Sony says "NO" to WITCHFINDER GENERAL DVD, Midnite Movies in serious trouble! (1 Viewer)

[Steve Phillips]

The restored FROM BEYOND is a go and will premiere on MONSTERS HD. This was announced a month or so ago. No word on a DVD release.

 

[George Reis]

Thanks Mark :b

 

[AlanBrom]

I don't suppose anyone has gotten a reply from Sony about all this yet. I certainly haven't yet.

 

[Rex Bachmann]

I'd just like to add Terror from the Year 5,000http://imdb.com/title/tt0052286/ (AIP, 1958) to the fine list in post #46.

 

[JohnPM]

"Witchfinder General" was shown several times last year on HD Movies Network, and it was the restored version. What an incredible job they did --- I can't imagine that it would remain buried forever.

http://greenbriarpictureshows.blogspot.com/

 

[George Reis]

I wasn't sure if MGM still owned this one or not, but if they do, it certainly does belong on the list and I apologize for excluding it.

 

[George Reis]

I just found out for certain that MGM no longer owns TERROR FROM THE YEAR 5,000 so scratch that one from the list.

 

[AlanBrom]

I recall catching TERROR FROM THE YEAR 5,000 on AMC a few years back, so perhaps it's part of the Arkoff library being released by LionsGate?

 

[Aaron Silverman]

Test post -- ignore.

 

[AlanBrom]

From Barrie Maxwell's column over at The Digital Bits:

Sony's MGM arm will return, hesitantly, to its Midnite Movies series with two releases on June 27th - The Boy and the Pirates (1960, directed by Bert Gordon) combined with Crystalstone (1988), and Fortunes of Captain Blood (1950) combined with Captain Pirate (1952). Both of the latter star Louis Hayward and Patricia Medina. Unfortunately the news of this release has resulted in concerns over the future of the Midnite Movies series because of MGM's failure to follow through as yet on its previously anticipated release of Conqueror Worm (1968, aka Witchfinder General). Sony's purchase of MGM has certainly cut back MGM's release volume substantially (for example, there are no Western Legends releases planned for this spring, previously an MGM tradition, and we've been waiting for the SEs of the Sergio Leone westerns forever it seems). In fact, Sony's 2006 record on classic releases for both its MGM and Columbia arms is pathetic to date. Anyone in a position of influence at Sony who has seen the success of Warners' efforts with classic titles should be wondering why its own classic component is failing abysmally to perform when it's obvious that there's money to be made if classic releases are done right.

 

[TonyDale]

Another SUSAN GORDON film is exciting for me, but, all in all, I'd rather have Price as Matthew Hopkins.

 

[FrancisP]

You can also throw in Criterion, Anchor Bay, and Image Entertainment. They have taken obscure films and made money doing it.

 

[Bob Graham]

If Sony feels they have to search through their vaults to find pirate films to exploit the release of PIRATES OF THE CARRIBEAN 2, why can't they give us Hammer pirate films, like PIRATES OF BLOOD RIVER, DEVIL SHIP PIRATES, THE CRIMSON BLADE, etc.?

 

[walter o]

I assume Roman Polanski's PIRATES is with MGM because of the film being a Cannon film, there is two reasons to put it out now

1) Polanski
2) Pirates

but I assume they aren't even aware this title is in their library now!

 

[Jeffrey Nelson]

I just found this update from George Reis, posted by Joseph Goodman at www.clubtokyo.org:


Very cool. Here's hoping that WITCHFINDER GENERAL is next on the list!

 

[Gordon McMurphy]

Great news!

 

[George Reis]

It may sound like good news, but don't hold your breathes. The big problem with Sony right now is that they have to start releasing more than a measly handful of catalog titles each month. There is no doubt that the Midnite Movies will continue, but why just one or two double features this fall, when MGM was releasing sometimes a dozen in one pop? At any rate, WITCHFINDER GENERAL is not on the October '06 schedule, and most likely won't get added to it at this stage.

