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USHE Press Release: Universal Classic Monsters: The Essential Collection (Blu-ray) includes Creature (1 Viewer)

Moe Dickstein

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Brandon Conway said:
You can import the individual release of Creature from the UK.
I'm aware, but I dislike importing, except in extreme circumstances (so far Cleopatra and Obsession).
I'm one of those nuts who doesnt want the foreign ratings marks on the spines and will pay more to avoid that. I know it's dumb.
 

lukejosephchung

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The region-free import alternative is the only currently available release of "Creature" outside of the box...Universal hasn't announced ANY of these titles for individual release in the US as of yet.
 

lukejosephchung

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Originally Posted by Moe Dickstein /t/321849/ushe-press-release-universal-classic-monsters-the-essential-collection-blu-ray-includes-creature-in-3d/270#post_3983101
Good to know. Good thing Dial M is coming soon to satisfy my curiosity about classic 3D...
It's my understanding that Hitchcock's use of 3D in terms of depth-of-field is MUCH more subtle than "Creature", which, according to most viewers, has a more "in your face" presentation...
 

Moe Dickstein

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lukejosephchung said:
It's my understanding that Hitchcock's use of 3D in terms of depth-of-field is MUCH more subtle than "Creature", which, according to most viewers, has a more "in your face" presentation...
Which is a big plus to me - I'm planning to buy every classic title that comes out, that said, I'm more a fan of depth than pop out effects.
 

Tony J Case

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A question for the folks who already have their hands on the set: are the extras pretty much just recycled from the older DVD's? Everything seems to be the same about the set, save for putting it in a new format. Did they touch up the picture and sound any? Or should I stick with my old box set from 2001?
 

Brandon Conway

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Originally Posted by Tony J Case /t/321849/ushe-press-release-universal-classic-monsters-the-essential-collection-blu-ray-includes-creature-in-3d/270#post_3983183
A question for the folks who already have their hands on the set: are the extras pretty much just recycled from the older DVD's? Everything seems to be the same about the set, save for putting it in a new format. Did they touch up the picture and sound any? Or should I stick with my old box set from 2001?

Haven't gone through the set, but I've read that the bonus is the same content from previous releases.

Most of the films have had new restorations. The picture and sound in general are said to be greatly improved. The new Restoration featurette on Dracula shows the significant work done on that title (and the Spanish version of Dracula).
 

Kevin EK

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I'm still in the process of going through the materials, but yes, almost all of the supplements are from the prior DVDs. Almost all of that material goes back to the 1999-2000 releases. Some material comes from the more recent 75th Anniversary DVDs of Dracula and Frankenstein, and from the SE's I reviewed of The Mummy and The Wolf Man.

The Dracula disc has the new Restoration featurette.

The other discs have several of this year's 100th Anniversary featurettes.

I haven't found anything else new yet, but I'll tag it all and have the full review up this weekend.
 

Johnny Angell

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I emailed Amazon UK about the very late date for the delivery of my....ah...Coffin. The reply said that was a technical error and if it doesn't arrive by the 10th, to contact them. That's better becaus I don't want to wait too long for my Coffin.
 

Craig Beam

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My set (US edition) was delivered yesterday, but I didn't have a chance to open it till this evening. I haven't viewed any of the discs yet (I'm planning a marathon on Sunday), so I can't comment on them (however, there are enough glowing reviews floating around to give me great confidence).
What I can comment on is the packaging. Simply put, it's absolutely marvelous. Nice sturdy outer box (which only opens on one side; it's not a glorified slipcover) with gorgeous graphics. The inner case is a very sturdy hardcover booklet affair (similar to that used in the Star Wars Complete Saga set) with pocket pages for each disc. The 48-page booklet is beautifully rendered (the final pages present a chronological list of all the Universal Monster films from 1925's Phantom of the Opera through 1956's The Creature Walks Among Us, including the Abbott and Costello films; a very nice touch). The disc art is subtle and effective, all black with a single headshot of each monster.
Oveall, a classy set, top to bottom. I viewed an unboxing video of the UK set (), and it doesn't look nearly as impressive (it just seems cheap, with its foldover cardboard design and double-stacked discs; it does, however, include those cool poster replicas, which I'd love to have). I paid $122.00 through Amazon, and I have no regrets about skipping the cheaper UK version. The US edition is just damned gorgeous to behold, sturdy and substantial, and I couldn't be happier. Thanks, Universal! :D
 

cousineerie

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I hadn't heard anything about it but the French audio track on Dracula is a fascinating alternative. It sounds much too clean to have been recorded in 1931 and I assume the music is made up of library cues but the music and dub acting are pretty good. You have odd differences, like while Mina is talking about how she can no longer be touched there are birds chirping. I was really waiting for what kind of noise D makes when staked and the actor lays it on quite a bit thicker.
 

