Ted Kotcheff

The 1971 film Wake in Fright comes to 4K in June

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Movie poster for 'Wake in Fright' featuring prominent characters, with a dramatic background and a kangaroo silhouette at the bottom.
Movie poster for 'Wake in Fright' featuring Donald Pleasence, Gary Bond, and Chips Rafferty, with a dramatic background and text at the bottom.
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The 1971 film “Wake in Fright” is coming to 4K UHD Blu-ray and Blu-ray in Limited Edition set(s) via Arrow Video on June 30th. The releases will be distributed stateside by MVD Entertainment Group.

Ted Kotcheff directed and co-wrote the screenplay adaptation, based on a novel of the same title. The movie starred Donald Pleasence, Gary Bond, Chips Rafferty, Sylvia Kay, Jack Thompson, Al Thomas, Peter Whittle, Nancy Knudsen, and John Meillon.

The movie is presented “here in a definitive 4K restoration.” The tech specs for the 4K UHD Blu-ray include a 2160p video presentation in a 1.85:1 aspect ratio with Dolby Vision (HDR10-compatible) high dynamic range and lossless Mono sound. Tech specs for the Blu-ray include a 1080p HD video presentation and lossless Mono sound.

The 4K UHD Blu-ray and Blu-ray Limited Edition sets are now available for preorder at Amazon. You can also preorder directly via the Arrow Video site or the MVD Shop. The physical extras are pictured below, along with the full list of bonus material further below.

4K Ultra HD Blu-ray box set of the film 'Wake in Fright,' featuring a disc, a booklet, and a colorful cover art.
  • Audio commentary by director Ted Kotcheff and editor Anthony Buckley
  • Audio commentary by Peter Galvin, author of The Making of Wake in Fright
  • Return to the ‘Yabba, a featurette tracking down the film’s Broken Hill locations
  • Take in Fright, an interview with director of photography Brian West
  • Sounds of the Outback, a previously unreleased interview with sound editors Keith Palmer and Eddy Joseph
  • The Cinema’s Great Squeaky Bald Git, an appreciation of actor Donald Pleasence by film historian Kim Newman
  • The Filmmaker and the Film Buff, a discussion between Philippe Mora and Paul Harris
  • Yer Mad, Ya Bastard!, an archive interview with director Ted Kotcheff
  • Not Quite Hollywood, an archive interview with actor Jack Thompson
  • Q&A with Ted Kotcheff from the 2009 Toronto International Film Festival
  • Audio interview with Ted Kotcheff, conducted by Paul Harris
  • Audio interview with composer John Scott, conducted by music historian Daniel Schweiger
  • Alternate scenes from Outback
  • 2009 TV report on the rediscovery and restoration of Wake in Fright
  • Who Needs Art?, a 1971 TV segment with behind-the-scenes footage
  • Chips Rafferty obituary by Ken G. Hall
  • US theatrical trailer and TV spot
  • Foreign Visions of Local Stories, a trailer reel of Australian films helmed by overseas filmmakers
  • Image gallery
  • Collectors’ booklet featuring new writing on the film by Jay Slater, Paul Lê and David Michael Brown plus archive materials
  • Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Jeff Marshall

The 1983 film Uncommon Valor gets a 4K in March

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Cover of the movie 'Uncommon Valor' featuring the names of the cast and title in bold lettering. The artwork depicts a scene with a soldier carrying another soldier on his back, surrounded by a group of military personnel in a rugged landscape.
Commissions Earned

The 1983 war drama “Uncommon Valor“ will get a 4K UHD Blu-ray release on March 24th via KL Studio Classics (Kino Lorber).

Ted Kotcheff directed the movie. It starred Gene Hackman, Fred Ward, Reb Brown, Randall “Tex” Cobb, Patrick Swayze, Harold Sylvester, and Robert Stack.

