Recap
Review
This is the week Collector’s Editions, as we have an amazing box set of one of the most beloved film franchises ever, a massive box set of a recent hit trilogy, a new edition of an action classic, & a couple of sparkly anime releases!
What’s New in Home Video & Pop Culture – November 4th, 2025
This is the week for high end Collector’s Editions, apparently, as we have n amazing box set of one of the most beloved film franchises ever, a massive box set of a recent hit trilogy, a new Collector’s Edition of an action classic that features beautiful packaging, a Steelbook release, and a couple of anime releases that will blind you with their sparkliness. I love it! Dig in for the full details!
In This Week’s Column:
- Back to the Future: 40th Anniversary Trilogy (4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray + Digital)
- Hard Boiled (4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray)
- The X Trilogy: Three Films by Ti West (Blu-ray)
- Arcane League of Legends: Season Two (4K Ultra HD Steelbook, also available separately on Blu-ray)
- Evangelion: 1.11 and 2.22 (Blu-ray)
- Angst by August (Blu-ray)
- Star Trek: Picard Omnibus (Graphic Novel)
Back to the Future: 40th Anniversary Trilogy (4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray + Digital)
Official Synopsis:
Experience one of the most popular movie series of all time like never before with Back to the Future: The Ultimate Trilogy! Join Marty McFly (Michael J. Fox), Doc Brown (Christopher Lloyd) and a time traveling DeLorean for the adventure of a lifetime as they travel to the past, present and future, setting off a time-shattering chain reaction that disrupts the space-time continuum! From filmmakers Steven Spielberg, Robert Zemeckis and Bob Gale, this unforgettable collection features hours of bonus features and is an unrivaled trilogy that stands the test of time.
The Movies:
This week kicks off with an amazing 9-disc 4K Ultra HD box set from Universal Studios that brings one of the most beloved movie franchises in history to your living room.
For my money, Back to the Future I, II, and III represent one of the most perfect movie trilogies in history. Now, some people like to point to Back to the Future II as the weak point in the trilogy, and while everyone has their opinions, I would strongly push back on that. I have a deep, deep love for BTTF II that almost – ALMOST – surpasses the original. The combination of futuristic scenes, hoverboards, and the climax with the two Martys is just so amazing that I love that film more than almost any sequel out there. The only reason it doesn’t surpass the original film? Because the original movie is one of the greatest films of all time, hands down. Then there’s Part III, which is an outstanding endcap to the series. Seriously, I love all three of these movies so much that it’s hard to put into words.
This new 40th Anniversary box set is a real treat for fans. In addition to the three films, you get all the original extra features from all of the previous home video iterations (and there are plenty!) But then you also get several new extra features, including a 40th anniversary retrospective documentary, a TCM Film Festival Panel Discussion, a fun featurette about the missing guitar prop, and two other new documentary features. Honestly, there’s so much extra content here that it will take you longer to watch all the extras than it will to watch the entire trilogy.
Now, admittedly, this is far from the first collection of the films, and chances are good you have these movies in your collection already. However, if you don’t have them on 4K yet or just haven’t plunked down the cash to get them all onto your shelves, this is hands down the best collection yet.
The 4K Video/Audio:
These films are 30 years old, so do they look brand new on 4K Ultra HD? Well, not BRAND NEW brand new, but I do have to compliment Universal for really delivering a terrific picture quality here. Having seen these films on Blu-ray so many times previously, viewing them now on 4K I was amazed how much more vibrant and colorful the films are. It’s especially noticeable in how the past and future-era Hill Valleys appear. Image clarity is razor-sharp, and I feel like the films take on a new life in 4K that give them much more piquancy and verve. The surround soundtracks, likewise, really max out the use of the various channels, giving even seemingly insignificant sound effects a proper place and immersing you in the action. There’s really nothing to complain about from an A/V standpoint.
The Bonus Features:
It would literally take pages to list all the extra features included here, but here’s as comprehensive of a list as I can put together without making you scroll for hours:
Digital Copy Included: Yes
Hard Boiled (4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray)
Official Synopsis:
In this genre-defining masterpiece from action legend John Woo (Face/Off, Mission: Impossible 2, The Killer), a cop (Chow Yun-Fat, Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, The Killer) who loses his partner in a shoot-out with gun smugglers goes on a mission to catch them. In order to get closer to the leaders of the ring he joins forces with an undercover cop (Tony Leung, In the Mood for Love, Marvel’s Shang-Chi) who’s working as a gangster hitman. They use all means of excessive force to find them.
