Archive for the 'Amazon Pre-Orders' Category
June 20th, 2025 by Gerard Iribe
The Witch from Nepal Blu-ray from 88 Films brings one of Hong Kong cinema’s strangest supernatural curios back into the spotlight. Part romance, part mystical fever dream, part action-fantasy, this 1986 oddity stars Chow Yun-fat in a role that swerves from spiritual awakening to bare-chested brawling. Shot partially on location in Nepal, it’s a visually interesting but narratively chaotic ride. Now cleaned up in HD and dressed in slick collector packaging, this release might catch the eye of genre collectors. But not every oddity is a hidden gem.
Continue reading ‘Witch from Nepal (Blu-ray Review)’
June 20th, 2025 by Gerard Iribe
There’s no mistaking it — Gate of Flesh Blu-ray is one of the grimiest, gutsiest cult releases 88 Films has ever put out. Originally released in Japan as Carmen 1945, this 1988 reimagining of postwar Tokyo dives deep into the neon-lit back alleys of desperation, sex work, and survival. Set in the ashes of defeat, where the only currency is flesh and power shifts with every glance, Gate of Flesh blends exploitation and melodrama with razor-sharp social critique. Now available on Blu-ray for the first time in the UK, this Blu-ray disc packs serious punch for collectors of transgressive cinema and fans of bold Japanese filmmaking. Continue reading ‘Gate of Flesh (Blu-ray Review)’
June 16th, 2025 by Aaron Neuwirth
Coming in September from The Criterion Collectoin: Born in Flames, a DIY fantasia of female rebellion from Lizzie Borden; Flow, Gints Zilbalodis’s Academy Award–winning animated international sensation; Read My Lips and The Beat That My Heart Skipped, two tour-de-force thrillers from modern French master Jacques Audiard; and—now on 4K UHD—This Is Spinal Tap, a legendary mock rockumentary directed by Rob Reiner, and High and Low, Akira Kurosawa’s highly influential police procedural. Plus: The Wes Anderson Archive: Ten Films, Twenty-Five Years, our previously announced twenty-disc collector’s set celebrating a true American original, alongside two of his spellbindingly intricate adventures, Isle of Dogs and The French Dispatch of the Liberty, Kansas Evening Sun.
Continue reading ‘Spinal Tap, Wes Anderson, Kurosaw and More Coming to The Criterion Collection September 2025’
June 5th, 2025 by Gerard Iribe
You’ve never seen post-apocalyptic animation quite like this. Originally released in 1985, Gwen and the Book of Sand is a surrealist fever dream — part Dune, part daydream — blending the stark desolation of a desert world with hand-painted beauty and philosophical weight. Beautifully restored in 4K with the director’s participation for La Traverse Films in France, this new HDR edition from Deaf Crocodile feels less like a reissue and more like an archaeological triumph. For fans of Moebius, René Laloux, or the tactile strangeness of La Planète Sauvage, this one’s a must-see. But even if you’ve never heard of Gwen before, this UHD Blu-ray might just leave you hypnotized. But even if you’ve never heard of Gwen before, this Gwen and the Book of Sand 4K UHD Blu-ray might just leave you hypnotized. Continue reading ‘Gwen and the Book of Sand (4K UHD Blu-ray Review)’
June 4th, 2025 by Gerard Iribe
Offering a treasure trove of essential films from the explosive creative epicenter of Hong Kong, Shout Studios’ Hong Kong Cinema Classics™ aims to preserve these iconic films in their best possible presentation for fans new and old alike. On August 26, 2025, Hong Kong Cinema Classics presents CITY ON FIRE 4K UHD + BLU-RAY. Chow Yun-Fat (Hard Boiled, A Better Tomorrow), Sun Yueh (Papa, Can you Hear Me Sing?), and Danny Lee (The Killer)star in this sizzling, highly influential crime drama from director Ringo Lam (Full Contact, Prison On Fire, Maximum Risk). Featuring a new 4K scan and a wealth of bonus features, CITY ON FIRE is a must-have for collectors, cinephiles, and action enthusiasts. Pre-order is now available at ShoutFactory.comand select participating online stores. Continue reading ‘City on Fire arrives on 4K UHD Blu-ray August 26!’
