The Blu Ray Thread

[Hellboy]

Originally Posted by Marvelito

Exactly. Given that, makes me believe there will be another physical medium after BR.

There is a good chance. At the very least it will insure physical media's presence in the market for the foreseeable future.

[joy_division]

Originally Posted by Hellboy

Well these last 2 months have been BY FAR the busiest Blu-ray buying months ever for me. Should calm down a bit for now. At least until Black Friday.

Here are my latest additions.

what are the extras in the Crow?

They are pretty weak on mine

[Luminous]

The thought of all those studios re-releasing their entire catalogs in Ultra HD makes me a sad panda indeed. I just bought all that stuff.

[Hellboy]

Originally Posted by joy_division

what are the extras in the Crow?

They are pretty weak on mine

• Feature Commentary by Director Alex Proyas. Perhaps surprisingly, Proyas doesn't dwell in too much detail on Lee's death, and instead focuses on his challenges trying to do something on a limited budget. He also discusses changing elements from the original comic book version to make the film more exciting and meaningful, such as altering Eric's profession to be a musician so that Proyas could feature a soundtrack of rock music Proyas also spends a lot of time detailing how the special effects shots were achieved.
• Behind the Scenes Featurette (SD; 16:33) is an archival featurette which offers clips, storyboards and interviews (including with Lee).
• A Profile on James O'Barr (SD; 33:33) is a circa 2000 interview with The Crow's original author.
• Extended Scenes (SD; 11:32)
• Deleted Footage Montage (SD; 5:23)
• Original Poster Concepts
• Production Design Stills
• Storyboards
• Theatrical Trailer (SD; 1:30)
• Trailers for other Lionsgate Releases (HD; 9:45)

[Hellboy]

Originally Posted by Luminous

The thought of all those studios re-releasing their entire catalogs in Ultra HD makes me a sad panda indeed. I just bought all that stuff.

I wouldn't let it get you down. Technology will always progress forward and unless you never want to actually own physical copies of your favorite films the transition to a superior format is unavoidable. IF Ultra HD even happens its easily a decade or more off. If my film collection is considered the best possible transfers available for another decade I'll feel as though I got my moneys worth. It will easily beat the short life Laserdisc had and even surpass the lifespan of standard DVDs at that point.

[Marvelito]

Originally Posted by Hellboy

I wouldn't let it get you down. Technology will always progress forward and unless you never want to actually own physical copies of your favorite films the transition to a superior format is unavoidable. IF Ultra HD even happens its easily a decade or more off. If my film collection is considered the best possible transfers available for another decade I'll feel as though I got my moneys worth. It will easily beat the short life Laserdisc had and even surpass the lifespan of standard DVDs at that point.

I agree totally. I don't enjoy knowing this, but it's a reality I've given in to as a movie collector. Honestly, this is true for just about anything... computers, cars, tv's, ipods, statues, comics, food, even women! The bottom line is nothing stays the same, it's when things change faster than the value you give them, that it becomes a problem for some.

[Hellboy]

Originally Posted by Marvelito

I agree totally. I don't enjoy knowing this, but it's a reality I've given in to as a movie collector. Honestly, this is true for just about anything... computers, cars, tv's, ipods, statues, comics, food, even women! The bottom line is nothing stays the same, it's when things change faster than the value you give them, that it becomes a problem for some.

Well said. I'd also add that if you take the wait and see approach (especially with tech) you will enjoy things less as you ultimately decrease the amount of usage time you have with things before it once again changes with the latest advancements. Myself I've already been enjoying Blu-ray for 5 years strong. If it were to become obsolete in 10 years thats 15 years of enjoyment. Not bad if you ask me.

