30th March
2017
ZETA MINOR
NEWS
As promised yesterday, today we're
announcing that one of the site's Cult Television features, our guide to
the various audio and video clips that survive from the BBC's
science-fiction anthology series Out of the Unknown, has been
given a significant overhaul. You can find the introduction page
here.
It's been updated with new images and new
information (in the wake of the BFI's excellent DVD box set).
My thanks to Colin Cutler for all his
efforts, and patience! We hope you enjoy the revised guide!
29th March
2017
ZETA MINOR
NEWS
Well... it's been a while!
Six years, in fact.
You probably noticed that the site hasn't
been updated recently...
Various factors conspired to cause the
site to become dormant, including a change in my working hours, and
dwindling support from several of the PR companies that used to provide
us with review copies and competition prizes.
The site's message board,
Roobarb's Forum,
continues to thrive, however, and still provides a very useful source of
information about new DVD and Blu-ray releases (and a million other
topics).
So, what's spurred this resurrection...
check back tomorrow, for the announcement of a major update to one of
our Cult TV features...
23rd March
2011
INCOMING
The press
release details for a number of May releases from 2 Entertain have been
added to Incoming. They include:
The Suspicions of Mr Whicher: The Murder at Road Hill House
(a period detective drama starring Paddy Considine); the ninth
series of
Waking The Dead; psychological thriller Case Sensitive: Point
of Rescue (which features Olivia Williams and Rupert Graves); the
Doctor Who double bill
Mannequin Madness (which contains two early 70s adventures
starring Jon Pertwee, one of which features his first appearance, the
other introduces Roger Delgado as the Doctor's nemesis The Master); the
tenth series of
The Two Ronnies (their 1983 run); the third season of classic
BBC shipping drama
The Onedin Line; the 1984 Doctor Who story
Frontios (which stars Peter Davison as The Doctor); and the
second series of the wonderful children's comedy
Horrible Histories.
I've also added the press release for
Entertainment in Video's long-awaited release of the
Lord of the Rings - Motion Picture Trilogy: Extended Edition Blu-ray
box set. The set appears to mirror the recently-announced US edition.
The set features a whopping fifteen
discs: two Blu-rays apiece for each of the movies, and three DVDs of
bonus features each. This means that you'll have to swap discs mid-way
through watching each film, but EiV have done this to maximise the
bit-rate for optimum picture quality. There have already been howls of
protest about this decision, but it is, I think, very sensible.
Putting the bonus features on DVDs,
instead of offering them on Blu-ray (in standard definition), seems like
a poor choice, though. It's probably cheaper to make three DVDs than it
is to make one Blu-ray, and, no doubt, it's easier to justify the price
of the set if it contains fifteen discs, than it is if it contains nine
discs. I'm glad that this new set will contain the documentaries from
the limited edition DVDs. That's essentially new bonus content for me.
EVENTS
Kim Newman
will be signing copies of his novel
Anno Dracula (Titan Books) at the Forbidden Planet shop in
Shaftesbury Avenue, London, on the 26th of May, between 6 and 7pm.
Signed copies can be ordered from the mail order department on 020 7803
1900.
4th March
2011
INCOMING
Press
releases for a number of forthcoming 2 Entertain and Acorn DVD and Blu-ray
titles have been added to
Incoming.
They include:
a Blu-ray release for Kenneth Clark's landmark arts documentary series
Civilisation; a set containing series eleven and twelve of
Silent Witness; new Channel 4 sitcom
Friday Night Dinner; the current BBC science fiction series
Outcasts on
DVD and
Blu-ray; Sky Living's supernatural drama series
Bedlam; the heavily-promoted new adaptation of
South Riding (only on DVD, as far as I can see); the third
season of BBC Three hit Being Human (on
DVD and
Blu-ray); Peter Bowker's excellent Morecambe and Wise biographical
drama
Eric and Ernie (on DVD only, but modestly priced); Brian Cox's
much-anticipated follow-up to his acclaimed documentary series
Wonders of the Solar System, Wonders of the Universe (on
DVD and
Blu-ray); and Acorn's terrific collection of plays written by Jack
Rosenthal, including Spend Spend Spend and Bar Mitzvah Boy,
Jack Rosenthal at the BBC.
28th
February 2011
ZETA MINOR
NEWS
I've added an
index to some of the soundtrack CD reviews that have appeared in the
News pages over the last year or two. You can find it via the
Reviews Index link, left.
20th
February 2011
ZETA MINOR
NEWS
I've spent
some time updating our
guide to Hammer movies available on DVD (and now Blu-ray, too). This
was long overdue, so there are a lot of changes. Any corrections
welcome, via the Email link, left.
14th
February 2011
INCOMING
Titles added to the
Incoming
database this week include no fewer than six releases for
Tron: Legacy (the film on
DVD, the film on
Blu-ray + DVD, the film on
Blu-ray in 3D, the film on
Blu-ray paired with the original movie, a
Play.com exclusive offering both films on Blu-ray, in special
packaging with some added nick-nacks), and an
HMV-exclusive DVD set containing both movies.
Also up this week: Fright Fest favourite
Primal on
DVD and
Blu-ray; survival thriller
Travellers; star-studded British gangster movie London
Boulevard, on
DVD and
Blu-ray; the re-scheduled WWII drama Operation Valkyrie; ;
Mike Leigh's acclaimed BAFTA and Oscar-nominated drama
Another Year, which, astonishingly, is not being released on Blu-ray;
the third season of
Law & Order: UK (another delayed title); and Vietnam
war movie
Massacre at My Lai Four.
