Every month, a new swathe of films get cleaned up and re-released in glorious 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray editions, and we’ll be compiling the best of them for you right here..
This month, an all-time classic trilogy gets a lavish new box set, one of the pillars of science fiction cinema is shown in a whole new light, and one of horror’s gnarliest entries is given a scrub up and a fresh release.
It’s worth saying that 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray discs are region-free, so anyone with a 4K Blu-ray player can enjoy these films, wherever they are in the world.
So, with that in mind, we've compiled a list of the best 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray movies getting a re-release this month, along with all the endless bonus features that will come with them…
The Godfather
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To celebrate the 50th anniversary of the arrival of the beginning of cinema’s most iconic trilogy, each of the classic movies has been newly restored and remastered in Dolby Vision, and are being released together on 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray for the very first time.
The 4K Ultra HD Limited Collector’s Edition will include The Godfather, The Godfather: Part II, and three versions of The Godfather: Part III: the theatrical cut, which is being released for first time for viewing at home, Francis Ford Coppola’s 1991 cut, and his recently re-edited version of the final film, Mario Puzo’s THE GODFATHER, Coda: The Death of Michael Corleone.
Coppola’s new edit features restored picture and sound, under the supervision of studios American Zoetrope and Paramount Pictures, and includes a new beginning and ending, as well as changes to scenes, shots, and music cues.
Among the bonus content featured on the collection are a documentary titled Full Circle: Preserving The Godfather, which follows Paramount Pictures archivists as they detail the film’s restoration process with footage showing the evolution of the film through various releases. There’s also an in-depth interview with set photographer Steve Schapiro and an assortment of 8mm home movie footage shot in 1971, which is being made available to the public for the first time, and offers a candid look into the production of The Godfather.
The ultimate box set also includes three exclusively commissioned illustrated portraits, and a hardcover book featuring extensive photography from production as well as a new introduction from Coppola.
The collection isn't cheap, coming in almost £120 in the UK and almost $107 in the US (though with fewer special features and six discs rather than eight).
Release Date: March 21 (UK), March 22 (US)
An American Werewolf in London
Four decades years after its first release, John Landis’ much-loved scare-a-thon gets a clean-up and a lavish new package.
The film stars David Naughton and Griffin Dunne, as American tourists David (Naughton) and Jack (Dunne), who are savaged by an unidentified creature while on a hiking trip in northern England.
Days later, David awakes in a London hospital to find his friend is dead – but that’s just the start of his problems. He recovers from his injuries, but soon begins to experience disturbing changes to his mind and body. And, when he hits the streets of London under a full moon, it’s carnage…
Arrow’s new repackaging includes a new 4K restoration from the original camera negative, presented in 4K (2160p) UHD Blu-ray in Dolby Vision.
Among the bonus content is a new feature-length documentary, Mark of The Beast: The Legacy of the Universal Werewolf, by filmmaker Daniel Griffith, which includes interviews with Landis, Naughton, Joe Dante and more key players, and a lengthy interview with Landis, An American Filmmaker in London, in which he reflects on British cinema and his time working in Britain.
There’s also an extensive interview with Corin Hardy, director of The Hallow and The Nun, who talks about the An American Werewolf in London’s influence; Wares of the Wolf, a featurette in which SFX artist Dan Martin and Tim Lawes of Prop Store look at some of the original costumes and special effects artefacts from the film, and a long chat with legendary horror make-up artist Rick Baker about his work on the movie.
The box set also comes with a reversible sleeve featuring original poster art and artwork by Graham Humphreys, a double-sided fold-out poster, six double-sided, postcard-sized lobby card reproductions, and a limited-edition 60-page book featuring new writing by Craig Ian Mann and Simon Ward, archival articles and original reviews.
Release Date: March 14 (UK), March 15 (US)
RoboCop
Paul Verhoeven’s classic dystopian action thriller, first released in 1987. gets a sparkling new reissue in glorious 4K.
Set in a crime-ridden Detroit sometime in the near future, the film follows police officer Alex Murphy, who is brutally murdered by a criminal gang. His body is taken to megacorporation Omni Consumer Products, who revive him as the cyborg law enforcer RoboCop.