The Movie:
It’s not overpraising Hard Boiled to say that it’s one of the most influential action films of the last 40 years. John Woo’s action masterpiece not only cemented him as an action movie superstar, it also helped launch Chow Yun Fat to global stardom and changed how a whole generation of filmmakers approached action films. While a lot of ‘80s action films went for big-name stars quipping cheesy one-liners and chasing bigger and bigger explosions, Woo’s film slowed things down, giving us complex, slow-motion-laden, highly choreographed action scenes that were often shot in one long take. It’s a change in aesthetic that continues to take hold in Hollywood to this day.
It’s also a seriously kick-ass movie. Sure, you’ve heard of Hard Boiled, but have you sat down and watched it recently? It’s not just a technically impressive movie for all the reasons listed above, it’s a breathtaking action ride that will get your adrenaline pumping from the very first scene to the very last.
This week, Shout Factory ups their game by bringing us the Hard Boiled: Collector’s Edition, a beautifully packaged 4K Ultra HD release that includes the movie on both 4K and Blu-ray with copious extra features, packaged in a hardcover slipcase and an illustrated collector’s booklet. It’s the kind of packaging that makes physical media collectors such as myself drool. Even if you already have Hard Boiled on home video, trust me, you don’t have it like this!
The 4K Video/Audio:
The 4K Ultra HD presentation of Hard Boiled offers up a nice audiovisual upgrade over previous versions. This is a film that’s been around for a few decades now, but it looks and sounds impeccable here. Image clarity is nice and sharp, and the print is free of any blemishes or artifacts, and that’s what you would hope for in a catalog title. The color saturation is solid, with some moments where some real vibrancy shines through, and the film has a nice, warm tone to it that gives it a lot of life. The surround soundtrack nicely bolsters music and dialogue, both of which sound great, while the action scenes take on new life and fill in the satellite speakers nicely. A very strong effort overall.
The Bonus Features:
- Audio Commentary with Director John Woo and Film Journalist Drew Tayler
- Audio Commentary with Film Historian Frank Djeng
- Audio Commentary with Director John Woo, Producer Terence Chang, Filmmaker Roger Avary, and Critic Dave Kehr (Recorded by The Criterion Collection)
- Violent Night: Interview with Director John Woo
- Boiling Over: Interview with Actor Anthony Wong
- No Time For Failure: Interview with Producer Terence Chang
- Hard To Resist: Interview with Screenwriter Gordon Chan
- Boiled to Perfection: Interview with Screenwriter Chung Hang Ku
- Body Count Blues: Interview with Composer Michael Gibbs
- Hong Kong Confidential: Inside Hard Boiled with Author Grady Hendrix
- Gun-Fu Fever: Interview with Author Leon Hunt
- Chewing The Fat: Interview Academic with Lin Feng
- Deleted and Extended Scenes
- Trailers
- Image Gallery
Digital Copy Included: No
The X Trilogy: Three Films by Ti West (Blu-ray)
Official Synopsis:
3-Disc Collector’s Edition Box Set of Ti West’s X Trilogy: X, Pearl, and MaXXXine available in Blu-ray and 4K UHD formats, marking the first physical release of X and Pearl on 4K UHD in the US. The box set includes a 64-page booklet with a new essay by Jon Dieringer, unreleased concept art, costume sketches, behind-the-scenes photography, original poster and VHS artwork created as set dressing for the films, and more, alongside over 90 minutes of making-of featurettes and new commentary tracks on all three films. Packaging features a blood-red printed plastic sleeve around a rigid slipcase containing a custom photo-collage 3-disc digibook.
The Movie:
I really don’t know quite what to make of Ti West. When he first started to get some acclaim on the horror scene with movies like The Innkeepers and The Sacrament, I was largely pretty impressed with him. He then spent a lot of time working in horror-themed television before returning to motion pictures with The X Trilogy (X, Pearl, and Maxxxine), which caught people’s attention and rocketed him back up to the top of the Horror ‘It’ List.
