New Theatrical Announcements Heading To DVD and Blu-ray, Jan. 26 Update

Anchor Bay Entertainment

01/22/13 — Released Officer Down (ARR of 4 days; box office: $1,184) DVD and Blu-ray

03/12/13 — Sets This Must be the Place (ARR of 130 days; box office: $142,242) DVD and Blu-ray

03/26/13 — Sets Killing Them Softly (ARR of 116 days; box office: $14,938,570) DVD and Blu-ray

Eros

01/08/13 — Released Khiladi 786 (Hindi) (ARR of 32 days; box office: $352,684) DVD only

01/22/13 — Released Son of Sardar (Hindi) (ARR of 67 days; box office: $713,754) DVD only

First Run Features

04/09/13 — Sets Orchestra of Exiles (ARR of 165 days; box office: $24,710)

Indomina Media

02/26/13 — Sets Holy Motors (French) (ARR of 130 days; box office: $612,200) DVD and Blu-ray

Lionsgate Home Entertainment

03/26/13 — Sets The Collection (ARR of 116 days; box office: $6,842,058) DVD and Blu-ray

PBS Direct

04/23/13 — Sets Central Park Five (ARR of 151 days; box office: $273,747) DVD and Blu-ray

20^th Century-Fox Home Ent.

03/12/13 — Sets Hitchcock (ARR of 109 days; box office: $5,788,209) DVD and Blu-ray/DVD Combo Pack

* ARR - Asset Rollover Rate: The number of days between a film's initial theatrical debut and its subsequent release on DVD and/or Blu-ray.

To download this week's complete edition of the DVD and Blu-ray Release Report: DVD & Blu-ray Release Report

20th Century-Fox Home Entertainment To Release Skyfall On Feb. 12

20^th Century-Fox Home Entertainment will be moving quickly to place the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer film production of the latest installment of the long-running 007 film franchise at retail on Feb. 12.   Technically speaking, they would seem to already be beyond the pre-book for this one.

The ARR for the Blu-ray/DVD Combo Pack (with Digital Copy) and DVD editions of Skyfall works out to a zippity-quick to market sprint of just 95 days.   

 The only other films grossing in excess of $300 million at the box office to make the move this quickly from their respective theatrical venues to the home entertainment package media arena are filmmaker Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland (88 days; 2010) and the third installment of the Transformers film franchise, Transformers: Dark of the Moon (91 days; 2011).

This past weekend Skyfall hit $301 million in domestic ticket sales; perhaps that milestone was the trigger point for the announcement … we suspect that key retail outlets already had the word.

Once again Daniel Craig nails the Bond character.   Tough, even ruthless, resourceful and always intelligent.  He sells it … Craig can be 007/James Bond as long as his body lets him (expect him back in 2014).

Not only is Skyfall a monster theatrical hit, but it has five Oscar nominations, including Best Song, Adele’s “Skyfall” (plus two for sound and one each for Original Musical Score and Cinematography) and the script from the writing team of Robert Wade and Neal Purvis (their fifth Bond) — who are joined by three-time Oscar nominee John Logan — does an excellent job of returning the James Bond character to his Scottish roots.

As to bonus goodies, there are four featurettes on the DVD edition.   The Blu-ray/DVD Combo Pack adds in ten additional featurettes, plus two separate commentary options — one featuring director Sam Mendes (Best Director Oscar-winner for American Beauty … his first Bond film) and the second showcases veteran 007/James Bond film producer Barbara Broccoli (daughter of Cubby Broccoli), who is joined by fellow 007/James Bond film producer Michael G. Wilson (his 13^th film) and production designer Dennis Gassner (Oscar-winner for his work on Bugsy in 1991, plus three addition Oscar nominations … his second 007/Bond film, having handled similar duties on Quantum of Solace). 

Also added to the release schedule this week from 20^th Century-Fox Home Entertainment is director Andy Fickman’s Parental Guidance, teaming Billy Crystal with Bette Midler and Marisa Tomei.

Slated for delivery on Mar. 26 are DVD and Blu-ray/DVD Combo Pack (with Digital Copy) SKUs.   The ARR is a quick-to-market 91 days.  Ticket sales came in at a nice clip of $67.7 million.

Bonus features include commentary from director Andy Fickman (She’s the Man, You Again, etc.) and Billy Crystal, plus there are deleted scenes with optional commentary from Fickman.   

Exclusive to the Blu-ray/DVD Combo Pack are a gag reel and a featurette titled “FXM Productions Presents: In Character with Billy Crystal, Bette Midler and Marisa Tomei.”

To download this week's complete edition of the DVD and Blu-ray Release Report: DVD & Blu-ray Release Report

Wheeler and Woolsey RKO Comedy Classics Collection From Warner Home Video On Feb. 26

Warner Home Video announced today that a four-disc, nine-film collection showcasing the comedy antics of Bert Wheeler and Robert Woolsey will be available to own on DVD on Feb. 26.   The set is titled Wheeler and Woolsey RKO Comedy Classics Collection.

