A Close Look at Masters of Cinema's Two Lane Blacktop and Silent Running Steelbooks

Masters of Cinema has been releasing some excellent Blu-rays recently, and we're going to take a closer look at a couple of its Steelbooks, Monte Hellman's Two Lane Blacktop and Doug Trumbull's Silent Running.

Both films are making their Blu-ray debut here and are available as both standard editions and these limited edition Steelbooks, complete with custom artwork.  The cases are both white - and in Silent Running's case, completely white on the back - and feature subtle, but appropriate cover images.

We'll start with Silent Running, which features a beautifully restored 1080p transfer in the original 1.85:1 aspect ratio, and DTS-HD audio track.  If the loving attention given to the image doesn't inspire you to pick this disc up, then the extra features may do:

• Commentary track with Doug Trumbull and Bruce Dern.
• The Making of Silent Running. The 1972 documentary which runs for 50 minutes.
• A conversation with Bruce Dern.
• Video conversations with Doug Trumbull.
• Isolated score.
• Original trailer.

Inside the set is a small 48-page booklet with interview snippets from the crew, on set pictures and rare artwork.  The disc is labelled as Region B.

For Two Lane Blacktop, the cover art is perhaps less successful than Silent Running's, but the addition of the bold, black text on the rear cover looks great.  It too has been restored, a process supervised and approved by the director, plus in addition to the original mono audio track, it has a new DTS-HD 5.1 remix too.

Here are the extras:

• Commentary track with Monte Hellman and producer Gary Kurtz.
• On the Road Again: Two Lane Blacktop Revisited. A 43 minute documentary revisiting the locations from the film.
• Somewhere Near Salinas.  Monte Hellman interviews Kris Kristofferson.
• Sure Did Talk to You.  Interviews with the producer, production manager and Hellman's son.
• Archival Test Footage.
• Isolated score.
• Original trailer.

Like Silent Running, a 36-page booklet can be found inside the Steelbook, with an on-set report and a new essay on the movie.  The set is also locked to Region B.

Silent Running appears to have sold out online, although copies of Two Lane Blacktop can still be found.

 

Early Release for Star Wars The Phantom Menace 3D Blu-ray?

With Star Wars Episode One - The Phantom Menace in 3D currently showing in cinemas, it's perhaps a surprise to hear about a potential Blu-ray release, however according to TechRadar it could be coming sooner than we'd normally expect.

However, there's a catch.  Like the Blu-ray of Star Wars, Panasonic is being rumoured to have snapped up the rights to The Phantom Menace in 3D, and will be packaging the movie with its home cinema sets in the spring.

This would be a very fast turnaround, and a massive coup for Panasonic, however a more feasible September date is also being suggested.

At this stage there's no mention of the film being an exclusive title to Panasonic, so fans shouldn't face the same problems as they did with Avatar.  It also means there's a chance it'll hit retail around the same time as it becomes available through Panasonic.

Amazon UK and USA both have place-holder pages for the 3D Blu-ray, but neither have dates attached. This points to a release schedule which will follow the theatrical re-release, in that we'll get one a year instead of an entire 3D boxset at the end. Although don't rule out a deluxe version when we get to Return of the Jedi in six years' time.

Oscar Blu-ray: The Artist Coming in April

Already having bagged several high-profile awards including Best Actor at Cannes and the BAFTA for Best Film of the Year, The Artist has been confirmed for its Blu-ray release ahead of The Academy Awards at the end of the month.  The film has 10 nominations, and is widely tipped to take home several Oscar statues at the end of the night.

The Artist will be released on the 24th April in the USA, and although it has yet to be confirmed for the UK, it has been speculated it will go on sale on the 7th May.

The disc will be presented in 1080p and will use the original 1.37:1 aspect ratio.  The press release didn't include details on the audio format, but we'd expect a DTS-HD Master Audio track.

Extra features are as follows:

• The Artist: The Making of a Hollywood Love Story.
• Hollywood As a Character: The Locations of The Artist.
• Blooper Reel.
• Cast and Crew Q&A.

As that's hardly a stellar collection of extras, it's probably safe to assume we're in for a deluxe version of The Artist in the future.

 

2D and 3D Editions of Hugo Announced Following Oscar Nomination Success

Martin Scorsese's Hugo has been nominated for 11 Academy Awards in total, including Best Picture and Best Director, and has been cited as the best 3D picture to be released since the format's resurgence.  Now the film has been announced for its Blu-ray release, and will come in either a Combo Pack with the DVD and the Blu-ray, or as a 3D Limited Edition.

The film will be presented in 1080p with a 7.1 DTS-HD Master Audio track, plus a variety of extras listed below.  The 3D set will add a 3D Blu-ray disc to the standard Combo Pack.  For the US release, an UltraViolet digital copy will also be available to download or stream online.

• Shoot the Moon: The Making of Hugo Documentary.
• The Cinemagician, Georges Melies.
• The Mechanical Man at the Heart of Hugo.
• Big Effects, Small Scale.
• Sacha Baron Cohen: Role of a Lifetime.

In the USA, Hugo will go on sale on the 28th February, while it'll take another month to arrive in the UK, as it's set to make its debut on the 26th March.

The artwork comes from the US edition, and the UK set has yet to appear.