Weekly RoundUp 4-1-2008

The Weekly RoundUp

The Features


– Johnny Depp (Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street – 2007)


– Cast (Father Knows Best – 1954)


– Bette Davis (The Old Maid – 1939)


– Emily Rose and Austin Nichols (John from Cincinnati – 2007)


– Tom Snyder (The Tomorrow Show – 1973-82)


– Jason Lee & friends (Alvin and the Chipmunks – 2007)

The Prices

SD-DVD TITLE	Amazon	BestBuy	CrcCity	Target	Costco
Alvin and the Chipmunks	$15.99	$15.99	$13.99	$15.99	-
Becker: Season 1	$24.99	$24.99	$29.99	-	-
Bette Davis Collection: Vol. 3	$44.99	$69.99	$59.98	-	-
Blue Man Group: How to Be a Megastar	$14.99	$14.99	$17.99	-	-
The Cook	$19.99	$16.99	$19.99	-	-
The Cutting Edge: Chasing the Dream	$19.99	$19.99	$19.99	$15.99	-
Doctor Who: Time Warrior (Ep. 70)	$18.99	$21.99	$19.99	-	-
Doctor Who: Timelash (Episode 142)	$18.99	$21.99	$19.99	-	-
Father Knows Best: Season 1	$24.49	$24.99	$29.99	-	-
The Good Night	$19.99	$19.99	$19.99	-	-
Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle SE	$12.99	$12.99	$12.99	-	-
John from Cincinnati: Season 1	$41.99	$44.99	$59.98	$44.99	-
Justin Timberlake: Futuresex/Loveshow	$14.99	$19.99	$17.99	-	-
Law & Order SVU: 6th Year	$34.99	$34.99	$59.98	-	-
Martin: Season 4	$19.99	$21.99	$21.99	$21.99	-
Murder, She Wrote: Season 8	$34.99	$34.99	$49.98	-	$33.99
The Night of the Shooting Stars	$24.29	$24.99	$19.99	-	-
The Return of the Swamp Thing	$13.49	$12.99	$14.98	-	-
Sweeney Todd: Demon Barber… (1-disc)	$16.99	$16.99	$15.99	$16.99	-
Sweeney Todd: Demon Barber… (2-disc)	$22.99	$22.99	$22.99	$22.99	$21.69
That ‘70s Show: Season 8	$34.99	$34.99	$34.99	$36.99	-
Tomorrow Show: John, Paul, Tom & Ringo	$18.69	$24.99	$19.99	-	-
What Love Is	$22.49	$19.99	$19.99	-	-

HD-DVD TITLE	Amazon	BestBuy	CrcCity	Target	Costco
Appleseed Ex Machina	$16.49	$29.99	$34.99	-	-
August Rush	$18.99	$29.99	$29.99	-	-

BLU-RAY TITLE	Amazon	BestBuy	CrcCity	Target	Costco
10.5 Apocalypse: Complete Series	$9.95	$12.99	$12.99	-	-
Alvin and the Chipmunks	$27.95	$29.99	$34.99	$29.99	-
Artie Lange’s Beer League	$9.95	$14.99	$12.99	-	-
Blackbeard	$9.95	$12.99	$12.99	-	-
Category 7: End of the World	$9.95	$12.99	$12.99	-	-
Coyote Ugly SE	$19.95	$24.99	$19.99	-	-
Curse of King Tut’s Tomb: Comp. Series	$9.95	$12.99	$12.99	-	-
Hidalgo	$19.95	$24.99	$19.99	-	-
The Last Sentinel	$9.95	$12.99	$12.99	-	-
Justin Timberlake: Futuresex/Loveshow	$20.95	-	$19.99	-	-
Unbreakable	$19.95	$24.99	$19.99	-	-

Individual titles included in box sets listed above:

Bette Davis Collection – Volume 3: The Old Maid, All This and Heaven Too, The Great Lie, In This Our Life, Watch on the Rhine, Deception.

