Disclaimer: Warner Brothers Home Entertainment requests that we note it provided a free copy of Vikings: The Complete Series for review purposes. The opinions we share are our own.
“Written and directed by Taylor Sheridan (Hell or High Water), ‘YELLOWSTONE’ is an engrossing family drama that follows the epic story of a multi-generational family that controls the largest contiguous ranch in the U.S. In Season 4, the fates of Kayce, Beth, and John Dutton are unknown as Rip and the other wranglers wield their own brand of justice to take revenge and defend the Dutton legacy. Jacki Weaver, Piper Perabo and Kathryn Kelly join the cast in guest starring roles in the impressive ensemble that includes Oscar®-winner Kevin Costner, Luke Grimes, Kelly Reilly, Wes Bentley, Cole Hauser, Kelsey Asbille, Brecken Merrill, Jefferson White, Forrie Smith, Denim Richards, Ian Bohen, Finn Little, Ryan Bingham and Gil Birmingham with Will Patton.” — from Paramount
If you’ve been reading these Headsup features for any length of time, then you know how frustrating it can be to have an entire season of television content and not much of anything in the way of bonus bits. Thus, we shower Paramount with gratitude for actually giving us four hours of bonus bits to amuse ourselves with. The first three Blu-ray discs are all the episodes and brief overviews of each, most of which are less than ten minutes long. The fourth disc is where the gravy is. There’s a season overview, a featurette focusing on the flashbacks of Season Four, a production featurette, and a behind-the-scenes retrospective of each episode. If you’re a fan entrenched in the show, you’re going to want this on your shelf for the bonus material. You can snag it from Amazon on either the Blu-Ray or DVD edition.
“Akeem and Semmi are back for a brand-new, hilarious adventure! In COMING 2 AMERICA, newly crowned King Akeem (Eddie Murphy) and his trusted confidante Semmi (Arsenio Hall) traverse the globe from their great African nation of Zamunda to the borough of Queens, New York when Akeem learns he has a long-lost son in the United States. In addition to Eddie Murphy and Arsenio Hall, the outrageously entertaining film features an incredible cast including James Earl Jones, John Amos, Louie Anderson, Shari Headley, Wesley Snipes, Tracy Morgan, and Leslie Jones.” — from Paramount
Rumored for literally years–pretty sure we had a page for this project over on Corona from back in 1897–the Coming to America sequel finally hit Amazon Prime. If nothing else, this finally brought Arsenio Hall back to do publicity and be his usual hilarious self. The best reason to snag this is for director Craig Brewer’s audio commentary, since that’s not included with your ability to stream it from Amazon. In addition, there’s a featurette including behind-the-scenes footage and interviews. Available from Amazon on Blu-Ray or DVD.
“For the first time in one collection, this is the essential, definitive saga of the Corleone family, overseen by director Francis Ford Coppola, and based on the bestselling novel by Mario Puzo. A global cultural touchstone captivating fans across generations, the enduring cinematic legacy of THE GODFATHER has immeasurably influenced popular culture, and rightfully earned its legacy as one of the greatest in the history of motion pictures. Remastered and Restored in 4K with HDR-10 and DOLBY VISION, this collection includes Academy Award winners for Best Picture The Godfather and The Godfather Part II, alongside the acclaimed conclusion Mario Puzo’s The Godfather Coda: The Death of Michael Corleone, as well as an extensive array of new and legacy behind-the-scenes special features.” – from Paramount
The first film was originally released on March 24, 1972…so we’re hitting the 50th anniversary. To celebrate, Paramount and American Zoetrope (Coppola’s production company), did a restoration of all three films which took a year for each film. The restoration was described as “painstaking,” and it looks like it might have involved some pain…here’s what was involved:
- Over 300 cartons of film were scrutinized to find the best possible resolution for every frame of all three films.
- Over 4,000 hours were spent repairing film stains, tears, and other anomalies in the negatives.
- Over 1,000 hours were spent on rigorous color correction to ensure the high dynamic range tools were respectful of the original vision of Coppola and cinematographer Gordon Willis.
- In addition to the 5.1 audio approved by Walter Murch in 2007, the original mono tracks on The Godfather and The Godfather: Part II have been restored.
