The Quest to Own Our Favorite Movies

10 Cloverfield Lane (2019)
We’re thankfully starting strong here. 10 Cloverfield Lane has an easily-available 4K Ultra HD Disc release that even comes with a Blu-Ray version. We started with a DVD found at Half Price Books, moved on to a Blu-Ray (also thrifted), and then received a 4K UHD down the road. You can purchase one now for around $14 on Amazon.
Difficulty: Easy

12 Angry Men (1957)
12 Angry Men, being a certified classic, is somehow even easier to get than 10 Cloverfield Lane. There are multiple ways you can get your hands on this movie, with the version we have being a Kino Lorber 4K UHD that Mandy picked up during a Barnes & Noble sale. Criterion has also released an edition on Blu-Ray. Both by all accounts are excellent restorations with a lot of features, so it’s all preference here.
Difficulty: Easy

A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors (1987)
Our particular version of Dream Warriors is in a DVD 4-pack of the first A Nightmare on Elm Street movies that Mandy owned since childhood. Here is where we get to the weird thorny parts. If you want this movie solo on DVD, you can buy it. However, if you want a solo Blu-Ray, the original Blu-Ray releases are out of print. There is no 4K release. The only current way to get this on Blu-Ray is to buy a 7-film set. You’re out of luck if you only want your favorite ANoES on your shelf, but I’ll say that this is better for film preservation than not.
Difficulty: Medium

Ace Attorney (2012)
Here we reach our first major snag in the project. As far as my research can tell, no Region A/1 Blu-Ray or DVD of Takashi Miike’s Ace Attorney exists. There is an Australian DVD and a German Blu-Ray but they’re not exactly common either. This is an acclaimed director making a good movie featuring a major property, and yet it’s not at all available in the US outside of streaming. I had fun designing custom packaging and disc art but I hope Discotek or someone picks this one up.
Difficulty: Impossible

American Graffiti (1973)
Here we have an unusual case of a movie that is both easily-available but suffering from major preservation issues. You can buy a Special Edition of this movie on DVD, Blu-Ray, or a recent 4K (with the Blu-Ray included) which I bought myself as a treat. From what I can tell the Special Edition differences compared to theatrical include some additional scenes, a small end title change, and a digital alteration changing a sky to sunset that has proven contentious. The big issues arise with the grain reduction techniques present in the Blu-Ray giving the movie a persistent glow, and the 4K UHD being a poor restoration with even more grain reduction, layering issues, and a badly-remastered audio track. Full admittance: I originally watched this movie on Netflix, which I presume uses the Blu-Ray transfer, so I’m not personally bothered by that one, but you’d think a classic movie directed by George Lucas would be easier to recommend with no asterisk.
Difficulty: Easy, but with caveats

American Movie (1999)
A documentary about the making of a short film, American Movie was in an interesting position when we first started this project because while it has been released on an easy-to-obtain Blu-Ray by Sony Pictures Classics, that Blu-Ray made the baffling decision to not include the short film the documentary is about. This wouldn’t be such a big deal if the out-of-print DVD release hadn’t previously included it as a special feature. I ended up ordering a custom two-disc case styled like a Criterion release from customccovers on Etsy so I could have both the Blu-Ray (for the high quality) and the DVD (for the short) in a single case. Thankfully, in 2024, Sony surprisingly announced a 4K UHD release containing both the documentary and the short film, and that will be an easy pickup as soon as it is released.
Difficulty: Hard, soon-to-be Easy

Antiporno (2016)
Sion Sono’s terrifying horror-erotica is available via Blu-Ray & DVD by Third Window Films and Terracotta Distribution – in the UK/Region B only. Great companies, no doubt a good release, but not what we’re looking for. This was another custom disc, case, and DVD burn job. As of 2024, you cannot buy this movie physically in Region A/1, and I’m not sure if you can buy it digitally anywhere either.
Difficulty: Impossible

Baby Driver (2017)
A Blu-Ray and 4K UHD disc are both available for purchase at reasonable prices on Amazon. By all accounts, the 4K is an excellent release, especially in regards to the audio. We found a cool Blu-Ray at our local thrift store that came with a slipcover, though, so that’s what we ended up with.
Difficulty: Easy

Barton Fink (1991)
We own a very good Blu-Ray release by Kino Lorber…which has since gone out-of-print. Currently, sealed copies go for $30-$40 on eBay. You can buy a used DVD of the movie somewhat-easily and for around $12, but you’ll have to hunt for it.
Difficulty: Hard

Battle Royale (2000)
We own a Blu-Ray that has the original film, the director’s cut, and the sequel included. Looking around, I’m not sure if that is still available or in print, but you can still purchase this movie on Blu-Ray for around $20. The distribution company Arrow did release a 4K UHD version in the UK, and UHDs do have the benefit of almost always being region-free – almost.
Difficulty: Easy

