Avatar: The Way Of Water (4K UHD Blu-ray Review)
It was great joy to watch Avatar: The Way Of Water defy the Twitter crowd’s betting against Cameron/”No cultural footprint” movement regarding the Avatar films. The film exploding back to the big screens and the box office and Pandora once again ruled the galaxy. Its rollout was a more traditional one with having staying power in theaters, then heading to rental and then available for purchase. Its 4K Ultra-HD Blu-ray paired with the original for release on June 20th. It came with a Dolby Atmos track and a boatload of bonus materials. If you haven’t yet (Yes, I’m a bit late on my review), you can order using the paid Amazon Associates link at the the bottom of this page, following the review.
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One of the year’s best reviewed films comes from an adaptation of a book from much long ago, Judy Blume’s Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret. The film had a little run at the box office, but now has come to Blu-ray for more to see and go beyond the film with bonus features. Released by Lionsgate on July 11th, Are You There God? It’s Me Margaret. comes with a Dolby Atmos audio track, making of, deleted scenes and much much more. You can order yourself a copy by using the paid Amazon Associates link that follows the review at the bottom of the page.
One of the more buzzy flicks of this year is the Finnish action movie Sisu. In a year where many of the more traditional and practical action movies are killing it with audiences, this one is rated toward the top of the heap. After a little theatrical run for the import, Lionsgate has put it out on 4K Ultra-HD Blu-ay. Released on July 11th, the film comes with two featurettes and 5.1 TrueHD sound. You can order yourself a copy of this one by using the paid Amazon Associates link that follows the review at the bottom of the page.
Prepare for the time-bending adventure of a lifetime when “The Flash” arrives for purchase Digitally at home on July 18. The film is directed by Andy Muschietti with Ezra Miller reprising their role as The Flash/Barry Allen in the DC Super Hero’s first-ever standalone feature film. The film will also be available to purchase on 4K UHD, Blu-ray and DVD on August 29. “The Flash” ensemble also includes rising star Sasha Calle, Michael Shannon, Ron Livingston, Maribel Verdú, Kiersey Clemons, Antje Traue and Michael Keaton. “The Flash” is produced by Barbara Muschietti and Michael Disco. The screenplay is by Christina Hodson, with a screen story by John Francis Daley & Jonathan Goldstein and Joby Harold, based on characters from DC. The executive producers are Toby Emmerich, Walter Hamada, Galen Vaisman and Marianne Jenkins.
The sequel to a movie we never knew we needed came out of nowhere earlier this year – Book Club: The Next Chapter! I wrote that sentence initially because it’s absolute truth, however I also write it because, I can’t lie, I enjoyed this film. In some ways, it’s actually better than it’s predecessor. Do these movie besties, played by iconic actresses, fill the bill for a woman-centered light comedy? Find out in-depth below! Don’t forget to click the paid link after reading if you feel tempted to see what book the girls dive into this time…
2023 is the year we are supposed to see majority of the remainder for James Cameron’s catalog to be out on 4K Ultra-HD Blu-ray. Thanks to the help of his latest megabuster sequel, the original Avatar has made its way to the format. Sporting a new Dolby Atmos track and updated restoration, transfer, the disc hit the stores on June 20th. Its a 3-Disc set with 1 4K UHD disc and 2 accompanying Blu-rays. The second disc of said standard Blu-rays contains the extras. You’ll also get a digital code for redemption as well as a load of the original extras (and a couple new). This is an event film certainly worthy of most film collections, and you can make it yours with the ease of clicking the paid Amazon Associates link that follows the review.
One thing the studio folks seem to be learning here is…when you have a lower budgeted project…try popping it in the theaters to make some cash instead of being a streaming exclusive. Its two-fold. You make money in the theaters and then it becomes a more attracting thing to stream because of that. Warner learned that the right way with Evil Dead Rise, the fifth film in the Sam Raimi created series. Intended for Max, it wound up with quite a successful theatrical run. Now, its come to 4K Ultra-HD Blu-ray…without bonus features. Bummer, but hey, owning it on disc should be good enough for us collectors these days. It arrived on June 27th. You can order yourself a copy by clicking the paid Amazon Associates link that follows the review.
Warner is continuing to keep its promise on bringing a swath of classic catalog titles to 4K Ultra-HD Blu-ray for the first time for its 100th anniversary. Continuing on in June is the release of National Lampoon’s Vacation starring Chevy Chase in time for its 40th anniversary. No new features are here, but you do get a brand new transfer and lossless audio. The disc was released to the wild on June 27th. You can order yourself a copy by clicking on the paid Amazon Associates link at the end of the review.
One of the most gigantic movies of the year, and our only billion dollar earner in 2023, is The Super Mario Bros. Movie. A film that was predestined for success, it reached out to many generations in terms of interest. It still is making money, but Universal was like…lets do home video already. And so, on June 13th, they popped it out with no real notice. I personally didn’t get the 4K press release until it was already on shelves. But, anywho, there are a couple featurettes here and an Atmos track to bring it to live. Order yourself a copy, if you please, by using the paid Amazon Associates link at the end of the review.
