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Discipline - The Hentai Academy: a first of its kind Blu-ray release

by Darren Murph posted Jan 19th 2009 at 8:31AM


There's anime on Blu-ray, there's adult films on Blu-ray -- in all honesty, this was just bound to happen. Japan's MediaBank has officially announced that Discipline - The Hentai Academy will become the first hentai release on the BD format when it's launched on January 30th. The single-disc package will include the compete six episode "renewal mosaic" version of the series, but the action won't come cheap. It's slated to hit shelves with a lofty ¥8,190 ($90) price tag attached, and while no worldwide release has been mentioned thus far, we've all ideas the import channels will be ready and willing to satisfy the desires of those outside of Japan. [Warning: links are mildly NSFW]

[Via Japanator]

The Dark Knight shatters sales record, moves 600,000 Blu-ray Discs on day one

by Darren Murph posted Dec 11th 2008 at 9:02AM


The numbers are in, and they're big. Just as predicted, Warner Brothers' The Dark Knight was a huge day-one success, with consumers in the US, Canada and UK snapping up three million copies during the first 24 hours (give or take a few) that it was on sale. More germane to our conversation, however, is this 600,000 figure, which tells exactly how many Blu-ray Discs were sold. We already know that around one-sixth of those were moved in the UK, leaving us to determine that North America did some serious shopping. The studio has now projected it to sell one million BDs by Saturday, and curiously enough, current sales have been "especially strong at grocery stores, indicating that the format is broadening beyond early adopters to more mainstream buyers, notably women." Needless to say, this title took down Iron Man's record of moving 250,000 BDs on day one, which just ratchets up the bar for the next big one to take down.

[Thanks, Geoff]

107,000 The Dark Knight Blu-ray Discs sold in UK on day one

by Darren Murph posted Dec 9th 2008 at 10:08AM


We'll warn you -- these numbers are likely very preliminary and subject to change, but Pocket-lint is reporting (via Official Charts Company data as revealed by the British Video Association) that some 513,000 copies of The Dark Knight were sold on day one in the UK (but isn't the day still ongoing?), 21% of which were Blu-ray. If our abacus is to be trusted, that's just north of 107,000 Blu-ray Discs, and it falls right in line with the apparent BD boom going on across the pond. Just for comparison, it took the white hot Casino Royale a full week in the UK to move just 10,000 BD units. Looks like the flick is off to a solid start -- we'll be keenly watching for US numbers as soon as they become available.

The Dark Knight Blu-ray Disc sneaks onto store shelves early

by Darren Murph posted Dec 7th 2008 at 3:18PM


Looks like Meijer's is a little antsy to help The Dark Knight Blu-ray become the best selling BD of all time. At one particular store near Urbana, Illinois, the disc has already been spotted -- and we're not just talking about one or two, but a whole gaggle. Can't wait 'til Tuesday? No harm in taking a leisurely stroll to your nearby retailers in hopes of getting lucky. A live shot of the back is after the break.

Continue reading The Dark Knight Blu-ray Disc sneaks onto store shelves early

The Dark Knight Blu-ray Disc review roundup

by Darren Murph posted Nov 28th 2008 at 3:01PM


To (mis)quote the infamous Dennis Green: "It was what we thought it'd be." In other words, Warner Brothers' The Dark Knight truly is as mesmerizing and awesome on Blu-ray as it was in theaters. Some very early (and very thorough) reviews have already hit the 'net days before the film's sure-to-be-monumental release, and we've found nothing but praise across the board. Sure, varying critics had varying levels of appreciation for the plot, but when it comes to visual and auditory quality, the Blu-ray transfer delivers. Utterances of "wow," "stunning," and "spectacle" were peppered throughout each and every review, dashing any fears one may have had that the BD would fall short of the hype. For those who really want to dig deep, we've linked thousands of words below. But truthfully, they all come to the same conclusion: The Dark Knight is a must-own Blu-ray Disc.

