Network DVD/BD - NEW RELEASES
Posted: Mon Feb 17, 2014 6:32 pm
There doesn't seem to be a thread here, so I thought I'd start one.
Independent British distributors NetworkDVD have confirmed that they are planning to add three classic titles to their Blu-ray catalog: Lindsay Anderson's This Sporting Life (1963), Basil Dearden's Victim (1961), and Paul Henreid's Ballad in Blue (1964). The three titles are expected to arrive on the UK market in May.
This Sporting Life
Richard Harris gives a career-best performance as the brutally competitive miner, strongly supported by Rachel Roberts as his bitter landlady, both of whom received Oscar nominations, with Roberts winning the BAFTA for Best British Actress. David Storey's compelling script was also BAFTA nominated, while director Lindsay Anderson was nominated for the Golden Palm for his unflinching look at working-class life set in the bleak landscape of Northern England. This Sporting Life is featured here in a High Definition transfer made from original film elements in its as-exhibited theatrical aspect ratio.
Miner Frank Machin lodges with a widow, Mrs. Hammond. His competitive nature and powerful physique cause him to join the local rugby team and, as his career progresses, so too his brutal nature distances him from those around him. Success – and perhaps a new sense of insecurity – seems to make Frank harsher and cruder...
STREET DATE: MAY 5TH.
Special Features:
•Original theatrical trailer
•Four image galleries, including extensive promotional and behind-the-scenes shots
•Promotional material PDFs
•Commemorative Booklet PDF by Film Historian David Rolinson
Victim
Banned on its original theatrical release in the United States and highly controversial in Britain, this BAFTA-nominated story of deception, blackmail and revenge stars Dirk Bogarde in a brave, career-best performance as a prosperous young barrister with a dark secret. With powerful direction from Basil Dearden and strong supporting performances from both Sylvia Syms and Dennis Price, Victim is featured here in a High Definition transfer made from original film elements in its as-exhibited theatrical aspect ratio.
The police are after Jack Barrett, who has stolen several thousand pounds and is now on the run. He tries desperately to get in touch with Melville Farr, a prosperous young barrister with a beautiful wife but, cornered and arrested by the police he commits suicide in his prison cell rather than answer their questions.
STREET DATE: MAY 19TH.
Special Features:
•Dirk Bogarde in Conversation - an extensive interview with Bogarde where he talks frankly about his career
•Original theatrical trailer
•Four image galleries, including extensive promotional and behind-the-scenes shots
•Promotional material PDFs
Ballad in Blue
Making his only major film appearance, legendary soul singer, musician and composer Ray Charles helps transform the lives of a blind boy and his widowed mother in this poignant, uplifting film drama set in mid-1960s London. Presented in a brand-new transfer from the original film elements in its as-exhibited theatrical aspect ratio, Ballad in Blue sees Charles – who had lost his sight completely by the age of eight – performing some of his best-loved songs, including I Got a Woman, Hit the Road, Jack and Busted.
During a performance for blind children, global star Ray Charles befriends David, a young boy who has recently lost his sight, and tries to help him come to terms with his condition. Then, during a world tour, Charles finds himself in Paris, where a surgeon is pioneering a radical procedure that could restore David's sight; he sets out not only to convince David's over-protective mother to allow her son to undergo the surgery, but also to reconcile her with her boyfriend, a struggling composer who seeks solace in alcohol.
STREET DATE: MAY 12TH.
Special Features:
•Image Gallery
http://www.blu-ray.com/news/?id=13071
Independent British distributors NetworkDVD have confirmed that they are planning to add three classic titles to their Blu-ray catalog: Lindsay Anderson's This Sporting Life (1963), Basil Dearden's Victim (1961), and Paul Henreid's Ballad in Blue (1964). The three titles are expected to arrive on the UK market in May.
This Sporting Life
Richard Harris gives a career-best performance as the brutally competitive miner, strongly supported by Rachel Roberts as his bitter landlady, both of whom received Oscar nominations, with Roberts winning the BAFTA for Best British Actress. David Storey's compelling script was also BAFTA nominated, while director Lindsay Anderson was nominated for the Golden Palm for his unflinching look at working-class life set in the bleak landscape of Northern England. This Sporting Life is featured here in a High Definition transfer made from original film elements in its as-exhibited theatrical aspect ratio.
Miner Frank Machin lodges with a widow, Mrs. Hammond. His competitive nature and powerful physique cause him to join the local rugby team and, as his career progresses, so too his brutal nature distances him from those around him. Success – and perhaps a new sense of insecurity – seems to make Frank harsher and cruder...
STREET DATE: MAY 5TH.
Special Features:
•Original theatrical trailer
•Four image galleries, including extensive promotional and behind-the-scenes shots
•Promotional material PDFs
•Commemorative Booklet PDF by Film Historian David Rolinson
Victim
Banned on its original theatrical release in the United States and highly controversial in Britain, this BAFTA-nominated story of deception, blackmail and revenge stars Dirk Bogarde in a brave, career-best performance as a prosperous young barrister with a dark secret. With powerful direction from Basil Dearden and strong supporting performances from both Sylvia Syms and Dennis Price, Victim is featured here in a High Definition transfer made from original film elements in its as-exhibited theatrical aspect ratio.
The police are after Jack Barrett, who has stolen several thousand pounds and is now on the run. He tries desperately to get in touch with Melville Farr, a prosperous young barrister with a beautiful wife but, cornered and arrested by the police he commits suicide in his prison cell rather than answer their questions.
STREET DATE: MAY 19TH.
Special Features:
•Dirk Bogarde in Conversation - an extensive interview with Bogarde where he talks frankly about his career
•Original theatrical trailer
•Four image galleries, including extensive promotional and behind-the-scenes shots
•Promotional material PDFs
Ballad in Blue
Making his only major film appearance, legendary soul singer, musician and composer Ray Charles helps transform the lives of a blind boy and his widowed mother in this poignant, uplifting film drama set in mid-1960s London. Presented in a brand-new transfer from the original film elements in its as-exhibited theatrical aspect ratio, Ballad in Blue sees Charles – who had lost his sight completely by the age of eight – performing some of his best-loved songs, including I Got a Woman, Hit the Road, Jack and Busted.
During a performance for blind children, global star Ray Charles befriends David, a young boy who has recently lost his sight, and tries to help him come to terms with his condition. Then, during a world tour, Charles finds himself in Paris, where a surgeon is pioneering a radical procedure that could restore David's sight; he sets out not only to convince David's over-protective mother to allow her son to undergo the surgery, but also to reconcile her with her boyfriend, a struggling composer who seeks solace in alcohol.
STREET DATE: MAY 12TH.
Special Features:
•Image Gallery
http://www.blu-ray.com/news/?id=13071