The Disclaimer

Standard disclaimer: All prices are taken from the websites of each chain, or from their printed Sunday advertisements. All prices are subject to change by each chain. Prices and inventory in-store may or may not match the website price. "LP" in the RoundUp table means a store’s Sunday flyer says "Low Price". That means I could not locate a definite price for the item, and the ad is all I have to go on. Retailers use these phrases in advertisements so that they do not violate MAP (Minimum Advertised Price) agreements with the studios. Doing so can cost them thousands or even millions of dollars in co-op advertising funds. I, obviously, cannot include EVERY title released in a given week in the RoundUp. The titles included are those that I am interested in...as well as those which I consider will be of interest to a majority of consumers (and sometimes I’ll miss one!). I don't get paid for this, and I don't have the time to list every DVD. So, please don't complain! If there is a title not included in the RoundUp that you want to see, just look it up yourself, and be nice enough to post and share the results with everyone! Note that I cannot include Wal-Mart/Sam’s Club prices in the RoundUp. They set prices at individual stores based on nearby competition, so there is no way I can say here what price you'll find at YOUR local Wal-Mart/Sam’s Club location. And, as always, Circuit City does not guarantee their sale prices in Hawaii.

The Specials

**Hooray! ALL of this week’s new releases are available in their Original Aspect Ratio! This is two weeks in a row I’ve been able to report that!

--Purchase either version of Sweeney Todd: Demon Barber of Fleet Street on DVD and get FREE MOVIE MONEY to see The Ruins. Value = $12. Valid 4-4-08 thru 4-30-08. Minimum 10 per store. No rainchecks.

--More FREE MOVIE MONEY with the purchase of the new SE of Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle. Value = $10.50 for Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay. Valid 4-25-08 thru 5-25-08. Minimum 10 per store. No rainchecks.

--Two Giftsets at Best Buy this week involving Alvin and the Chipmunks. Get a FREE ALVIN AND THE CHIPMUNKS PLUSH TOY SET with the purchase of either the SD film ($22.99) or the BD of the film ($29.99). Minimum 10 SD Giftsets per store. Minimum 5 BD Giftsets per store. No rainchecks.

--BB has a 2/$30 deal on any two films from this list: 101 Dalmatians, Enchanted, Snow Buddies. (Reg. $19.99)

--@ BB, pre-order Juno and save $5, instantly, on ANY of the following films: I Heart Huckabees, Little Miss Sunshine, Napoleon Dynamite, Thank You for Smoking. (Reg. $14.99)

--BB is also running a 50% off sale on a number of Anime Box Sets. Selection will vary by store.

--Best Buy Odds and Ends: Lists of DVDs for $4.99, $7.50. And a list of DVDs on which you can get DOUBLE Reward Zone Points.

--At Circuit City this week, an HD-DVD CLEARANCE SALE! Save 50% on HD-DVD titles. Sale EXCLUDES Beowulf and Shrek the Third. Title selection may vary by store. While supplies last.

--Circuit City has AN EXCLUSIVE “SINGING PEN” in its SD copies of Alvin and the Chipmunks. Minimum 15 per store. While supplies last.

--CC also has FREE ALVIN STICKERS with the purchase of either the SD OR BD versions of Alvin and the Chipmunks. While supplies last.

--Circuit City also is advertising the FREE MOVIE MONEY in the SEs of Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle (see above).

--Circuit City has a long list of $9.99 titles in a Buy One, Get One Free sale.

--Circuit City Odds and Ends: A list of DVDs for $5.99.

--At Target, an EXCLUSIVE BONUS DISC with its SD-DVD copies of Alvin and the Chipmunks. Bonus disc has interactive games, puzzles and more. Quantity limited. No rainchecks.

--Target Odds and Ends: None this week.

Re: Weekly RoundUp 4-1-2008

Circuit City on sale DVD items:

Mr. Magorium’s Wonder Emporium $13.99 Premier Price: 5 Days Only
Edward Scissorhands $4.99
Circuit City Premiere Price: A low price that is in effect Tuesday – Saturday (5 Days only)

Harold & Kumar Go To White Castle: Extreme Unrated Remastered Edition $12.99
Free Movie Money included to see Harold & Kumar Escape From Guantanamo Bay. Movie Money value = $12

$9.99 each: Buy one title from this section and get one other title from this section free:
School Of Rock
The Italian Job (2003)
Anchorman
Ocean’s Twelve
Sleepy Hollow
American History X
Forrest Gump
Click: Special Edition
Legends Of The Fall
Runaway Jury
The Thin Red Line
Die Another Day: Special Edition
The Day After Tomorrow
Tora! Tora! Tora!
Antoine Fisher
28 Days Later
Ronin
S.W.A.T.
High Crimes
Baby Boy
Not Another Teen Movie
This Is Spinal Tap
The Karate Kid: Special Edition
The Last Dragon
Something’s Gotta Give
Phat Girlz
Taxi

