January 22, 2019: This Week on DVD, Blu-ray and 4K Ultra HD
With three Academy Award nominations, Damien Chazelle’s intense Neil Armstrong biopic First Man comes home this week on DVD, Blu-ray and 4K Ultra HD. Next up for new releases is director George Tillman Jr.’s The Hate U Give, a powerful look at gun violence in America and the young lives that it touches. Finally, the spy spoof trilogy capper Johnny English Strikes Again brings back Rowan Atkinson as the titular bumbling secret agent.
With the trilogy set to end with the upcoming How to Train Your Dragon 3: The Hidden World, DreamWorks Animation has returned to the Isle of Berk for brand new 4K Ultra HD editions of the first two films, How to Train Your Dragon and How to Train Your Dragon 2.
It’s not just dragons that DreamWorks is delivering this week, however. Three classic animated feautres are also headed to Blu-ray, so be on the lookout for The Road El Dorado, Joseph King of Dreams and, in partnership with Aardman Animation, the delightful stop motion adventure Chicken Run.
Shout! Factory expands their Shout! Select label with one of the greatest comedies of all time with Dirty Rotten Scoundrels. Frank Oz’s 1988 remake of Bedtime Story sets Michael Caine and Steve Martin in the roles originally played by David Niven and Marlon Brando. The new edition boasts a brand new 2K scan of the film along with newly produced bonus material, including an all new interview with screenwriter Dale Launer.
Shout! Factory also get a piece of the action this week with new blu-ray editions of both 10 to Midnight and Cobra. The former, directed by J. Lee Thompson in 1983, sets Charles Bronson as an LAPD detective on the trail of a vicious serial killer. 1986’s Cobra, meanwhile, pits star Sylvester Stallone (who also provides the screenplay) against a murderous cult.
Dry land is no longer a myth as Kevin Costner’s somewhat infamous apocalyptic sci-fi adventure finally gets an HD release. What’s more, Arrow Video is offering an incredible presentation for Waterworld, including three distinct cuts of the film spread across two discs.
The Criterion Collection this week offers a double helping of new titles. First up, Elaine May’s 1976 crime thriller Mikey and Nicky pairs Peter Falk and John Cassavetes as two friends who have to deal with a dangerous mob boss to whom one of them owes money. Then, Criterion brings to Blu-ray Cristian Mungiu’s 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days. The winner of the coveted Palm d’or in 2007, the Romanian drama follows two friends who risk everything for an illegal abortion.
Warner Archive turns their attention back six decades for a new HD version of director Eugène Lourié’s 1959 monster sized thriller, The Giant Behemoth. What happens when a radioactive paleosaurus is awakened from millions of years of slumber? Find out in a black and white feature film that boasts impressive stop motion special effects.
Celebrating the film’s 25th anniversary this year, the 1994 video game adaptation Double Dragon finally comes to Blu-ray. Joining the MVD Rewind Collection, Double Dragon is paired with a host of bonus content, including a feature length behind the scenes documentary about the making of the cult classic.
Silas Lesnick is the Senior Editor of Moviebill. He has been covering entertainment news out of Los Angeles for more than a decade. You can reach him via e-mail or on Twitter.
