87 / BD 7 Soul Power

[CorstenoftheFunk]

Thankfully I'm not interested in this film so this doesn't really affect me now but if is a trend you plan on continuing for other films you will have lost yourself a customer.

because no book at all is better than a book that is thinner than another book? They are trying to push a superior format, I don't see the need to try to punish them for this.

It is not their responsability to push any format. It is their responsability to be fair to the consumer. The consumer will decide what format he/she wants. If they want the HD version of the film they will buy the Blu-Ray. But a DVD buyer should not be punished for buying the DVD by missing out on features that can easily be placed on the DVD or in the case.

[swo17]

Aside from the fact that Nick has already resolved this by saying that BD versions will not have better books, um, the only responsibility a DVD company has is to the people and companies with whom it has contractual agreements. They can push whatever format they like (even though MoC isn't) and they owe nothing to the consumer whatsoever. If the consumer does not like what a company is doing, he/she may express this by not buying that company's product. Though, as should be obvious by now, if you do so in this case you are both a) missing out and b) wrong.

P.S. Every time you buy a DVD for a film that is available in Blu-ray, you are punishing yourself with lesser PQ. You really should be more fair to yourself.

[peerpee]

MoC are producing the disc, and the director is helping us at every turn.

[CorstenoftheFunk]

P.S. Every time you buy a DVD for a film that is available in Blu-ray, you are punishing yourself with lesser PQ. You really should be more fair to yourself.

Meh. I still have many VHS and laserdiscs and don't even think about the picture quality while watching them.

[peerpee]

Despite having an agreement in place, and despite having paid for it, we will not be including the Jeff Levy-Hinte / Stewart Levine commentary track due to a last minute decision by Sony to censor parts of the commentary track.

[skuhn8]

Sony is an evil empire. Still buying the set regardless--wouldn't want people talking over the music in any case.

[Finch]

Despite having an agreement in place, and despite having paid for it, we will not be including the Jeff Levy-Hinte / Stewart Levine commentary track due to a last minute decision by Sony to censor parts of the commentary track.

Forgive me Nick as I obviously don't have any in-depth knowledge of such behind-the-scenes stuff, but as you paid for the commentary and had an agreement with Sony in place, does that not entitle you to an unedited commentary track? And what did they censor?

[peerpee]

They hadn't edited the commentary for their own use yet. They had a meeting and decided not to supply us with raw, unedited recordings (for us to edit and conform the commentary ourselves, which we wanted to do) - their aim: to make sure that the same commentary track appeared in all territories. The problem being that 'Sony legal' looked at the commentary and wanted to remove certain comments. So we were faced with having to wait indefinitely for them to finish the edit of a censored commentary, which they couldn't put a date to. So I pulled out of it.

It might not be professional to talk publicly about such dealings, but I have no bones about it. Large corporations make decisions by committee, often stifle creativity, and remove the really interesting elements from pieces of work -- for fear of being sued?

I explained that we would indemnify them of all responsibility in the UK, but they sent out the hippy warning call on the alpine horn, and the gates came down. Not impressed.

[Gregory]

What kinds of comments was their legal department concerned about?

[manicsounds]

Now, if you got the directors to say, rerecord in the studio another commentary just for Masters Of Cinema, is that viable to use? Or does Sony have a legal rank above that?

[peerpee]

We could do that, but we waited too long for Sony, and now we have no time. I have to wrap the release in the next 2 weeks in order for it to be ready for Xmas. I should have organised the commentary recording myself a couple of months ago. It's all my fault really. I took the easy option and got stung.

[peerpee]

What kinds of comments was their legal department concerned about?

It was a minor character assassination, but it was opinion, not slander.

[manicsounds]

Nick, will the DVD be in PAL?

I think with PAL speedup, especially in music and concert films, it is quite noticeable.

[peerpee]

No need to worry.

[Adam]

Despite having an agreement in place, and despite having paid for it, we will not be including the Jeff Levy-Hinte / Stewart Levine commentary track due to a last minute decision by Sony to censor parts of the commentary track.