Beauty & The Beast (1991)
While not all Disney animated features are quite so lucky, Beauty & The Beast has a 4K UHD out that is seemingly excellent in video and audio quality. I found my Blu-Ray copy at a local thrift store, but I’m considering upgrading it. You can pick up the 4K for around $18 on Amazon.
Difficulty: Easy

Beavis & Butthead Do America (1996)
While available on DVD for a long time, it wasn’t until 2021 that this made the jump to Blu-Ray, and it’s that version that I bought. I’m surprised there’s no two-pack with the far more recent sequel, Beavis & Butthead Do The Universe. In fact, that one doesn’t have a release of any kind. Huh.
Difficulty: Easy

Beyond the Black Rainbow (2010)
A fairly basic Blu-Ray exists and is in-print, available on Amazon, usually going for around $15. I was actually pleasantly surprised when I found it.
Difficulty: Easy

Black Dynamite (2009)
Another easily-available and high-quality Blu-Ray from Sony, Black Dynamite can be bought from most major retailers including Amazon, which is what we did. I’m surprised no boutique has picked this one up to make a special edition yet. I also own this on DVD from way back in the day but had long since gotten rid of the case – in fact it was one of the two DVDs I had to keep me entertained when I first moved to a new house in Ohio and was waiting for the internet to be set up.
Difficulty: Easy

Blade Runner (1982)
So this is an interesting one. Blade Runner has famously had several cuts and editions over the years – the major ones being the maligned theatrical version that added a studio-mandated voiceover, an international cut, the Director’s Cut, the Workprint Cut, and the now-widely-available Final Cut. We own the Final Cut on Blu-Ray, and it also exists on 4K UHD and both are excellent transfers. However, the 4K UHD set only contains The Final Cut as well as several making-of documentaries and discs of special features (and the Blu-Ray is just the movie and a few of the smaller special features). The only way to get all the cuts in one place is by buying a used 5-disc Blu-Ray set (“The Ultimate Collector’s Edition”) which is currently going for $99 for new old stock on Amazon. The Final Cut is the version we watched and loved, but this still annoys me.
Difficulty: Hard

Blazing Saddles (1974)
It seems as though several releases of Blazing Saddles have come out throughout the years, but the most-recent Blu-Ray from Warner is the one we own. It was difficult for a while to get it as it seems to go in-and-out-of-stock but I don’t think it ever goes completely out-of-print. A 4K release was recently announced, and Warner’s restorations have usually been pretty good, so that may be one to upgrade in the future. For now, though, the Blu-Ray looks and sounds great.
Difficulty: Easy

Bound (1996)
One of our first examples of a movie that fluctuated in availability since starting this project, but for the better! The Wachowskis’ debut picture had a pretty standard Blu-Ray release for a while until being scooped up by Olive Films, which is the version I sprang for. The Olive Signature Collection release is great, with plenty of features and an extra essay included as well. However, right after I purchased it, Olive Films closed down and the disc went completely out-of-print. Thankfully, just this year, Criterion picked up Bound for their collection and even released a 4K UHD that you can purchase now – and we have!
Difficulty: Easy

Bride of Re-Animator (1990)
We were able to grab a DVD of the sequel to 80s classic Re-Animator during a DiabolikDVD sale. However, I just checked and it’s no longer available or seemingly in print. It had to be a DVD because that was the only release that was available at a decent price. Arrow released a Blu-Ray of the movie that has long been out-of-print, with prices on eBay and Amazon ranging from $80-100. A UK copy still exists and is reasonably-priced, but reviews and reports are mixed as to whether it’s region-free or not.
Difficulty: Hard

But I’m A Cheerleader (1999)
I was able to pick up this great Blu-Ray release at a local video store that has wall-to-wall discs. It’s awesome. However, you don’t have to go digging to pick this great movie up, as the Blu-Ray is in print and goes for around $20 on Amazon. It’s also the 90-minute cut, approved and overseen by the director herself, so that’s cool.
Difficulty: Easy

Castle In The Sky (1986)
I originally found a DVD of this movie with the Disney branding at a Half Price Books and I loved the novelty of that being the copy we owned, but eventually I splashed out for the newer GKIDS Blu-Ray release. The Disney version had an English dub that included a lot of extra dialogue and banter between the sky pirates during incidental scenes, which is the version I remember. However, the GKIDS release seems to have removed the extra lines to make a dub that uses the original English audio but hews closer to the Japanese script. It does include Japanese audio as well as a rescored music track that was also included on some US releases. The GKIDS release is easily-available and I’m satisfied with it but the dub inconsistencies are hard to ignore.
Difficulty: Medium