STACK #151 May 2017

EXTRAS NEWS

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I n this new collection of boxed sets highlighting outstanding actresses of contemporary and classic cinema, you're sure to find one that will make the perfect gift for Mother's Day on May 14. The Natalie Portman Collection of Films features the indie comedy Garden State (co-starring Scrubs star Zach Braff), Beautiful Girls , a comedy about unexpected STAR FOR ANY MUM two stories of loss and grief featuring dramatic performances by Portman. These specially-packaged sets also offer collections starring Scarlett Johansson ( Girl with a Pearl Earing , The Black Dahlia , In Good Company and Don Jon ), Sandra Bullock ( Lake House , Miss Congeniality , Two Weeks Notice and Practical Magic ), Nicole Kidman ( Cold Mountain , The Hours , The Others and Trespass ), Jennifer Aniston ( Rumour Has It , Management , Friends With Money and Love Happens ), and Kate Winslet ( Finding Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and Little Children ). The Golden Years of Hollywood haven't been forgotten: The Bette Davis Collection of Films includes Kid Galahad , Whatever Happened to Baby Jane? , Bride Came C.O.D. and All This and Heaven Too , and there's no denying the classics on offer in the Elizabeth Taylor collection, too, with Giant , Father of the Bride , Cat on a Hot Tin Roof and Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? . Neverland , Holy Smoke , Eternal A PERFECT happenings at a 10-year high school reunion, Love and Other Impossible Pursuits and Brothers –

Australians love DVD & Blu-ray

Despite the advent of streaming services, DVD and Blu-ray sales remain strong, according to figures released by the Australian Home Entertainment Distributors Association (AHEDA).

T he video rental store might be a thing of the past but the physical disc format is alive and well, with new release titles and television series driving sales of both DVD and Blu-ray. The physical disc market remains one of the largest individual categories in Australia, generating more value than categories such as tablets or wearables. AHEDA data reveals that Australians are among the largest purchasers of DVD and Blu-ray discs globally. The physical disc retail channel sold 44 million discs in 2016, with a total value of $806 million.

ray Steelbooks and special editions regularly offered by JB Hi-Fi. “The physical disc market is incredibly resilient in Australia, and with the amazing theatrical slate in 2016 continuing into 2017, I expect new release DVD and Blu-ray disc sales to grow again in 2017,” said Simon Bush, CEO of AHEDA.

While a decrease in the purchase of older catalogue films on DVD saw the market decline by 11% in 2016, sales of new release titles increased by 4%, with Blu-ray new release films up by 14% and Blu-ray TV series sales up by 17%. Improving shares in the new release film and TV series categories, both of which have higher average prices than the overall market, boosted Blu-ray’s 2016 share increase. Over a quarter of all new release movies are now purchased on Blu-ray. The format remains highly desirable for collectors, bolstered by exclusive releases featuring bonus discs and VAM, like the Blu-

The Top 5 combined DVD and Blu-ray sellers in 2016 by volume were: 1 Star Wars: The Force Awakens 2 Deadpool 3 Game of Thrones: Season 5

4 Zootopia 5 Spectre

MONSTER CLASSICS ONLY AT JB C alling all fans of the ghoulish! Beginning in the 1920s and through to the 1950s, Universal Studios made a series of iconic classics which helped establish the horror genre as we know it today. Now, exclusive to JB Hi-Fi, they've been unleashed on Blu- ray for your chilling, high-def edification. Absolute essentials are 1931's Frankenstein as well as the even creepier 1935 follow-up, Bride of Frankenstein featuring Boris Karloff as 'The Monster', a symbol of fear, but one that also (in the hands of underrated director James Whale) demands our sympathy. Karloff also appears in 1932's The Mummy ; the Karl Freund-directed film captures an isolation and yearning in the central figure that elevates the film beyond cheap thrills. TheWolf Man was released in 1941,

less than a week after the attack on Pearl Harbor, and reminded audiences of the evil within every man – sending cinemagoers' already heightened

anxiety levels through the roof. Other Universal classics in this range include Creature from the Black Lagoon (1954) starring Richard Carlson, and two titles featuring four-time Oscar nominee Claude Rains: The Invisible Man (1933) and The Phantom of the Opera (1943). This exclusive, distinctively-packaged range is complemented by latter-day monster classics including John Carpenter's TheThing (1982), John Landis's An AmericanWerewolf in London (1981), cult favourite Tremors (1990) and many more. Make sure you drop into JB Hi-Fi to catch them all while stocks last!

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MAY 2017

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