June 4th, 2025 by Gerard Iribe
One of the most important filmmakers France has ever produced, Jean Epstein was a film theorist, critic and a leading figure in the French Impressionist movement. Perhaps best known today for directing the first adaptation of The Fall of the House of Usher from a screenplay co-written with Luis Buñuel, Epstein produced several masterpieces during the silent period, including Faithful Heart (Coeur fidèle), The Three-Sided Mirror (La glace à trois faces) and Finis Terrae, the story of a group of fishermen stranded off the cost of Brittany. An atmospheric maritime tale and a forerunner to such films as Robert Eggers‘ The Lighthouse and Mark Jenkin’s Bait, Finis Terrae is one of Jean Epstein’s finest achievements and an aesthetic triumph, particularly in its early and deeply effective use of slow-motion cinematography. The Masters of Cinema series is honored to present ‘Finis Terrae’ from an astounding 4K restoration by Gaumont Film Company. Continue reading ‘Finis Terrae is released on Blu-ray August 12!’
June 4th, 2025 by Gerard Iribe
Alliance Entertainment announces the Blu-Ray release date for SEE: The Complete Series, starring Jason Momoa. SEE: The Complete Series is being released under the exclusive distribution partnership with the production company FIFTH SEASON. All three seasons of the Primetime Emmy-Nominated series will be available on Blu-Ray July 8th. The AppleTV+ original drama premiered in 2019 and soon earned a Primetime Emmy Nomination (2022) for Outstanding Special Effects. SEE takes place in the far future, where a virus has decimated humankind. Those who survived emerged blind. Jason Momoa stars as Baba Voss, the father of twins born centuries later with the mythic ability to see. He must protect his tribe against a powerful yet desperate queen who believes it’s witchcraft and wants them destroyed. Check out the trailer HERE. Continue reading ‘See: The Complete Series is released on Blu-ray July 8!’
June 4th, 2025 by Gerard Iribe
A director with a dark sensibility comparable to Chabrol, Claude Miller made these two twisty Polars (French Police-Noir films) with Michel Serrault (Kill the Referee), showcasing the actor in stunning performances alongside stars including Lino Ventura (Army of Shadows) and Isabelle Adjani (Possession, The Story of Adele H). In The Inquisitor cops Gallien (Ventura) and Belmont (Guy Marchand) interrogate Martinaud (Serrault), a wealthy lawyer, for the rape and murder of two young girls. The investigation becomes further complicated when his wife (Romy Schneider, Le combat dans l’ile) gives her statement… A gripping thriller with intense performances, The Inquisitor was a critical and commercial success on release, nominated for 8 César Awards, winning Best Screenplay and acting prizes for Serrault and Marchand. Serrault returns in Deadly Circuit as a P.I. who becomes obsessed with the target of his investigation, a murderer (Adjani) who he follows across Europe as she moves from one victim to another. Switching gears to pitch black humour this wild crime film features both leads on top form alongside a stunning supporting cast including Stephane Audran (The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie), Macha Méril (Deep Red), Sami Frey (Bande à part), and Jean-Claude Brialy (The Bride Wore Black) among others. Continue reading ‘The Inquisitor on 4K UHD Blu-ray August 18!’
June 4th, 2025 by Gerard Iribe
On the eve of the Third Italian War of Independence, Countess Livia Serpieri (Alida Valli, The Third Man) anxiously conspires to make revolution happen. Following a chance encounter at the opera, she begins an affair with Franz Mahler (Farley Granger, Rope), a charismatic Lieutenant in the occupying Austrian army who sent her rebellious cousin Marchese Roberto Ussoni (Massimo Girotti, Ossessione) into exile. As her feelings for Franz intensify, Livia’s moral compass waivers. Based on Camillo Boito’s novella, Alida Valli and Farley Granger shine in this masterful period melodrama about lust and deception. Senso is widely regarded as among director Luchino Visconti’s best work and was nominated for the Golden Lion at the 15th Venice International Film Festival. Continue reading ‘Senso on Blu-ray August 18!’
