It's a Wonderful Life on Blu-ray 11-3-2009

#1

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10/28/09 at 12:16pm

Mike Frezon
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Does anyone have any info on this? Will there be an official HTF review?

I did a search and found nothing on this release. Seems surprising. This could be a terrific HD presentation.

There's Jessie the yodeling cowgirl. Bullseye, he's Woody's horse. Pete the old prospector. And, Woody, the man himself. Of course, it's time for Woody's RoundUp. He's the very best! He's the rootinest, tootinest cowboy in the wild, wild west!

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#2

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10/28/09 at 12:58pm

Michael Reuben
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We're supposed to be getting a review copy, but it's unclear when. It'll probably be very close to street date.

I'm keeping my expectations low, just because the notion of having two entire versions of the film on one Blu-ray concerns me.

Zoloft and Paxil and Buspar and Xanex, Depacon, Chronaphin, Ambien, Prozac,
Ativan calms me when I see the bills.
These are a few of my favorite pills.
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#3

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10/28/09 at 1:16pm

Brandon Conway
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Two versions of the film shouldn't be a problem. There's plenty of room for them on a BD-50.

My DVD/BD Collection
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#4

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10/28/09 at 1:22pm

Mike Frezon
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Quote:

Originally Posted by Michael Reuben

I'm keeping my expectations low, just because the notion of having two entire versions of the film on one Blu-ray concerns me.

Thanks, Michael.

Take it for what it's worth...but amazon is listing this as a two-discer. No indication (if that's even true) if the second disc is features only...or might contain the second film with features straddling both discs.

I was just reading elsewhere on the 'net that apparently there are $10 rebate forms for IaWL (for owners of the DVD version) that have been packaged in other Blu-ray releases (Gladiator, Braveheart, IaWL and Forrest Gump).

There's Jessie the yodeling cowgirl. Bullseye, he's Woody's horse. Pete the old prospector. And, Woody, the man himself. Of course, it's time for Woody's RoundUp. He's the very best! He's the rootinest, tootinest cowboy in the wild, wild west!

Top Ten Ways to Find Good Deals on DVDs and Blu-ray...

#5

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10/28/09 at 1:23pm

Michael Reuben
Michael Reuben
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Quote:

Originally Posted by Brandon Conway

Two versions of the film shouldn't be a problem. There's plenty of room for them on a BD-50.

Yes, but we don't know if it's a BD-50. Reliable specs have been hard to come by. As Mike notes, Amazon says it's two discs, but they've been wrong about that sort of thing before. (Happily, I just checked DVD Empire, and they now say 2 discs as well.)

All I said was that I'm concerned, nothing more. I'll reserve judgment until I get the review copy.

Zoloft and Paxil and Buspar and Xanex, Depacon, Chronaphin, Ambien, Prozac,
Ativan calms me when I see the bills.
These are a few of my favorite pills.
(Next to Normal) HTF Rules & Regs My 2009 Film List
Win cool stuff: www.hometheaterforum.com/contest for details!

#6

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10/28/09 at 2:43pm

Eric Scott Richard
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As long as they encode properly, and get rid of the annoying audio pops from the SD, then this will be beautiful.

#7

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10/28/09 at 6:19pm

Man-Fai Wong
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Quote:

Originally Posted by Mike Frezon

I was just reading elsewhere on the 'net that apparently there are $10 rebate forms for IaWL (for owners of the DVD version) that have been packaged in other Blu-ray releases (Gladiator, Braveheart, IaWL and Forrest Gump).

Must resist!!!

They are all conspiring to send us to the poor house even if we can stockpile tons of excellent $10-15 BDs in the process...

_Man_

Just another amateur learning to paint w/ "the light of the world".

#8

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10/28/09 at 8:05pm

Mike Frezon
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Quote:

Originally Posted by Man-Fai Wong

Must resist!!!

They are all conspiring to send us to the poor house even if we can stockpile tons of excellent $10-15 BDs in the process...

You? Resist? Who you tryin' to kid?!?

There's Jessie the yodeling cowgirl. Bullseye, he's Woody's horse. Pete the old prospector. And, Woody, the man himself. Of course, it's time for Woody's RoundUp. He's the very best! He's the rootinest, tootinest cowboy in the wild, wild west!

Top Ten Ways to Find Good Deals on DVDs and Blu-ray...