DVD Sets
That 70’s Show: Season 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 6 / 7 $17.99 each

HD DVD Clearance Titles:
Save 50% On HD DVD Titles. Title selection may vary by store. While supplies last. 50% off EXCLUDES Shrek The Third & Beowulf.
Select titles available at CircuitCity.com

Titles shown but with no prices listed:
Knocked Up: Unrated
King Kong
Shooter
Transformers


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Best Buy on sale DVD items:

No Country For Old Men $19.99
I Am Legend $19.99
Mr. Magorium’s Wonder Emporium $15.99
The Who: Amazing Journey – The Story Of The Who $17.99 3 discs)
Rolling Stones: The Biggest Bang $24.99 (4 discs)

2 For $30 Titles: Products must be purchased on the same receipt. Single titles are $19.99 each:
Enchanted
Snow Buddies
101 Dalmatians: Platinum Edition

$4.99 each:
Just My Luck
Robots
Home Alone
Home Alone 2
Aquamarine
Legally Blonde
All Dogs Go To Heaven 2
Bend It Like Beckham
Because Of Winn-Dixie

$7.50 each:
Tommy Boy: Holy Schnike Edition
Forrest Gump
Top Gun: Special Collector’s Edition
Raging Bull
The Pursuit Of Happyness
Talladega Nights: Ballad Of Ricky Bobby
Platoon: Special Edition
Rocky Balboa
Anchorman
Ghost (Special Collector’s Edition)
Rounders (Collector’s Edition)
The Da Vinci Code
Risky Business
The Matrix
American History X
The Bodyguard
Dazed & Confused: Flashback Edition
King Kong (2005)
Dr. Strangelove: Special Edition
A River Runs Through It

$14.99 each before savings:

Save $5 Instantly on these movies when you pre-Order Juno in store or at BestBuy.com/JunoDVD. $5 Deposit Required. Products must be purchased on the same receipt.
Little Miss Sunshine
Thank You For Smoking
Napoleon Dynamite
I Heart Huckabees

Get DOUBLE Reward Zone Points when you buy any of these titles: More titles available in store and online.
Bratz: Glitz & Glamour $9.99
My Girl $9.99
Click: Special Edition $9.99
The Benchwarmers $9.99
Stuart Little: Deluxe Edition $9.99
She’s The Man $9.99
The Goonies $9.99
RV $9.99
National Treasure $14.99
Bridge To Terabithia $14.99
Nanny McPhee $14.99
The Last Mimzy $14.99
High School Musical 2: Extended Edition $19.99
The Game Plan $19.99
Shrek The Third $19.99

Blu-Ray Discs:
I Am Legend $34.99
No Country For Old Men $29.99
Alvin & The Chipmunks $29.99
Alvin & The Chipmunks Giftset $29.99
Across The Universe $29.99
30 Days Of Night $29.99
Hitman: Unrated $34.99

DVD Sets:
That 70’s Show: Season 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 6 / 7 $24.99 each
Flight Of The Conchords: Season 1 $16.99
OZ: Season 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 6 $16.99 each
Six Feet Under: Season 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 $16.99 each
Nip/Tuck: Season 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 $19.99
The West Wing: Season 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 6 / 7 $19.99 each
Babylon 5: Season 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 $19.99 each
Smallville: Season 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 6 $19.99 each
Triple-Play Collection $22.99 (Bull Durham / Eight Men Out / Pride Of The Yankees)

50% off these anime box sets. Selection will vary by store: Prices Listed Are With Discount Applied:
Tokko: The Complete Series (3 discs) $12.49
Noein: To Your Other Self – The Complete Series (5 discs) $17.49
Elfen Lied: Complete Collection (Thinpak, 3 discs, no extras) $15.99
Dragon Ball Z: Season 4 Uncut Boxset (6 discs, 32 episodes) $19.99
Mars Daybreak: Complete Collection (Anime Legends) (6 discs) $19.99
FullMetal Alchemist: Season 2, Part 2 (3 discs, Vol.11 - 13 or Episodes 41 - 51) $19.99
Neon Genesis Evangelion: Platinum Collection (Thinpak, 5 discs, no extras) $28.99
Samurai Deeper Kyo: Complete Collection with GBA Game (6 discs) $29.99
Robotech: Protoculture Collection (21 discs / 7 of which are for extras, 85 episodes, English dub only) $37.49


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Target on sale DVD items:

No catalog titles listed on sale.