- All work was overseen by Coppola.
New bonus content is also present: a new introduction to the first film by Coppola, a preservation and restoration featurette, a chat with production photographer Steve Schapiro, and an array of 8mm home movie footage shot back in 1971. There’s also the previously released bonus material, which is an embarrassment of riches. I know this has been released multiple times, but they just keep topping themselves with the next one. Hopefully we’re done. At least for now. Snag all that from Amazon here.
“Mark Wahlberg and director Antoine Fuqua (Training Day, Infinite) teamed up for the first time on the intense action thriller SHOOTER. Wahlberg stars as a respected former Marine sniper who is pressed into service to stop an assassination attempt on the President. When he’s double-crossed and framed for the attempt, he must prove his innocence while evading every law enforcement agency in the country and a shadowy organization that wants him dead.” — from Paramount
Well, it’s the 15th anniversary of the release of Shooter, and since the age of the film has a five at the end of it, it’s time for another edition. What this version gets you that you might not have had before is it’s a 4K Ultra HD release and in a limited edition Steelbook. And as I may have mentioned before, I know some Steelbook fanatics. You do get all the bonus bits from the Blu-Ray release except for the Fuqua commentary track. Which was an odd choice. The making-of and on-location featurettes as well as the deleted scenes are present and accounted for. You can snag that from Amazon here.
“When good-natured substitute teacher Charlie Moore (Howard Hesseman) is assigned to teach Fillmore High School’s class of academically advanced students, everyone expects him to fail. After all, each one of the students is smarter than he–and smarter than all the other teachers–as Moore goes to the Head of the Class. In this fourth season of the classic sitcom, there are changes afoot in the students’ senior year in the IHP program at Millard Fillmore High.” – Warner Brothers
Well, we lost Howard Hesseman just this year. And I’m pretty sure this had been in the pipeline before that happened, so we can’t fault them for not including some sort of memorial featurette. But there are no featurettes at all, which is a shame since this is last season on the show (Billy Connolly replaced him as a new character for a fifth and final season). You just get all twenty-four episodes, which, if you’re a fan of the show, are a good idea to have on your shelf for the sake of posterity. That’s available on DVD from Amazon.
“Set 10 years after Dexter went missing in the eye of Hurricane Laura, DEXTER: NEW BLOOD finds him living under an assumed name in the fictional small town of Iron Lake, New York. Dexter may be embracing his new life, but in the wake of unexpected events in this close-knit community, his Dark Passenger inevitably beckons. The cast also stars Jack Alcott (THE GOOD LORD BIRD), Julia Jones (The Mandalorian), Alano Miller (Sylvie’s Love), Johnny Sequoyah (Believe) and Clancy Brown (BILLIONS®, The Crown).” — from CBS
Rather than a ninth season of the show or even a miniseries, we received this “special event series” in which Michael C. Hall and Jennifer Carpenter return to their roles. This comes in three flavors: DVD, Blu-Ray, and limited edition Blu-Ray Steelbook. You get all ten episodes plus a thirty minute featurette that covers the making-of and other behind the scenes fun. You can grab it on DVD, Blu-Ray, or the Steelbook from Amazon.
“Journey to a thrilling ancient world in this epic series about history’s bravest and most fearsome warriors! Ragnor, a would-be Viking cheiftan, longed to fulfill his destiny as an explorer and a conquerer, alongside his ambitious brother, shield maiden wife and warrior sons. But as Ragnor leads daring raids in distant realms across the ocean, treacherous forces in his Norse homeland conspire against him. Ragner must wage war on the battlefield and within himself to protect his freedom, family and life.” — from Warner Brothers
The entirety of the show has hit the actual media marketplace, with all eighty-nine episodes from all six seasons coming to you on twenty-seven (!) discs. And since you can stream this thing, you need some decent bonus bits to lure you into purchasing the set, yes? Well, it’s all here. Extended episodes for four of the seasons, deleted scenes, thirteen audio commentaries, and twenty-five featurettes covering everything from creating and attacking Paris to pretty much everything you’d need to know about creating a Viking culture for the small screen. The set is massive. Find it on DVD or Blu-ray from Amazon.
