Two cool horror films and one of Sheldon’s favorite movies (1408) is coming to Blu-Ray, September 16th. Here’s the official press release.

THE MIST: Reuniting the king of horror with Academy Award®-nominated screenwriter and director Frank Darabont (The Shawshank Redemption, The Green Mile), THE MIST is a "scary as hell" (Maxim) film adaptation of Stephen King’s tale of terror from The Weinstein Company and Genius Products.  The fully loaded two-disc set will contain the theatrical version of the film, a black and white version and a slew of bonus materials including commentary by Writer/Director Frank Darabont, deleted scenes with optional commentary, A Conversation With Stephen King And Frank Darabont, the making of THE MIST, A Look At the Creature FX, The Horror Of It All: The Visual FX Of The Mist, Drew Struzan: An Appreciation Of An Artist, webisodes, introduction to the black and white version and a trailer gallery.  The discs are presented in English 5.1 Dolby TrueHD and English 5.1 Dolby Digital with English CC and Spanish subtitles.

1408: Garnering $72 million at the box-office, John Cusack (Identity, Runaway Jury) and Samuel L. Jackson (Snakes on a Plane, Star Wars films) star in the paranormal thriller 1408 from Dimension Films and Genius Products.  Special features include commentary by Director Mikael Hafstrom and Writers Scott Alexander and Larry Karaszewski, two alternate endings, deleted scenes with optional commentary, The Secrets of 1408 and webisodes with John Cusack on 1408 and inside room 1408, in addition to the theatrical trailer. The disc is presented in English 5.1 Dolby TrueHD and English 5.1 Dolby Digital with English CC and Spanish subtitles.

Goddamn, dirty Apes. They blew it up!!!! Aargh!! I’m a little annoyed at the moment. A few days ago, I ordered the Planet of the Apes DVD Collection on Amazon because they had it (all the movies) at an unbelievable price of $24.  Today, I get an email from Fox saying that Apes are coming to Blu in November. And this set looks pretty awesome. The question is, do I keep my new Apes standard def and wait, or send it back.

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Back and to the left. Back and to the left. Back….and to the left. Remember when Kevin Costner was awesome? When he was doing one amazing movie after another?  JKF is one of my favorite movies and damn WB for the double and triple dipping of this set. I already own the other two DVD releases, that I paid for out of my own pocket. But this fall, ever the opportunist, WHV is coming out with JFK: The Ultimate Collection on Blu-ray and DVD. Of course I want the Blu-ray version of the movie. Every time I watch this movie, it gives me nightmares. This set looks like it’s going to be sweet. Check out the official press release after the break.

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Oh for HD-DVD… We hardly knew ya.  The Ultimate Matrix Collection was one of the signature collections on HD-DVD. Now that collection comes to the Blu-ray machine at a retail price of $130 clammies.  The definitive ten-disc DVD set, The Ultimate Matrix Collection features all three films in the trilogy together for the first time ever with a newly remastered picture and sound for The Matrix. Also included is the companion piece The Matrix Revisited and the best-selling The Animatrix, plus five entirely new DVDs packed solid with brand-new supplemental materials that encompass every aspect of the Matrix universe, including two new audio commentaries on each film, Enter the Matrix video game footage, 106 deep-delving featurettes/ documentaries and much more!
Director:  Andy Wachowski, Larry Wachowski, Actors:  Keanu Reeves, Laurence Fishburne, Carrie-Anne Moss, Hugo Weaving

I think the James Bond series has to be one of the worst when it comes to triple dipping. But I’ll give them a break this time, because who doesn’t want to see Bond go Blu?  Six classic James Bond films are heading to Blu-ray this fall. According to the press release. It’s weird getting this Press Release today, I’m fairly sure I got it a few months ago. So maybe MGM double dipped the press release as well.  This initial set is a strong collection - DR. NO, DIE ANOTHER DAY, LIVE AND LET DIE, FOR YOUR EYES ONLY, FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE and THUNDERBALL. The DVD also includes a ticket to QUANTUM OF SOLACE (man do I hate that title).The only weak link is the un-watchable Thunderball. If you really want this set, I would recommend waiting, I would bet the house on several more package variations.  You gotta give it to MGM, triple, quadruple, dip or not, it looks like they are handling these releases with care.   At $35 a pop for something I already own 3 different copies of (that I bought with my own money)  these better be darn good.  Check out the full Press Release after the break.