And while there’s none of the three films that I’ve outright hated, I can’t say I’m an overly big fan of the trilogy, either. While I didn’t really love any of the three films, I will say this: West has absolutely mastered the craft of making the exact films he wants to make. X, for example, is set in the 1970s and meant to be a ‘70s-styled horror flick, and he completely succeeds in that aesthetic. Pearl takes place in 1918 and West is clearly making a film styled after the early Technicolor movies from classic Hollywood. In that respect, he succeeds; the film looks like it’s right out of the 1950s, in the way it’s shot, the technicolor hues, the backdrops, and even the opening titles. Maxxxine is set in the 1980s and it captures the feel of 1980s slashers with aplomb. West is a talented filmmaker, and there’s no doubt about that.
For me, however, the films themselves are a bit more disturbing and gory than I tend to lean towards, and while I’m sure many people like them, they aren’t fully my cup of tea. Again, I don’t hate them, but certainly don’t love them, either. They’re a little too dark for my tastes, but your mileage may vary. And if I’m being completely honest, I don’t get all the Mia Goth adoration, either. She’s perfectly fine for the most part, but I just don’t see her as that great a leading actress.
The Bonus Features:
X –
- Commentary with D.P. Eliot Rockett and Production Designer Tom Hammock
- Pearl Makeup Timelapse
- “The X Factor” Featurette
- Original Trailer
Pearl –
- Commentary with D.P. Eliot Rockett and Production Designer Tom Hammock
- “Coming Out of Her Shell: The Creation of Pearl” Featurette
- “Time After Time” Featurette
- Original Trailer
MaXXXine –
- Commentary with Production Designer Jason Kisvarday and Set Decorator Kelsi Ephraim
- “The Belly of the Beast’ Featurette
- “XXX Marks the Spot” Featurette
- “Hollywood is a Killer” Featurette
- Deep Dive with Composer Tyler Bates
- Q&A with Ti West
- Original Trailers
Digital Copy Included: No
Arcane: League of Legends – Season Two (4K Ultra HD Steelbook / Blu-ray)
Official Synopsis:
The award-winning series based on the League of Legends universe reaches its epic conclusion. Following Jinx’s devastating attack on the Council, the conflict between utopian Piltover and underground Zaun escalates to all-out war. As both sides grapple with the new threat of the brutal empire of Noxus, further experimentation with the powerful yet volatile Hextech may spell disaster for them all.
The Movie:
I’m not a video gamer, but I like video games. As such, while I don’t play them regularly, I’m at least a little dialed in to what’s hot and what’s not in the video game realm. League of Legends is a MOBA (multiplayer online battle arena) game that takes the battle arena genre and created a world that had some characters and story elements, but focused mostly on the battle aspects of the game. Back in 2021, however, Netflix produced an animated series based on the game called Arcane: League of Legends. It was a big enough hit that a second season was quickly dialed up… but it took four years to hit screens. I can’t speak to how interested people were after such a long break, but now that the show has concluded, GKids has brought the second season to shelves in a gorgeous 4K Ultra HD Steelbook release (which also includes the show on Blu-ray) as well as a separate Blu-ray only release.
The premise of the animated show sets it on a fictional world in the cities of Piltover – where the rich folks live – and the city of Zaun – the dark, undercity where the real people live. The main characters are sisters Vi and Jinx, and they get caught up in a fight between the societies over some pretty big differences in what the way of like should like for the people of the world. I don’t know how much the show really has to do with the game as I’ve never played it, but it is a pretty cool show overall. The animation is highly stylized, and the show doesn’t skimp on the action, all while developing the characters in a way that allows you to really care what happens to them. The voice cast also sees a lot of great talent and big names, including Hailee Steinfeld, Ella Purnell, Robin Atkin-Downes, Toks Olagundoye, and Harry Lloyd.
The 4K Ultra HD comes wrapped in a very sharp Steelbook case, making it a nice collectible for fans of the game or the show, while the Blu-ray comes in a standard Amaray case with a slipcover.
The 4K Video/Audio:
Arcane: League of Legends comes to home video on 4K Ultra HD and the show looks and sounds very nice in 4K. As you would want for an animated feature, blacks (and black outlines) are deep and solid and colors are well-saturated and vibrant. The show varies in its palette, sometimes offering a full spectrum of colors and other times appearing almost monochromatic, but it all looks great. The surround soundtrack is also extremely effective, with a generous use of surround effects through the various speakers, as well as clean and clear dialogue, a must for animated properties.
