Unman, Wittering and Zigo (1971) - Coming 2023

[BarnDoor]

Big news that the hugely-overlooked British chiller is finally getting a disc release, with Matthew Sweet spilling the beans on twitter.

It's a Paramount title, so that in itself is a big story. As far as I'm aware, Sweet only does extras for UK labels. Since they have an arrangement with Paramount, and given their remit, I'm tempted to speculate BFI will be releasing it. Also, it looks like Sarah Appleton was filming Dr Sweet, and I think she does a lot of work for the BFI.

[wabrit]

Sounds very flipside. Brilliant news.

[Aunt Peg]

About time. I highly recommend a blind buy for this underseen gem which is now going to get the exposure it deserves so much.

Great film.

[martinb]

I know people tend to say this a lot, but: DAY ONE!!!

[CelestialAgent]

Sweet has done extras for Imprint, so probably an Australian release.

[BarnDoor]

Originally Posted by CelestialAgent

Sweet has done extras for Imprint, so probably an Australian release.

I did consider Imprint, but this would require footing the bill for a brand new restoration (can't see Paramount restoring this themselves), and that's very rarely their M.O. Still, it might make more sense than a UK label cracking this deep into the Paramount vaults.

[Hatfield Peverel]

Sweet also mentions Jasper Sharp, which means it's overwhelmingly likely to be an Arrow release.

[BarnDoor]

Originally Posted by Hatfield Peverel

Sweet also mentions Jasper Sharp, which means it's overwhelmingly likely to be an Arrow release.

I believe Jasper Sharp's other half is Sarah Appleton (according to a quick google search, so don't quote me on that), so it's possible they collaborate on her projects. That's not to say it couldn't be Arrow, because she does work for them also.

[BaronBlud]

Arrow is supposed to have a new deal with a major studio, which was rumored to be Paramount (Fran tweeted excitedly about it early this year but didn't reveal the studio), so this would fit with that.

[rapta]

Originally Posted by BaronBlud

Arrow is supposed to have a new deal with a major studio, which was rumored to be Paramount (Fran tweeted excitedly about it early this year but didn't reveal the studio), so this would fit with that.

If that is the truth, I hope they can beat Criterion to a potential Days of Heaven 4K release...

[Raggady_jack]

A few weeks ago on the BFI FB group, Ben Stoddart said that a label had signed a deal with Paramount and that it was a label that usually went for dual territory licenses. So probably Arrow.

[Peachfuzz]

Finally! It's a brilliant film. Day one purchase, for sure.

[Django100]

At last! Been waiting for this one for years.

[BarnDoor]

In a recent interview with AVForums, Jasper Sharp mentions a studio title he's working on, 'a really interesting 70s British film, that's never been on home video, but people might remember it being on TV a lot back in the 80s'. I'd say that confirms an Arrow release, and unfortunately almost certainly US-only given their Paramount announcements to date.

About 40 minutes in:

Exclusive Interview with Disc Producer Jasper Sharp from Arrow Video - YouTube

[rapta]

Yeah, no doubt it'll be US-only, unless they can use the US deal to navigate a UK deal as well (will be such a shame if some of these Paramount titles never come to the UK).

PS: interesting, when they asked him for dream titles, obviously he mentioned a handful of Japanese titles that will likely never come to home video, but he also mentioned Morvern Callar as one he's fairly distraught has no UK release. However, the recent Fun City Editions disc is Region Free, so even I - the apparent stick-in-the-mud avoider of importing - imported that release, fed up with the lack of a native UK option (and FCE are obviously great, so it was a no-brainer). Similar situation here with Ratcatcher, as well as something like Steve McQueen's Hunger, but both of those are locked to Region A so not a viable option for most UK collectors to import them.

[CelestialAgent]

I’m sure you’re already aware, but Hunger has a German Blu-ray from Ascot, including the Pathe DVD extras.

[BarnDoor]

A few days ago Ben Stoddart posted this on the BFI DVD, Blu-ray & UHD Facebook group:

Originally Posted by Ben Stoddart

This will be coming out in the UK, but not from the BFI. Let’s just say I know this for a fact, but don’t ask me for details because I’m not providing them.

So presumably either:

1) Arrow also have this for the UK, which admittedly would be unusual given that the 4 Paramount titles they've announced to date have all been US only, but perhaps they were able to get a few for the UK as well.

2) More likely, Arrow are collaborating with a different label who will be releasing it in the UK. The smart money would be on Indicator I suppose.

[Hammerlover]

Originally Posted by BarnDoor

A few days ago Ben Stoddart posted this on the BFI DVD, Blu-ray & UHD Facebook group:



So presumably either:

1) Arrow also have this for the UK, which admittedly would be unusual given that the 4 Paramount titles they've announced to date have all been US only, but perhaps they were able to get a few for the UK as well.

2) More likely, Arrow are collaborating with a different label who will be releasing it in the UK. The smart money would be on Indicator I suppose.

Frankly, Arrow has never shown much interest in British genre cinema; my money is on Indicator.

[BarnDoor]

Originally Posted by Hammerlover

Frankly, Arrow has never shown much interest in British genre cinema; my money is on Indicator.

It's almost certainly coming to the US via Arrow; question here is who has it for the UK.

[rapta]

Originally Posted by BarnDoor

It's almost certainly coming to the US via Arrow; question here is who has it for the UK.

If it is Indicator, it does feel odd that they wouldn't also have acquired US rights, which is why I'm wondering if it's Eureka instead (since they don't have a US distribution arm).

If it does turn out to be Indicator, I suppose what could've happened is Indicator sorted out a Paramount deal for the UK, but not the US as well, and Arrow secured the opposite, and they're both collaborating on the same titles for different territories (as is often happening for lots of HK titles). Or they're not collaborating and they're both just picking some of the same titles, as seems to be happening with 88 Films and Eureka on certain HK titles.

I only mentioned Radiance because Fran would've obviously been in negotiations with Paramount for Arrow, and maybe they weren't pursuing UK rights for some reason and he knew which titles might do well here. If that is the case, fingers crossed he got Black Sunday too (I like the film and was disappointed when it was US-only). Fighting Back looks good too, and I'm sure there are others.