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I wouldn't have thought of it but for the booklet contextualizing it is another Columbia oddity from the same era, which twigged me that it could be on the table. Wouldn't surprise me if Sony doesn't have the US rights that getting it remastered could be a pain.

MichaelB wrote:Actually, it is Sony (at least in the UK), but I don't think it's on Indicator's radar.

Perhaps Eureka then? I guess we'll find out in due time...though their Sony-related announcements have quietened down lately (wondering if they're stopping at fifteen titles; only six of them MoC).

Indicator have said they're working on deals with studios other than Sony, so we may not have to dismiss all non-Sony titles for much longer

Calvin wrote:Indicator have said they're working on deals with studios other than Sony, so we may not have to dismiss all non-Sony titles for much longer

Yes but probably not 'til next year at the earliest from what I can tell. Still have a lot from the first (two?) Sony deal(s?) they've signed off on. I wonder who they're looking into though - if I were them I'd have a stab at Paramount, since Eureka are the only other UK label who've seemed to have been able to crack their vault (though it'd probably have to be done through Universal, admittedly). Plenty left from their libraries begging for UK releases, two clear examples being Johnny Guitar and High Noon (to start things off).

Any indication from Indicator (ha ha) that an edition of OUR MAN IN HAVANA is coming? I'd really like to not purchase the Twilight Time disc if I can help it.

jazzo wrote:Any indication from Indicator (ha ha) that an edition of OUR MAN IN HAVANA is coming? I'd really like to not purchase the Twilight Time disc if I can help it.

I have asked a few times but never got a straight answer. I assume either Indicator or MoC will get it though; they'd be silly not to!

The latest newsletter from Raygun claims there will by the end of the year be two additional Harryhausen sets after the Sinbad trilogy (presumably meaning that First Men in the Moon and Mysterious Island will be in a box on their own) and that there will also be two Hammer sets in that same time period.

I'm looking into getting some titles from this label, so I must ask the members of this forum: I know that the discs are region free, but will the special features play on a standard Region 1 Blu-ray player or will I have to get a region free Blu-ray player for that?

AfterTheRain wrote:I'm looking into getting some titles from this label, so I must ask the members of this forum: I know that the discs are region free, but will the special features play on a standard Region 1 Blu-ray player or will I have to get a region free Blu-ray player for that?

Everything should be 100% compatible with any Blu-ray setup anywhere in the world.

The only exception that I'm aware of is the trailer on The Stone Killer, which was accidentally encoded at 1080i50 and therefore won't play on most US setups, but everything else should be fine.

MichaelB wrote:

AfterTheRain wrote:I'm looking into getting some titles from this label, so I must ask the members of this forum: I know that the discs are region free, but will the special features play on a standard Region 1 Blu-ray player or will I have to get a region free Blu-ray player for that?

Everything should be 100% compatible with any Blu-ray setup anywhere in the world.

The only exception that I'm aware of is the trailer on The Stone Killer, which was accidentally encoded at 1080i50 and therefore won't play on most US setups, but everything else should be fine.

Thank you for the information; that's what I needed to know.

David Mackenzie, who has authored virtually all of Indicator's titles, has long had a policy of aiming for maximum compatibility even if the disc is region-locked.

For instance, when we worked together on Arrow's Sweet Smell of Success we decided to slow the Scottish TV doc on Alexander Mackendrick down to 23.976fps (it had originated in 25fps PAL) because even though the disc was locked to Region B it would mean the difference between only European players being able to play it and all players worldwide. Also, as a happy by-product, it meant that the film clips finally played at the correct speed.

And at present, all Indicator releases are region-free and I suspect this will continue indefinitely for as long as they only mine the Sony catalogue, as they don't seem too fussed about region-locking.

Ribs wrote:There was also a teaser in the email featuring a photo of Peter Cushing in The Gorgon, no doubt for the first Hammer box for Halloween.

Plan on definitely getting The Deadly Affair and The Chase on pre-order, and possibly Castle Keep, Mickey One or See No Evil soon after they're released. Still need to pick up The Anderson Tapes and The Front, but otherwise have a nice little collection so far!

The only Harryhausen I'm really interested in is Mysterious Island which will presumably be part of the next Harryhausen box set - along with First Men on the Moon and maybe an Indicator edition of Earth vs. the Flying Saucers (otherwise likely just a double-set, right?). Might be tempted to get the second set, and if not get the reissue.

From Blu-ray's forums:

Indicator wrote:You'll be pleased to know we've signed 2 further deals - one with a Major - which we'll be announcing in the coming weeks. We will have plenty of film noir titles in that package.

