criterionforum.org

skeets kelly wrote:

matrixschmatrix wrote:If you have a computer you can hook up to your TV, it is way way cheaper to get a blu-ray drive and download software to get region free blu-ray capability than it is to buy a Momitsu or whatever. You can get the drive for around $60, and the software ranges from free to maybe $25 if you want something nice.

tv is only 720p. seems silly to not take advantage of the format.

? — AppleTV, maybe.

An HDTV can display 1080p. A standard-definition television is 480. Anything that outputs at 1080p, connected to an HDTV via HDMI, displays 1080p.

ck.

matrixschmatrix wrote:If you have a computer you can hook up to your TV, it is way way cheaper to get a blu-ray drive and download software to get region free blu-ray capability than it is to buy a Momitsu or whatever. You can get the drive for around $60, and the software ranges from free to maybe $25 if you want something nice.

Could you mention what nice software I can get for $25, then I would really like to know. Right now I use a trial of DVDFab Passkey for decoding/regionfree but it runs out in a couple of weeks. For blu-ray playback I use Media Player Classic Home Cinema which is free, but it shows no menus and can't display subtitles on blu-rays.

I have been looking around and the cheapest PowerDVD is $50 and AnyDVD HD is 63 euro for 1 year or 109 euro for lifetime, but with those prices, it's kinda cheaper to buy a seperate player.

skeets kelly wrote:

matrixschmatrix wrote:If you have a computer you can hook up to your TV, it is way way cheaper to get a blu-ray drive and download software to get region free blu-ray capability than it is to buy a Momitsu or whatever. You can get the drive for around $60, and the software ranges from free to maybe $25 if you want something nice.

tv is only 720p. seems silly to not take advantage of the format.

My TV is also 720p, and Blu-rays look spectacular on it. Not as spectacular as they did on the 1080p I had before I moved, but still lots better than SD. (Not sure how we got this far off the original topic, sorry.)

I'm guessing this is something from up above, at Eureka, to try and get sales from the non-HD adopted crowds. I know Masters Of Cinema made a big alienating decision, by having BD only titles, which to most hardcore fans and people on boards like this is a great decision, marketing-wise I'm guessing resulted in fewer units being sold.

It is too bad, as I was hoping to see 4 new titles being announced, instead, having 'downgrades' being announced....

manicsounds wrote:I'm guessing this is something from up above, at Eureka, to try and get sales from the non-HD adopted crowds. I know Masters Of Cinema made a big alienating decision, by having BD only titles, which to most hardcore fans and people on boards like this is a great decision, marketing-wise I'm guessing resulted in fewer units being sold.

I don't think the decision was "alienating," disappointing for me personally, but it hasn't alienated me from the the company or caused me not to support them. Nick has always been quite sincere here and when he says the move to focus on BluRay was an essentially aesthetic decision, I believe him. Regardless, I'm happy they might be modifying their stance somewhat.

Tribe wrote:

manicsounds wrote:I'm guessing this is something from up above, at Eureka, to try and get sales from the non-HD adopted crowds. I know Masters Of Cinema made a big alienating decision, by having BD only titles, which to most hardcore fans and people on boards like this is a great decision, marketing-wise I'm guessing resulted in fewer units being sold.

I don't think the decision was "alienating," disappointing for me personally, but it hasn't alienated me from the the company or caused me not to support them. Nick has always been quite sincere here and when he says the move to focus on BluRay was an essentially aesthetic decision, I believe him. Regardless, I'm happy they might be modifying their stance somewhat.

As disappointed as I am that MoC won't be releasing anything I don't already own any time soon, I kind of feel like this move to "downgrade" existing titles fits in with their original plan, given that circumstances have changed. The reason for going blu only was partially the dedication to a superior format, but it was primarily so that they wouldn't have to slow down their release schedule by working on the same film in different formats. Now that their other future releases are delayed for reasons beyond their control, they have to put out SOMETHING just to keep a flow of income. I don't think marketing or pressure from Eureka had anything to do with it.

By "Alienating", I meant alienating people who don't have BD players yet.

Customer: "Scuse me, have you got this movie on DVD? I only see the blu-ray on the shelf."
Clerk: "Sorry, that's on Blu-ray only. There isn't a DVD of it."
Customer: "Oh, bloody hell.... never mind then."

