Universal have formally announced the December the 26th release of a three-disc special edition of Peter Jackson's terrific 1996 supernatural comedy The Frighteners.

For several years it's been something of a mystery as to why Universal hadn't released a special edition of the film, because they already had extensive bonus materials on hand, from the film's lavish laserdisc edition. Even more puzzling that they sat on this release while Jackson was riding the crest of a wave with the Lord of the Rings trilogy. Now, of course, this release will tie in with the latest Jackson movie, King Kong.

Oddly, and slightly worryingly, the press release doesn't say that the set will feature the extended version of the film, even though it was recently cleared for release by the BBFC (gee, you'd think they might want to mention something like that, wouldn't you?!) The Director's Cut version adds about twelve minutes to the running time.

Also, the press release didn't state that this will be - should be! - the first time the film has been passed for home video presentation in the UK without cuts (see my review of the old disc). Another selling point, you might have thought!

There'll be about four hours' worth of bonus material, which includes: bloopers; Lost Footage Found (The Gatekeeper , the Judge and other deleted scenes); Ghost Stories (Jackson and actor Jim Frye share their actual, personal close encounters with ghosts); Script Development (Jackson describes taking an idea from the treatment stage to a full shooting script); Behind-the-scenes cast rehearsal; extensive exploration of the spectacular special effects, motion control and blue screen techniques; introduction to Jackson’s visual effects facility WETA; close-up look at the use of miniatures; storyboarding of key scenes (including the Slimeface and Blobman sequence, with commentary by Peter Jackson).

RRP for the set is £19.99.

Hong Kong Legends will release a new two-disc Platinum Edition of Bruce Lee's Fist of Fury on January the 9th.

The disc boasts a new high-definition anamorphic 2.35:1 transfer, a choice of three audio tracks (Dolby Digital 5.1 versions in Cantonese and English, and the original mono Mandarin soundtrack).

The set will also feature more than five hours of bonus goodies: a new audio commentary, from Asian film expert Bey Logan; The First Lady (an interview with Nora Miao); Blade of Fury (an interview with Riki Hashimoto); Master of Bushido (an interview with Jun Katsumura); The Fist of Fury Location Guide with Bey Logan; First Amongst Equals (an interview with the world's number one Jeet Kune Do instructor); Sifu Dan Inosanto, Legacy of a Master (an interview with acclaimed action-director, Jeff Imada); Tracking the Dragon (an interview with Bruce Lee's personal photographer Linda Palmer); Friend to the Stars (an interview with Bruce Lee confidante, Joe Torreneuva); trailer gallery; The Magic Lantern (an archive of rare photos).  RRP for the disc is £19.99.

Hong Kong Legends will release a box set featuring three films with action sequences by renowned action director Yuen Woo Ping (The Matrix, Kill Bill, etc) on December the 26th, titled The Epic Action Collection.

The set will contain Iron Monkey, Wing Chun and Tai Chi Boxer. Each of these has been available separately, and the set will feature all the bonus material from the existing discs. The set has an RRP of £14.99.

The BFI will be releasing two Alex Cox double-bill DVDs on October the 31st.

The first features Highway Patrolman (El Patrullero) and Three Businessmen. Both films will have a commentary track (by Cox and writer / producer Lorenzo O'Brien on Highway Patrolman, and by Cox and writer / producer Tod Davies on Three Businessmen). Highway Patrol will also feature interviews with cast and crew members, in a featurette titled Patrulleros y Patrulleras. Three Businessman contains an especially-made featurette with the cast and crew members offering a masterclass in how to read the film, titled How To Watch This Film. Highway Patrolman (which is in Spanish) will have English subtitles.

The second set pairs Cox's affectionate homage to the spaghetti Western, Straight to Hell, and the occult crime thriller Death and the Compass. Straight to Hell features a commentary by Cox and co-writer / star Dick Rude; Death and the Compass's commentary is by Cox and composer Dan Wool. Back to Hell features interviews with cast and crew members. Death and the Compass features a short film based on the same source story, Paul Miller's Spiderweb.

All four films will be presented in 1.77:1 ratio (the press release for Highway Patrolman and Three Businessmen explicitly state they're anamorphic, too).

Each double-disc set has an RRP of £19.99.

A quick word on the DVD release of ITV's supernatural drama series Afterlife. The disc spec's mention a trailer, but this is actually an eight-minute promotional reel, with clips from many episodes. The set features two commentary tracks, for the first and last episodes. The contributors are creator / writer Stephen (Ghostwatch) Volk, producer Murray Ferguson, and stars Lesley Sharp and Andrew Lincoln.

Finally, here are a couple of fun viral promotional links, in support of the forthcoming American Pie Presents Band Camp DVD: www.bandiesgonewild.com and www.cheerleadercharmer.com. Note that these are not suitable for browsing at work! For more details about the disc, see the News entry for the 13th of October.