The Bonus Features:
- Inside the Writer’s Room: Reshuffling the Cards
- The Voices In My Head: Crafting the Performances
- Artist Breakdown: Act 1
- Art Gallery
- Inside The Writer’s Room: Beauty and Tragedy
- A Sonic Ballet: Music & Sound Featurette
- Artist Breakdown: Act 2
- Music Videos
- Inside The Writer’s Room: What Could’ve Been
- Artist Breakdown: Act 3
- Going Another Way: Episode 7 Featurette
- Storyboards & Animatics
Digital Copy Included: No
Evangelion: 1.11 and 2.22 (Blu-ray)
Official Synopsis:
1.11 –
Scarred by the Second Impact, the Fourth Angel attacks Tokyo III and humanity’s fate is left in Special Government Agency NERV’s hands. Young Shinji Ikari is forced to pilot EVA-01. He and EVA-00 pilot Rei Ayanami are tasked to fight, but EVA-01 is damaged by the Sixth Angel. Misato Katsuragi draws up a plan to focus all of Japan’s electricity into EVA-01’s positron cannon to defeat the Angel.
2.22 –
Mari Illustrious-Makinami pilots Provisional Unit-05 to defeat the excavated Third Angel. Asuka Langley-Shikinami and EVA-02 defeat the Seventh Angel. The Eighth Angel appears and attacks NERV HQ. EVA-03 is taken over by the Ninth Angel during testing and Shinji deploys to stop it, but learns Asuka is aboard. Gendoh switches EVA-01’s controls over to the Dummy System and begins fighting EVA-03…
The Movies:
One of the most popular and influential anime series of all time has a new release out this week and I am going to do my best to explain it. Honestly, the history of Neon Genesis Evangelion is super confusing, so bear with me. The original Evangelion anime in the ‘90s is considered seminal and groundbreaking anime. Evangelion 1.11 and 2.22 are essentially what are called “rebuilds,” or reimagined, upgraded movie versions of the original anime’s stories. The show gained acclaim and fan fervor through its blend of hardcore sci-fi action (Attacking creatures! Mech suits! Human pilots!) while still having a human story that remains front and center and lets you get involved in the characters. All of that seems to still be present in these rebuilds, even if I have to confess to not being 100% sure of what was happening at all times because I’m not an Evangelion evangelical. (See what I did there?)
If you are a fan of Evangelion, you’ll be happy to know that both of these new Blu-ray releases look and sound terrific, and offer up lots of the anime action and emotional impact as previous Evangelion releases that I’ve seen. They also come packaged in some (literally) sparkly new packaging to boot. It’s hard for me to truly dissect these films as I’m not super versed in this world, but I think fans of the franchise will really dig what they get here. Note: These are two separate releases, not one combined set: Evangelion: 1.11 You Are (Not) Alone and Evangelion 2.22: You Can (Not) Advance.
The Bonus Features:
1.11 –
- Rebuild of Evangelion: 1.01 (Shiro SAGISU / Joseph-Maurice Ravel)
- Angel of Doom Promotional Music Video
- Teasers, Trailers & TV Spots
2.22 –
- Rebuild of Evangelion 2.02
- Omitted Scenes
- Remixed Scene
- Promotional Reel
- Teasers, Trailers & TV Spots
Digital Copy Included: No
Angst by August (Blu-ray)
Official Synopsis:
Bille August’s ‘Zappa’ and ‘Twist and Shout’ explore teenage passion, pain, and discovery in 1960s Denmark–now restored for a new generation.
Danish director Bille August’s (Academy Award and Palme D’or winning director of Pelle the Conqueror) coming-of-age dramas, Zappa (1983) and Twist and Shout (1984), offer a tender yet unflinching vision of adolescent passion, cruelty, and discovery set to the sounds of early rock ‘n’ roll. Overlooked for decades, these gorgeously photographed and dramatically nuanced films – breathtaking in their candor and heartbreaking in their sincerity – are here for rediscovery in stunning new transfers, along with newly produced bonus features, that help bring August’s powerful films to audiences anew.
Zappa –
Three young boys, Bjørn (Adam Tønsberg), Steen (Peter Reichhardt), and Mulle (Morton Hoff), navigate the transition from boyhood to adolescence in Bille August’s stunning, period drama. Steen and Bjørn have formed their own small gang, and invite Mulle to join, but humiliation, cruelty, and violence follow as Steen leads Bjørn further into his loveless, frustrated, and, ultimately, sadistic world. Gentle, funny, honest, and fearlessly dark, Zappa is a richly textured and unforgettable, novelesque film.
