‘No Time To Die’ Brings An Explosive End To Craig’s Bond Era (Movie Review)
No Time To Die, the 25th film in the long-running James Bond series, finally hits theaters this weekend. Nearly two years after its initially scheduled release, Daniel Craig’s final outing as Her Majesty’s favorite “blunt instrument” features the longest run time yet, at 163 min. Other fun tidbits? Six years is the biggest gap ever between films, with Spectre released way back in 2015. As such, ex-president Donald Trump is the only Commander-in-Chief to not have a Bond film released during his term. Finally, pop phenom Billie Eilish is the youngest artist to record a James Bond theme song. That song is also the only one in Grammy history to be awarded before the movie was released. Okay, okay, but how is the actual film???
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While I missed the boat on the original Space Jam, I understand the idea of trying to cash in on it again, generations later with LeBron James. Its a sort of cute and harmless little bit of nostalgia, kind of like the original was in just coming into existence. The film wound up finding itself some nice success, finishing in the top 10 global earners for the summer and had decent numbers stateside as well as its day and date streaming on HBO Max. Now the fourth quarter is here for the film’s release and its arriving on 4K Ultra-HD Blu-ray. It’ll be in a combo pack with the Blu-ray version and have a digital code. Space Jam: A New Legacy will have 4 featurettes and deleted scenes to round out the bonus material. You can pre-order yourself a copy by using the paid Amazon Associates link that follows the review down below.
Free Guy arrives to everyone on Blu-ray on October 12th! We are offering you a chance to win a free copy of the film with this brand new giveaway! All you need to do is watch the video below and follow the instructions. Have your entry in by Monday, October 4th (10/4/2021). I’ll be announcing the winner on my YouTube channel at the end of the week, Friday, October 8th (10/8/2021). Make sure you either subscribe to my YouTube channel or follow me on Twitter or Instagram @brandon4KUHD. Fun film, not hard to enter, and a chance to take home a free copy of this wonderful Blu-ray. Why not give it a shot?
While we bask in the continued greatness and experience of Once Upon A Time …In Hollywood, there’s plenty of work to be done on the home video catalog for Quentin Tarantino. We don’t have much at all of it on the 4K Ultra-HD Blu-ray format. We get a bit of a jump on it this month, as 2009’s Inglourious Basterds makes its way to the format. The film was considered somewhat of a big bounce back for Tarantino after Grindhouse failed to find more than a cult audience. It also introduced much of the world to the wonderful Christoph Waltz. It arrives in a combo pack and retains its bonus features while not adding anything new to the mix for this release. Nonetheless, getting a new 4K remaster of a Tarantino film from Sony is treat enough itself. You’ll be able to own it starting on October 12th and can pre-order yourself a copy by utilizing the paid Amazon Associates link that follows the review at the bottom of the page.
One of my first crushes in my life from my own memory was that of Elvira, Mistress of the Dark. As a child in the 80s, she hosted spooky movies on TV and was a spokesperson for many a beer or other kind of television commercial. Cassandra Peterson in character was the poisoned apple of my young little eye. During he pop culture apex she was given her own starring film. Oddly enough it wouldn’t be for another 13 years that she’d see her second. Elvira’s Haunted Hills. While having a couple screenings, it wound up a direct to video release. Thankfully, the folks at Scream Factory see it fit to celebrate this cult item with a brand new collector’s edition of it featuring a 4K restoration and some new bonus features. The Blu-ray lands on shelves (likely virtual shelves) on October 5th, which gives you plenty of time to order it from the paid Amazon Associates link below to have in time and watch during your spooky season cinema sessions!
The Flash resumed business as usual on the CW this past year, albeit with a later start than normal. But, that was the case for all of their shows as the pandemic caused them to halt and abruptly end their previous seasons and new Covid-conscience shooting methods took a bit more time to get things going. The Scarlet Speedster has long remained the most popular character and show since its debut as the first spinoff of Arrow and now will continue to an eighth season. Where it’s predecessor once close out on an eighth season, The Flash appears like it may continue on. Perhaps the pandemic has extended its life beyond plans. But before that season begins, you can catch up by watching the Seventh Season on Blu-ray when it arrives on October 12th. It features some deleted scenes, gag reel and featurettes. You can own it and add to your collection by using the paid Amazon Associates pre-order link that follows after the review.
One of the summer 2021 box office season’s biggest surprises was the Ryan Reynolds led Free Guy. A film which many of us were very familiar with, seeing the trailer in theaters and online for a quite a long time. That was the case with plenty of movies, but Free Guy sort of stuck out. However, it wound up being a pretty nice hit and was an original film having people wanting to got to the theater to see it. That’s a great thing. The movie being pretty good had something to do with that as well. Now it arrives on 4K Ultra-HD Blu-ray from Fox via Disney and you can own it with its Atmos track and assorted bonus features on October 12th.
Marvel Studios’
This year’s recipient of the prestigious Palme d’Or at the Cannes International Film Festival, Titane, is filmmaker Julia Ducournau’s follow-up to her 2016 feature debut, Raw. That film focused on a vegan who becomes a predatory cannibal after her first experience with meat. Turns out Raw was merely a (excuse the pun) tasty appetizer to the kind of dread, violence and, ultimately, heart delivered by this year’s award winner. Clearly, such a film was never going be for “the masses” but what exactly is Titane anyways?
