Robin Hood: Special Edition (2 Disc Set) (1 Viewer)

[Colin Jacobson]

Jeremy, T2 looked better in the theater,on laserdisc and on DVD so thats not a real fair comparisome.

I'm not Jeremy, but I don't think that he really compared the two. He responded to a post that contended you can't expect a movie from 1991 to look as good as one from 2003. He implied that the new T2 presents a really solid image that holds up well when compared to new flicks. He didn't state that this is why Robin Hood should look better - he simply argued against the notion that a movie from 1991 MUST look worse than a modern one.

Unless I read too much into his brief statement!

 

[Jeff Whitford]

Well if thats the way he meant it then I agree

 

[Jeremy Conrad]

I'm not Jeremy, but I don't think that he really compared the two. He responded to a post that contended you can't expect a movie from 1991 to look as good as one from 2003. He implied that the new T2 presents a really solid image that holds up well when compared to new flicks. He didn't state that this is why Robin Hood should look better - he simply argued against the notion that a movie from 1991 MUST look worse than a modern one.

Unless I read too much into his brief statement!

No, that's exactly it.

 

[pitchman]

This movie was really grainy in the theater,on laserdisc and on the 1st DVD why would it be any different on this DVD version?

Thank you, Jeff! As I muddled my way through this thread, I was thinking the exact same thing. This movie never looked great in the theater, either. I vividly recall lots of grain and noticeable image inconsistencies from shot to shot.

I always think of RHOT along with Excalibur and Clash of the Titans, as three movies that I really enjoyed, despite the fact that they looked BAD when I saw them theatrically.

 

[jeff lam]

Well, I guess it's sure possible to make the transfer as good as current releases (T2 EE) but I still think we have been spoiled by such releases and begin to expect every release to be of similar quality which I think is a little unfair to the studios.

Now when they release a 2003 film on DVD and it looks as bad as an average 1991 release, that's when I gripe and complain because there is cirtainly no excuse for that, especially on the higher budget films.

 

[Steve Christou]

One chance remark that the copy was a 'travesty' and everyone suddenly wants to cancel their order [shakes head] I got the DVD today, checked it out and the picture is far better than the crappy original flipping flipper transfer. It's no better or worse than most DVDs out there, and if you're a genuine fan of the film you are going to buy this regardless of what one or two people on this thread say.

 

[Brian E]

Sorry if this has been asked, didn't have time to read all five pages. Is the extended cut the only thing on the disc? No way to watch the theatrical cut?

 

[Adam_WM]

There is no theatrical cut that I was aware of when I watched it today. I watched it in DTS and really enjoyed it. The sound was great, especially the opening title, but not overly aggressive (especially the LFE). The picture was good, not great. At times, I wondered what everyone was complaining about, but at other times, I was shouting "Shenanigans!"

Fans will want this in lieu of the ugly flipper, but purists, stay clear, it's not perfect.

 

[Brian E]

There is no theatrical cut that I was aware of when I watched it today.

Looks like another one where I'll have to keep the old one to have the theatrical cut. Don't know why they couldn't have had both.

 

[Tom M]

I have the Pierce Brosnan hosted special on VHS somewhere in my vast collection. As I recall it runs around 45-50 minutes uncut. It was most likely cut down because the special was shown the night before the movie opened in the U.S.

At the end Brosnan even says something like, "Tomorrow we will see a new Robin Hood continue the legacy." And yes, there were clips of Robin Hoods of the past. I think they just cut it down so it would play better today. They should have left it alone as an artifact of the film's release.

As for the movie itself, it was shot mostly in natural light. Grainy images are common. See also, Conan The Barbarian and Unforgiven just to name two.

 

[Rob T]

There is no theatrical cut that I was aware of when I watched it today. I watched it in DTS and really enjoyed it. The sound was great, especially the opening title, but not overly aggressive (especially the LFE). The picture was good, not great. At times, I wondered what everyone was complaining about, but at other times, I was shouting "Shenanigans!"

Fans will want this in lieu of the ugly flipper, but purists, stay clear, it's not perfect.

Not much is.
I'll, hopefully, get it tomorrow.

 

[Joseph_mx]

If you want to see some captures from the Original Release Vs the Special Edition here is the link:

Two Disc Special Edition Vs. Original Release

Edit: Mirror Site:

Two Disc Special Edition Vs. Original Release

 

[Jeff Whitford]

Well I watched it tonight and it has never looked better. In fact compared to the other video versions I felt like I was watching it in HD. However...... I watched 1/4 of the movie and had to switch it out of DTS because the lip sync was so bad. What the hell is it with DTS mixes lately? Die Another Day and now this. By the way I am a DTS fan.

 

[David Glenn]

How bad is the dts sync? Is it worse than D.A.D.?

Joseph_mx,

Thanks for the screen shot comparisons. I'm sold.

 

[Darren Haycock]

I really hope the DTS problem is an isolated incident. I too noticed the D.A.D. problem. Where's the quality control?

 

[Aaron Garman]

Hello all. So far, this set is just ok. I think the picture is fine for me. Heck, I was used to VHS for so many years with this film, this new DVD looks terrific. Again, what gives with the DTS track? First Die Another Day, now this. Does Warner know about the issue at all? Is anyone else having problems? As far as the new cut, I do not like it at all. The scenes are cool and interesting, but needed to be isolated from the original cut. It just seems to lag, and the whole side story with Mortiana is just a little too weird. Maybe one day we'll get the theatrical cut with DTS audio that is in sync with the picture.

AJG

 

[Joseph_mx]

No DTS problems over here. The lip Sync is Ok.

 

[Martin Jeeves]

What is supposed to be wrong with the picture?

 

[Geoff_D]

Like I said in my other posts, many will find this transfer to be a treat after the previous flipper version. But I don't. I do concede that the grain is no doubt part of the image - it is film after all - but the grain is so prevalent that it's distracting IMO. You want me to say that I don't like how the movie looks if it was intended to be that way? Fine. And after viewing an anamorphic PAL version (thru satellite) I guess it's safe to say that it's always been like that to some degree, but I've no doubt that this movie could look better than it does, and the horrid print they've used doesn't help matters.

The one thing I did notice from the satellite broadcast was the complete abscence of edge halos, which do their best to blight the dvd further. There was also a softness to the image on both versions that I can't quite tolerate, whether it's supposed to be like that, whether it's the age of the print, or the transfer - I don't really care. And reading back through this thread I have one more thing to add: did I ever say that I thought this release should be recalled? Or that no-one should buy it because of what I perceive to be faults? No. My opinion is just that, mine, and I've certainly never tried to force it on anyone else in this thread. Just getting my opinion out there, that's all. Last time I checked that was allowed on this forum, right?

PS
At least I have some people agreeing with me about the dodgy dts track

 

[Tino]

Geoff

I have appreciated your comments and never felt as though you were trying to "force"them on anyone. I took them as your well stated opinions, as all should.

That said, I don't agree totally with your assessment, although I agree that the transfer could have been much better. Perhaps your comments prepared us for the worst and it wasn't as bad as we had imagined, so thanks.