Cinemaniac Mark

  Liberation Hall brings the surviving episodes of the short-lived 1950s THE BUSTER KEATON SHOW to Blu-ray, with some fun extras, the best of which is a fascinating TV roundtable with Buster and other old-time comedians talking shop and the mechanics of getting screen laughs. Quality varies, but it's fun to see Buster in his 60s still as spry as ever, going all in on physical comedy in a single-camera sitcom setting. Get your copy now from Amazon at: https://amzn.to/42YTgbS (As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.) Full review here:

Eureka Entertainment brings Jean Epstein's 1929 silent surreal drama FINIS TERRAE to Blu-ray in a razor-sharp transfer of this "Men Vs. Nature (and the Nature Of Man)" tale, which brings to mind Robert Eggers' THE LIGHTHOUSE in its atmosphere, photography, and rising tension of workers in an isolated location. Get your copy now from Amazon at: https://amzn.to/4mswsZf (As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.) Full review here:

Kit Parker Films and Sprocket Vault present CHARLEY CHASE AT HAL ROACH: THE LATE SILENTS: 1927, a 2-disc Blu-ray set that complies all surviving elements from the comedian's sort subjects from that year, featuring some familiar faces among the support players...Stan Laurel, Oliver Hardy, Vernon Dent a pre-Our Gang Wheezer, and more. Fun stuff! Transfers vary in quality due to what was available, from razor sharp to dupey VHS, but most look great and present a moment when silent comedy was still thriving, along with some fun extras and running commentary for all Chase shorts. Get your copy now from Amazon at: https://amzn.to/4f8hW55 (As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.) Full review here:

  One of the initial pair of US releases from longtime UK boutique Blu-ray label Eureka Entertainment, the silent Universal horror classic THE CAT AND THE CANARY (1927) is now available, part of the Masters Of Cinema line. Crisp transfer with original color tinting and a new recording of the original score that accompanied the film theatrically, this nicely shot spooker is given several scholarly extras, and nicely packaged. Get your copy now from Amazon at: https://amzn.to/44fGDc9 (As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.) Full review here:

For those open to silent cinema, VCI Classic Films' new release of the restored Mary Pickford classic STELLA MARIS (1918) is a treat. Pickford stars in a dual role (which I'd never have realized if I didn't know going in) as an affluent bedridden woman and a downtrodden orphan in this melodrama that received accolades from no less than the President of the United States at the time.. When their paths cross, the illusion of Pickford as two people sharing the frame is flawless. Nice restoration collaboration between Paramount Pictures, The Library of Congress, UCLA Library Film & Television Archive and The Mary Pickford Foundation gives us a sharp transfer and interesting extras. Get your copy now from Amazon at: https://amzn.to/3SHUL9L (As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.) Full review here: