BFI 4K UHD and Blu-rays announced for August and September: Kurosawa, Herzog and a long unavailable sci-fi series
Highlights include two Werner Herzog films in 4K and another Kurosawa classic.
Our August and September 4K UHD and Blu-ray releases are announced today and are available to pre-order now from online retailers.
Our next 4K restoration from director Akira Kurosawa is The Hidden Fortress. This 1958 masterpiece was a huge box office success for Kurosawa on its original release, and famously inspired George Lucas when he was writing his first Star Wars film. As with our previous Kurosawa releases, The Hidden Fortress features new artwork by Matt Needle and is available on 4K UHD and Blu-ray.
Our first 4K release from the Werner Herzog film collection will be his 1972 film Aguirre, Wrath of God. This legendary production, filmed in the Amazonian jungle, established Herzog as one of the key directors in the New German Cinema movement, and stars Klaus Kinski in the first of his five collaborations with the director. Available on 4K UHD and Blu-ray.
A new restoration of Herzog and Kinski’s second collaboration, Nosferatu the Vampyre, is out on 4K UHD and Blu-ray in September. Kinski’s performance created one of cinema’s iconic vampires, and the film was one of the inspirations for Robert Eggers’ recent box office hit.
Also out in September is Object Z. Unseen since its first transmission on ITV in 1965, this vintage six-part Rediffusion sci-fi serial will delight all aficionados of the glorious golden age of British television drama and appeal to everybody who thrilled to Nigel Kneale’s Quatermass.
These new releases join our previously announced July titles: Bhaji on the Beach, Women in Love and Human Traffic.