Re: Weekly RoundUp 4-1-2008

Thanks for the roundup. I liked Sweeney Todd & Alvin but not enough to buy them so nothing for me this week.

Re: Weekly RoundUp 4-1-2008

Just Dr. Who for me this week. Might have to look at the anime at 50% off as well, from BB. Thanks guys!

Re: Weekly RoundUp 4-1-2008

Is Circuit City really beating Best Buy on the price for the new Bette Davis box? That would be a first given that they usually always charge full list price for box sets.

Re: Weekly RoundUp 4-1-2008

What manner of man dares to doubt me?!?!

Best Buy/Bette 3

Circuit City/Bette 3

But how much do you wanna bet BB will be lower in-store?!

Re: Weekly RoundUp 4-1-2008

hmm, no hd version of Todd.

i wasn't aware of that.

Re: Weekly RoundUp 4-1-2008

HD DVD Clearance Titles:
50% off EXCLUDES Shrek The Third & Beowulf.
Select titles available at CircuitCity.com

So the sale includes Zodiac and Atonement then! I'm gong to head over at 10am and see what happens. I hope the prices are better than Amazon.

Re: Weekly RoundUp 4-1-2008

Well, I don't see anything's price changed online; I was hoping to catch something there since most CC stores have slim picking.

Re: Weekly RoundUp 4-1-2008

DVD Planet currently has the 'Bette Davis Collection - Volume 3' for $41.96 shipped, while Deep Discount has it for $44.24 beating the Amazon price of $44.99.

Re: Weekly RoundUp 4-1-2008

If I recall, it was announced, but canceled for obvious reasons, I guess it was still early enough for them to pull it back. Waiting for a BD version

Re: Weekly RoundUp 4-1-2008

Any comments on Chipmunks for young kids? My son really enjoyed Underdog, which also starred Jason Lee.

Re: Weekly RoundUp 4-1-2008

I'd like to get in on that B5 deal, but since I just forked out a nice chunk of money on taxes AND I'll be forking over more for our first HDTV Friday night...it's going to be a no go. Maybe next quarter when they have the same exact sale.

Re: Weekly RoundUp 4-1-2008

I got The Matrix Ultimate Collection HD-DVD for half off, $50.00. The manager-ette wanted me to pay full price, saying sets were not included in the sale. I told her to show me in the ad where they are excluded.

I won!

Technically it didn't cost me anything since I used gift cards for the purchase.

Re: Weekly RoundUp 4-1-2008

We picked up Eternal Sunshine, Top Gun, and Troy for $12.50 a piece. I also saw Flags of our Fathers and Letters from Iwo Jima for $15-$17.50, but I figured I'd pass on those as I'd probably just end up getting them on Blu-Ray at that price point eventually.

Re: Weekly RoundUp 4-1-2008

Apparently, it also excludes "Children of Men"

My CC had all their HD-DVDs in a couple of bins. Children of Men was unmarked and came up on the register as 34.99... It went back to the bin! All the others were 50% off the marked price. I came away with 4 of them (after originally grabbing 8!).

Anyway, I think that was probably my last gasp for HD-DVD. Looks like I'll level off at around 60 titles.

Re: Weekly RoundUp 4-1-2008

I picked up about 15 discs at CC including children of men and got the discount on al of them.

Re: Weekly RoundUp 4-1-2008

I want to pick up the BD of Unbreakable this week, but I've been hearing about sound 'popping' issues on the lossless track from other forums.....I might have to wait on this one for now until I hear more regarding this issue.

I'd love to pick-up Sweeney Todd, but since it's not on BD, I'll just have to wait on that one too.......so nothing for me this week.

Re: Weekly RoundUp 4-1-2008

were did you here about the Unbreakale sound popping?

Re: Weekly RoundUp 4-1-2008

Just John From Cincinnati: Season One for me. Speaking of which, Amazon bumped the price up to $50.99 but I'm hoping that it gets brought back down to $41.99.

I liked Sweeney Todd but it's almost a lock for an early Paramount Blu Ray release so I'll just wait for that. And eventually, I'll pick up Unbreakable on Blu Ray.