The motion picture has received a new master from a 4K scan of the 35mm original camera negative. The tech specs for the 4K UHD Blu-ray include a 2160p video presentation in a 1.85:1 aspect ratio, with Dolby Vision (HDR10-compatible) and lossless (or possibly uncompressed) sound, on a BD-100 disc. This 2-disc set will be a “combo pack” with the Blu-ray Disc counterpart.

The 4K UHD Blu-ray is now available for preorder at Amazon and directly via Kino Lorber’s website. Bonus materials included with the release are listed below, sorted by disc.

Disc 1 (4K UHD Blu-ray):

  • NEW Audio Commentary by Films Historian Steve Mitchell and Writer/Producer Cyrus Voris
  • NEW Audio Commentary by Author and Critic Douglas E. Winter

Disc 2 (Blu-ray):

  • NEW Audio Commentary by Films Historian Steve Mitchell and Writer/Producer Cyrus Voris
  • NEW Audio Commentary by Author and Critic Douglas E. Winter
  • NEW Being Blaster: Interview with Actor Reb Brown (23:45)
  • NEW Reluctant Warrior: Interview with Actor Harold Sylvester (49:07)
  • Theatrical Trailer

Rambo The Complete SteelBook Collection on 4K

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rambo_the_complete_steelbook_collection_4k

A “Rambo: The Complete SteelBook Collection“ is officially coming to 4K UHD Blu-ray on October 27th via Lionsgate. The set will include the following films in the “Rambo” franchise, starring Sylvester Stallone:

  • “First Blood” (1982)
  • “Rambo: First Blood Part II” (1985)
  • “Rambo III” (1988)
  • “Rambo” (2008)
  • “Rambo: Last Blood” (2019)

The set has received some new artwork for each film, as detailed below:

For the first time in its 37-year history, the Rambo series is coming home as a complete SteelBook® set – with original art by some of today’s most celebrated illustrators! Rambo: The Complete SteelBook Collection arrives on 4K Ultra HDTM October 27 from Lionsgate. This definitive collector’s edition of the legendary series features five uniquely designed SteelBooks by celebrated artists Justin Erickson, Ken Taylor, Grzegorz Domaradzki, Vance Kelly, and John Guydo, housed in a custom SteelBook case.

The tech specs for the films vary a tad here, across all five films. First Blood, Rambo: First Blood Part II, and Rambo III will be in the 2.35:1 aspect ratio with HDR10 and DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 sound. Rambo will be in the 2.40:1 aspect ratio with HDR10 as well as Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos sound. Rambo: Last Blood will be in the 2.40:1 aspect ratio with HDR10 as well as Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos sound. Each film will include its Blu-ray Disc counterpart and a digital code (copy). Bonus materials will be identical to those found on the previous individual releases.

UPDATE: This set will be an exclusive to retailer Best Buy and you can now find Rambo: The Complete SteelBook Collection on 4K UHD Blu-ray available for preorder over there. Below you can find a glimpse at the box the five SteelBooks will be housed in.

rambo_the_complete_steelbook_collection_4k_case

Further below, after the break, you can find the full announcement regarding this upcoming exclusive 4K UHD Blu-ray SteelBook set.

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First three “Rambo” films with Stallone come to 4K UHD Blu-ray in November

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The three films “First Blood“ (1982), “Rambo: First Blood Part II“ (1985), and “Rambo III“ (1988) starring Sylvester Stallone are coming to 4K UHD Blu-ray on November 13th via Lionsgate. Tech specs for the releases include 2160p 4K video in the original 2.35:1 aspect ratio and DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio on each release. They all will come in the form of a “combo pack” with a Blu-ray Disc and Digital Copy of the film(s) included. There is no sign of a box set planned, yet, or any indication the fourth film will be released on 4K anytime soon. All three films are now available to PRE-ORDER over at Amazon. Bonus materials set to be included on the releases are listed below, after the break, for each film individually. You can also find the cover art for the two other films there as well.

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