June 4th, 2025 by Gerard Iribe
Jan (Franciszek Trzeciak) and Maria (Anna Nieborowska) become a couple in 1930s Kraków. Jan tries to get a job as an architect but fails. They struggle with poverty and extreme humiliation. Their attempt to survive leads to a desperate crime. Remarkably filmed with precise close-ups and fragmented sound design creating a sense of unnerving dissonance, Through and Through was enthusiastically received on release and premiered at the Cannes Film Festival where it was compared to Dostoyevsky’s Crime and Punishment. Radiance Films is proud to present Grzegorz Królikiewicz’s film on Blu-ray for the first time in the world. Continue reading ‘Through and Through on Blu-ray August 18!’
June 4th, 2025 by Gerard Iribe
Three more spectacular tales of ninja action in this continuation of the hugely influential series. This time, Raizo Ichikawa (Shinobi 1-3) stars as Mist Saizo, a ninja with a grudge who won’t rest until he has assassinated the supreme leader, the Tokugawa shogun. directed by three of the Daiei Studio’s top period action specialists, these films feature epic battles, ingenious spycraft and thrilling ninja fights. In Siege, Raizo Ichikawa is Mist Saizo, the legendary folk hero and Iga ninja. Working in the service of warlord Yukimura Sanada (Tomisaburo Wakayama), he plots to assassinate Shogun Ieyasu Tokugawa, but finds himself facing the might of the nation’s supreme ruler. In Return of Mist Saizo, our black-clad hero continues his mission to avenge his master, even after Ieyasu has abdicated from the throne. Told as one continuous story, these two films weave their ninja action in and out of Japanese martial history, featuring epic battles, ingenious spycraft and thrilling fight scenes. In part 6, Mist Saizo’s son Saisuke takes over his father’s name and mission. He is recruited by a rebellious warlord to assist a plot to overthrow the government, but the Shogun hires a rival ninja clan to thwart the uprising. Meanwhile, other forces are also at play. Directed by Kazuo Mori (Shinobi 3: Resurrection, Zatoichi at Large), this film pits ninja against ninja, including a breathtaking rooftop battle scene that is one of the highlights of the entire Shinobi series. Continue reading ‘Shinobi: Vol 2 on Blu-ray August 18!’
May 30th, 2025 by Gerard Iribe
Buckle up for brain-melting disco, hallucinogenic mist, and some of the wildest production design ever to blast off from behind the Iron Curtain. In the Dust of the Stars finally arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of The DEFA Film Library in Germany, restoring this 1976 East German cult oddity to its full space-glam glory. Directed by Gottfried Kolditz (Signals: A Space Adventure), this one ditches the buttoned-up seriousness of Signals: A Space Adventure and goes all-in on psychedelic weirdness, synth-heavy grooves, and jaw-dropping costuming that feels equal parts Zardoz, Barbarella, and Space: 1999. It’s outrageous, it’s ridiculous, and somehow — it works. Even when the ship sets wobble and the budget strains, the sheer visual ambition keeps you locked in. And that mouth-spray disco scene? Instant sci-fi canon. Continue reading ‘In the Dust of the Stars (Blu-ray Review)’
May 30th, 2025 by Gerard Iribe
Dust off your space helmet and dial up the synths — Signals: A Space Adventure finally lands on Blu-ray, thanks to the restoration wizards at the DEFA Film Library in Germany. This 1970 East German sci-fi oddity blends Cold War tension with trippy futurism, serving up alien contact through the lens of socialist realism. Long out of reach for Western viewers, this new disc beams it back into orbit with style, substance, and more retro analog tech than a control room in 2001: A Space Odyssey. Continue reading ‘Signals: A Space Adventure (Blu-ray Review)’
May 28th, 2025 by Aaron Neuwirth
From The Criterion Collection – Wes Anderson’s first ten films represent twenty-five years (1996-2021) of irrepressible creativity, an ongoing ode to outsiders and quixotic dreamers, and a world unto themselves, graced with a mischievous wit and a current of existential melancholy that flows through every captivating frame. This momentous twenty-disc collector’s set includes new 4K masters of the films, over twenty-five hours of special features, and ten illustrated books, presented in a deluxe clothbound edition.