We've also re-listed the tongue-in-cheek
assassin action film Operation: Endgame (aka Rogue's Gallery)
(which was produced by Donnie Darko's Richard Kelly) on
Blu-ray and
DVD. This title was originally scheduled for release last year.
26th January 2011
ZETA MINOR NEWS
We have two new competitions starting this
week, offering you the chance to win a copy of the latest
Doctor Who DVD, the Jon Pertwee adventure The Mutants, courtesy of
BBC DVD; or the acclaimed thriller Winter's Bone on Blu-ray,
courtesy of Artificial Eye.
Click on the images, above, to go to the
competition pages!
10th January 2011
INCOMING
Recent
additions to our database of forthcoming DVD and Blu-ray releases,
Incoming,
include two Nic Roeg classics on Blu-ray,
Don't Look Now and
The Man Who Fell To Earth; recent thriller
And Soon The Darkness; brutal prison drama Dog Pound, on
DVD and
Blu-ray; wide-ranging documentary
Freakanomics; the pseudo-documentary about Joaquin Phoenix,
I'm Still Here (on
DVD and
Blu-ray); the 1966 David Warner comedy Morgan, A Suitable Case
For Treatment (the first time it's been available on DVD in the UK);
Norwegian war thriller
Betrayal; horror thriller
Open House, which stars True Blood's Anna Paquin and
Stephen Moyer (DVD only - it's available on Blu-ray in the US); the 1968
Michael Caine crime thriller directed by Bryan Forbes,
Deadfall (another UK DVD premiere); a con-man drama starring
Paul Newman,
The Long Hot Summer (also new to DVD); and the
not-all-that-meets-the-eye romance Certified Copy [Copie
Conforme] (on
Blu-ray and
DVD).
I've also added Australian gangster movie
Aggravated Assault; the BFI documentary collection
Tales From The Shipyard - Britain's Shipbuilding Heritage on Film;
the final season of
Murder She Wrote; the second season of America's answer to
Hustle,
Leverage; Hattie Jacques biopic
Hattie; ITV's recent Trevor Eve crime thriller series
Kidnap and Ransom; FrightFest hit
Damned by Dawn, billed as an Australian horror comedy in the
Evil Dead vein (DVD only - it's available on Blu-ray in other
territories); WWII drama
The Final Sacrifice;
Blu-ray and
DVD editions of The Girl Who Played With Fire (out today!); a
collection of eight films made by Japanese Director Kenji Mizouguchi
(including one of the best ghost movies ever made, Ugetsu monogatari),
in a box set titled
Late Mizouguchi; and Oliver Stone's sequel Wall Street: Money
Never Sleeps (on
DVD and
Blu-ray).
BLU-RAY NEWS
Twentieth Century Fox formally announced
the release of the Star Wars movies at the Consumer Electronics Show
last week. They'll be available in two sets, one for the 'Original'
trilogy, and another for the Prequel trilogy, each with an RRP of
£44.99, or as a bumper set of all six films, with an extra three discs
containing extensive bonus material (including previously-unseen deleted
scenes from the movies), which has an RRP of £89.99. All three have been
added to our Incoming database (see links below).
Here's the press release in full,
anglicized for your convenience:
The most anticipated Blu-ray release ever -
the Star Wars Saga - emerges from light speed this September 2011. For
the first time, all six of George Lucas' epic films (Episodes I-VI) are
united in one complete set. Fans are able to pre-order now at Amazon.
Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment
will release Star Wars in three distinct sets to meet the needs of every
Star Wars fan:
-
Star Wars: The Complete Saga on Blu-ray (9-disc Set inc. all six
films)
-
Star Wars: Prequel Blu-ray Trilogy (3-disc set inc. Episodes
I-III)
-
Star Wars: Original Blu-ray Trilogy (3-disc set inc. Episodes
IV-VI)
Star Wars: The Complete Saga on Blu-ray
will feature all six live-action Star Wars feature films utilizing the
highest possible picture and audio presentation, along with three
additional discs and more than 30 hours of extensive special features
including never-before-seen deleted and alternate scenes, an exploration
of the exclusive Star Wars archives, and much more.
Star Wars: The Complete Saga on Blu-ray
will be available for £89.99 (RRP) and the Star Wars: Trilogy Sets for
£44.99 (RRP).
Flanked by a legion of his finest Imperial
Stormtroopers, Darth Vader himself joined Twentieth Century Fox Home
Entertainment President Mike Dunn at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES)
to announce the release, vowing "The forces of the Empire will be at
your disposal to assure the success of this endeavour.''
"The Star Wars Saga is the most anticipated
Blu-ray collection since the launch of the high-def format," Dunn said.
"The epic franchise pioneered sound and visual presentation in theatres
and is perfectly suited to do it again in the home, with a viewing
experience only possible with Blu-ray."
"With all six episodes available for the
first time in one collection, this is a great way for families and home
audiences to experience the complete Saga from start to finish," said
Doug Yates, Vice President of Marketing, Online, Distribution, Lucasfilm
Ltd. "And with the quality of high-definition, Blu-ray provides the most
immersive home experience possible."
"The Star Wars franchise has been one of
the most anticipated Blu-ray releases by Amazon's customers," said Bill
Carr, Vice President of Music and Video at Amazon. "We think that Star
Wars will be incredibly popular with our customers, and we expect
pre-orders to be very strong."
May - December 2010's Zeta Minor News can be viewed
here.
Jan - May 2010's Zeta Minor News
can be viewed here.
Previous Zeta Minor News entries can viewed
here.