Dick
Tracy: RKO Pictures Collection
(1945 - 1947/VCI set*)/Furiosa:
A Mad Max Saga 4K
(2024/Warner Ultra HD Blu-ray)/Scooby
Doo! And The: Witch's Ghost
(1999) + Alien
Invaders
(2000/Warner Archive Blu-ray)/Tokijiro:
Lone Yakuza
(1966/Radiance/*both MVD)
4K
Ultra HD Picture: B+ Picture: B/X/B/B- Sound: B-/B+/B-/B-
Extras: B/B-/C/C+ Main Programs: C+/C+/C/C+
PLEASE
NOTE:
The Scooby
Doo!
Blu-ray double feature is now only available from Warner Bros.
through their Warner Archive series and can be ordered from the link
below.
Dick
Tracy: RKO Pictures Collection
(1945 - 1947)
includes all four films the studio made of the classic police comic
strip detective including Dick
Tracy - Detective
(1945), Dick
Tracy vs. Cueball
(1946), Dick
Tracy's Dilemma
and Dick
Tracy Meets Gruesome
(aka Vs. The
Gruesome Gang,
both 1947). Not as kinetic as the previous serial Republic did in
1937 (reviewed elsewhere on this site, hope we get a Blu-ray of that
soon) and have twice reviewed these films on DVD, starting with the
Roan Group DVD set:
http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/4315/Dick+Tracy+Collection+Box+Set+(Roan+Group+wit
...and
VCI's reissue because fans like these films so much:
http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/8003/Dick+Tracy+-+RKO+Classic+Collection+(VCI+DVD
To
say the improvements in picture and sound impress is a little bit of
an understatement, especially since we liked the image quality on the
DVDs as much as we could for the format. However, this replaces
them, no matter their previous flaws or good qualities with nice
Video Black, detail, depth and are much more enjoyable as a result.
Not
bad, the first film sets things up well, Cueball
has its moments, Dilemma
is about as good, then Boris Karloff shows up for what would be the
final film as Gruesome
and they quit while they were on top as the last two films got
finished around the same time. Karloff's presence alone on the set
is enough for his fans to want to get it, but those curious and those
who like Tracy will be very happy with what has been done here.
Extras
include a nicely illustrated booklet on the film including
informative text, illustrations and a solid essay by Stephen
Jacobs, while the discs add the previous on-camera introductions by
Tracy veteran Max Allan Collins, audio commentary tracks on all four
films, including one on all four by Collins that even offers more on
the history of the comic strip itself, but plenty on the films, plus
second ones on each film including Detective
(Jason Ney,) Cueball
(Bernard M. Prokop) and Toby Roan on the rest. We also get a new RKO
Lobby Card and Photo Gallery with posters and promo stills from the
films, all making this the most deluxe home video release of any
Dick Tracy films to date.
George
Miller's Furiosa:
A Mad Max Saga 4K
(2024) is a prequel to Mad
Max: Fury Road
from nine years ago already, which we reviewed in a 3D/2D/DVD set
here:
http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/13732/Broken+Horses+(2014/Sony+DVD)/The+Hunger
And
in 4K with the previous, original trilogy of Mel Gibson films here:
http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/16022/Eye+Of+The+Devil+(1966)/Mad+Love+(1935/both
Like
Solo:
A Star Wars Story,
the makers hope to expand the story of the character that was so
popular in the last film, but for the latter part of it, they wanted
to still have Charlize Theron and use digital de-aging technology to
make her look younger. As this posts, 99% of the attempts to do this
have been awful (Scorsese' The
Irishman
the sole, semi-success, if that) and they passed on Theron to her
(and many others) disappointment. Instead, Anya Taylor-Joy takes
over for the latter bulk of the film and
Alyla Browne
as Furiosa in the early part of the story.
Essentially,
we see the young lady still happy before the apocalypse, how things
go bad and she lands up eventually (spoilers, unless you saw Fury
Road)
getting kidnapped and all the madness that follows. More drama than
any entry since Thunderdome,
it still has plenty of action and Chris Hemsworth shows up as a new
character that he is decent as, but it is very, very easy to get lost
if you have not seen Fury
Road
before and unless you are a big fan, especially recently.
It
reminded me of the much more belated sequel, Jack
Nicholson's The
Two Jakes
(1990) 16 years after Polanski's Chinatown
(1974) where it is very easy to get lost unless you saw the classic
before it. Adding to this is its length, which is about two and a
half hours, which is ambitious and shows the makers wanted to be as
thorough as possible in telling the story. However, I liked Fury
Road
so much, it is still my favorite of the series and even I has to
think about it and recall it more than expected.
The
result is a solid film with some of the best filmmaking in the genre
of the last few years, bad as they have been, but it can be too
trying for most and that is why it was soft at the worldwide box
office and any more films in the series are on hold despite plans for
another.
I
also have to add that the ending and end credits were awkward and did
not help the situation either, but any fan of these films should
still see it. I just recommend seeing Fury
Road
again just before viewing to get the most out of it and still, I
missed Theron as good as the other gals are here.