Twist and Shout –
Denmark’s biggest indigenous hit at the time of its release, Twist and Shout once again follows Bjørn (Adam Tønsbrerg). During the explosion of Beatlemania in Europe, Bjørn plays drums in a rock ‘n’ roll band while Erik (Lars Simonsen) must care for his mentally ill mother. Amid the excitement of music, romance, and sex, the young men must confront the harsh realities of the adult world in director Bille August’s stark and beautiful film.
The Movie:
Angst by August is a new Blu-ray release that collects two Danish films from the 1980s onto one release celebrating the early works of Billie August, an acclaimed filmmaker from Denmark. The two films included are Zappa, August’s debut, and Twist and Shout, a monstrous hit in Denmark at the time of its release, probably owing to its incorporation of The Beatles into the film’s plot.
Zappa is a traditional coming of age movie with a dark overtone; we follow three young teens in 1960s Denmark as they navigate adolescence and start to wander into a more violent and hedonistic lifestyle. One boy is the driving force and while one of the others rejects his darker impulses, the pother one embraces them. It’s a dark tale, but a well-told one. Twist and Shout, meanwhile, is also set in the 1960s, and while the idea that they are growing up as the Beatles are becoming pop music superstars might make the movie sound a little lighter than Zappa, it also has a pretty dark streak in it, with one character caring for his homebound, mentally-ill mother, another dealing with an abortion, and some pretty intense parenting choices throughout.
Neither movie is a feel-good film, that’s for sure, but for a look at how foreign filmmakers approached the decade of the 1960s (but made in the 1980s) they are pretty interesting fare.
The Bonus Features:
- New Interview with Director Bille August
- Secrets in the Soul: The Coming-of-Age Films of Bille August – A Video Essay by Jordan Cronk
- New Compilation Trailer
- Other Trailers
Digital Copy Included: No
Star Trek: Picard Omnibus (Graphic Novel)
Official Synopsis:
Can’t get enough of the Picard series? Read two graphic novel adventures that provide more context, with one story taking place before season one and the second taking place after season two!
Witness the events leading to the epic series Star Trek: Picard. Before he retired to his vineyard, Jean-Luc Picard was the most decorated admiral in Starfleet. Then one mission changed his life forever. After discovering that a looming supernova threatens the entirety of the Romulan Empire, the Federation launches a mission of unparalleled scale. Admiral Picard heads to the colony to plan the evacuation but makes a shocking discovery!
Then, following the climactic events of season two’s finale, Jean-Luc and Seven of Nine launch an unsanctioned mission that sets the stage for season three! When an offer comes in from the stars, Picard is once more compelled to leave his chateau and confront the shadows of his past. Before his days on the Enterprise, a young Picard and his crew aboard the U.S.S. Stargazer saved a thriving planet from resource-hungry Romulans…or so he thought. Now landing on a seemingly unrecognizable planet, he and his crew work to save the system—and their ship—from disaster.
Written by Star Trek: Picard co-creator and supervising producer Kirsten Beyer and fan favorite Mike Johnson with art by Angel Hernandez! This omnibus also contains an interview with Kirsten Beyer, discussing the development and creation of the TV series and how the comic fits into its world, and a special look into how the U.S.S. Verity was designed by Thomas Marrone, lead ship and UI artist for Star Trek Online.
The Book:
If you haven’t been reading my column for a long time, you might not know that I am not-so-secretly a HUGE Star Trek fan. Like, a watched-every-series, seen-every-movie, read-all-the-comics kind of fan. I’m not a hard sell when it comes to anything Star Trek.
The Star Trek: Picard Omnibus is a pretty strong collection of two three-issue miniseries that focus on expanding the mythology of the three-season Picard series that aired on Paramount+. The first story arc serves as a prequel to the show and gives us a lot more backstory on Picard and his relationship with his confidante, the Romulan Laris. It’s an exciting story dealing with the Romulans that really starts to gel once you’ve watched Season 1. The second story arc follows the second season of the show, bringing Seven of Nine into the fold, and giving us a story set in the Picard timeline with flashbacks to a young Picard on the Stargazer as well. Honestly, both stories are good reads with strong artwork that feel like they fit alongside the show nicely.
As a special bonus, there’s about a dozen pages of extra material as well, including interviews and artwork that weren’t in the original issues, at least not to my recollection. So you get some extra bang for your buck with this trade paperback collection.
The Specs:
- Publisher: IDW Publishing
- Format: Softcover
- Page Count: 192 pages
- Cover Price: $24.99