John Wick: Chapter 4 proved one of the biggest blasts of “I friggin’ love movies” you could get in the first quarter of 2023. This latest installment on the hitman underground franchise with Keanu Reeves in the lead opened to rave reviews and big box office. Its now come home to 4K Ultra-HD Blu-ray for you to take in. Released on June 9th, it came with a Dolby Atmos track and a smattering of featurettes. You can order the film by on 4K by using the paid Amazon Associate link at the bottom of this review.
Movies that feature exorcism can either be the stuff of cinema legend (The Exorcist, The Exorcism of Emily Rose) or pure trash (Prey for the Devil). When this Russell Crowe shocker was released earlier in the spring, it did some decent business overseas and divided critics. Bringing The Pope’s Exorcist home on 6/13, you can now see for yourself where this newest entry in the exorcism subgenre fits. You’ll find a paid link at the end for you to snag yourself a copy!
Renfield was a project that sounded interesting and kept getting more and more interesting with casting, production details and then a pretty dynamite little trailer. And for the most part, the film absolutely delivered. Unfortunately, it didn’t deliver to enough people, being one of the more high profile unsuccessful films of 2023. Regardless, the Nicolas Cage plays Dracula flick has arrived on Blu-ray (June 6th) and you can either own the delightful little film you saw in the theater or check it out for the first time. It comes equipped with a 7.1 track and a pretty impressive host of extras for a film that bombed. If you’re interested in grabbing it now, don’t hesitate any further and order a copy using the paid Amazon Associates link that follows the review.
One of the year’s more notable wide releases that didn’t really connect with anyone, yet had an intriguing premise and trailer was that of the Adam Driver-starring 65. This comes from the writing team behind the A Quiet Place movies. This one bombed pretty badly, but no is the time to safely take it in; the comfort of your own home. The film released on 4K Ultra-HD Blu-ray on May 30th. 65 comes loaded with some featurettes, deleted material and a Dolby Atmos track. You can order yourself a copy of Adam Driver vs Dinos by using the paid Amazon Associates link that follows the review at the bottom of the page.
One the year’s big surprises was the big time appreciation for Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves. While people debate on the how good or worthy House of The Dragon and The Rings Of Power are on television, the original geek fantasy property took to the big screen for a well rounded, singular tale that aimed at a full enjoyment in one sitting. And now, you can own one of the year’s most like films on 4K Ultra-HD Blu-ray. It comes with plenty of featurettes and an Atmos track. It was released on May 30th and you can order yourself a copy by using the paid Amazon Associates link that follows the review at the bottom of this page. Scroll…or…roll your mouse to find it.
A personal favorite comic book superhero film of mine from the last 15 years is that of David F. Sandberg’s Shazam! It hit a lot of sweet spots for me and was an all around delightful affair. With that movie doing some lighter business, I was grateful we got a sequel. It took some time to get here, but Shazam! Fury of the Gods released this past March to some disappointing numbers. But, as I said, I was happy to have just one more adventure with these heroes. Debuting on Max and 4K Ultra-HD Blu-ray on May 23rd, the disc is loaded with bonus features, including a half hour of deleted material and a commentary from Sandberg. You can order yourself a copy by using the paid Amazon Associates link following the review.
One of the better ongoing franchise IPs for the last 8 years has been the resurgence of Rocky via Creed, which launched in 2016 with Ryan Coogler’s instant classic that garnered Sylvester Stallone his second acting Oscar nomination for the character of Rocky Balboa and continued the rise of Michael B. Jordan as a name above marquee star. The third film in the series, Creed III, saw the directorial debut of Michael B. Jordan. It was a big hit this past March, which was loaded with quality new releases in various franchises. The 4K Ultra-HD Blu-ray release, complete with two featurettes and deleted scenes, arrived on May 23rd. You can order yourself a copy of it by clicking on the paid Amazon Associates link that follows the review.
Scream Factory continues its upgrades of previous Collector’s Edition titles with Wes Craven’s The People Under The Stairs. Here’s hoping maybe some more Craven is coming somewhere down the pipeline. This updated disc will feature a 4K scan of the original camera negative. Extra from the previous edition are ported over as well as the interviews featured on the 2013 Arrow Video Blu-ray of the film. You can pre-order the release, which comes out at the very end of the month on May 30th, by using the paid Amazon Associates link that follows the end of the review.
An essential piece of the multimedia lore of Superman has been the Max Fleischer Superman cartoons of the 1940s. They’ve been on Blu-ray before, via a more rough and not high quality. The Superman film box set included them, but they were rough SD ports from the DVD set of those film. Warner Bros, in coordination with the 4K Superman set coming out this month, is putting a restored/remastered standalone release of them out on May 16th. Popping on a new featurette, will this be a definitive version of these or will people still wish better could happen. Well, read the review and discover for yourself. And if you feel the need to dive in, go ahead and pre-order a copy using the paid Amazon Associates link following the review.