That's the alienated customer, which I'm assuming tha Eureka are assuming are big numbers... at least enough to warrant DVD issues.

manicsounds wrote:That's the alienated customer, which I'm assuming tha Eureka are assuming are big numbers... at least enough to warrant DVD issues.

That's exactly the problem I had for their first BD releases, like City Girl, or M. Now, I have at least a BD Player so I'm OK, but for half a year, it was just "Men, this is just another frakking release I won't be able to get".

I just hope that this doesn't mean a step backwards to issuing DVD-only when a Blu-ray release would previously have been plausible. As time goes on the Blu-rays will continue to sell, whilst the DVD sales will steadily decrease, I'd imagine.

Well I guess this finally won't mean much to me since I just ordered a Sherwood BDP-5004 Region-Free Blu-ray Disc Player.

tenia wrote:...but for half a year, it was just "Men, this is just another frakking release I won't be able to get".

It sounds like you were addressing the troops on the deck of Battlestar Galactica.

Interesting facts & figures from Screen Digest re. relative development of formats...



It shows DVD's great success was/is to get people to purchase the discs, in quantities (although now slightly declining) greater that VHS or BR...

A really superb post - fascinating chart!

This shows the shrewdness of BFI's dual format policy.

As a Blu-Ray Fascist I had very much embraced MOC's blu only policy. Looking at the stats their former stance looks stubbornly principled (nothing wrong with that).

Still, releasing top notch DVDs 'en repose' is pretty admirable!

The five new DVD releases (the four announced plus City Girl) has been added to the MoC page now as spine #101-105

spocker wrote:The five new DVD releases (the four announced plus City Girl) has been added to the MoC page now as spine #101-105

Profound Desires and City Girl on DVD will have the same extras as the BD, right?

I don't see why not. The Rayns intro and the trailer run less than 20 minutes combined.

I'll probably buy the DVDs because my blu player is region locked.

Will the five titles be region 2?

If they're Region B on Blu-ray, I imagine it's a reasonably safe bet that they'll be Region 2 on DVD.

peerpee wrote:We shan't be pursuing the "Dual Format" edition as a regular thing. It has an inbuilt obsolescence and is environmentally unfriendly/wasteful. We much prefer the Criterion route of entirely separate format releases (if we're doing a BD and a DVD release of a particular title).

I'm going to regret saying this.

I've been convinced otherwise, by facts.

Is this because of how the different releases of Metropolis sold? Because that wasn't exactly a fair fight. There was a T-shirt involved. And steel!

I think this year's Blu-onlys didn't move like they'd like, which is why we're seeing the Tashlin et al getting SD releases. This is why everyone should always listen to me, re: dual format releases; everything

Domino - this year's Blu-rays moved nicely thanks. It surprised us that, straight out of the traps, they hold their own with the DVD edition.

We'd wanted to go Blu-ray only for a while --- and we did do for most of last year --- but we couldn't ignore the missed sales and drumbeat of miffed DVD-restricted folk --- and so we found ourselves backtracking and doing DVD editions of things we'd done last year.

Moving forward, instead of doing two separate editions -- 2 different sleeves, 2 different sized booklets, 2 different barcodes, 2 different pieces of inventory for one film (a real time-sink, and costly too) -- there are overwhelming logistical reasons to focus on Dual Format editions.

We're going to try and make it happen for the Antonioni's in March if we can.

We hope this is pleasing to everyone. I've got over my previous brickwall on the matter -- which was rooted in idealism and aestheticism.

I think it's great, because again, the included DVD editions aren't "coasters" like the sneering Blu-ray crowd hyperbolizes-- they're essential for teachers, lending purposes, even something as simple as taking some screencaps on a non-Blu-drive (read: Mac) computer, etc and worth an extra pound or two rather than fourteen!

I must say, that I initially thought dual editions were a complete waste of space, but what's convinced me otherwise is the bind of having to watch not only the feature, but all of the extras too, on my HD set-up, even when HD is unnecessarily or, in the case of commentaries, completely irrelevant. With the DVD I can stick a commentary on to listen to (or ignore) in another room while I'm doing something else. (Of course, by this reasoning, 'feature only' DVDs remain as much a waste of space for me as digital copies).

Just as one voice in the chorus, who generally only utilizes the Blu-ray portion of any Dual Format release, I like going the Dual Format route because it seems to take care of most everyone. Some don't have Region B Blu capabilities and others aren't outfitted with Blu-ray at all yet so, for simple availability reasons, Dual Format leaves room for no reasonable complaints in my mind.