The Blues Brothers: Two white TV comics who dared to sing the blues and, incredibly, came out king bees. John Belusi and Dan Aykroyd's R&B musical plays like a honey-dipped harp, even after 30 years. Now it's enshrined in HD with Universal's Blu-ray release of "The Blues Brothers." Fans of the "Saturday Night Live" comics and the giants of … [Read more...]
‘High and Low’ and hard-boiled
Akira Kurosawa wasn't known for film noir or crime thrillers, but he did do a genre drive-by back in 1963. Of course, it's killer. The Criterion Collection has reissued to Blu-ray "High and Low," the Japanese master's tale of a hardworking factory chief whose life is ruined after his son is targeted by kidnappers. Toshiro Mifune plays shoe … [Read more...]
‘Star Wars’ on Blu-ray details
"Star Wars: The Complete Saga" on Blu-ray touches down Sept. 16 with more than 40 hours of extra features. All six "Star Wars" movies are rendered in high-definition with 6.1 DTS Surround Sound. The sticker price is $140, but Amazon already has the nine-disc Blu-ray set "Star Wars: The Complete Saga" discounted to $90. The movies are George … [Read more...]
‘Topsy-Turvy’ while turning Japanese
Topsy-turvy turned into a downer. "Princess Ida" came up short on charm. And so Gilbert & Sullivan's partnership neared collapse. Such is the setup for Mike Leigh's "Topsy Turvy," the delightful 1999 biopic about the masters of comic opera and the making of their "The Mikado." The Criterion Collection has rereleased "Topsy-Turvy" on Blu-ray … [Read more...]
Universal horror on Blu-ray
When it comes to Blu-ray, Universal Pictures' classic monster movies remain locked in the digital dungeon. How long must we wait before Dracula, the Wolf Man, Frankenstein and the gang do their worst in high definition? Black and white films can look sensational in high definition, at least as impressive as well-done color releases from decades … [Read more...]
