Step By Step (Blu-ray Review)
July 15th, 2021 by Brandon Peters
This month from Warner Archive Collection sees a pair of classic noir tales being restored and brought to the Blu-ray format for the very first time. One of those is 1946’s Step By Step. It was one of the last films directed by Phil Rosen who had done a good handful of the popular Charlie Chan films. Rosen’s career has 143 directorial credits to his name which is an insane amount of films, but that was the way the studio workhouse produced back in those early days. You’ll be able to pick this one up and add to your collection when it releases on July 20th. You can pre-order it using the paid Amazon Associates link that follows the review.
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Both the Saw franchise and Fast and Furious franchises landed on their ninth installments here in 2021, originally meant for 2020 (Give or take Hobbes and Shaw. And I’ve seen where this new one being the ninth in the Saw storyline is debatable. Overcomplicated narratives is par for the course on screen and offscreen for these two sequel machines). Saw obviously darted out to a bigger lead with seven years of consecutive sequels before taking a hiatus until Jigsaw a few years ago. Spiral: From The Book of Saw grabbed attention when it brought Chris Rock on board not just to star but to produce and do the story. Toss in Samuel L. Jackson and you’ve instantly the highest profile Saw film to date. Spiral was my first film back to the theaters post-vaccination. Its arriving on 4K Ultra-HD Blu-ray on July 20th, where I imagine more people are going to discover this latest Saw film. You can pre-order it from the paid Amazon Associates link below for hopeful arrival when it releases.
Paramount’s 4K Ultra-HD debut of Cameron Crowe’s masterpiece Almost Famous is one of my most anticipated releases of the year. In a year where 4K Ultra-HD is have a banner year for great titles, nonetheless. This beloved film has a brand new restoration and will have brand new bonus materials to boot. Quite possibly one of the best features of it will be that it includes both the theatrical and director’s cuts of the film (On their own discs, too). Prior to this release, the theatrical version of the film never made the jump from DVD to Blu-ray. It feels like Paramount has gone all out to craft an all encompassing and most definitive version of the film on 4K Ultra-HD Blu-ray right from the start. Almost Famous even comes packaged in a steelbook in the first wave. You’ll be able to have it to own on July 13th, and you can pre-order a copy now using the paid Amazon Associates link following the review.
July’s contribution to the Paramount Presents line is kind of a beautiful two-fer. One is a film that had a prior release with a subpart transfer and the other has never been on Blu-ray before. And together, they both make and complete a series of film. Walter Hill’s 48 Hrs and Another 48 Hrs starring Nick Nolte and Eddie Murphy will be getting the fancy editions featuring new interviews with Walter Hill. Both are getting brand new 4K restorations as well. This early edition of what would become the buddy cop genre will be landing on shelves (maybe?) on July 6th. This review will cover the sequel, Another 48 Hrs. You can pre-order using the paid Amazon Associates link below to land yourself a copy of this new Blu-ray if you so please. 
July’s contribution to the Paramount Presents line is kind of a beautiful two-fer. One is a film that had a prior release with a subpart transfer and the other has never been on Blu-ray before. And together, they both make and complete a series of film. Walter Hill’s 48 Hrs and Another 48 Hrs starring Nick Nolte and Eddie Murphy will be getting the fancy editions featuring new interviews with Walter Hill. Both are getting brand new 4K restorations as well. This early edition of what would become the buddy cop genre will be landing on shelves (maybe?) on July 6th. This review will cover the first film, 48 Hrs. You can pre-order using the paid Amazon Associates link below to land yourself a copy of this new Blu-ray if you so please.
Just in time for LeBron James long awaited take on the Looney Tunes meets NBA superstar big screen adventure, Warner Bros is giving the original Michael Jordan starring Space Jam its 4K Ultra-HD Blu-ray update. As has been proven over the last decade or so, there is a fondness or nostalgia for any given cinematic property from someone’s childhood. I’d never imagined the original Space Jam would be anything more than a footnote/fun fact in the storied career of Michael Jordan, but if you check out social media, you’ll find its some sort of beloved classic to a generation in the same way Hook has turned out to be. But, if the film makes people happy, then so be it, what’s the harm in that. The original Space Jam will be available July 6th. You can pre-order it to secure yourself a copy by using the paid Amazon Associates link following the review.
Boogie is another in a long line of “sports dramas.” The price of fame, romance, and the inevitable showdown at the end… Yep, it’s all there. But does it hold up the formula or bring it down? Eddie Huang breaking out of his producer’s chair to write and direct has delivered this entry, which became available on Blu-ray way back in early June! Check out my thoughts as I go in depth, and if the mood strikes you, go ahead and click the link at the end to get yourself a copy of Boogie.
The other western coming this month from Warner Archive Collection is the 1968 Anthony Quinn/Charles Bronson starring film Guns For San Sebastian. To contrast with the other western Blu-ray coming out this month from Warner Archive Collection (There Was A Crooked Man…), Guns For San Sebastian is spaghetti western production. Little be it known that this was one of the few actually shot in Mexico instead of Italy. The release comes with a little vintage featurette and the trailer in its debut. You can land yourself a copy by using the paid Amazon Associates link that follows the review.
Warner Archive Collection in the month of June once again has itself a nifty lineup of classics. And that group that includes some westerns and musicals also features a Humphrey Bogart film making its way to Blu-ray for the very first time. Bogey this time will have the Sturt Heisler helmed film Chain Lightning debuting. It was base on a story written by famous black listed writer Lester Cole. You’ll be able to grab this one when it arrives on the format on June 22nd. And if you’re wanting to pick this one up while also feeling so very generous to the site, you can use the paid Amazon Associates link following the review to land yourself a copy.
