Warner Archive Discussion Thread (The Announcements/The Films) (2 Viewers)

[bujaki]

I was told Letty Lynton will fall into public domain in 2025. That's just a dozen years away!

 

[Rob_Ray]

I saw the rep from the Warner Archive at the Labor Day weekend's Cinecon convention. He said there was nothing to be read into the fact that the current quarter has been slow in the release of new titles and heavy with previously pressed discs getting a re-release. It was just the luck of the schedule. They have no plans to slow down the release of DVD-Rs in favor of the new streaming service and have, in fact, been worried that the buying public may mistakenly think so. He also said the first quarter of 2014 will be extremely heavy with new titles.

They are working diligently to iron out the rights issues holding up "The Dark at the Top of the Stairs" but was less optimistic about "Letty Lynton"'s issues getting resolved anytime soon.

 

[PODER]

Rob ... thanks for the report! With no new releases, due to the holiday week-end, I'm hoping we may see some exciting goodies to start off the 2013 Fourth Quarter!

 

[Rob_Ray]

Rob ... thanks for the report! With no new releases, due to the holiday week-end, I'm hoping we may see some exciting goodies to start off the 2013 Fourth Quarter!

He did hint that the fourth quarter is apt to be another slow one. He kept saying look to the first quarter of 2014 for the deluge of new titles.

 

[[email protected]]

He did hint that the fourth quarter is apt to be another slow one. He kept saying look to the first quarter of 2014 for the deluge of new titles.

Well, that's ok; my wallet could use the rest.

 

[JoeDoakes]

The Warner Archive site says the William Powell set will be pressed in anticipation of high demand. I'm not familiar with any of the included films. What do people think? Are they good? Will the set be popular?

 

[JoHud]

I haven't seen any of them, but I already had this preordered by virtue of them being William Powell films of his early/peak years. I'm sure they'll sell well enough.

 

[shoeshineboy]

Outside of Warner's, where can a Canadian order this? Is deep discount able to deliver/sell the WA pressed discs?

 

[JoeDoakes]

Outside of Warner's, where can a Canadian order this? Is deep discount able to deliver/sell the WA pressed discs?

Yes. I have place a number of WA orders from them and they get the pressed disks.

 

[Garysb]

http://shop.warnerarchive.com/category/code/5for50_wacshop.do?ref=EWAC5FOR50SALE

5 for $50 sale is available again through September 9.

 

[Ronald Epstein]

AHEAD OF TODAY'S OFFICIAL ANNOUNCEMENT


http://l.email-warnerbros.com/1x1.dyn?0tEGgqr-CwCtmh22sQeAaegxU=0

WARNER ARCHIVE HOME • NEW RELEASES • BESTSELLING DVDs • FORWARD TO A FRIEND

NICHOLS: THE COMPLETE SERIES (1971-72) This seldom seen, never-syndicated TV gem is a true one-season wonder courtesy of the legendary James Garner and scribe Frank R. Pierson (Cat Ballou). True to his ‘maverick’ self and the megawatt star power he gained via his breakout movie work, Garner returned to TV in 1971 on his own terms. Nichols bears his imprimatur in every way. It’s a sardonic critique of the clichéd American Hero’s penchant for ugly, violent solutions to the complicated problems and an exploration of the moral grays of day-to-day life. Garner plays Nichols, an Army lifer who cashes out after he observes the advent of the machine gun at the dawn of 20th Century, going as far as swearing off gunplay. When he returns to his old town, its unofficial mayor, the hardscrabble and semi-larcenous “Ma” Ketcham (Neva Patterson), quickly drafts him and his motorcycle to become sheriff. Instead of his guns, Nichols tries to lead the town by his wits, charm and absolute aversion to violence in a town still clinging to the ways of the Wild West. Far, far ahead of its time, Nichols failed to find an audience and faded into obscurity – but not before Garner saw the show out with a final episode that is truly a stunner. Garner would revisit much of Nichols’ themes and ethos (along with co-star Stuart Margolin) in a more contemporary setting to great success with The Rockford Files. Co-starring Margot Kidder who’s engaging and enchanting as the lovely local barmaid who captures Nichols’ eye – and almost his heart. 6-Disc, 24-Episode complete collection

WILLIAM POWELL AT WARNER BROS. (1931-34) Between his matinee idol silent Paramount era and his grand gent days at MGM, William Powell enjoyed a 9-film interregnum on the gritty streets of the Warner Bros. lot. As the studio struggled with how to fit the suave thespian in amongst its assortment of rough-hewn character mooks and mugs, Powell himself struggled to find vehicles that would best show off his strengths. What emerged is a series of seldom-seen gems that display a truly titanic talent in its nascent stages, still astonishing and beguiling – all with an extra soupçon of pre-Code spice!

