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Author dvdmike Time 16-Jan-2014 12:31PM Post link Blu-Ray B uses the only true HD source of the film available (a flawed Japanese HD broadcast with an erroneous color grading, which had to be slightly cropped to get rid of the network’s logo and the Japanese hardsubs), restored with a more coherent color grading and fully remastered. As things stand, amongst the work of James Cameron, even Piranha II now has a decent Blu-ray release, courtesy of Shout Factory in America. But in the case of The Abyss, True Lies, Titanic and Avatar, these were all made under a deal with 20 th Century Fox. And as we understand it, that deal (and Fox is where he had his production deal for over 20 years) gives him final approval on the way those films are presented on disc, and what extra features are included. All were due to be released under the Fox Home Entertainment label. But now, Fox is part of the Disney empire. Does, then, Disney have the appetite for catalogue releases of older titles now, especially as it channels its home entertainment energies towards Disney+? Did it perhaps – and this is speculation – nix a release of The Abyss planned for 2019?Looks interesting .............. am I correct in guessing that you upscaled the Japan 720p to 1080p in the remastering? Appreciating that Paramount still owns part of the rights to Titanic, the 4K disc releases of True Lies, The Abyss and Avatar are entirely on Disney’s watch. Thus far, when it does 4K reissues, it tends to be around dates for sequels and remakes to and of existing movies (the animated film of Mulan, for instance, is getting a 4K release this year to tie in with the new live action movie). Thus, it’s entirely likely that Avatar will get a reissue when the first of the many sequels arrives (currently scheduled for the end of next year). E ver since James Cameron had adopted the use of the Super 35 format, he'd been framing for both widescreen and television safe, and there has been quite some discussion about how that sometimes compromises the compositions for one or the other more than if he just committed to framing specifically for one ratio. The pan-and-scan formatting often might improve a shot (e.g. the visibility of Jamie Lee Curtis' legs flailing as she hangs from the helicopter in a shot in True Lies , which adds an element of helplessness absent from the widescreen presentation). I would therefore be quite interested to see what this film looks like with a somewhat taller frame. In fact, that may already have happened. True Lies and The Abyss have popped up before in higher resolution on TV (in fact, there was once a digital VHS release of True Lies with a 1080i master, I’m indebted to 4K Collective for pointing out). And in particular, The Abyss appeared on HBO in the US at the end of 2019, and promisingly – as this report at Bloody Disgusting explains – it was a new 4K transfer of the film that was screened, in the correct aspect ratio. The transfer was presented in standard HD rather than Ultra HD, but it was the first sign that a new remaster was out in the open. Whether it was the same one Cameron was due to approve is unclear.

The Digital Bits is reporting that not only is Cameron’s first Avatar film set to arrive on 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray along with its sequel in 2023, but that “our sources continue to report that Disney is likely to release … [the] long-awaited remaster of The Abyss on 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray early next year”. Originally, it was all on James Cameron, whose commitment to the Avatar movies now runs until at least 2025 (and they’re going to monopolise he’s working time). Now, it’s on Disney too. And that leaves the likelihood that the best physical releases we’re getting for The Abyss and True Lies for the foreseeable future remain the DVDs (or that digital VHS in the case of True Lies) – unless an enterprising third party label can grease the wheels. But where’s the incentive for Disney to pursue Blu-rays and 4Ks of True Lies and The Abyss? Granted, it may want to keep James Cameron happy, and there may be thinking that so much work has been done it’d be daft not to finish the discs off. Still, it’s hard to rule out that when Cameron does finally sign off the new releases of the movies, they end up on digital formats only. It’s little secret that the market for physical releases has contracted, after all. The demand from fans isn’t likely to stop. But that’s hardly made much difference over the past decade and change. True Lies and The Abyss remain two of the most high profile films of the last few decades to still not have a Blu-ray release. The 14 months of silence since we last got word of either tells its own story. BIG UPDATE: A French journalist has asked Cameron the question about The Abyss as part of the press tour for the new Avatar movie. Cameron has confirmed that The Abyss will be on 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray – and presumably Blu-ray as well – by March of 2023. Here’s the Tweet…No idea as of yet which of the cuts of the film are set to appear when the disc does finally arrive. We can argue over that a bit later though. For now, here’s the original report too over at The Digital Bits… Join the dark side… and get a free cookie! Author StarThoughts Time 17-Jan-2014 8:06AM (Edited) Post link div>Fan-Edits & Preservations : Drsapirstein.blogspot.com