My Two Cents
All right folks... this is a title we know that many of you have waited a very long time to see released on this format, but now it’s finally official.
Paramount has just announced James Cameron’s TITANIC (1997) for release in 4K Ultra HD & 4K Limited Collector’s Edition on 12/5!
Here are all the details…
TITANIC
Debuts on 4K Ultra HD December 5th
Limited-Edition Collector’s Box Set Also Available
Revisit James Cameron’s epic masterpiece TITANIC when it arrives for the first time ever remastered on 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray Disc December 5, 2023 from Paramount Home Entertainment.
[Editor’s Note: The title will be released by Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment internationally, so watch for a separate announcement by them outside the U.S.]
The beloved, worldwide phenomenon won 11 Academy Awards, including Best Picture, and continues to attract new fans 25 years after it was originally released. Now, viewers can experience all of the drama and spectacle in stunning 4K Ultra HD with Dolby Vision and a Dolby Atmos soundtrack for the finest visual and audio presentation at home.
TITANIC will be available nationwide in a two-disc set that includes the film on 4K Ultra HD, plus a Blu-ray Disc boasting more than five hours of new and legacy bonus content, including new interviews with James Cameron, star Kate Winslet, and producer Jon Landau. The set also includes access to a Digital Ultra HD copy of the film. [Read on here...]
We’re starting our first big news update of the week here at The Bits with some new disc reviews, as always. So now available for your reading enjoyment are...
Stephen’s in-depth reviews of both the wide release 4K Ultra HD and the Disney Movie Club-exclusive “quad” 4K Ultra HD release of Walt Disney’s classic animated Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937). The good news is that Disney’s positive change in direction with 4K catalog releases is officially no fluke—the disc features absolutely beautiful 35mm film remastering with lovely grain structure and wonderfully vibrant colors.
Stephen has also turned in a review of Michael Cimino’s Thunderbolt and Lightfoot (1974) in 4K Ultra HD from Kino Lorber Studio Classics, which also features terrific new remastering.
And Stuart has delivered a look at Norman Taurog’s Spinout (1966) on Blu-ray from our friends at the Warner Archive Collection.
As always, more new reviews are on the way later this week, so be sure to watch for them.
Now then... in announcement news today, the Criterion Collection has officially revealed their January 2024 release slate. [Read on here...]
All right, folks! Last week was busy with big news, and this week will be no different.
We’re going to be back with a larger post later this morning to cover it all, but first we wanted to break in here early with official word that James Cameron’s Titanic (1997) is now available for pre-order on Amazon!
This fulfills at least part of a promise made to us by producer Jon Landau and first reported here at The Bits all the way back in March (see our report from the time here, complete with video we shot of Landau breaking the news). Note that we’ve included the video I shot at Lightstorm that day below the break as well.
Paramount’s street date is 12/5, just as we’ve been predicting for a while now. According to the packaging, which you can see at left and also below the break, the release will be a 2-disc set that includes the film in 4K Ultra HD, along with a Blu-ray disc of bonus features.
The set will include over 15 hours of content (most of it on the Blu-ray), including a new documentary, Titanic: Stories from the Heart, featuring new interviews with James Cameron, Jon Landau, and Kate Winslet, as well as a new fan art gallery. [Read on here...]
[10/13/23 Update: Variety and Media Play News have now confirmed my reporting that Best Buy is phasing out physical media in the new year, following the 2023 holiday shopping season. The company will apparently still continue to sell videogames. A Best Buy spokesperson provided this statement to Variety: “To state the obvious, the way we watch movies and TV shows is much different today than it was decades ago. Making this change gives us more space and opportunity to bring customers new and innovative tech for them to explore, discover and enjoy.” So... there you have it. Longtime readers of The Digital Bits can rest assured of two things: First, no this does not spell the end of physical media. And second, I’ll have a great deal more to say on this topic here at The Bits on Monday and all next week. See you back here then.]
All right, folks... we’ve got a little bit of a whopper for you today. And so as not to bury the lede, let’s get right to it...
The Digital Bits has learned from industry sources—and we’ve confirmed it with multiple sources now—that Best Buy plans to exit the physical media business for good next year, possibly as soon as the end of Q1 2024.
This includes not just their in-store Blu-ray, DVD, and 4K Ultra HD sales, which the retailer has been gradually phasing out for a couple of years now in their many store locations nationwide, but online sales as well. This means no more Best Buy-exclusive Steelbook titles, and no more titles from Best Buy period.
The fact that Best Buy is discontinuing physical media sales in their retail locations should come as no surprise; anyone who’s visited a Best Buy store location on a Tuesday recently will be all too aware that the retailer’s disc sections keep getting moved around and have gotten smaller and smaller. Our own experience here at The Bits is that some store locations don’t even bother to stock new-release titles on the sales floor anymore—even their exclusive ones. More than once, in their Southern California locations, I’ve had to ask for the titles and wait while a clerk checks the storeroom.
But the idea that Best Buy would discontinue online sales too comes as a bit of a surprise... though perhaps it shouldn’t. We’ve noted in recent months that Paramount has quietly shifted their Blu-ray and 4K Steelbook exclusive titles—titles that would normally have been released at Best Buy—to Amazon instead. And it seems very likely that other studios will follow Paramount’s lead in the months ahead. [Read on here...]
All right, we’ve got some ground to cover today here at The Bits, so first things first. We have a trio of new disc reviews for you to enjoy this afternoon, including...
Tim’s take on Amando de Ossorio’s Tombs of the Blind Dead (1972) on Blu-ray from Synapse Films.
And Dennis’ thoughts on William A Wellman’s Westward the Women (1951) on Blu-ray from the Warner Archive Collection, as well as James Foley’s After Dark, My Sweet (1990) on Blu-ray from Kino Lorber Studio Classics.
Don’t forget, Amazon’s Prime “Big Deal” Days Sale continues until the end of the day today, so be sure to take advantage of all the great prices on Blu-ray, DVD, and 4K Ultra HD titles, box sets, and collections. Click here and here to see what’s on sale and act fast!
For the record, some of today’s deals include...
- Universal Classic Monsters: Icons of Horror 4K UHD (regularly $79.99) Now $29
- The Alfred Hitchcock Classics Collection 4K UHD (regularly $69.98) Now $38
- The Alfred Hitchcock Classics Collection #2 4K UHD (regularly $69.98) Now $38
- Game of Thrones: The Complete Collection 4K UHD (regularly $219) Now $94
- Batman: The Complete Animated Series Blu-ray (regularly $79) Now $24
- Superman: The Complete Animated Series Blu-ray (regularly $69) Now $19
- The Last of Us: The Complete First Season Blu-ray (regularly $49) Now $26
- Battlestar Galactica: The Complete Series Blu-ray (regularly $99) Now $49
- Bonanza: The Complete Series DVD (regularly $244) Now $159
- Back to the Future: The Ultimate Trilogy 4K UHD (regularly $55) Now $23
- The Lord of the Rings: The Motion Picture Trilogy (Extended & Theatrical) 4K UHD (regularly $89) Now $39
- Harry Potter: 8-Film Collection 4K UHD (regularly $178) Now $59
- Mission: Impossible 6-Movie Collection 4K UHD (regularly $83) Now $50
- The Godfather Trilogy 4K UHD (regularly $90) Now $54
- The James Bond Collection 24-Films Blu-ray (regularly $144) Now $54
So be sure to act fast if you’re interested.
Also today here at the site, we’ve got word on some long-awaited 4K Ultra HD catalog titles... [Read on here...]