OLIVE FILMS, based in Chicago, are introducing a new series of DVDs/Blu-Ray titles ,to be called Olive Signature.
Available for pre-order are HIGH NOON and JOHNNY GUITAR. The two re-mastered films will be released on Sept.20, 2016. No other titles have been announced yet.
Both will have lots of bonus materials – profiles of Nicholas Ray, Stanley Kramer, Herbert Yates, the blacklist history of High Noon.
Olive Films have already released both films on DVD and Blu-Ray in America in 2012 ( for $15) . This time around the price leaps to $40 for each film.
Olive quotes improved sound and picture quality , and to see them at their best you need a 4K ultra HD television and DVD player. Don’t even ask what that might cost!
No company in the U.K. has announced distribution of the two films.
The only Region B blu Ray releases of these two films are from Germany and Spain. It’s disappointing that no company in the UK have brought them out on blu Ray , even without extras and ultra HD.
And when is all this region business going to stop.
Pricey, but restorations cost a lot. The coding business is almost certainly forced on Olive as they are licensing the titles and the owners probably insist on it, as happens with Criterion discs.
The UK is indeed slow to release classic titles on Blu-ray although the boutique labels like Arrow and Eureka have been doing fine work.
I suspect not that many folk have the Tv/DVD player capability to enjoy the full restoration.
Coding for different regions of the world should come to an end but I don’t suppose it will.
Yes, I’ m grateful to Arrow and Eureka.
Regarding the price, Classicflix are already
offering the Blu Ray’s at $32 and they have not even been
released yet.
They are sure to come down in price over time.
At $40 a hit they should not go out of print anytime
soon.
I recently picked up the Criterion Blu Ray of JUBAL
at a greatly reduced price-far less than most standard
DVD’s in fact. Playing the waiting game certainly pays off
in most cases.
Could not agree more regarding region coding but happily
many USA companies like Blue Underground and Twilight
Time always release their Blu Ray’s region free.
Most of the major studios like Warners and Universal
also release region free discs.
Thanks for the info,John.