Extras
include Digital Movie Code,
while the disc adds five Making Of featurettes: Highway
to Valhalla: In Pursuit of Furiosa, Darkest Angel: Anya Taylor-Joy as
Furiosa, Motorbike Messiah: Chris Hemsworth as Dementus, Furiosa:
Stowaway to Nowhere
and Metal
Beasts & Holy Motor.
The first one runs about an hour, followed by the rest at 20 minutes
average, but watch them after the film.
Next
up is another double feature of previously issued
straight-to-video/animated telefilms featuring TV animation's
favorite detective dog. Scooby
Doo! And The Witch's Ghost
(1999) and Scooby
Doo! And The Alien
Invaders
(2000) are now on Blu-ray, to the surprise of fans, but they'll be
happy enough as the quality is better than they'll ever see and hear
it, plus its not just a basic set. We previously reviewed Alien
Invaders
on DVD as part of a different Scooby double feature here:
http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/6626/Scooby+Doo+Double+Feature:+Alien+Invaders/Zo
So
Witch's
Ghost
is more in line with how the show sends up horror films and TV shows
all the time and might be a little more in the franchise's element,
but it still is the usual formula. However, these still have some
life in them versus the most resent such entities and are fine for
kids or fans of the gang. We'll see what other older such titles get
this upgraded treatment down the line.
Extras
include Promotional Trailers and ''Making Of'' featurettes for both
films, while Witch's
Ghost
gets an odd Music Video with a remake of the classic TV theme song.
And
that leaves us with Tai Kato's Tokijiro:
Lone Yakuza
(1966) has
the title character (Kinnosuke Nakamura)
just trying to have a life of freedom in Japan, but loves gambling.
When the latter goes wrong, the gangster organization he owes has him
kill someone, but when he has to protect that man's wife and son.
However, the organization wants them dead too, so he decides he has
no choice but to take them all on and fight back.
By
now, we've seen this in the genre, et al, but this is when it was a
little more original and this is well made and more serious than many
of its imitators. There is still an uneven sense of things to me,
but it is worth a look for anyone interested and was more a key film
in its time. Even without being told that, you can get a sense of
that with the pace it has, though expect more than the usual amount
of blood. Now you can see for yourself.
Extras
include an excellent interview with film critic Koushi Ueno about the
film's place in genre cinema history
A
visual essay on star Kinnosuke Nakamura by Japanese cinema expert
Robin Gatto
New
and improved English subtitle translation
Reversible
sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Time
Tomorrow
and
a Limited
Edition
booklet featuring new writing by scholar Ivo Smits and a newly
translated archival review.
Now
for playback performance. The 2160p HEVC/H.265, 2.35 X 1, Dolby
Vision/HDR (10; Ultra HD Premium)-enhanced Ultra High Definition
image on Furiosa
is the best-performer here, though some of the other films here still
look really good, an Ultra HD shoot that tries its best to match the
previous films in the series and especially Fury
Road.
Sometimes this is not as good as others and along with some visual
effects that are off in spots, I wished the film had tried variants
of the post-Apocalyptic look that happened between the good, healthy
days and Fury
Road,
but we really don't. The lossless Dolby Atmos (Dolby TrueHD 7.1
mixdown for older systems) is also well done, though nothing stood
out for me, it is very consistent and of course, has the best sound
off all the entries covered here.
The
1080p 1.33 X 1 black & white digital High Definition image
transfers on the Tracy
films can show the age of the materials used, but this is far
superior a transfer to all previous releases of the films, including
the then-exceptional DVD sets, coming from the surviving 35mm
negatives. Add the PCM 2.0 Mono making the films sound better than
ever and than they likely ever will and it is an ace of a set.
Warner owns most of the RKO catalog, but not these, so its nice they
get the same high quality treatment you'd get from a similar RKO
release of the time from Warner Archive.
The
1080p 1.78 X 1 digital High Definition image transfers on
the Scooby
films are a slight revelation for those used to the passive quality
of these straight-to-video releases, looking better than anyone could
have expected them to, especially after the credits with
lower-definition digital credits over the better animation. That
holds them back, then when they are finished, the programs really
look good, even better than the Scooby
Zombie
Blu-ray set we just reviewed elsewhere on this site. They may not
match the great color on the early shows, but this is much more like
it. The DTS-HD MA (Master Audio) 5.1 lossless mixes can be a little
boxy or uneven, so only expect so much, but these too are as good as
they will ever sound. Alien
Invaders
was painfully too soft on that older DVD.
The
1080p 2.35 X 1 full color, digital High Definition image transfer on
Tokijiro
can show the age of the materials used, with the anamorphic lenses
age and limits showing, being an older lens format (Toei Scope,
probably Kowa lenses) not used hardly at all anymore. Color is
consistent, if sometimes slightly muted, but has been restored the
best it can be. Hard to tell if it was shot on Fuji, Kodak or
another color stock. The
Japanese PCM 2.0 Mono has also been resorted and is the best this
film will ever sound.
To
order the Scooby
Doo!
Warner Archive Blu-ray, go to this link for them and many more great
web-exclusive
releases at:
https://www.amazon.com/stores/page/ED270804-095F-449B-9B69-6CEE46A0B2BF?ingress=0&visitId=6171710b-08c8-4829-803d-d8b922581c55&tag=blurayforum-20
-
Nicholas Sheffo