JamesNelson

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Just finished watching Bride of Frankenstein, which looks stunning. I'm embarrassed and ashamed to admit that I've never before noticed the tear that runs down the Monster's cheek right before he pulls the lever in the finale. Heartbreaking.
 

I received my US set today and the box is beautiful. I was really impressed with the layout and the pictures used. Love the lineup of monsters standing on the last "page." The pages are slickly embossed, which is classy. The booklet is very nice. Tons of information and pictures included. The outer box looks better in person. The picture on the front is silver, with the title in red. It looks very classy as well. I checked out the films, but haven't watched them all the way through yet. So far, this is the definitive box for the monsters, as far as I am concerned.
 

JamesNelson

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I agree with everyone about the classiness of the box. I just need to figure out how to get the discs in and out without scratching them and/or getting fingerprints all over them.
 

Mark Oates

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JamesNelson said:
Just finished watching Bride of Frankenstein, which looks stunning. I'm embarrassed and ashamed to admit that I've never before noticed the tear that runs down the Monster's cheek right before he pulls the lever in the finale. Heartbreaking.
Really? Not meaning to show off or anything, but I saw the tear on my old Standard 8mm digest one-reeler. Mind you, I'm constantly amazed at things I spot for the first time on Blu-rays. I think to myself "that must have been out of frame before or lost in the detail" then I go back to the old DVD (or even VHS) and sure enough the thing I've spotted is there large as life and previously unnoticed by yours truly. I haven't got round to Bride myself - I got caught up in Dracula and the original Frankenstein which are like watching completely different movies to the old DVD "Legacy" set. I was contemplating saving the set for Halloween week, but I haven't the willpower. :D
 

Moe Dickstein

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JamesNelson said:
I agree with everyone about the classiness of the box. I just need to figure out how to get the discs in and out without scratching them and/or getting fingerprints all over them.
It takes a whole lot to scratch a BD. They have that coating that both resists scratching and makes it easy to wipe off fingerprints...
 

Brandon Conway

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Originally Posted by JamesNelson /t/321849/ushe-press-release-universal-classic-monsters-the-essential-collection-blu-ray-includes-creature-in-3d/270#post_3984349
I agree with everyone about the classiness of the box. I just need to figure out how to get the discs in and out without scratching them and/or getting fingerprints all over them.

It's a Blu-ray. Scratches basically are insignificant unless one drags it along the ground because of the hard coating.

Fingerprints will mess up the laser, but are easily wiped off and - viola! - no issues.
 

JamesNelson

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Moe Dickstein said:
It takes a whole lot to scratch a BD. They have that coating that both resists scratching and makes it easy to wipe off fingerprints...
Brandon Conway said:
It's a Blu-ray. Scratches basically are insignificant unless one drags it along the ground because of the hard coating.
Fingerprints will mess up the laser, but are easily wiped off and - viola! - no issues.
Thanks, I realize all that. It's just that the design makes it nearly impossible to remove a disc without getting prints on it. The very first time I dropped Creature in my player it started skipping. I removed it, saw the prints, and wiped them off and it played fine. Yes, I can just be sure to wipe each disc before I play it, but I have a feeling that process is going to get old for me pretty fast.
 

JamesNelson

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Mark Oates said:
Really? Not meaning to show off or anything, but I saw the tear on my old Standard 8mm digest one-reeler. Mind you, I'm constantly amazed at things I spot for the first time on Blu-rays. I think to myself "that must have been out of frame before or lost in the detail" then I go back to the old DVD (or even VHS) and sure enough the thing I've spotted is there large as life and previously unnoticed by yours truly. I haven't got round to Bride myself - I got caught up in Dracula and the original Frankenstein which are like watching completely different movies to the old DVD "Legacy" set. I was contemplating saving the set for Halloween week, but I haven't the willpower. :D
Well, I did say I was ashamed. :D
I went back and viewed the same scene on the DVD, and yes of course the tear is there, but it doesn't stand out the way it does on the blu-ray. On the blu-ray, the light is hitting it just right and the eye is immediately drawn to it, as I think was intended. Such a powerful piece of directing and editing. It only lasts a second, but is all the more heartbreaking in its subtlty. Lesser filmmakers would have dwelled on it too long.
For this and other reasons, this blu-ray edition moved me more than any previous viewing. The audio clarity, for example, allowed me to really appreciate the subtleties in Karloff's performance.
The DVD looked and sounded very good, but the extra edge that everything is given in the blu-ray really brought this one home for me.
 

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