Re: Weekly RoundUp 4-1-2008

I brought back all the HD DVDs that I bought earlier in the week. He basically refunded me and then rerang them up at 1/2 price. Bladerunner still came up at $35, he wouldn't override it and kept asking the manager if box sets were included even though the other guy said it really wasn't a box set. But I really didn't care aboout it and amazon has it for $22. Also Bourne Ult & Amer Gangster I had pricematched against CC's web site for $20 but he wouldn't only take half off the $30 sticker.

Re: Weekly RoundUp 4-1-2008

Tony: Check out Page 4 of the following thread and you'll see where I got an education about a BD version of Sweeney Todd that comes out in the UK in May. I'm tempted...but it looks like it would be expensive to get it into my hands. Anyone here ever order BD imports from amazon.uk?

http://www.hometheaterforum.com/htf/...sd-dvds-4.html

Re: Weekly RoundUp 4-1-2008

i havent ordered from that site before but have been aware of it.

too expensive.

Re: Weekly RoundUp 4-1-2008

Do you mean Xploited Cinema? Cuz they don't have it.

But, Amazon.uk does. I've been wondering, besides the price, what I could expect for shipping, customs, etc.

Re: Weekly RoundUp 4-1-2008

Mike:

I've been ordering from Amazon.uk for YEARS! If I place an order today (Sunday) and use Air Mail shipping I would probably have it by next Saturday (that's SIX DAYS!) Also, when I order they remove the VAT since I am out of the country and it reduces the order price enough so that shipping is (generally) technically free. NEVER had a problem and the service is impeccable!

Re: Weekly RoundUp 4-1-2008

Anyone in the WI/Great Lakes area with access to ShopKo might want to check out their BluRay selection: EVERYTHING (about 3 dozen titles) is on sale for $19.99 ea (all reg. $29.99 titles). Forgot to check the details, but I assume the sale will run through next Sat.

Re: Weekly RoundUp 4-1-2008

Okay, Eric...let's walk through it one step at a time:

I place the order and put it on my debit/credit card. My bank will make the conversion from pounds to dollars at the current rate, right? How much would air mail shipping generally run?

What is VAT? (Just a bunch of dumb questions from someone who's never done this before.) Since you live in the US they remove the VAT...which "reduces the order price enough so that shipping is generally free?"

Can you give me a hypothetical example of what this Sweeney Todd purchase would set me back? It is listed at £17.98 which, I'm told, converts to $35.76. What happens next by way of shipping/VAT, etc?

**EDIT I'm also pondering if there are any other UK Blu-ray discs I should consider adding to the order if I were to place it. Anyone with suggestions? I guess I'll survey the amazon.uk site.

Re: Weekly RoundUp 4-1-2008

VAT = "Value Added Tax". It's a form of "consumption" or "sales" tax. To see what an item would cost you without it, start the checkout process at Amazon UK and input a U.S. address. In this instance, a £17.98 item becomes £15.30. (I just went through this recently, only with a different £17.98 item.)

A few things to watch out for: Credit card companies use a less favorable (for you) conversion rate than what you'll pull off Yahoo Finance or some similar site. It's their way of getting a fee from the transaction. And my only complaint with Amazon UK is that their packaging is considerably less secure than that of their U.S. counterpart. I've never received a damaged DVD, but I've had my share of broken cases. Just something to keep in mind.

M.

Re: Weekly RoundUp 4-1-2008

I'll second the good service of Amazon.co.uk. I've ordered quite a bit from them and they're super fast and shipping is very reasonable. I switched to them when ordering music CD's from the UK after HMV.co.uk shipping rates became a complete rip-off.

VAT is essentially a national sales tax. I guess it varies from country to country (sort of like our sales tax varies from state to state). It is not charged on international sales.

Your credit card company will make the currency conversion (some charge a small fee for this).

I've never been charged any sort of customs fee. Must be the sale has to hit a certain $$ threshhold before they are charged?

All the Amazon companies are linked together, so you will not have to open a new account with the UK site. Just use your regular Amazon.com username and password. Then you can create your order and see all the charges before you place the final order, just like on the US site.

Re: Weekly RoundUp 4-1-2008

AVS Forum: Unbreakable audio issue - AVS Forum

Blu-ray Forum:Unbreakable audio issue. - Blu-ray Forum

Apparently somebody got theirs early and discovered a couple of instances of the PCM track popping. I'm just gonna wait and see how widespread this is after release date. Hope this isn't another major botch-job like POTC was.