Included in the collection are:  Half Shot At Sunrise (1930, with Dorothy Lee — an early co-star for the comedy duo), Hook, Line and Sinker (1930, also with Lee), Cracked Nuts (1931, again co-starring Dorothy Lee), Caught Plastered (1931, with Lee plus Jason Robards, Sr. and Charles Middleton), Hold 'Em Jail (1932, with Betty Grable in an early film role … others in the cast include Edgar Kennedy, Roscoe Ates, Robert Armstrong and another Wheeler and Woolsey regular, Edna May Oliver), Hips, Hips, Hooray (1934, Lee is joined by Thelma Todd and Ruth Etting), The Nitwits (1935, Betty Grable returns), Mummy's Boys (1936, co-starring Barbara Pepper) and High Flyers (1937, a stellar cast that includes Lupe Velez, Jack Carson, Margaret Dumont and Marjorie Lord).

To download this week's complete edition of the DVD and Blu-ray Release Report: DVD & Blu-ray Release Report

Criterion Collection Announces Its April Product Offerings

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Criterion Collection, with sales and distribution expertise provided by Image Entertainment, announced its April slate of DVD and Blu-ray product offerings this past week.

By any accounts, it is a playful mix of film selections.    Blu-ray debuts for Repo Man, Naked Lunch and Richard III pretty much sums it up … playful!

So let us get right to it, in chronological order we kick off the month with the Apr. 9 selections of the Blu-ray debut of director David Cronenberg’s 1991 film adaptation of William S. Burroughs’s rambling novel (autobiography?), Naked Lunch.  Bizarre.  Fascinating.  Weird.  Surreal.  All descriptions apply (and more).  

Bonus features include commentary from both filmmaker David Cronenberg and the film’s star, Peter Weller, plus there is the 1992 documentary from Chris Rodley titled “Naked Making Lunch,” an audio recording of Burroughs reading selected passages from the book and more, including a gallery of photos and artwork.

On the same Apr. 9 street date is the Blu-ray debut of director Sir Laurence Olivier’s 1955 film adaptation of Shakespeare’s play, Richard III.  Olivier was nominated Best Actor for his interpretation of legendary English monarch (losing out to another king … Yul Brynner in The King and I).

This new hi-def transfer comes from the Film Foundations’ 2012 restoration of the film.   Bonus goodies include commentary from playwright and stage director Russell Lees, who is joined by the former governor of the Royal Shakespeare Company, John Wilders, plus Criterion has included a vintage interview with Olivier (1966) and a gallery of production stills and theatrical posters.

Also on Apr. 9 is a Blu-ray release of Japanese filmmaker Teinosuke Kinugasa’s 1953 Oscar-winner (domestic release was 1954), Gate of Hell.

On Apr. 16 there will be a Blu-ray and a double-disc release of director Alex Cox’s ode to all things Los Angeles … the strange, the other worldly and the, well, bizarre (don’t open the trunk).   A newly restored version of Repo Man is on the way!

Bonus features include commentary from filmmaker Alex Cox, who is joined by music legend Michael Nesmith (he produced the films) and actors Sy Richardson, Zander Schloss, and Del Zamora, plus there are cast and crew interviews, deleted scenes and an alternate version of the film.

On the foreign-language front, look for collections of Masaki Kobayashi Against the System (a four-film set on Apr. 16 — DVD only) and both Blu-ray and DVD editions of Pierre Etaix (a five-film collection on Apr. 23).

To download this week's complete edition of the DVD and Blu-ray Release Report: DVD & Blu-ray Release Report

Mill Creek Entertainment Sets March DVD and Blu-ray Release Slate

Mill Creek Entertainment announced its line up of Blu-ray and DVD release for the month of March this past week.  Two waves of price-to-sell product offerings will street on Mar. 12 and Mar. 26.

The Mar. 12 selections are DVD sets, which include the nine-part epic mini-series The 10^th Kingdom (a three-disc collection), the four-program collection of Red Skelton: The Farewell Specials (featuring: Freddie The Freeloader’s Christmas Dinner, More Funny Faces, Funny Faces III and A Royal Command Performance), two more seasons of Roseanne — Roseanne: The Complete Eighth Season and Roseanne: The Complete Seventh Season (both are three-disc sets) and the massive ten-disc collection titled The Lincoln Chronicles, which includes the mini-series, Sandburg’s Lincoln and the bonus theatrical feature film D.W. Griffith’s Abraham Lincoln (and much, much more).

 

Two weeks later, Mar. 26, the focus for Mill Creek Entertainment is on the Blu-ray format.   There will be a dozen double-features — all priced at just $9.98 each.  You read that right, $9.98 each for Blu-ray double-features!!!

Included in the mix are the likes of: Double Feature: Hollow Man, Hollow Man 2, Double Feature: Terminal Velocity, White Squall, Double Feature: When a Stranger Calls, Happy Birthday to Me and Double Feature: Ship of Fools, Lilith.