Warner Archive Collection continues its seemingly effortless crusade to do some of the finest restoration on classic cinema of all eras and genres and bring it to Blu-ray for the first time month in and month out. Plenty of westerns of all types have been given their due in this line. A few of them come this month of June. One of which is 1970’s There Was Crooked Man… starring Kirk Douglas. Considering the big cast of Douglas, Henry Fonda, Burgess Meredith, Lee Grant, Warren Oates, Michael Blodgett, John Randolph paired with it being directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz; I’m surprised it took this long to make its way to the format. Nonetheless, it made its debut on June 8th. You can order yourself a copy today using the paid Amazon Associates link following the review. 
Incredible to think Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory is 50 years old. So obviously its time for its candidacy for the 4K Ultra-HD Blu-ray format to come to present itself. Warner Brothers is giving us a brand new edition, though its mainly for the new 4K transfer of the film. It looks as if they’ll just be carrying over the previous edition’s standard Blu-ray which is where you’ll find the extras. All well enough, what more can folks say about it on the bonus materials (Aside from wondering who the hell wants this Timothee Chalamet prequel thing they are dumping money into). The Gene Wilder classic arrives on the format June 29th. It’s available for ordering now and you can do so by using the paid Amazon Associates link following the review.
Paramount Presents has only been around for a year, but they have a heck of a track record so far. With fantastic presentations of films never before on the Blu-ray format and ones that are getting better versions than they had before, its covering a wide range. They come in a nifty little signature case and slip cover and feature great restorations. In June (back on the 15th to be exact), Paramount Presents is welcoming the John Sturges western Last Train From Gun Hill with Kirk Douglas and Anthony Quinn to the collection. Not much is added to the bonus features, but this has also never been on Blu-ray before. And woo-golly is this picture restoration a delight to behold. You’ll really need to see this with your own eyes! Its available now, and you can order it using the Amazon Associates link below the review.
I’m not alone when I say that Batman: The Long Halloween is one of my favorite and best tales of the Dark Knight ever laid to paper. So, it was with great excitement when I not only found out that the DCAU was producing an adaptation of it, but that they were also splitting it into two parts and trying to give the story a full appreciation. You’ll recall that Christopher Nolan and David Goyer were influenced a bit by this story when crafting the first two films in their Batman trilogy, but this is the one that is pulling it straight from the page. With a voice cast that boasts Jensen Ackles as Batman and Josh Duhamel as Harvey Dent, this summer is all about the pumpkins as Part One will land on Blu-ray June 22nd. Part Two will be arriving on August 10th. Both are available for pre-order and you can use the paid Amazon Associates link following the review to nab yourself a copy. Or you can wait for the 4K release that combines both parts later in the year.
Action flicks are in a rather good place nowadays. We seem to have moved into an era with relatively solid directors. Films that aren’t reliant on post production shaky cam or ones that know how to appropriately utilize the tactic for good effect. John Wick being the current mainstream posterchild for big action greatness, anything with someone associated is going to garner attention. Now comes Nobody from the guy who wrote John Wick. This pandemic blockbuster hit theaters and did a decent global haul considering the low budget and environment it came out it. Its also a perfect picture for the drive-in during this time. Now its coming to glorious 4K Ultra-HD Blu-ray, where I’m sure more people are going to see and fall for this little gem. It arrives on June 22! You can order it using the paid Amazon Associates link below.
Low and behold, for the 40th anniversary of Raiders of the Lost Ark, we are gifted all the of the Indiana Jones film on the glorious 4K Ultra-HD Blu-ray format. Sure, there will be a future set with the not yet as of now named Indiana Jones 5 filming for release in the summer of 2022. This new set is essentially what we were given for standard Blu-ray, with new transfers, audio and packaging providing the appeal. All previous bonus materials have been ported over. And if you’re thinking, “well, that’s not enough new or bonus for me”, then you haven’t had a look at these stunning new transfers (Along with the updated color timing and revamped image for Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull). The set was releases on June 8th, but had some replication delays and has slowly been being dispersed around. So its very possible you’ve had this in your hands and watched it 3 times over before I could get this review up. And if not, please use the paid Amazon Associates link below to land yourself a copy. 
Back in March, far too many fans of the King of the Monsters and the Big Ape didn’t have the opportunity to experience their epic brawl, Godzilla Vs. Kong on IMAX (or any traditional theater, really) because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Most, if not everyone I knew in Los Angeles, avoided the big screens unless it was a drive-in. Fortunately, the fourth film in Legendary Pictures’ MonsterVerse was available, like other major releases from Warner Bros. this year, simultaneously in theaters and on HBO Max for one month. For those of us with 4K TVs, this meant a pretty pristine – although small no matter how big your television was – presentation. And this is assuming you had a fast internet to stream that fancy 4K Dolby Vision with Dolby Atmos. So does this traditional boxed version hold up? Is it noticeably superior to what you saw on HBO Max? Let’s find out!
It doesn’t feel like it happens a lot anymore, but in the case of The Courier, titles can be changed from theatrical release to home video or whatnot. Sure, some get subtitles or shortened versions of their titles when they come to home video/digital. But, The Courier premiered at Sundance about a year and half ago and it was at that time titled Ironbark. That’s a much more interesting title, though The Courier is safer and does suit the film as well. So Ironbark is arriving on Blu-ray as The Courier and comes with a nifty little featurette on the making of the film along with the DVD and a digital copy of the movie. The film was released on Blu-ray on June 1st and you’re able to order it using the Amazon link below. 