 

[Mark Zimmer]

Well, to be fair a lot of those double features were simple repackagings of existing releases (the Phibes double feature, for example). But I don't have much more hope for Sony getting its act together on catalogue titles, especially horror. If they haven't managed to release their dozens of Hammer titles languishing in their own vaults, what is the likelihood that they'll get around to the AIP/MGM/UA titles?

 

[Mark Edward Heuck]

Plus, looking at the two releases in June, Sony seems to have a rather cavalier notion of what constitutes a "midnight movie." Under their logic, any old film that can be thematically tied to a perceived hot movie in the mainstream can have the moniker applied to it. It don't work that way. MGM kept focused on things that had a definite cult or camp appeal, and they didn't cross the streams. The TEEN WOLF double feature did not get the application, but the DR. PHIBES double feature did, which was smart.

It sounds nitpicky, but to throw the name "midnight movie" onto a few random pirate films is going to weaken it as a viable brand in the long run.

Not to mention that in my experience, sentences like "It is certainly something we are noting and we appreciate your persistance and attention to the franchise!" and "...the point has absolutely been made" smack seriously of "How do we get this guy to stop publicly putting the badmouth to us," or "Alright, we get it; you like this product. Now the shut the flip up." Until, as you said, we see them ramp up catalog releases to a level comparable to the MGM salad days, it's just talk.

 

[John Hodson]

As reported at www.dvddrive-in.com , Sony promises to do better...from Video Business Online:

Now that the merger dust has settled, Sony and MGM are increasing their collaboration on catalog releases, including a revival of the Midnite Movies series.

Immediately following the merger, “it was a first things first approach, and we weren’t yet dealing with some of the bigger issues in integrating content,” said David Bishop, prior MGM topper and now president of Sony Pictures Home Entertainment, North America. “We are now very much in the process of using a best practices approach. We want the best of MGM’s and the best of Sony’s activity in the marketplace.”

There is a wealth of material from the two studios’ libraries, which span about 4,000 MGM films and 3,500 Sony films.

In June, Sony will revive MGM’s Midnite Movies series. The line, featuring two cult movies per title, had been dormant since early 2005, prior to the studios’ combination.

Also, Sony is launching a new special edition series, dubbed Extended Cut. The eight-title series running through 2006 includes two MGM titles and six from Sony.

Going forward, Sony will raise the price of the Midnite titles from $14.95 apiece to $19.94. Sony plans to take content from the MGM vault and its own library.

Plus, Sony is broadening the film genres included beyond the series’ previous horror focus.

Fortunes of Captain Blood/Captain Pirate, including two action-oriented flicks from Sony’s Columbia catalog, is part of the revived Midnite slate on June 27. Crystalstone/The Boy & the Pirates also is streeting that day.

Bishop described the slight price hike as a way “to get more out of the titles.”

He expects to roll out new Midnite selections each quarter, adding to the dozen or so already available.

Sony also hopes its new Extended Cut brand drives attention to both studios’ content. Many of the titles include previously unseen footage, such as Johnny Depp material bolstering May 30 release Platoon 20th Anniversary Edition. The Patriot and Casualties of War streeted April 25, with Black Hawk Down and The Missing arriving on June 6. Most are priced at $19.94, with the exception of $24.96 for Platoon.

“Through branded lines like Midnite Movies and Sony Extended Cut, there are more opportunities for day in and day out promotional activity and [more chances] to strengthen the statement we make at retail,” Bishop said.

On deck through 2007 are fresh treatments of the James Bond, Rocky and Spider-Man films.

Coinciding with the fall theatrical release of Casino Royale, Sony promises the most comprehensive James Bond catalog release in the franchise’s history. Sony recently escorted certain retailers, including reps from Circuit City and HMV, to a day on the Casino Royale set in Prague.

Retail seems mostly grateful for the beefed-up interest in older Sony and MGM titles.

“MGM’s renowned for their extensive library, and any plans Sony has to release more of these is great news for chains like us that specialize in catalog,” Virgin buyer Chris Anstey said. “In an era that’s so dominantly focused on the promotion of new releases, it’s encouraging that studios are still dedicated to resurrecting the classics hidden in their vaults.”