Dumbo (4K UHD Blu-ray Review)
Dumbo marks the first of a handful of formerly classic Disney animated features to be having blustering new live action representations in 2019. This has been going on and building for a few years now, but 2019 could be the apex for just how many come out in a calendar year. Disney is probably going to be a bit more careful as to which ones they choose from here on out based on the box office for this film. Not every one of these will hit the Beauty and the Beast paydirt, but you kinda have an idea which ones are going to catch fire (Which, is funny how people doubted Aladdin, not realizing people find too hefty an opinion to have actual weight on “Film Twitter”). Anyway, Dumbo will be arriving on all formats and even the (Why the hell won’t you die?) dated DVD one. The date for this circus full of excitement is June 25th. Don’t all you go trampling over each other to land a copy first. Just go ahead and utilize the Amazon link like a civilized adult.
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Jordan Peele is, in my humble opinion, a truly innovative filmmaker. He has made two films that manage to creep us out, make us laugh, challenge our way of thinking and entertain without sacrificing true film art. Us is the type of film that improves with repeat viewings. I myself watched it more than once while preparing this review. I was introduced to more nuances, influences and appreciations and was truly entertained with each viewing. Take a look with some more depth below about Us which hits stores June 18th! 
Marvel continues to soar to billion dollar heights with every fresh turn it takes. Boasted by them as their first female led film (Though, I mean, let’s not forget The Wasp), it was a nice box office set before Avengers: Endgame’s major spike a few months later. In fact, Captain Marvel continued to do solid business alongside Endgame, improving its business. It arrives here on 4K Ultra-HD Blu-ray on June 11th (Already on digital), yet was still playing at my local AMC last weekend when I was at the theater. Our theatrical to home video window has become a very quick and literal 90 days now. So, either go see it again, or order yourself a copy for your home. You currently have that option for one of the biggest movies of the year. 
There was no way this 4K Ultra-HD Blu-ray journey through the 1989-1997 Batman series wasn’t dive-bombing into a brick wall to finish things off. As we all know, its inevitable that we come to a close on the notoriously despised Batman & Robin. Like the rest of the films in the series, it has been given a proper, caring restoration and charged up with a brand new Dolby Atmos track to pulsate through your viewing area. Along with that, the film carries over the outstanding previous bonus material found on the 2005 Special Edition DVD release (And subsequent Blu-ray editions for that matter). For the fans (?) of this film and the Batman completists (“Well, I might as well complete the set, right?”), the 4K Ultra-HD Blu-ray of Batman & Robin debuts on the illustrious format June 4th (Next week).
As we close the book on the Tim Burton-helmed Batman era, we set sights on Joel Schumacher’s turn at “bat”. Batman Forever proved the biggest opening weekend and highest grossing live action film of 1995 (Only Toy Story earned more money). It was a pretty stunning bounce back for the caped crusader as it reinvented itself and continued its box office glory, proving it to be THE franchise of the decade. Batman was clearly the James Bond/Star Wars/Indiana Jones of the 1990s. The film is arriving with the rest of the “bat pack” on 4K Ultra-HD Blu-ray June 4th with a brand new restoration, Atmos track and the terrific extras from the 2005 DVD special editions.
Quite possibly one of the my most personally anticipated sequels of all time, Batman Returns, continues our spin here on this look at the new 4K Ultra-HD Blu-ray releases of the 89-97 Batman series. Like the previous film, both the 4K Ultra-HD and standard Blu-ray discs have been given a nice new transfer and restoration to go along with a new Dolby Atmos track. The extras for the film have been ported over from the 2005 Special Edition DVD releases, making it pretty much the definitive Batman Returns package. You can upgrade it and the others when they arrive on shelves June 4th.
I don’t even know if I need one hand to count the amount of films to give me as much excited being released on 4K Ultra-HD Blu-ray as Tim Burton’s 1989 Batman. With the 30th anniversary dropping next month, I had been hoping dearly that the film would get the chance (As well as its sequels-even you, Batman & Robin) to be remastered and shine on the format. The Blu-ray releases had left much to be desired in terms of picture/audio quality (The extras are home video perfection). Alas, we will be dancing with the devil in the pale moonlight to all 4 films in this canon when they arrive on June 4th.
With the exception of the first Transformers film I can’t be the only one out there that thinks everything else Michael Bay touched (outside Transformers 2-5) is pretty decent, can I? We have such Bay-hem gems out there like the Bad Boys series and Pain & Gain to my all-time favorite The Island. That’s why when 13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi (or 13 Hours as we’ll refer to it from here on out in this review) was initially released theatrically I didn’t even hesitate. Boom! He had my ticket sale. Even if it just produced smoke, gunfire and other bombastic moments I knew I’d be getting my money’s worth despite his Transformers failures (in my opinion of course). If I could be completely honest with you though, it was the addition of John Krasinski to the cast lineup that really got my butt cheeks in a seat. I wanted to see what he could bring outside of The Office television series. He did not disappoint! 
