The Vivien Leigh Anniversary Collection DVD & Blu in November

WHAT: WHEN: STUDIO: PRICE:

The Vivien Leigh Anniversary Collection November 19th Cohen Media Retail $49.98, Our: $40.99

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WHAT: WHEN: STUDIO: PRICE:

The Vivien Leigh Anniversary Collection (Blu) November 19th Cohen Media Retail $59.98, Our: $47.99

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To mark the 100th year of her birth, Cohen Media has announced The Vivien Leigh Anniversary Collection on both standard DVD and Blu-Ray with a street date of November 19th.

Making their Blu debut, all four films, Dark Journey (1937), Fire Over England (1937), Storm in a Teacup (1937) and Sidewalks of London (1938) were releasd on DVD by Genius Entertainment in 2003. The set has long been out of print.

Bonus features are not forthcoming.

Laurence Olivier & Gloria Swanson Have a Perfect Understanding

WHAT: WHEN: STUDIO: PRICE:

Perfect Understanding June 4th Cohen Media Retail $24.98, Our: $19.99

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WHAT: WHEN: STUDIO: PRICE:

Perfect Understanding (Blu-Ray) June 4th Cohen Media Retail $34.98, Our: $27.99

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Fresh off their classic debut release The Thief of Bagdad (Blu-Ray) starring Douglas Fairbanks, which received rave reviews, Cohen Media has announced Perfect Understanding (1933) on both standard DVD and Blu-Ray.

Set for release on June 4th, the British set comedy of manners stars Gloria Swanson and Laurence Olivier. Bonus features, if any, are not forthcoming.


A comedy of manners in which two people marry on the condition that each will retain his or her individual freedom. But when each subsequently flaunts their extra-marital escapades in the face of the other, it precipitates an amusing battle of the sexes.

This classic comedy has been fully restored and is being presented in its original form for the first time on DVD. Stars Gloria Swanson (Sunset Boulevard) and Laurence Olivier (Hamlet).

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CRITERION: Olivier's Richard III on Standard & Blu in April

WHAT: WHEN: STUDIO: PRICE:

Richard III April 9th Criterion Retail $29.95, Our: $23.99

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WHAT: WHEN: STUDIO: PRICE:

Richard III (Blu-Ray) April 9th Criterion Retail $39.95, Our: $31.99

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Criterion has announced an April 9th release date for Laurence Olivier's Richard III (1955) on standard DVD & Blu-Ray.

Both come with all the bonus features from the previous standard 2-disc release, with the exception of an essay by historian Bruce Eder. Exclusive the Blu release is a booklet featuring an essay by film critic Amy Taubin.


With Richard III, Laurence Olivier-as director, producer and star-transfigures Shakespeare's great historical drama into a mesmerizing vision of Machiavellian villainy. Olivier's performance, viewed as the greatest of his career, charges Richard with magnetic malevolence as he steals his brother Edward's crown through a murderous set of machinations.

His inspired direction brings to the screen superlative performances by veteran theater actors Ralph Richardson and John Gielgud and the young Claire Bloom.

Filmed in Vista Vision and Technicolor, The Criterion Collection is proud to present the restored film for which Olivier received the 1956 British Academy Film Award for the Best Actor and Best Film.

BONUS FEATURES:

• Audio Commentary by Playwright and Stage Director Russell Lees, Joined by John Wilders, Former Governor of the Royal Shakespeare Company
• Great Acting: Laurence Olivier, a 1966 BBC Interview with Olivier, Hosted by Renowned Theater Critic Kenneth Tynan
• Gallery of On-Set and Production Stills and Posters, featuring excerpts from Olivier's Autobiography on Acting
• 12 Minute Television Trailer, including footage of Olivier, Producer Alexander Korda, Production Designer Roger Furse, and Other Crew Members at Work in Shepperton Studios
• Original Theatrical Trailer
• PLUS: A booklet featuring an essay by film critic Amy Taubin (BLU-RAY ONLY)

BLU HITCHCOCK: Rebecca, Notorious, Spellbound This Month

WHAT: WHEN: STUDIO: PRICE:

Rebecca (Blu-Ray) January 24th MGM Retail: 24.99, Our: $19.99

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WHAT: WHEN: STUDIO: PRICE:

Notorious (Blu-Ray) January 24th MGM Retail: 24.99, Our: $19.99

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WHAT: WHEN: STUDIO: PRICE:

Spellbound (Blu-Ray) January 24th MGM Retail: 24.99, Our: $19.99

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WHAT: WHEN: STUDIO: PRICE:

The Apartment (Blu-Ray) January 24th MGM Retail: 24.99, Our: $19.99

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More Hitchcock on Blu-Ray has been announced by MGM as Rebecca (1940), Notorious (1946) and Spellbound (1945) are all due on January 24th.

Also out is on the same day is Billy Wilder's The Apartment (Blu-Ray). Bonus features, which are many, will carry over for all four standard versions.

Spartacus (Blu-Ray) - 50th Anniversary Edition in May

WHAT: WHEN: STUDIO: PRICE:

Spartacus (Blu-Ray) - 50th Anniversary Edition May 25th Universal Retail: $26.98, Our: $20.99

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Universal has announced a May 25th release date for Spartacus (Blu-Ray) - 50th Anniversary Edition.

Unlike the 2006 HD-DVD release of Spartacus, this hi-def release comes with plenty of bonus features (below). Oddly, no standard definition edition has been announced to coincide with this blu release.

It will be a single disc and retail for $26.98, but is available at ClassicFlix.com for only $20.99.

BONUS FEATURES:

• Deleted Scenes
• Interview with Peter Ustinov
• Interview with Jean Simmons
• Behind-the-Scenes Footage
• Vintage Newsreels
• Theatrical Trailer
• Production Stills
• Concept Art
• Costume Designs
• Saul Bass Storyboards
• Posters & Print Ads
• My Scenes
• BD Live

Olivier & Leigh: That Hamilton Woman (1941) in September

WHAT: WHEN: STUDIO: PRICE:

That Hamilton Woman (1941) September 8th Criterion Retail: $39.99, Our: $29.99

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Criterion has announced a September 8th release date for That Hamilton Woman (1941). Real-life spouses Vivien Leigh and Laurence Olivier star in this Alexander Korda directed drama.

The single-disc release will retail for $39.95, but is available at Classicflix.com for only $29.99. Bonus features and synopsis are below.

One of cinema’s most dashing duos, real-life spouses Vivien Leigh and Laurence Olivier enact their greatest on-screen romance in this visually dazzling tragic love story from legendary producer-director Alexander Korda.

Set against the backdrop of the Napoleonic Wars of the late eighteenth century, That Hamilton Woman is a gripping account of the scandalous adulterous affair between the British Royal Navy officer Lord Horatio Nelson and the renowned beauty Lady Emma Hamilton, the wife of a British ambassador. With its grandly designed sea battles and formidable star performances, Korda’s film (Winston Churchill’s favorite movie, which he claimed to have seen over eighty times) brings history to vivid, glamorous life.

BONUS FEATURES:

• New, restored high-definition digital transfer
• Audio commentary featuring noted film historian Ian Christie
• New video interview with author and editor Michael Korda, Alexander’s nephew, who discusses growing up in the Korda family and the making of That Hamilton Woman
• Theatrical trailer
• Alexander Korda Presents, a 1942 promotional radio piece for the film
• PLUS: A booklet featuring an essay by Molly Haskell