Wow, now Warner Brothers are really talking, classics in addition to recent releases. Casablanca, the Forbidden Planet and Mutiny on the Bounty are making their way to HD DVD on November 14th.

From the Warner Brothers Press Release:

BURBANK, Calif.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Warner Home Video will release six new high definition titles on November 14. Making their HD DVD debuts are the incomparable Casablanca, the spectacular 1962 Marlon Brando remake of Mutiny on the Bounty, and the 50th Anniversary edition of Forbidden Planet, which is being released day-and-date with its Standard Definition version.

Forbidden Planet will be available as a 50th Anniversary HD DVD and as an Ultimate Collectors Edition packaged in a stunning metal case that includes the HD DVD, a collectible Robby the Robot replica with moveable limbs, Forbidden Planet and The Invisible Boy reproduction lobby cards portfolio, as well as a Forbidden Planet original theatrical poster mail-in offer.

Novembers going to be hell on my wallet, viva la HD DVD!

R.Hollis

The guys over at Movies @ Home Theater Blog have already posted a review of Batman Begins and it looks like a winner. From the pristine 1080p transfer to the Dolby TrueHD soundtrack the reviewer dubs the disc an easy recommendation. Here are a few other quotes from the review.

“I was hard pressed to pick out any noticeable film grain, this is one extremely clean transfer and what little grain is present hardly takes away from the overall presentation.”

“Of all the dark films I’ve viewed on HD DVD (and it seems to be a disproportionate amount) ‘Batman Begins’ produced the most discernable low-level shadow detail”

“To be quite honest the [Batman Begins] HD DVD provides a better viewing experience than what I remember from the theater.”

Sounds like a great disc, read the ‘Batman Begins’ review in its entirety here.

R.Hollis

Warner Brothers have announced several interesting HD DVD titles for October 10th, the long awaited ‘Batman Begins’, ‘Tim Burton’s Corpse Bride’, ‘The Polar Express’, ‘Charlie and the Chocolate Factory’ and the original starring Gene Wilder ‘Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory’.

I for one am very happy to see the original Willy Wonka on HD DVD, Johhny Depp just didn’t nail this role as well as Wilder in my opinion. After all these years those bright colors and lo-tech stage sets should look fantastic in HD.

‘Batman Begins’ and ‘Charlie and the Chocolate Factory’ on HD DVD will feature the interactive ‘In Movie Experience’ (IME), no mention on other features or extras at this time. The October 10th HD DVD titles will be available for $28.99.

R.Hollis

Well folks there you have it, ever since the launch of both Blu-ray and HD DVD many have wondered when the big Hollywood blockbusters would make their way to the fledgling HD formats and prove the studios were serious about their success.

It looks like November 14th is that date for HD DVD owners. Let’s hope this is the first of many big titles that will propel the format forward.

King Kong on HD DVD is available for pre-order now ($29.98) the discs details are somewhat limited at the moment; here is what Universal has up so far:

Run Time: 3 Hours 8 Minutes
Subtitles: English SDH, French, Spanish
Picture: Widescreen (2.35:1)
MPAA Rating: PG-13
CARA Reasons: For Frighting Adventure Violence and Some Disturbing Images

Audio
•English Dolby Digital Plus 5.1 Surround
•French Dolby Digital Plus 5.1 Surround
•Spanish Dolby Digital Plus 5.1 Surround

R.Hollis

Hey look at that, Reign of Fire on HD DVD. I’m not quite sure what to make of this but it appears as if Pony Canyon will be distributing a Buena Vista Pictures/Spyglass Entertainment release on HD DVD in Japan.

Could this be the first of many? Are Buena Vista titles limited to Japan only? I’ll post an update as soon as I have more information.

Source Page: AV Watch
Translated: Google Translation (its rough)

–Update– ok I’ve already received a couple of email from folks who didn’t seem to get the tongue-in-cheek nature of the post. No Disney won’t be supporting HD DVD just yet; these discs are almost always released under an agreement to a independent distribution company by Buena Vista International. As it turns out this isn’t even the first ‘Buena Vista Pictures’ HD DVD, that honor goes to Finding Neverland.

R.Hollis

Better late than never I suppose, Paramount has announced their up-coming HD DVD’s releases for July 25th, August 1st and 10th.

HD DVD’s streeting on July 25th include: Sahara, Tomb Raider, Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow and Sleepy Hollow.

The Following Tuesday (August 1st) will see the release of: Four Brothers, We Were Soldiers and The Manchurian Candidate. Followed by: U2: Rattle and Hum, Aeon Flux and The Italian Job on August 8th.

Suggested retail for all of Paramount’s HD DVD’s is $29.95, as always keep an eye out for specials and promotional pricing.

R.Hollis.

A duke and a king on HD-DVD, Warner Brothers has announced that The Dukes of Hazzard and Enter the Dragon will be released on HD-DVD July 11th.

“Dukes will be the second HD-DVD offered by WB with In-Movie Experience (IME) extra features. No specifics on what these features are were offered other than they’d be “rouble-making, car-crashing and barroom-brawling.” All extra features available on the standard DVD version will be included along with Dolby Digital Plus 5.1 audio.

“Enter the Dragon” will not be blessed with IME features but like Dukes will also have the same suite of extras from the standard DVD version and Dolby Digital Plus 5.1 audio.

Both titles will carry an SRP of $28.99.”

Source: The Man Room

R.Hollis

Let’s face it, both Blu-ray and HD-DVD titles and hardware could hardly be considered cheap, one may be less expensive than the other but that doesn’t mean either format is pocket change.

I for one look forward to any cost savings I can get, which is why I’m happy to hear that Universal plans to reduce the price of their HD-DVD’s, by five dollars on each of their titles.

Universals HD-DVD’s that previously retailed for $34.95 will soon sell for $29.95.

R.Hollis

Ok first the good news, the HD-DVD Promotion Group has released a pdf with new HD-DVD titles; the bad news is that many of these previously un-announced titles have no released date associated with them.

Some of the titles that immediately caught my attention were: The Aviator, The Lord of the Rings Trilogy, The Matrix Trilogy and The Ultimate Star Trek Movie Collection.

Sounds like a sci-fi windfall if you ask me. I won?t bore you with listing off the previously announced titles, but here are some titles I don?t think we?ve seen as confirmed until now, at least not all of them.

By the way, ????? translates as “Sale day undecided” in the pdf.

A few of those titles may not be released domestically, or rather while noted might be for Japansese release only.

R.Hollis

Both Blazing Saddles and The Fugitive will be released on HD-DVD May 23rd. Both titles will retail for $28.99, although I’m sure you can save a little on that price from the likes of Amazon or other on-line retailers.

Bonus materials will be the same found on the Standard Definition versions of each of the two titles.

R.Hollis

With HD-DVD barely 10 days old in the United States, two additional movie distributors have announced plans for a combined 25+ titles to be launched in the coming months.

StudioCanal plans to distribute HD-DVD titles such as The Deer Hunter, The Elephant Man, Terminator 2, The Graduate, The Pianist, Mulholland Drive, Traffic and one of my all time favorites The Brotherhood of the Wolf.

Magnolia Home Entertainment plans to release five HD-DVD titles in the coming months, namely: Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room, Bubble, The War Within, Bikini Destinations and HDNet World Report Special: Shuttle Discovery?s Historic Mission.

It?s nice to see some lesser known and ?library? type titles slated for launch. I?m really looking forward to seeing how The Graduate and Brotherhood of the Wolf look on HD-DVD.

Sources: Home Media Retailing and MovieWeb

R.Hollis