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– Continue reading ‘Criteron Collection Presents The Wes Anderson Archive (1996-2021) On 4K UHD This September’
May 27th, 2025 by Gerard Iribe
The first excursion into genre cinema by the celebrated French auteur Claire Denis, who had made her name with her previous features Chocolat and Beau Travail, Trouble Every Day is an erotically charged exploration of our darkest human desires and a key film in the development of what later came to be known as the New French Extremity movement. A dark and lyrical rumination on the pleasures of the flesh, Trouble Every Day is a remarkable work of extreme cinema that challenged critics and audiences upon its release before it came to be lauded as a modern classic. The Masters of Cinema series is honoured to present the film on 4K UHD for the first time anywhere in the world from a brand new restoration. * Both editions are strictly limited to single pressings which will not be reissued once sold out.
Continue reading ‘Trouble Every Day is released on 4K UHD Blu-ray August 18!’
May 8th, 2025 by Gerard Iribe
Written and directed by Lo Wei, the man behind the Bruce Lee’s international hits The Big Boss and Fist of Fury, The Tattooed Dragon was designed to bring martial arts superstar Jimmy Wang Yu (The One-Armed Swordsman) to a global audience still hungry for kung fu cinema in the aftermath of Lee’s death. Featuring Sylvia Chang (Slaughter in San Francisco) and James Tien (Shaolin Boxer) in a villainous role, it follows The Big Boss in pitting a legendary fighter against organised crime. The Tattooed Dragon is a showcase for Jimmy Wang Yu following his move from Shaw Brothers to Golden Harvest in the early 1970s, boasting cinematography by Cheung Yiu-tsou (Police Story) and stunts coordinated by Simon Hsu (The Flying Guillotine). Eureka Classics is proud to present The Tattooed Dragon for the first time on Blu-ray anywhere in the world from a new 2K restoration. Continue reading ‘The Tattooed Dragon is released on Blu-ray July 22!’
May 4th, 2025 by Gerard Iribe
Deeply scarred by what he witnessed on battlefields across Asia, a young war photographer (Yusaku Matsuda, Yokohama BJ Blues) returns to the bustling streets of Tokyo, plotting a series of brutal murders and robberies that are mere warmups for an unprecedented bank heist. Searching for an accomplice, he finds the short-fused and equally disenfranchised Tetsuo (Takeshi Kaga, Death Note). Directed by Toru Murakawa (The Game Trilogy) from a venomous script by Shoichi Maruyama (Yokohama BJ Blues), this unsettling dark thriller was Yusaku Matsuda’s farewell to his 1970s action hero persona. The Beast to Die is released on Blu-ray July 21, 2025! Continue reading ‘The Beast to Die is released on Blu-ray July 21!’
May 4th, 2025 by Gerard Iribe
Polish animation, influenced by jazz, poster design and collage, took off in the late 1950s when artists found creative freedom in the wake of Stalin’s death. Pioneering filmmakers like Walerian Borowczyk and Jan Lenica would change the form and usher in a golden age of filmmaking that would enable this art form to be appreciated around the world including winning prestigious international awards at festivals such as Cannes, Annecy, Oberhausen and an Oscar for Rybczyński’s Tango. This collection of 27 films spans the breakthrough works of the late 1950s to the close of the classic era in the 1980s, capturing some of the form’s essential films. Essential Polish Animation is released on Blu-ray in the UK July 21, 2025! Continue reading ‘Essential Polish Animation is released on Blu-ray July 21!’