Why not include the censored version anyway and then on your website list the things that were removed by the censors? Or rather than on your website, "leak" them to various other websites.
I know; you weren't going to get it from them in time anyway.
Lawyers can be crazy when doing their jobs to protect their clients against every possible and impossible future event. But at the same time, that is what they are being paid to do.

[perkizitore]

You still can record a director's commentary and upload it as an online extra.

[peerpee]

Despite having an agreement in place, and despite having paid for it, we will not be including the Jeff Levy-Hinte / Stewart Levine commentary track due to a last minute decision by Sony to censor parts of the commentary track.

Why not include the censored version anyway and then on your website list the things that were removed by the censors? Or rather than on your website, "leak" them to various other websites.
I know; you weren't going to get it from them in time anyway.
Lawyers can be crazy when doing their jobs to protect their clients against every possible and impossible future event. But at the same time, that is what they are being paid to do.

Sony insisted that they edit the commentary based on the lawyer's advice, and their delivery estimate of that edit was a major problem -- affecting our release date before Xmas.

I personally couldn't care less about lawyers, whether they can be "crazy", or about corporate entities who pay them to do things like this when a simple disclaimer covers all eventualities.

Fear not, the censored comments will be available (but they're not earth shattering, so don't get hyped!)

[Sanjuro]

I'm sure it's not cost effective, but just think, if you got another commentary together some time in the future you could produce the first ever actually useful implementation of BD-Live.

[whaleallright]

Nick, your website advertises "extra performances" on the two editions. How many of these? Do the discs include more footage of the Congolese performers--OK Jazz, Afrisa, etc.? That's what I'd really pay to see.

[peerpee]

EXTRA PERFORMANCES
01 - James Brown "Try Me"
02 - Sister Sledge "On and On"
03 - Abeti (two numbers)
04 - Pointer Sisters "Yes we can (can)"
05 - Pembe Dance Troupe


EXTRA SCENES
01 - Concert Logistics
02 - Ali Departs In Car
03 - Jams & Rehearsals
04 - Boxing Organisers
05 - Zairans 1974

[whaleallright]

Thanks so much for that info. Great to see that Abeti is on the DVD.

This film was superb, but I couldn't help but be saddened that there wasn't the time or money to edit much more of the concert footage, and that, in gearing the film to a Western audience, the Congolese acts on the bill got short shrift. OK Jazz and Afrisa were each given just a few minutes of screen time, even though they were among the biggest acts in Africa at the time. Franco's songs in particular ran to 20, 30, even 40 minutes in concert so what we see is really a tiny excerpt.

[peerpee]

We know, and agree. The release of SOUL POWER is the first step in realising the full restoration of all the footage. The cost of restoring everything so beautifully to HD was far too prohibitive to do everything.

[frankiecrisp]

P.S. Every time you buy a DVD for a film that is available in Blu-ray, you are punishing yourself with lesser PQ. You really should be more fair to yourself.

Not everyone can afford to replace a tv and dvd player everytime a new format comes out. I don't think there is that much difference anyway but I will buy a blue-ray player when I can get a multi region player that I can play my region 1 criterions on but in the meantime I don't think I'm punishing myself buying MOC and Criterion dvds the quality of their dvds is superb.

[MichaelB]

I don't think there is that much difference anyway

Based on what? I've been able to compare MoC's DVDs and Blu-rays directly, and I can assure you that the difference is very very obvious even on a 42" plasma. Projected, I imagine the quality gap is even more glaring.

[swo17]

P.S. Every time you buy a DVD for a film that is available in Blu-ray, you are punishing yourself with lesser PQ. You really should be more fair to yourself.

Not everyone can afford to replace a tv and dvd player everytime a new format comes out. I don't think there is that much difference anyway but I will buy a blue-ray player when I can get a multi region player that I can play my region 1 criterions on but in the meantime I don't think I'm punishing myself buying MOC and Criterion dvds the quality of their dvds is superb.

This post was a few months old, and was in direct response to someone who was complaining about companies "punishing" customers by putting out Blu-rays that were in any way superior to their DVD counterparts (by having exclusive extras), as though having 6 times the resolution didn't count for anything. I was turning his words around on him, see? I still stand by comment.