Set contains:
THE ROAD TO SINGAPORE (1931) Powell plays the cad who came back in this tale of torpid torment and tempestuous passions in the tropics. Doris Kenyon plays the object of his attention while Louis Calhern plays the cuckold. Alfred E. Green (Baby Face) directs.

HIGH PRESSURE (1932) Mervyn LeRoy directs Powell as a scurrilous stock promoter cursed with the Achilles’ heel of actually buying into the hokum he’s peddling. A riotous, sly delight peppered with clever characters and quick wits. Also stars Evelyn Brent, George Sidney, Guy Kibbee, Frank McHugh and John Wray.

PRIVATE DETECTIVE 62 (1933) Powell plays a disgraced and disavowed secret agent who turns to divorce work to keep his kitchen from getting lean. Bankrolled by a hood and partnered with a fink, he gets tasked with getting the goods on a gambling lady. But in this game of cards it’s the lady who has the best hand. The indispensable Michael Curtiz directs, Margaret Lindsay co-stars.

THE KEY (1934) Both sides of the Irish uprising — “the Irish problem” for the British, “the troubles” for the natives of Eire — bookends this tale of a romantic triangle among the occupying forces. Powell plays a cynical seducer soldier-of-fortune, Edna Best is the lass he left behind, and Colin Clive is the intel officer who courted and kept her. Michael Curtiz directs with a sympathetic eye to both sides.

THE TIN STAR (1957) Anthony Mann directs this Western classic that plays to the post-High Noon audience while still staying true to the tropes of the past. Henry Fonda stars as hard-bitten and bitter bounty hunter Morg Hickman, enlisted by greenhorn lawman Ben Owens (Anthony Perkins) to show him the ropes of roping in the lawless and the lynchers. Future outlaw icon Lee van Cleef appropriately appears as a cretin.

CHUKA (1967) Rod Taylor produced this muscular Gordon Douglas directed besieged fort flick that reflects the Vietnam era as much as the Frontier times. Taylor plays taciturn gunslinger Chuka, fast on the draw and slow to forgive, who finds himself sharing the siege with a crew of craven soldiers, their unhinged commander (John Mills) and an old flame (Luciana Paluzzi). Also stars Ernest Borgnine and James Whitmore.

WATERHOLE #3 (1967) Blake Edwards produced this satirical, cynical Western directed by William Graham. A gambler (James Coburn) crosses paths with an ugly crew of renegade soldiers (led by Claude Akins) and a sheriff gone bad (Carroll O’Connor) while on the hunt for a fortune in buried loot. Also stars Joan Blondell, James Whitmore, Margaret Blye and Bruce Dern.

BAD COMPANY (1973) Oft’ overlooked cinema titan Robert Benton co-wrote (with noted screenscribe David Newman) and directed this revisionist Western that casts a jaundiced but humane eye on the myth and realities of the Wild West. It’s a journey away from innocence as seen through the prism of two young men — one full of schemes (an already astonishing Jeff Bridges), the other full of dreams (Barry Brown). On the run from the Civil War draft, the salvation they seek in the West may very well be their damnation.

BEAUTICIAN AND THE BEAST (1997) Ken Kwapis directs Timothy Dalton and Fran Drescher in this goy vs. oy riff onThe King and I. Eager to make her way in the world, hairdresser Joy Miller (Drescher) gets her chance when she’s sent to a modern once-upon-a-time land called Slovetzia to tutor the three children of gruff, widowed dictator Boris Pochenko (Timothy Dalton). Joy thinks she’s been hired as a beautician. Boris thinks she’s been hired as an able science teacher. The fate of a nation hangs in the balance! Also stars Ian McNeice.

MARY AND MARTHA (2013) Richard Curtis (Black Adder, Doctor Who, Four Weddings and a Funeral) pens this tale of tragedy and redemption starring Hilary Swank and Brenda Blethyn. Two very different women — an upscale American interior designer named Mary (Swank) and a middle-class Englishwoman named Martha (Blethyn) form an unlikely bond following the loss of their only children from malaria contracted in Africa. Battling their lingering grief and the strains on their marriages, the two work together to raise awareness of malaria, a preventable and treatable disease, while recovering their sense of purpose. Phillip Noyce directs.

PHIL SPECTOR (2013) Al Pacino and Helen Mirren star in writer/director David Mamet’s fascinating exploration of the limits and boundaries to understanding embodied in the privileged attorney-client relationship. Pacino plays Spector to Mirren’s Linda Kenney Baden, who represented Spector during his first trial for murder. The film transforms news to myth, as Mamet draws inspiration from actual persons in a trial, but neither attempts to depict them nor comment upon the actual trial or its outcome. Also stars Rebecca Pidgeon, Jeffrey Tambor and Chiwetel Ejiofor.

Join us for Class Act (1992) starring Kid ’n Play this Friday, 9/13 at midnight @cinefamily. Find out “what happens when the school records of a brainiac dweeb (Kid, the guy with the high-rise ’do) and a got-attitude street tough (hip-hop style master Play) get accidentally switched” at Cinefamily’s back-to-school jam!