Guessing Universal or Paramount

Doesn't Universal distribute most of the Paramount stuff from the noir period anyway?

Been on a huge US noir blu buying binge lately so I selfishly hope there's not too much crossover, but exciting nonetheless!

Universal owns all pre-1948 Paramount titles, with the curious exception of The Miracle of Morgan's Creek, excluded from the deal because it was felt back then that it would never be possible to show anything that outrageous on television.

Which is why that Preston Sturges DVD box set was forced to omit it, despite it containing the rest of his Paramount output.

This is why a label like Arrow can distribute the Paramount Marx Brothers titles despite not having a deal with Paramount themselves - and why they can't distribute the MGM titles, despite frequent dealings with MGM, because thanks to similar licensing deals MGM doesn't actually represent any MGM-produced titles any more, and the Marx Brothers ones are all with Warner Bros. Which is a tad ironic given that Warner Bros threatened to sue the Marxes over A Night in Casablanca, and Groucho said that if they did that, he'd countersue Warner Brothers over their use of the word "brothers".

domino harvey wrote:Guessing Universal or Paramount

Paramount would be wonderful, Universal would be...interesting. Not to slate Universal but their back catalogue masters can be more miss than hit. Also this would potentially stop me begging MoC for more Paramount affair, especially from the Republic-Melange side of things.

I suppose a Fox/MGM deal would be easiest for Indicator to secure, but with several UK labels already chipping away at those catalogues there may not be a huge amount for Indicator to get started on (they'd be battling MoC and Arrow Academy for noirs).

A deal with Warner Bros would be unprecedented, of course, and a nice surprise. Doubt it though, as they only currently seem to deal with Criterion exclusively.

I can't help but be optimistic about the chances it might be WB - Indicator's team is a bunch of industry guys, maybe they could have connections that'd get their foot in the door? Sony seemed like an impossibility in the UK until only very recently, and now we're getting several really great world premieres from multiple sources.

Anyone have any thoughts what the non-major studio deal could be, though?

Ribs wrote:I can't help but be optimistic about the chances it might be WB - Indicator's team is a bunch of industry guys, maybe they could have connections that'd get their foot in the door? Sony seemed like an impossibility in the UK until only very recently, and now we're getting several really great world premieres from multiple sources.

Anyone have any thoughts what the non-major studio deal could be, though?

That is true. Sony seem to be quite close with WB at the moment due to Criterion (both US/Canada and UK) and the HMV 'Premium Collection' (which has a handful of Sony titles amongst mostly WB back catalogue), so perhaps the people at Sony could have set up meetings with Indicator. John from Indicator has repeatedly expressed how pleased Sony are with their progress so far, only saying no to a few titles they've released themselves (or as HMV exclusives): Gattaca, Donnie Brasco, Casualties of War, Sex Lies & Videotape, Starman, Hope & Glory etc.

As for the non-major deal, could it be StudioCanal? Or are we thinking a smaller library with more of a niche selection, perhaps even a very specific genre (I'm no Hammer expert so dunno where the rights lay with some of those, for example). Unless they were treading on BFI's toes I'd go for Film4 if I were them, as there are some much-loved films with no sign of an upcoming UK Blu-ray release (e.g. Local Hero, Ghost Dog, When the Wind Blows). Could be more complicated than that though, as Film4 may only distribute some titles that are owned by studios (e.g. Warner Bros, Disney).

Ribs wrote:Anyone have any thoughts what the non-major studio deal could be, though?

The Republic films perhaps.

FrauBlucher wrote:

Ribs wrote:Anyone have any thoughts what the non-major studio deal could be, though?

The Republic films perhaps.

I might be wrong but I believe that would still require a Paramount deal, as with things like The Quiet Man from MoC and Olive. Not impossible, but presumably more complicated now Universal are handling all Paramount home video distribution.

Lots of hints on the Facebook page leaning towards hammer.

Sony have released a number of Hammer on DVD in the UK, of which I have had my fingers crossed for Camp on Blood Island*, Yesterday's Enemy and the brilliant The Damned (aka These Are The Damned) to get an Indicator release. Sony also released The Gorgon and The Two Faces of Dr. Jekyll (which have both had Blu-ray releases from Mill Creek already, so seem likely) and Creatures The World Forgot, which I have just bought on DVD, so that will definitely be one of them.

*I don't believe the 1964 sequel, The Secret of Blood Island, has ever had a digital release, so that would be most welcome, too.

We already know they have several Hammer titles from Sony, I meant from some other library (or distributor).

They also have some William Castle stuff after that, and other box sets in the works (possibly Budd Boetticher).

Hoping against hope for a beautiful, uncut version of 1957's The Abominable Snowman.