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Universal's tampering isn't just limited to classics:

American Pie Blu-Ray.com Review

Has any release yet as part of the 100th year anniversary had satisfying results?!

Drucker wrote:Has any release yet as part of the 100th year anniversary had satisfying results?!

'Out of Africa' remastered?

"All Quiet On The Western Front"

Much like the Apatow films under the Universal banner, American Pie has always been DNRed to death on home video. It's a shame because it's actually a pretty damn sweet Hughes-ian film from my youth that I'll ultimately buy regardless.

The Sting. Awesome.

It's Universal doing the transfer. Not awesome.

The Narrator Returns wrote:It's Universal doing the transfer. Not awesome.

Sadly, this is true.

Why did the Psycho transfer come out so well? Did a third company involve themselves in the process? It says Universal distributed the BD, but the film was made at Paramount.

I thought there were complaints about Psycho, too.

The Carlito's Way BD also looked really good. Maybe there was a change in staff or management in the last year or so?

I've been slow to pick up their releases, given their reputation (and my perpetual brokeness), but in all seriousness I had actually thought they had gotten better. They'd gone from simply re-using ugly, outdated DVD-era HD masters to creating new masters that were nonetheless still moderately problematic. IOW, in terms of letter grades, they'd gone from a solid 'D' to somewhere closer to a 'B'.

Oh, I thought Psycho was universally loved. Except that Jeffrey Wells guy bitching about AR.

Ha ha ha, Wells. Maybe the fact that he loved the Psycho Blu is the reason that I thought it had problems. I'm being serious.

aox wrote:Why did the Psycho transfer come out so well? Did a third company involve themselves in the process? It says Universal distributed the BD, but the film was made at Paramount.

Actually, Paramount originally distributed PSYCHO, but it was made at Universal (Paramount's reluctance to allow the film to be shot on their property is reportedly one of the reasons Hitchcock moved his operations to Universal). By 1970, all rights had been transferred to Universal so all home video versions have been controlled by them.

Isn't PSYCHO one of the first archive releases on Blu-ray by Universal? Perhaps a management change after that release resulted in their recent standard.

Sixteen Candles available June 5 and now up for pre-order at Amazon!

Jeffrey Kauffman has changed his tune about the DNR use. Buck Privates Blu-Ray.com Review

The Narrator Returns wrote:Jeffrey Kauffman has changed his tune about the DNR use. Buck Privates Blu-Ray.com Review

Gee, those screenshots look good to me. Mostly well detailed with a healthy amount of film grain. Looks miles better than most of the other Universal catalog titles that Kauffman praises.

eerik wrote:

The Narrator Returns wrote:Jeffrey Kauffman has changed his tune about the DNR use. Buck Privates Blu-Ray.com Review

Gee, those screenshots look good to me. Mostly well detailed with a healthy amount of film grain. Looks miles better than most of the other Universal catalog titles that Kauffman praises.

Overscrubbed, says Robert Harris.

Can't they get anyone other than this Kaufman clown to review Universal releases? He consistently not only gives top marks to DNR'd discs, but mocks and minimizes the concerns of those who despise such treatment:

Pillow Talk review wrote:some will decry Universal's standard use of DNR

no doubt be derided for some apparent DNR

Jurassic Park review wrote:I'm the first person to admit that DNR, at least when applied judiciously, does not bother me in the slightest, though it evidently drives other videophiles to froth-mouthed fury

Deer Hunter review wrote:Universal catalog releases always come in for brickbats, though I personally seldom feel they're as hideous as some insist they are. Let's address the biggest issue that most people have with Universal catalog releases, the often misunderstood or misattributed DNR. Is there DNR applied to this release? Probably, though certainly not to any problematic degree.

Spartacus review wrote:I found the DNR to be relatively minimal by modern (often hyperbolic) standards, perhaps a backhanded compliment.

To Kill a Mockingbird review wrote:Now, I have never believed that at least some of Universal's catalog Blu- ray releases were as outright terrible as some claimed, but I seem to have a much higher tolerance for DNR than some.

Universal releases are regularly pilloried for over aggressive DNR, and there's a very interesting segment on this featurette addressing that issue that all DNR-phobes really should watch.

I'm sure every other Universal review includes similar statements. Is he secretly on their payroll or something?

Does anyone know if _any_ of the DVD versions of CAR WASH are uncut? The earlier versions cut out several scenes that were in the original theatrical release. Unfortunately Amazon has simply moved the reviews of the older editions over to the new version, so it's impossible to tell if they've "fixed" this problem.

Hitchcock box-set will include 14 films, according to ze Germans.

• Rope
• Rear Window
• The Man Who Knew Too Much
• Torn Curtain
• The Birds
• Family Plot
• Frenzy
• Shadow of a Doubt
• The Trouble with Harry
• Marnie
• Psycho
• Saboteur
• Topaz
• Vertigo

via Blu-ray.com forums

My decision - having only got into Hitchock films late - to only buy the ones available on Blu-ray and wait for the others looks like it has paid off.

Cash Flagg wrote:Can't they get anyone other than this Kaufman clown to review Universal releases? He consistently not only gives top marks to DNR'd discs, but mocks and minimizes the concerns of those who despise such treatment
I'm sure every other Universal review includes similar statements. Is he secretly on their payroll or something?

I can only imagine the praise he would have lavished on something like that DNR-blasted Predator blu.