Also in the Mar. 26 Blu-ray product mix are two releases under the “National Parks Exploration Series” promotional banner.  These are: National Parks Exploration Series: Voyageurs National Park - Spirit of the Boundary Waters and National Parks Exploration Series: Glacier National Park – Crown of the Continent … price for each is just $9.98.

For more information on all of these price-to-sell DVD and Blu-ray product offerings, please visit the Mill Creek Entertainment website at: Mill Creek Entertainment … or call toll free: 866-410-9000; email: sales@millcreekent.com.

To download this week's complete edition of the DVD and Blu-ray Release Report: DVD & Blu-ray Release Report

Green Apple Entertainment's Population 2 Debuts On Mar. 26

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Glen, Randa and Max have walked this landscape ... or drove through it very quickly.  Eli had to contend with Carnegie and his sort, but he too often found himself alone.  Dr. Neville retreated to his fortress each night, but he was never alone.   

It is the same; always the same, a post-apocalyptic world … different visions, but much in common.  Dreary.  Bleak.  Survival is always on the things to do list each day.

Now comes Lilith (Suzanne Tufan) in writer/director Gil Luna’s Population 2, due out on DVD from Green Apple Entertainment on Mar. 26.   She too navigates the loneliness of a world devoid of humanity; the squeaky wheels of a child’s wagon always in tow is the only sound she hears.   

The film has been working the festival circuit since 2011, pulling in awards (Indie Fest, Award of Merit; Accolade Competition, Award of Excellence; Houston World Fest, REMI Award, etc.) and excellent reviews.  It is a genre film in the truest sense and that means that its audience is both loyal and narrowcast … sci-fi fans.   The DVD release gives it a chance for a wider audience to explore and enjoy.

Lilith, alone in the world — at least her little corner of it — finds herself wandering a hellish landscape by day, scavenging for food and returning to her hidey-hole at night; her self-imposed sanctuary where she can dream of other things … the past.   

Luna takes us into her world — and her past — through her daily rituals and jumps us back to past events little by little.  In the process the puzzle is slowly pieced together.  

This woman has long since reached the end of the rope, tied a knot and is now just hanging on.  But for her there is hope, oddly enough, when all hope seems to be gone.   Maybe it is hell that she is experiencing — the same thing over and over again.  Maybe it is her penance for things in her past.   In any case, Population 2 is an interesting take on the well-worked theme of a post-apocalyptic world and what it takes to get through one day to the next.   

To download this week's complete edition of the DVD and Blu-ray Release Report: DVD & Blu-ray Release Report

Fun Size On DVD And Blu-ray From Paramount On Feb. 19

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One thing about theatrical releases, there are no second chances (Tom Laughlin’s Billy Jack aside).   The film arrives at the local multiplex and audiences have to figure it out lickity-split or it is gone.

Such appears to be the case with producer Josh Schwartz’s debut directorial effort, Fun Size, which arrives on Blu-ray and DVD (with UltraViolet) courtesy of Paramount Home Media Distribution on Feb. 19.   

The ARR is 116 days and the box office take was on the light side at $9.4 million.

Schwartz, the successful producer, writer and developer of such TV series as Chuck, Gossip Girl and Hart of Dixie appears to be the victim of some interesting choices in the marketing and distribution of this Victoria Justice film comedy.   

First, the title, Fun Size … what is that all about?   Fun Size as in large?  Doesn’t seem to fit Victoria Justice.   No matter, you can overcome goofy film titles.

Second, don’t dig the hole deeper.   The Nickelodeon brand is a solid point of light for parents with small kids looking for entertainment along the lines of Dora the Explorer, Bubble Guppies and Go, Diego, Go!   

There is a time when using the brand might, just might, create some confusion as to who the intended audience might be.  Fun Size is a teen comedy along the lines of Easy A, Don't Tell Mom the Babysitter's Dead and Sydney White.   

Fun Size skews older than the Nickelodeon brand implies and that means that the target audience might not get the message.   Remember: Do it quickly — in terms of the message — or the window is gone.

Fortunately, there is this little thing called home entertainment — DVD, Blu-ray and the like — so Paramount Home Media rides to the rescue with a second chance to get the word out that Fun Size is actually a teen comedy starring Victoria Justice.  It’s fun; plenty of laughs; enjoyable viewing … and there is nothing too over the line to make parents wince.   

Bonus features include a gag reel, deleted scenes and a pair of featurettes, including one titled, “Unwrapped: The Making of Fun Size.”  There is also the Carly Rae Jepsen music video, “This Kiss.”

Also on the release calendar from Paramount Home Media Distribution is the Showtime production of The Borgias: The Complete Second Season.   The street date for the double-disc Blu-ray and three-disc DVD sets is pegged for Mar. 26.

Bonus features include the featurette titled “The World of Borgias,” plus “Behind-the-Scenes” and cast interviews.

To download this week's complete edition of the DVD and Blu-ray Release Report: DVD & Blu-ray Release Report