[joy_division]

Originally Posted by Hellboy

• Feature Commentary by Director Alex Proyas. Perhaps surprisingly, Proyas doesn't dwell in too much detail on Lee's death, and instead focuses on his challenges trying to do something on a limited budget. He also discusses changing elements from the original comic book version to make the film more exciting and meaningful, such as altering Eric's profession to be a musician so that Proyas could feature a soundtrack of rock music Proyas also spends a lot of time detailing how the special effects shots were achieved.
• Behind the Scenes Featurette (SD; 16:33) is an archival featurette which offers clips, storyboards and interviews (including with Lee).
• A Profile on James O'Barr (SD; 33:33) is a circa 2000 interview with The Crow's original author.
• Extended Scenes (SD; 11:32)
• Deleted Footage Montage (SD; 5:23)
• Original Poster Concepts
• Production Design Stills
• Storyboards
• Theatrical Trailer (SD; 1:30)
• Trailers for other Lionsgate Releases (HD; 9:45)

mine doesn't have the proyas commentary, but instead producer and screenplay commentary.
Poster art
Profile of O'Barr
Deleted and extended footage
featurette
production design
storyboard sequences
Lee's last on-screen interview(I have this on my VHS copy)

surprised that there still isn't a tribute of some sorts to Brandon or music videos

[Marvelito]

Originally Posted by Hellboy

I've already been enjoying Blu-ray for 5 years strong. If it were to become obsolete in 10 years thats 15 years of enjoyment. Not bad if you ask me.

I've been buying BR for about 5 years as well, and if you add 5-10 years to that, that's a long time. I jumped into DVD in July of '98, and pretty much dropped it about three years ago, so that's a solid decade of DVD buying. If BR goes strong for more than another 5 years, it will have outlived my DVD years. That's pretty impressive, and I don't really doubt that it will turn out that way. There are a number of reasons I see BR outperforming DVD. First of all there has been the conscious effort to ease DVD fans over to BR by including the DVD with most releases. Secondly the prices for BR are so much cheaper at this point than they were for DVD, I never enjoyed as many sales, or saw as many titles drop below retail so quickly on DVD. Thirdly love it or hate it, use it or don't, 3D is adding a little extra life to BR. Many people don't have a need for it currently, but when people start getting new 3D TVs, they're going to need something to watch on them. 3D BR is something that may not greatly prolong BR's life, but it will give it a few extra breaths. Lastly, I would say that unless something truly special comes along, or digital really takes off, people won't be looking for a replacement any time soon. So I think we will for sure have a solid decade of enjoying BR, and that works just fine for me.

[ReplicantSavior]

Originally Posted by Marvelito

I agree totally. I don't enjoy knowing this, but it's a reality I've given in to as a movie collector. Honestly, this is true for just about anything... computers, cars, tv's, ipods, statues, comics, food, even women! The bottom line is nothing stays the same, it's when things change faster than the value you give them, that it becomes a problem for some.

I wouldn't be too sure about those things you mention. Strong designs stay timeless. Technology is the iffy stuff. Cell phones, PCs, music players, etc. Stuff like Moore's Aspen (Fathom) bikini statue. A good car like an Aston Martin DB5 or an older classic Ferrari like the 250 GT California. Watches like Bond's Rolex Submariner in Goldfinger or the Omega Seamaster in The World is not Enough. Alex Ross' Treasury comics like JLA. Dining at your favorite restaurant where you know you will be able to get your favorite meal exactly as you like it. A Sony XBR to play your classic videogames. Timeless women like Grace Kelly. If you get the best version for you, you'll be ok.

With these video formats VHS (or Beta for that matter) was never a good thing. The tape degrades after a few plays. Nor was Laserdisc. Flipping a disc over? Really?! I only have my CAV version of TRON. DVD was the first format made to take full advantage of TV's standard definition resolution. There was always going to be the next step. People like Tarantino were saying how much actual film even old film looked better than DVD. Blu-ray is now the first standard for HD but it still doesn't contain all the information of a 2K transfer. 2K is the reference point for me. Even though one of the color timers on Spider-Man 2 mentioned how there was a definite difference in the color depth of 2K and 4K images. I still believe high end animation is at 2K so that's my safe, begin to fill out my collection point. Will I still buy Blu-rays of my favorites like TRON on new formats? Yes. But I believe the next physical format, probably the last before owning something physical becomes a limited deal, will be the 2K point. Remember that there was a holographic disc format being talked about a few years ago. It could hold terabytes of information needed for 2K transfers. But I think the push for digital transfers, cheaper flash technology, and the generic "content" at all costs over quality might have slowed the format.