WARNER: The Big Parade - DVD & Blu-Ray in October

WHAT: WHEN: STUDIO: PRICE:

The Big Parade October 1st Warner Home Video Retail $14.97, Our: $12.99

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WHAT: WHEN: STUDIO: PRICE:

The Big Parade (Blu-Ray) October 1st Warner Home Video Retail $27.98, Our: $22.99

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It must be "Silent Friday."

King Vidor's The Big Parade (1925), the highest grossing silent film of the silent era, finally gets its due on October 1st with DVD & Blu-Ray releases.

Each single disc release comes with bonus features (below), with the Blu-Ray being a 64-page "Blu-Ray Book."


The highest-grossing silent film of all time, as well as the first realistic war drama, tells the harrowing story of a young man's (John Gilbert) front-line experiences in World War I.

BONUS FEATURES:

• Audio Commentary by Historian Jeffrey Vance with Director King Vidor
• The Men Who Made the Movies: King Vidor Documentary
• 1925 Studio Tour Vintage Short
• PLUS: 64 Page Book with Comprehensive Notes by Historian Kevin Brownlow. Includes Rare Original Art, Photos and Ad Materials **(Blu-Ray Only)

KINO: Bird of Paradise (1932) Standard & Blu in May

WHAT: WHEN: STUDIO: PRICE:

Bird of Paradise May 1st Kino Retail $24.95, Our: $19.99

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WHAT: WHEN: STUDIO: PRICE:

Bird of Paradise (Blu-Ray) May 1st Kino Retail $29.95, Our: $23.99

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More from the estate of David O. Selznick as Kino has announced a May 1st release date for Bird of Paradise (1932) on both standard DVD and Blu-Ray.

Bonus features are not expected.


Joel McCrea (The Most Dangerous Game) stars as a handsome South Seas soldier of fortune who falls in love with Dolores Del Rio (Flying Down to Rio), the daughter of a Polynesian native chieftain.

Alas, their idyllic romance is destined to come to a sudden and violent end: tribal custom decrees that Del Rio is to be sacrificed to the local volcano. After initial resistance, the heroine nobly resigns herself to her fate, realizing that there is no place for her in her white lover's civilization.

From the legendary Academy Award nominated director King Vidor (War & Peace, The Champ) and producer David O. Selznick (Gone With The Wind, King Kong). This is the only authorized edition of this classic film from the estate of David O. Selznick, restored and remastered in high definition from the George Eastman House.

FLICKER ALLEY: The Lost Films of John Gilbert in July

WHAT: WHEN: STUDIO: PRICE: TITLES:

The Lost Films of John Gilbert July 7th Flicker Alley Retail $39.99, Our: $29.99 Bardelys the Magnificent (1926), Monte Cristo (1922)

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Flicker Alley has announced a July 7th release date for a The Lost Films of John Gilbert. The titles are the King Vidor directed Bardelys the Magnificent (1926) and Monte Cristo (1922).

The two-disc release will retail for $39.99, but it's available at ClassicFlix.com for only $29.99. Details below.

Bardelys the Magnificent (1926, 85 min.)
Based upon the novel by Rafael Sabatini and directed by King Vidor, who just one year before had directed Gilbert in the smash hit The Big Parade. In France “in an age of light loves and lively scandals,” the Marquis de Bardelys (Gilbert), casual womanizer and accomplished swashbuckler, is entranced by Roxalanne de Lavedan (Eleanor Boardman); and against a background of knavery and intrigue, he sets out to woo and win her. Lavishly mounted and superbly directed with spectacular action scenes, Bardelys is a hugely entertaining action romance given an A-plus MGM production.

The sole surviving print was found in France in 2006; the English titles are restored according to the original script. A gap in the recovered footage is bridged with stills, titles, and footage from the original trailer so the story is complete; the Mont Alto Motion Picture Orchestra provides a lovely score of period photoplay music. This release is possible through the graciousness of Warner Bros. and Sony Pictures.

Monte Cristo (1922, 100 min.)
Adapted from the novel by Alexandre Dumas, and directed by Emmett J. Flynn, Gilbert is Edmond Dantes, a sailor unjustly imprisoned for twenty years, time he spends acquiring education and finesse. Later the accidental heir to a vast fortune, Dantes reinvents himself as the Count of Monte Cristo, and wreaks revenge on those symbols of the decadent monarchy that wronged him.

Fox Film spared no expense on this prestige film with lavish sets and a distinguished supporting cast. The sole surviving copy of Monte Cristo is a worn and choppy print found in the Czech Republic, but nearly complete. English titles have been restored with the help of the original script. Pianist Neal Kurz arranged and performs a score of obscure yet beautiful French music of the period.

BONUS FEATURES:

• Film historians Jeffrey Vance and Tony Maietta draw from their own extensive historical research into the life of John Gilbert to provide:
  • A full-length audio essay on Bardelys the Magnificent
    
  • An enclosed booklet
    
  • A brand-new thirty-minute documentary Rediscovering John Gilbert, featuring an on-camera interview with John Gilbert’s daughter and biographer, Leatrice Gilbert Fountain
• Plus a 200+ Image slide show