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If your Blu and don’t know where to go to. Put it on the Ritz. The classic Gene Wilder comedy Frankenstein comes to Blu-ray October 7, 2008.  I love this movie and the folks at MGM are giving this Blu-ray release the care it deserves. Check out all the great features on this disc.  And the press release after the break. (more…)

One of my favorite movies of the year, the much and unfairly maligned Speed Racer is coming to Blu-ray September 19. Start your engines and fasten your seatbelts for the high-octane adventure Speed Racer, combining heartfelt family humor and groundbreaking visual effects. Speed Racer (Emile Hirsch) is a natural behind the wheel of his thunderous Mach 5. With support from Pops and Mom Racer (John Goodman and Susan Sarandon), girlfriend Trixie (Christina Ricci), younger brother Spritle (Paulie Litt) and the mysterious Racer X (Matthew Fox), Speed takes on fierce competitors to save his family’s business and protect the sport he loves. When Speed steps onto the track, it’s not just a race. It’s an adrenaline-fueled, high-speed charge to the finish. Go, Speed Racer, go!!  The press release doesn’t tell you anything about special features but the MSRP will be about $29. I was one of the few critics who loved this movie. The reason it failed was a horrible marketing campaign and hope audiences discover it on the Blu machine.

One of my favorite Johnny Depp movies, the little seen Blow is coming to Blu-ray. There’s no money in a “real job.” So George Jung deals pot. Lots of it. The blue-collar kid dubbed Boston George spirals up from there, into the riches and excesses of the huge cocaine cartels. And crashes hard. Johnny Depp portrays George, the ambitious outlaw who, perhaps more than any American, transformed powder cocaine from relative obscurity in the U.S. into a 1970s/80s feeding frenzy. Penelope Cruz costars in this riveting, fact-inspired tale of glitz and glamour, fast times and hard time, betrayal and Blow. Director: Ted Demme Actors: Penelope Cruz, Ray Liotta, Bobcat Goldthwait, Cliff Curtis, Emma Roberts, Ethan Suplee, Franka Potente, James King, Jennifer Gimenez, Jesse James, Johnny Depp, Jordi Molla, Lola Glaudini, Max Perlich, Miguel Sandoval, Monet Mazur, Noah Emmerich, Paul Reubens, Rachel Griffiths, Kevin Gage

Everything is suspect, everyone is for sale and nothing is what it seems. Word on the street is on September 23, Warner Home Video will revisit 1950s Hollywood with the digitally remastered film noir L.A. Confidential, as a Two-Disc Special Edition (Standard Definition) DVD and single disc Blu-ray™ Hi-Def. The Standard Definition will be available for $20.97 SRP and Blu-ray™ Hi-Def for $28.99 SRP. Order due date is August 19, 2008.

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I apologize for being a little lax on updating this weekly column, but I’ve been busy putting the final touches on the upcoming EM Book. But wow, what a way to come back. The folks at Fox Home Vide are bringing a slew of their Horror classics to Blu-ray (or as they call it Boo-ray, cute) September 9th. It seems weird that they don’t release these titles on, oh, I don’t know…Halloween?  They are bringing out the complete Omen Collection - which includes the bad 2006 remake with the goofy (not scary) looking kid (Damn you Fox! I just bought that collection off of Amazon last week) and the Russian Horror series Night Watch and Day Watch. I don’t know if I would classify those two as horror, even though it is about things that go bump in the night.  We may try and convince Fox to let us do a giveaway. These are some great titles. Check out the full press release after the break, jump, whatever…. 

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