LATEST ADDITIONS

Anton van Beek  |  Jun 05, 2013  |  0 comments

Joseph Losey's deliciously subversive masterpiece about class relations in '60s Britain has lost none of its impact over the last 40 years – despite the seismic sociological changes the country has undergone since. This wonderful Blu-ray release will hopefully bring the film wider recognition, with the immaculate AVC 1.66:1 1080p visuals (easily one of the best HD encodes in the StudioCanal Collection range) providing a sensational showcase for Losey's inventive direction. The disc also boasts fascinating extras – primarily interviews, both new and archival – including James Fox talking to Richard Ayoade. Unmissable.

Anton van Beek  |  Jun 04, 2013  |  0 comments

This documentary finds Keanu Reeves chatting to a variety of famous filmmakers about the pros and cons of the move from using celluloid to shooting digitally. If that sounds rather dull and geeky, it's not. Instead, it's an absorbing and balanced look at a milestone in the development of cinema and a must-see for anybody with even a passing interest in the art of making movies. While the film hasn't been given an HD release in the UK, this two-disc DVD outing fares rather well with an agreeable anamorphic 1.78:1 transfer and DD 5.1 mix. Extras take the form of 14 extended interviews.

John Archer  |  Jun 04, 2013  |  0 comments

First impressions of the unboxed H1080 from Vivitek are promising. Its exterior manages a combination of seriousness and glamour - with its glossy white finish - that we don’t often see in the budget projector world.

Steve May  |  Jun 03, 2013  |  0 comments

Having effectively modernised hi-fi, the wireless titan that is Sonos has set its sights on the booming soundbar business, and seemingly almost by default, finds itself a home cinema player, too. But can the brand really replicate its audio success in the world of TV and multichannel audio?

Anton van Beek  |  Jun 02, 2013  |  0 comments

'It gets dark. It gets really, really dark,' is how HCC favourite Walton Goggins sums up this third season of the hit cop show. And while it doesn't quite measure up to the previous season, Justified remains one of the most unpredictable and distinctive TV series currently on the air. While Sony keeps UK fans hanging on for a Blu-ray release, this three-disc DVD is a reasonable alternative due to its cleanly rendered anamorphic 1.78:1 transfers and balanced Dolby Digital 5.1 mix. Extras include nine episode commentaries and two behind-the-scenes featurettes.

Steve May  |  Jun 02, 2013  |  0 comments

Home cinema is changing. Sure, screens are getting larger and more pixel-packed, and there’s a plethora of streaming options available – both in terms of content and hardware – but there’s also evolution happening at a more fundamental level, and it has the potential to change everything. Called HDBaseT, it represents an entirely new way of moving sound, vision and data around your house. But, of course, there’s more to it than that...

Richard Stevenson  |  Jun 01, 2013  |  0 comments

I have just spent 10 hours watching four movies back to back. It started with serious violent action from The Sweeney and the sci-fi remake Total Recall, then a re-run of Skyfall just to cement my opinion that it is my least favourite Bond film of all time, even though I still enjoyed it. The marathon concluded by having my noodle well and truly baked by Cloud Atlas.

Anton van Beek  |  Jun 01, 2013  |  0 comments

Jim Caviezel and Lost's Michael Emerson star in this fast-paced crime series from the mind of Jonathan (brother of Christopher) Nolan. Seamlessly blending the police procedural and conspiracy thriller with overt comic book concepts, it's a smart and action-packed crowd-pleaser that's found a huge fanbase on TV and (given this four-disc set's top-notch AV credentials) is sure to do the same on Blu-ray. The only real downside is the drab selection of extras: just a chat-track for the pilot episode, extended pilot, one brief featurette and an outtakes reel.

Anton van Beek  |  May 31, 2013  |  0 comments

Full Moon's catalogue of DTV horrors may be packed with guilty pleasures, but these initial entries in the company's 1990s vampire franchise are genuinely effective fright-flicks. Sadly, Subspecies' AVC encode is soft throughout, but things improve significantly with the sequel's sharp and detailed 1080p visuals (it also gets a 5.1 audio upgrade, unlike the first film). A handful of extras are shared across both discs, but they do get their own commentaries and archival Videozone promo featurettes.

Anton van Beek  |  May 31, 2013  |  0 comments

Having killed Hitler in 2009's Inglourious Basterds, Quentin Tarantino is rewriting history again in his latest film. Thankfully Django Unchained is a much better movie than his tricksy World War II flick.

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