Unaware of his former life, RoboCop executes a brutal campaign against crime all the while his humanity is slipping away.
RoboCop begins a brutally effective one-robot campaign against Detroit’s criminals, but starts to be haunted by flashbacks to his former existence.
Peter Weller stars as Murphy, with Nancy Allen, Daniel O'Herlihy, Ronny Cox, Kurtwood Smith and Miguel Ferrer in supporting roles.
Regarded as a key influence on science fiction cinema and cited by numerous filmmakers, the film was remade with rather less impact in 2013.
The repackaging includes two discs, with one featuring the director’s cut and the other the original theatrical cut. Both cuts have soundtracks remastered using the latest audio and visual tech, including Dolby Vision and original lossless stereo and four-channel mixes, as well as DTS-HD MA 5.1, and offer Dolby Atmos surround sound options.
Among a raft of bonus features are a reversible sleeve featuring original and newly-commissioned artwork, an 80-page Limited Edition collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the film, extensive interviews with all the key cast and crew, four deleted scenes, and collector’s cards and a poster.
Release Date: March 28 (UK), April 12 (US)
Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein
Kenneth Branagh’s 1994 take on Mary Shelley’s gothic masterpiece has been revamped and released by Arrow.
Branagh stars as Victor Frankenstein, and directs a cast that also includes Robert De Niro as his monster, Helena Bonham Carter, Tom Hulce, Ian Holm, John Cleese and Aidan Quinn.
A faithful take on Shelley’s story, the film follows Frankenstein, a brilliant scientist, who tries to cheat death by bringing a ‘man’ he’s assembled from assorted body parts to life, but only succeeds in creating a monster.
Horrified by what he has wrought, Frankenstein attempts to destroy his creature, but fails. Rejected by his creator and shunned by the world of man, the tormented creature swears vengeance against Frankenstein and his family…
Branagh’s film has been restored using the original camera negatives in 4K (2160p) UHD Blu-ray presentation and Dolby Vision.
Among the bonus features are new audio commentaries from film historians Michael Brooke and Johnny Mains, composer Patrick Doyle, and costume designer James Acheson, plus a new interview with make-up designer Daniel Parker.
The re-release also includes Mary Shelley and The Creation of a Monster, a new documentary featurette exploring the origins and evolution of the Frankenstein story, featuring contributions from Gothic specialists David Pirie, Jonathan Rigby and Stephen Volk.
Also included are two featurettes: Dissecting Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, in which Volk, Pirie and Rigby discuss on the differences between the novel and Kenneth Branagh’s screen adaptation, and Frankenstein: A Liberal Adaptation from Mrs. Shelley’s Famous Story for Edison Production (1910), which is the first screen adaptation of Shelley’s story – a 2K restoration by the Library of Congress, with music by Donald Sosin.
The release comes with a reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Laz Marquez, and the re-release’s first pressing which also comes with an illustrated collector’s booklet featuring new writing by Jon Towlson and Amy C. Chambers
Release Date: March 28 (UK), April 12 (US)
The Hills Have Eyes
Wes Craven’s terrifying 1977 bloodfest gets a fresh lick of gore and a grand collection of bonus features next month.
The film documents the terrifying travails of the Carter family, whose vacation turns into a nightmare when their campervan breaks down in the middle of the desert after they take an ill-advised detour.
The family find themselves stranded, and at the mercy of a group of monstrous cannibals lurking in the surrounding hills. What follows is an almighty fight for survival…
The new release includes a 4K restoration of the film, which you can watch with both the original and alternate endings, all presented in 4K (2160p) UHD Blu-ray.
Among the bonus features are commentaries from Craven, stars Michael Berryman, Janus Blythe, Robert Houston, Susan Lanier and Dee Wallace, academic Mikel J. Koven and Peter Locke, and Looking Back on The Hills Have Eyes – a making-of documentary featuring interviews with Craven, Locke, Berryman, Blythe, Houston, Lanier, Wallace, and director of photography Eric Saarinen.
There is also a sit-down with composer Don Peake as well as outtakes, trailers, TV spots and a look at the original screenplay.
The new release comes with a reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork.
Release Date: March 21 (UK), March 22 (US)
