4K UHD Review: A Bridge Too Far
After the success at the Battle of Normandy, the allies spent six months planning Operation Market Garden—an attempt to secure several bridges in the Netherlands by land and by air—assembled in just seven days. The tide had started to turn, and the Allies hoped Operation Market Garden would end the war by Christmas 1944. They […]
4K UHD Review: Interstellar (10th Anniversary Limited Edition)
Released in 2014, Christopher Nolan’s Interstellar ranks as one of the greatest contemporary science fiction films. In my 2015 release of the Blu-ray, I wrote that seeing it “at home on a television will not have the same effect as seeing it in the sprawling space of a darkened theater.” While that statement still has […]
Blu-ray Review: The Swarm
[amazon_link asins=’B07GSX4MPM’ template=’ProductAd’ store=’moviegazett03-20′ marketplace=’US’ link_id=’932e584d-f2aa-11e8-bf9c-9fa89fc30cf5′]Producer/director Irwin Allen struck box office gold with a string of star-studded disaster films including The Poseidon Adventure (1972) and The Towering Inferno (1974). Based on a novel by Arthur Herzog, The Swarm, seemed liked a surefire hit given Allen’s track record and fear over armies of Africanized killer bees […]
Blu-ray Review: The Wilby Conspiracy
[amazon_link asins=’B077Y3QTS5′ template=’ProductAd’ store=’moviegazett03-20′ marketplace=’US’ link_id=’6dfcf6d6-110a-11e8-b7a8-8de5a9e57dc2′]Set in South Africa when Apartheid was the rule of law, The Wilby Conspiracy stars Sidney Poitier as a revolutionary, and Michael Caine as a mining engineer, on the run from the South African military police. Directed by Ralph Nelson (Lillies of the Field) the film is based on the […]
4K UHD Review: Interstellar
[amazon_link asins=’B0767FCYDW’ template=’ProductAd’ store=’moviegazett03-20′ marketplace=’US’ link_id=’a2baee8e-e757-11e7-a754-331df426d35a’]Released in 2014, Christopher Nolan’s Interstellar ranks as one of the great contemporary science fiction films. In my 2015 release of the Blu-ray, I wrote that seeing it “at home on a television will not have the same effect as seeing it in the sprawling space of a darkened theater.” […]
Dressed to Kill (Criterion Collection) (Blu-ray)
It’s important to note that this review covers Criterion’s second printing Dressed to Kill. The original pressing has significant framing issues, acknowledged by Criterion. As it says in the accompanying leaflet, this Blu-ray is a “New, restored, 4K digital transfer of director Brian De Palma’s preferred unrated version, supervised by the director…” To make sure […]
Interstellar (Blu-ray)
While seeing Christopher Nolan’s Interstellar at home on television will not have the same effect as seeing it in the sprawling space of a darkened theater, it’s still an assault on the senses. While it can be debated whether this is Nolan’s best film, it’s certainly his most ambitious, combining elements from Stanley Kubrick’s 2001, […]
Blu-ray Review: Dressed to Kill (U.K. Release)
Dressed to Kill was released on Blu-ray in the United States on a region free disc in September of 2011. The American release carries a fine presentation and audio track, but has a so-so package of special features. Available on July 29, 2013, Arrow Video has put together a memorable package, with an impressive slate […]
Blu-ray Review: Ashanti (1979)
Michael Caine has often claimed that 1979’s Ashanti was was “the only film (he) did purely for the money” as well as “the worst film he ever starred in.” The last point could certainly be debated, but there’s no denying it’s not one of the highlights of his illustrious career. Released in 1979, Ashanti arrived […]
Blu-ray Review: The Otto Preminger Collection (Hurry Sundown/Skidoo/Such Good Friends)
Otto Preminger directed over 35 films in a film career that spanned more than five decades. Throughout his career, Preminger wasn’t afraid to attract controversy dealing with taboo topics of the era such as drug addiction (The Man with the Golden Arm, 1955), rape (Anatomy of a Murder, 1959) and homosexuality (Advise & Consent, 1962). […]