Dreamworks has had some strong series in their animation wing (Kung Fu Panda, Shrek) and How To Train Your Dragon has possibly been their very best. The Hidden World marks the close to this story (Which also has a television series) and completion of a trilogy. Each of these films has been full of fantasy action, adventure and severely pulls at those heartstrings. The final adventure will be flying through the skies of 4K Ultra-HD Blu-ray and blowing beautiful HDR fire into your viewing rooms when it arrives on May 21st. Pre-order for How To Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World available below! 
Liam Neeson — A name now synonymous with revenge action-thrillers. He will find you, and he will kill you. A fan of the genre will take note right now in their heads of all the films they’ve seen with Mr. Neeson kicking butt and taking names. There truly are quite a few, some good and some bad. Cold Pursuit takes our favorite “wronged man” and puts him in a bleak Colorado winter setting. The results here are like something we’ve seen before, but with a few very welcomed quirks and some unexpected humor. Supported by a strong narrative, some truly interesting plot twists, and the occasional laugh out loud moments, this newest piece feels more like a drama with some action than a knock down, drag out action film. Bundle up for the cold details below on this newest Neeson entry that hit stores May 14th! 
Crank is fondly immortalized in my memories as one of the first elite Blu-ray titles that overwhelmingly wowed and showed off how razor sharp certain 1080p video footage could be.
Backdraft has often been one of those movies for me that I forget about. For whatever reason, despite the fact that the film is engaging, well acted and steadfastly directed, I always sock it away somehow. The funniest part to me is that despite it going left of my attention a lot of the time, each time I revisit it I am reminded of the excellent story structure that balances drama, thriller and action, the strong cast (Kurt Russell, William Baldwin, Robert DeNiro, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Rebecca Demornay, Scott Glenn, Donald Sutherland and JT Walsh… phew, what a cast!) playing at their best and the lovingly crafted direction from Ron Howard. This exceptional 4K Release has made it very hard to imagine me forgetting this fantastic movie until the next viewing though! Check out more about the movie below that hit stores May 7th! 
King Arthur has a had a rough go of it at the box office in recent years time. Guy Ritchie’s King Arthur: Legend of the Sword came out two years ago and bombed pretty hard (Having seen it, I’d say rightfully so). The Kid Who Would Be King takes a newer approach on the overdone source material and spins it around for a kid/family friendly adventure with some meat to it. Unfortunately, we failed this little gem at the box office. But now its coming to 4K Ultra-HD Blu-ray (Well, its ALREADY out on all home video formats now), where we can see that we maybe should have done batter by this one. 
Back in 2014, The LEGO Movie took cinema-going audiences by surprise and by storm as it charmed and endeared everyone. It was the one of the first things to prop up Chris Pratt toward the superstardom he’d garner that following summer with Guardians of the Galaxy for Marvel as the lovable space-idiot hot shot Star Lord. This movie launched a LEGO brand of theatrical releases to hot and cold successes with LEGO Batman Movie and LEGO Ninjago that hit and missed financially. And now here we are with the Second Part of the first film which you can pick up on 4K Ultra-HD Blu-ray when it arrives May 7th.
Alien
The Karate Kid is one of those films that was almost always a big part of my movie watching as a kid. I was drawn to the underdog story of Daniel Larusso, who with a great deal of spunk and determination proved himself to be a teenage hero for some. I was so excited to see this 35thAnniversary Edition announced earlier in the year and when it arrived I was immediately ready to give it a watch! This time, for me anyway, felt like the first time. Check out my review of this April 16th release down below. 
I can’t say I ever thought the day would come where we’d be living in a world in which an exists a sequel to 2000’s Unbreakable whether lone two of them. I knew there was always interest in the property, but given the downward spiral of M. Night Shayamalan’s career for awhile I never thought we’d see anything spectacular from him again. A movie he wrote in 2010 called Devil kind of peaked my curiosity, but imagine my surprise when early reviews of 2016’s Split came with mentions of a tie-in to the Unbreakable universe. That news practically broke the Internet (I’m exaggerating) and even further Split was actually a really great film to boot. James McAvoy got robbed of an Academy nod for his exceptional performance, but I digress. More importantly M. Night was suddenly back! People were instantly in his corner and the third film in the trilogy, Glass, was fast-tracked for our viewing pleasure here now on 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray April 16th.
Clint Eastwood returns to the role of filmmaker and actor with The Mule. I am personally always excited to check out a new Eastwood movie. Whether he is acting or directing, stylistically he always seems to strike a chord with me as a viewer and film fanatic. This particular movie did just that, although with a few odd detours. Follow down below as we explore everything about The Mule, which was recently released on 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray this past Tuesday (April 2nd). 