Hide your water bagels and foldable pizza, Big Apple! Warner Archive is coming to New York next month, Oct. 10-13 to present two super hero panels at New York Comic-Con, a Batman: Brave and the Bold symposium at the Paley Center and a rare screening of the classic horror gem, The Beast with Five Fingers at the Brooklyn Academy of Music. Stay tuned for more details!

Not enough Westerns for you? Check out our new streaming service, Warner Archive Instant where you can get access to a swell collection of oaters including Johnny Mack Brown in Texas Lawman (1951) and Randolph Scott in Colt .45 (1950) along with John Ford’s Wagon Master (1950), John Wayne in Chisum (1970) and the Brat Pack in Young Guns (1988) in 1080p HD*

*Currently HD available on Roku HD, Roku 2 XD and Roku 3. Currently 1080p available on Roku 2 XD and Roku 3.

© Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. All rights reserved. All characters and elements are ™ and © Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc.

WarnerArchive.com
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When William Met James
http://shop.warnerarchive.com/category/new+releases.do?adid=0910WACNRBml&ref=EW0910B

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© 2013 Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. All Rights Reserved.

 

[Steve Armbrust]

I can't believe they are releasing Nichols. I haven't seen it since the day, and maybe my memories are a bit foggy from all the illegal distractions of college life at the time. But I remember this as being a fantastic series, and it's been on my wish list forever. James Garner and Margot Kidder.

 

[rdimucci]

They sued IWMB, Inc for 10 million. They were to destroy 2 million units of which close to 1 million ended up at Big Lots and other close out stores.They wanted these destroyed at the height of the recession when Circuit City was failing and the Brick and Mortar stores were struggling. The huge age of DVD sales was over and these units were sitting around gathering dust and more than likely still be sitting there today. In business good decisions are made and bad ones are made, things change and its hard to blame for decisions made four years ago when models change daily.

What kind of business decision is it to pay someone to destroy 2 million units rather than obtain additional revenue by selling them directly to close out stores?

 

[TheSteig]

I decided to blind buy the Powell Set, oh I hope these are good movies...Since Im a William Powell fan I decided to take the plunge .( I have the Thin Man, the Loy/Powell set, and lots of Powell films)
And I got Hands of a Stranger too....

 

[ahollis]

What kind of business decision is it to pay someone to destroy 2 million units rather than obtain additional revenue by selling them directly to close out stores?

Warner Brothers business decision. They were tired of paying storage costs. By that time all the Tower Records and Video Stores, along with Virgin had closed and all those units the stores had at the time of closing was returned. I know I saw 50 or sixty of each Warner box set at the both Tower and Virgin stores in New York. Along with the pending loss of Borders and Circuit City, they were getting a lot of returns. To them it seemed better to get rid of them than to devalue them through close outs. They still had sets at Barnes and Noble, Target, and Best Buy. I'm sure they did not want antagonize those buyers

 

[ahollis]

Very happy with the BOMBA Volume 2 Collection. Very good transfers in the correct aspect ratio. Another series collection now completed.

 

[MattPriceTime]

Here's a question i'm not sure if has ever been answered (and i don't feel like digging through their fb wall if someone here might have a better memory)

What's the policy on the OOP DVDs to MOD? Has it ever been said how that works. Does every WHV OOP dvd become open ground for WA to re-release or does WHV have to decide which ones WA gets to start distributing again?

It's not secret they have mentioned many times where the line stands on things not yet released, but i'm curious if it's ever been said about the ones that were released once before.

 

[Bob_S.]

Just watched Andy Hardy Comes Home (I've never seen it before) and noticed something that took me right out of the movie. Andy Hardy reminiscences about Betsy Booth but the flashback scene is from Babes In Arms! And to make it even more jarring, the word "Patsy" is dubbed over with "Betsy". The dub didn't fit at all. Anybody else catch this?

 

[Matt Hough]

Just watched Andy Hardy Comes Home (I've never seen it before) and noticed something that took me right out of the movie. Andy Hardy reminiscences about Betsy Booth but the flashback scene is from Babes In Arms! And to make it even more jarring, the word "Patsy" is dubbed over with "Betsy". The dub didn't fit at all. Anybody else catch this?

I caught it years ago when I saw it on TV. Andy and Betsy were never really girl friend and boy friend. More like brother and sister, so I guess that's why they borrowed a clip from a Mickey-Judy film in which they were actually more "intimate."

 

[ahollis]

I caught it years ago when I saw it on TV. Andy and Betsy were never really girl friend and boy friend. More like brother and sister, so I guess that's why they borrowed a clip from a Mickey-Judy film in which they were actually more "intimate."

For some reason I just get the shivers thinking about Mickey and Judy more "intimate"