My Two Cents
We are truly heartbroken this evening to learn that our dear friend Bob Burns has died.
Bob and his wife Kathy, who passed in 2021, were two of the kindest and most generous human beings I’ve ever had the honor of knowing in my time in Hollywood.
Together, they safeguarded a deep well of knowledge about the history of genre cinema, and so many of its most sacred artifacts, as the keepers of Hollywood’s attic.
I’ll never forget those joyous occasions when The Digital Bits crew had the opportunity to visit Bob’s Basement.
Kathy always greeted your arrival with a plate of freshly-baked cookies—after you’d shared enormous bear hugs with each of them first, of course.
You truly felt like Indiana Jones while roaming the aisles of their treasure trove of iconic props and costumes. [Read on here...]
Good afternoon, Bits readers!
All right, let’s try to have a more upbeat post today. I know that yesterday’s post was a little strong, but sometimes you just have to say what you’re feeling, you know?
We’re starting today with more new disc reviews, as we often do, including…
Dennis’ review of Howard Hughes and James Whale’s Hell’s Angels (1930) in 4K from Criterion (with an assist by Tim).
Stuart’s look at Shoshannah Stern’s Marlee Matlin: Not Alone Anymore (2025) on Blu-ray from Kino Lober.
And Tim’s thoughts on The Darjeeling Limited (2007) in 4K UHD from Criterion’s Wes Anderson Archive box set.
More reviews are forthcoming all this week, so be sure to keep checking back!
Now then… the big news today is that Criterion has just revealed their March slate, which includes Luis Buñuel’s Viridiana (1961) (Spine #332) in 4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray and Blu-ray on 3/10, Lynne Littman’s Testament (1983) (Spine #1303) on Blu-ray and Claude Sautet’s Classe tous risques (1960) (Spine #434) in 4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray and Blu-ray on 3/17, Martin Scorsese’s Killers of the Flower Moon (2023) (Spine #1302) on 4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray, Blu-ray, and DVD on 3/24, and finally Claude Lelouch’s A Man and a Woman (1966) (Spine #1304) on Blu-ray and Tsui Hark’s The Blade (1995) (Spine #1305) on 4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray and Blu-ray on 3/31. [Read on here...]
Some days, it’s just tough to process the world we live in.
I was sitting in my home theater yesterday afternoon, watching my officially playoff-eliminated Minnesota Vikings finally righting their ship on Sunday Night Football, when my phone started beeping.
Friends in the industry were reaching out to say that something was going on in Brentwood, California.
Something terrible was happening at Rob Reiner’s house.
Two bodies had been found, apparently murdered, and their ages matched those of Reiner and his wife, Michele Singer Reiner.
That maybe their troubled son was involved.
And… in that moment, your brain kind of goes numb.
I mean, here I am trying to enjoy the final moments of a forgettable football season. I’ve got my cats sitting with me, we’re chilling, just enjoying an afternoon.
And then the seemingly perpetual ugliness of the real world intrudes yet again, as it so often does now here in the 21st century.
This news… news of multiple shootings around the planet. It didn’t used to be like this.
For those of you who are younger, the worst of humanity didn’t used to get shoved into your consciousness 24-7-365 by algorithms that never—even when they pretend to—actually work on behalf of you.
I’m sure that today many of you are—like me—struggling with just how to process this news. And God forbid you go online, because there are plenty of people there trying to tell you how you should process it. And it’s ugly man. [Read on here...]
All right, as you might expect based on the title of this column, I have a few things to say today here at The Digital Bits. But we’ve got a little bit of regular site business to take care of this morning before we get to that.
First, we have a number of new and recent disc reviews for you all to enjoy, including…
Stephen’s take on Greg McLean’s Wolf Creek (2005) in 4K Ultra HD from Imprint, Richard Stanley’s Dust Devil (1992) in 4K UHD from Kino Lorber Studio Classics, Emma Tammi’s Five Nights at Freddy’s (2023) in a limited edition 4K box set from Blumhouse and Universal, and Howard Hawks’ His Girl Friday (1940) in 4K UHD from Criterion.
Tim’s look at The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (2004) in 4K Ultra HD from Criterion’s The Wes Anderson Archive.
Dennis’ thoughts on Ruggero Deodato’s The Barbarians (1987) on Blu-ray from Kino Lorber Studio Classics, as well as Mike Nichols’ Carnal Knowledge (1971) in 4K UHD from Criterion, and W.S. Van Dyke’s Manhattan Melodrama (1934) on Blu-ray from the Warner Archive Collection.
And finally, Stuart has a few words to about the Warner Archive Collection’s new Joan Crawford Collection on Blu-ray, which includes Grand Hotel (1932), The Women (1939), Possessed (1939), and The Damned Don’t Cry (1950).
Also today, our own Russell Hammond has just shared our newest update of the Release Dates & Cover Art section here at The Bits with all the latest Blu-ray, DVD, and 4K UHD cover artwork and Amazon.com pre-order links. As always, whenever you order literally anything from Amazon after clicking to them through one of our links first (like this one), you’re helping to support our work here at the site and we greatly appreciate it. [Read on here...]
This is a quick post to let you all know that our Release Dates & Cover Artwork section here at The Digital Bits has just been updated with all the latest Blu-ray, DVD, and 4K Ultra HD cover artwork and Amazon.com pre-order links. Don’t forget that you can select to see just the Blu-ray, DVD, 4K Ultra HD, or even Criterion titles seperately if you like, to help you find exactly the ones you’re looking for. Just click on RELEASE DATES & ART on the menu bar above to visit the page, and use the search options in the red bar (at the top) to sort by format and date. Once you find a title you like, just click on the cover art and you’ll be taken right to the Amazon.com pre-order page. Thank you for shopping through our links and don’t forget that anytime you order from Amazon through our links, you’re helping to support our work here at The Bits and we really appreciate it! And thanks to our own Russell Hammond for the update work!
- Bill Hunt