Exactly three years after the original film made a whopping $856 million at the global box office, Spider-Man’s gooey nemesis returns to the big screen. Venom: Let There Be Carnage opens after numerous delays and finally, a confidant “let’s open this early!” from Sony. The original was dismissed by critics, but what the heck do they (or yours truly) know about appreciating Marvel’s take on body horror. I, for one, did appreciate Tom Hardy’s double duty as lunkhead human Eddie Brock and as the voice of the funny symbiote from another world, Venom. Is more of what worked in the first installment enough to sustain an 82 min follow-up? Read on…
America’s favorite crazy scientist and his grandson return for their long-awaited and highly anticipated misadventures when the latest season of Adult Swim’s hit series Rick and Morty: The Complete Fifth Season arrives on Blu-ray Steelbook, Blu-ray and DVD on December 7, 2021. From creators Justin Roiland (“Solar Opposites”) and Dan Harmon (“Community”), get ready to binge on one of cables #1 watched comedies featuring all 10 episodes from Season 5, and outrageous bonus content including the never-before-seen featurette – “Fighting Gravity”: The Making of Season 5. Exclusive to the set, follow co-creator Dan Harmon and the crew as they reflect on the challenges of completing this season in the middle of a pandemic. Additional special features include “Inside the Episode” segments for every episode, numerous featurettes, and more. Rick and Morty: The Complete Fifth Season is priced to own on DVD, Blu-ray and Blu-ray Steelbook. Rick and Morty: The Complete Fifth Season is also available to own on Digital via purchase from digital retailers. 
Warner Bros. Home Entertainment announced today that The Mad Max Anthology, featuring 1979’s acclaimed post-apocalyptic action film Mad Max, 1981’s Mad Max The Road Warrior, 1985’s Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome and 2015’s Mad Max Fury Road will be released together on 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray Combo Pack and Digital HD on November 2. Created by George Miller and Byron Kennedy, Miller directed or co-directed all four films. 
From legendary director Akira Kurosawa (Rashomon, Seven Samurai) comes his sweeping action epic RAN. Ran arrives November 16th on 4K Ultra HD™ Steelbook from Lionsgate, exclusively at Best Buy. Akira Kurosawa’s RAN is a visually dazzling samurai epic that blends King Lear, 16th-century feudal Japan, and Kurosawa’s own notions of loyalty and honor to tell the story of aging Lord Hidetora, whose decision to bequeath his kingdom to his three sons sparks a power struggle that leads to chaos and madness. Hailed as a masterpiece by filmmakers and cinephiles alike, and winner of the 1985 Oscar® for Costume Design, Ran is a sumptuous 4K feast. Featuring all new artwork from artist Zi Xu, Ran will be available on 4K Ultra HD™ Steelbook at Best Buy on November 16th. 
Directed by Hal Ashby and written by Colin Higgins, the critically acclaimed cult classic HAROLD AND MAUDE arrives on Blu-ray as part of the Paramount Presents line December 7, 2021 from Paramount Home Entertainment. Originally released on December 20, 1971, HAROLD AND MAUDE celebrates its 50th anniversary this year and has been beautifully restored and remastered for this Limited-Edition release. For the restoration, the original negative was scanned in 4K and careful color correction and cleanup were undertaken to pay homage to director of photography John Alonzo’s memorable work and honor the look of the film. In addition, the incredible soundtrack was completely remixed using recently discovered tracks to add clarity and depth.
The Marx Bros are one of cinema’s greatest comedic groups of all time. In fact, their work comes so early in the history of the medium that they very much are pioneers of comedy. In an important way, they were sort of a bridge between silent films and talkies. Universal released a nice set years ago on Blu-ray, but that was only roughly have of the catalog. The other half remained in a set over at Warner Bros. With the September 28th release of A Night At The Opera, Warner Bros begins the march through that set. It includes all the bonus materials that were previously released on the DVD disc. One can hope this becomes an almost monthly endeavor like the Michael Curtiz films or at least at the pace of the Thin Man series. You can order yourself a copy of the hilarious A Night At The Opera on Blu-ray by using the paid Amazon Associates link that follows the review.
I’ll probably sound like a very broken record here, but one of my favorite things to look out for in the Warner Archive monthly set of catalog releases is a new one from the filmography of Michael Curtiz. The director has a ton of movies to his name, so there is a lot still out there (Including Captain Blood, dangit!). With almost a once a month spot for him in the schedule, September has landed on Santa Fe Trail. This one is another of his collaborations with actor superstar of the time, Errol Flynn. Also appearing in the film is former President of the United States Ronald Reagan. You be able to take a beautiful, new high definition look at the film when you order it. Santa Fe Trail was released on September 14th. You can use the paid Amazon Associates link that follows the review if you’d like to do so and help out the site.
The 1970s were not short on films serving as character studies of some of the more ruthless individuals. The anti-heroes as we like to call them. 1978 saw Dustin Hoffman playing an ex-con freshly released from prison who just couldn’t keep away from the people and the life in Straight Time. As heralded as the film was upon release (Roger Ebert’s top film of that year), it seems to have drifted far from the conversation in terms of classics and films to study from the cinematic yesteryear. Judging by it finally coming to Blu-ray in 2021, that basically confirms its importance in the studio catalog. No matter, Warner Archive Collection is finally putting out the film. It was released on Blu-ray on September 21sth. In addition to an upgrade in sound and picture quality, the disc also features a commentary from Dustin Hoffman and the director. You can order yourself a copy to own (You really should check this one out) from the paid Amazon Associates link below the review.
Batwoman just wrapped up its second season as it heads into a third one coming very soon. The second season was largely noted as Ruby Rose dropped a bombshell that she wouldn’t be returning. Not the first time a big star has left a show. But, in today’s superhero climate, how would that be handled. My thoughts on that make up the bulk of my review, but its important. The second season gets some extras in the form of a gag reel, deleted scenes and two featurettes for the Blu-ray release. It will be available on September 21st, which you can order yourself a copy by using the glorious paid Amazon Associates link that follows the review.
