Hot on the heels of the currently in theaters <I>Superman Returns</I>, Warner Brothers announced a slew of new DVD releases of the original films. There has been no formal announcement of any of these titles appearing on HD DVD or Blu-ray (Warner supports both formats), but we can hope.
<I>Arnold Schwarzenegger, Linda Hamilton, Robert Patrick, Edward Furlong, Joe Morton. Directed by James Cameron. Aspect ratio: 2.35:1 (anamorphic). THX, Dolby Digital 5.1 EX, Dolby Headphone. Two discs. 152 minutes. 1991. Artisan Home Entertainment 14638. R. $29.98.</I>
<I>Arnold Schwarzenegger, Nick Stahl, Claire Danes, Kristanna Loken. Directed by Jonathan Mostow. Aspect ratio: 2.35:1 (anamorphic). Dolby Digital 5.1 (English, French). Two discs. 109 minutes. 2003. Warner Home Video 27723. R. $29.95.</I>
When fishing around for a film to show on a movie night with friends, before Covid-19 rudely interrupted, I recommended The Court Jester. I had it on DVD, but I knew it looked good enough to satisfy non-critical viewers who likely also wouldn't be bothered by its 1950's mono sound. We passed on it that time around, but that old DVD has now taken its last spin. A spanking new Blu-ray of the film has just been released in a video transfer nothing short of stunning.
The movie was originally shot in VistaVision, a widescreen process used (mainly by Paramount) in the 1950's and 60's. It's long-since been dropped as a release format, but is sometimes employed for in-camera special effects created for non-VistaVision productions, particularly in the pre-CGI era. It was used, for example, in the creation of the effects for some of the early Star Wars and Star Trek films when CGI wasn't yet a thing.
T<I>om Hanks, Michael Clarke Duncan, David Morse, James Cromwell, Michael Jeter, Bonnie Hunt, Graham Greene, Doug Hutchison, Sam Rockwell, Barry Pepper, Jeffrey DeMunn, Patricia Clarkson, Harry Dean Stanton. Directed by Frank Darabont. Aspect ratio: 1.85:1 (anamorphic). Dolby Digital 5.1. 188 minutes (dual-layer). 1999. Warner Home Video C2579. R. $24.98.</I>
<I>Voices of Tom Hulce, Demi Moore, Tony Jay, Kevin Kline, Paul Kandel, Jason Alexander, Charles Kimbrough, Mary Wickes. Directed by Kirk Wise, Gary Trousdale. Aspect ratio: 1.85:1 (anamorphic). Dolby Digital 5.1 (English, French, Spanish), DTS. 91 minutes. 1996. Buena Vista D23315. G. $29.99.</I>