Read - Big Picture Big Sound
Read - The HD Room
Read - Rope Of Silicon
Read - Home Cinema Choice
Read - HighDefDigest

Bourne Triology hitting Blu-ray Disc in January 2009

by Darren Murph posted Nov 19th 2008 at 3:54PM


Bourne is already a proven winner in high-def, so it's no shock at all to see that Universal Studios Home Entertainment is finally bringing the acclaimed trilogy to Blu-ray. The only real surprise is the release date; rather than squeezing it in before the holiday break, Universal's hoping to grab a small chunk of your grandma money in late January. The three pack, which will obviously include The Bourne Identity, The Bourne Supremacy and The Bourne Ultimatum, will not only include hours of bonus materials including deleted scenes, interviews, behind-the-scenes featurettes and commentaries, but it'll also take advantage of BD-Live. The disc will grant access to the studio's BD-Live Center, where fans can then "download even more bonus content, share their favorite scenes with buddies, and engage in a BD-exclusive strategy game that pits users against each other in hand-to-hand combat simulation." Too bad the MSRP is set at $119.98, but you've got until January 27, 2009 to get enough couch change together.

[Via Blu-ray, thanks Anthony]

Sony caves, will offer iTunes film download in Pineapple Express

by Darren Murph posted Nov 12th 2008 at 6:19AM


It's a momentous occasion, folks. Sony -- the outfit known for boldly sticking to its proprietary guns when perfectly acceptable options are widely available -- is finally showing that it can reach across the aisle to get things done. All politics aside, the January-bound Pineapple Express will include a downloadable version from iTunes. We're told that this is the first time in which a Sony Pictures Home Entertainment release has included such a thing, and yes, a traditional digital copy for PCs / PSPs will also be bundled with the DVD / Blu-ray. Which is just about as cool as killing your arch enemy with a Daewoo Lanos.

[Via HomeMediaMagazine, image courtesy of SPHE]

Universal bringing Serenity to Blu-ray with upgrades and extras

by Darren Murph posted Nov 7th 2008 at 1:20PM


Well over two years ago, Universal hit a home run with its decision to release Serenity on HD DVD. Now, the studio is finally giving Blu-ray aficionados the privilege of buying the film, and it's even tossing in a few nice upgrades to boot. Given that this title would likely sell on Blu even without any extras, we appreciate the touchups. Those who take the plunge will be treated to a 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio track, a 2.35:1 1080p video transfer, BD-Live support and a whole slew of bonus features that can't all be listed in this space. Make sure you don't spend all of that holiday cash before December 25th, as you'll need $29.98 (MSRP) in order to snatch this one up on December 30th.

Napoleon Dynamite finally hitting Blu-ray in February: flippin' sweet

by Darren Murph posted Nov 4th 2008 at 11:39PM


It was bound to happen, and while wildly speculating was fun, we can now finally mark our calendars. The appropriately christened "sleeper hit of 2004" is all lined up for a Blu-ray release, and it'll arrive not a moment too soon. The film will be presented in 1080p / AVC MPEG-4 with a lossless 5.1-channel DTS-HD Master Audio track (not to mention French / Spanish Dolby Digital 5.1 tracks on the side). There's no date set in stone just yet, but "February" at $34.95 (MSRP) is close enough... gosh!

Passion of the Christ making expected Blu-ray debut in February 2009

by Darren Murph posted Nov 3rd 2008 at 5:23PM


We already saw that Sound & Vision felt that Mel Gibson's Passion of the Christ should be loosed on Blu-ray, and lo and behold, here we have confirmation that it will indeed be going Blu. On February 17th of next year, the film will be released in a "Definitive Edition" that offers up a 2.4:1 1080p video presentation and a 5.1-channel DTS-HD Master Audio track. As predicted, the audio will be in Aramaic for both the theatrical cut and the uncut version. This edition will also include "several new extras not found on the previous DVD edition including a pair of featurettes and four audio commentaries," and the exhaustive list is hosted up in the read link below. Per usual, the MSRP on this one sits at $34.99.

Boondock Saints gets Blu-ray release date, can you say Veritas Aequitas?

by Darren Murph posted Oct 11th 2008 at 1:26AM


It's not often that we get jazzed enough to leap from our seats about a particular Blu-ray release, but we're brimming with excitement over this one. The 1999 cult classic Boondock Saints will be arriving well before Saint Patty's Day 2009 in high-def, as Fox Home Entertainment has selected January 13th as the launch date for the Blu-ray edition. As for extras, you can look forward to a feature audio commentary by writer / director Troy Duffy, another by Billy Connolly, deleted scenes, outtakes, case and crew filmographies and a printable script. The film itself will be presented in a 1080p / AVC MPEG-4 transfer on a BD-50, and as for audio, it'll have a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 lossless track. MSRP is set at $34.95 -- liberating, isn't it?

[Via HighDefDigest, image courtesy of MyFreeWallpapers]

I Am Legend reviewed on Blu-ray

by Darren Murph posted Mar 20th 2008 at 12:36PM


Given that the HD DVD flavor of I Am Legend is still a few weeks off, we figured we'd point the eyes of BD supporters to a couple of Blu-ray reviews for the time being. Both reviews noted that the 1080p encode was nothing short of beautiful, and visually, the film was an absolute treat. Colors, contrast and black levels were all found to be "excellent," and the Dolby TrueHD track was singled out as being particularly fantastic. As for extras, there was enough here to keep the casual fan satisfied, but as with we saw with Michael Clayton, those really, truly interested in getting behind the scenes may be somewhat disappointed. Overall, it sounds like the BD version is certainly worth a glance if you enjoyed it in cinemas, but those hoping to find a world of extras may want to pass on the purchase and get their rental on.

Read - The Man Room's I Am Legend Blu-ray review
Read - HighDefDigest's I Am Legend Blu-ray review
Read - DVDTown's I Am Legend Blu-ray review

Lionsgate announces upcoming Blu-ray titles

by Darren Murph posted Jan 8th 2007 at 8:41PM

We've seen various slates of HD DVD / Blu-ray titles come out today, and heading up the rear of the release lists is none other than Lionsgate. While a Lionsgate film (The Descent) has caused quite a bit of fuss lately, the studio is hoping to create some positive PR noise by announcing that 40 BD titles should be hitting shelves with its name on it during this year, starting with Crank. It also highlighted the Golden Globe-winning TV series Weeds would be making its way to Blu-ray disc, as well as Ultimate Avengers I and II on the animation side. If you're anxious to get a few more Lionsgate productions in your collection, Employee of the Month is landing on January 16th, while the sure-to-be-successful Saw III hits on the 23rd. Overall, Lionsgate's 2007 list is far from spectacular, but it's got a bit of everything mixed in, including one of our personal favorites: Reservoir Dogs on February 6th. Click on through to see the first 21 titles to be released from Lionsgate on Blu-ray disc this year.

Continue reading Lionsgate announces upcoming Blu-ray titles

Warner Blu-ray releases may switch to VC-1 codec soon

by Richard Lawler posted Aug 25th 2006 at 11:13AM

A lot of the criticism leveled at early Blu-ray releases cited their use of the MPEG-2 video codec for compression on 25GB single-layer discs. According to Home Theater Spot, a Warner rep confirmed to them that Lethal Weapon, Blazing Saddles and Firewall will all be encoded with the Microsoft codec. Full Metal Jacket however will still ship as MPEG-2. With fixed Samsung BD-P1000 players and properly next-gen encoded titles, perhaps Blu-ray can stand up to HD DVD and show why it is worth the investment. No word on any new extras to take advantage of all that extra space however, we guess we'll just take one order of increased video quality at lower bitrates to go, thank you.


[Via HDBlog]

Paramount's HD DVD movie releases rescheduled: July 25

by Richard Lawler posted Jul 10th 2006 at 3:47PM

After being rather unceremoniously dropped with no release date in sight, Paramount's HD DVD lineup is now back on track with the first four movies due July 25th. Those movies will be Sahara, Tomb Raider, Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow and Tim Burton's Sleepy Hollow. A week later on August 1, Four Brothers, We Were Soldiers and The Manchurian Candidate follow, with U2: Rattle and Hum, Aeon Flux and The Italian Job rounding things out on the 10th. No word on any special features for any of the movies yet, although they will all carry an MSRP of $29.95. The only movies included in their High Definition Series yet to get a release date are the Mission: Impossible trilogy, hopefully girding for a day-and-date release with M:i:III later this year. The high-def trailers looked great on Apple.com, Super Bowl commercials and Xbox Live.

It's a little behind the original schedule, but we finally have a third major player in the HD DVD camp. Like their counterparts over at Warner, Paramount has not yet announced a Blu-ray release schedule although they are expected to support both formats.




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