#9

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10/30/09 at 7:57am

ChristianLiemke
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I preordered the Blu-ray discs from the US (Paramount) and the UK (Universal) because the British one have different bonus materials:

Theatrical trailer
Digitally remastered black and white original
Colourised version
Picture in Picture Comparison
Trivia Tracker

It's one of my all time favorites.

#10

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10/30/09 at 9:41am

Mike Frezon
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Christian: The only thing I know about the US release is that it is supposed to have both the original B&W version along with the evil colorized version.

What can you tell us about the breakdown of the differences in bonus features between the two releases?

There's Jessie the yodeling cowgirl. Bullseye, he's Woody's horse. Pete the old prospector. And, Woody, the man himself. Of course, it's time for Woody's RoundUp. He's the very best! He's the rootinest, tootinest cowboy in the wild, wild west!

Top Ten Ways to Find Good Deals on DVDs and Blu-ray...

#11

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10/30/09 at 1:37pm

Eric Scott Richard
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The US release will probably have the introduction by Frank Capra, Jr., the Making of hosted by Tom Bosley, the colorized version, and the theatrical trailer.

#12

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10/30/09 at 1:50pm

Mike Frezon
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Maybe. It would be nice, though, to know for sure.

There's Jessie the yodeling cowgirl. Bullseye, he's Woody's horse. Pete the old prospector. And, Woody, the man himself. Of course, it's time for Woody's RoundUp. He's the very best! He's the rootinest, tootinest cowboy in the wild, wild west!

Top Ten Ways to Find Good Deals on DVDs and Blu-ray...

#13

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10/30/09 at 6:35pm

dbailey100
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I went ahead and pre-ordered this BD. I don't remember ever watching this film, but I've heard (and read) good things 'bout it. I plan to pick it up on release day, but won't be able to watch it until a week or so later.

#14

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10/30/09 at 8:06pm

Mike Frezon
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From the looks of your forum ID, David...you just might be a long lost relative of the film's main character!

I envy you the event of enjoying this film for the first time. It is a perfect slice of Frank Capra's americana pie. You won't be disappointed. It's a great story, very well told.

There's Jessie the yodeling cowgirl. Bullseye, he's Woody's horse. Pete the old prospector. And, Woody, the man himself. Of course, it's time for Woody's RoundUp. He's the very best! He's the rootinest, tootinest cowboy in the wild, wild west!

Top Ten Ways to Find Good Deals on DVDs and Blu-ray...

#15

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10/30/09 at 8:18pm

Marvin
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Quote:

Originally Posted by Mike Frezon

From the looks of your forum ID, David...you just might be a long lost relative of the film's main character!

I was going to say the same thing.

Yes, definitely buy it but there's no rush to watch it. The movie is best enjoyed between Thanksgiving and Christmas.

#16

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10/30/09 at 8:42pm

Eric Scott Richard
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I love this film so much. The first 2/3 is a mixture of comedy and drama...then it takes a turn into eerie territory, ala The Twilight Zone...a masterpiece!

#17

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10/30/09 at 9:35pm

TonyD
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Anyone ever read Dvd Savant's take on a possibility that the version we've seen all these years was a re-cut version.

http://www.dvdtalk.com/dvdsavant/s55wonderful.html

#18

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10/30/09 at 10:25pm

Mike Frezon
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Never had Tony. Very interesting. A fun read.

It almost sounds like the author believes there was a third shooter over on the grassy knoll.

There's Jessie the yodeling cowgirl. Bullseye, he's Woody's horse. Pete the old prospector. And, Woody, the man himself. Of course, it's time for Woody's RoundUp. He's the very best! He's the rootinest, tootinest cowboy in the wild, wild west!

Top Ten Ways to Find Good Deals on DVDs and Blu-ray...

#19

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10/31/09 at 2:47am

Paul D G
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I anxiously await a review on this disc. I fear it may just be an up-conversion of the DVD.

#20

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10/31/09 at 9:50am

BillyFeldman
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Why do you fear that?

#21

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10/31/09 at 11:35am

dbailey100
David
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Yeah, I didn't think about that. Someone told me the other day that George Bailey is the name of the main character in the film. I hope to have a break from school during Thanksgiving and will watch it with family members.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mike Frezon

From the looks of your forum ID, David...you just might be a long lost relative of the film's main character!

I envy you the event of enjoying this film for the first time. It is a perfect slice of Frank Capra's americana pie. You won't be disappointed. It's a great story, very well told.

#22

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10/31/09 at 11:58am

John Hodson
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Beaver review.

So many films, so little time...
Film Journal Blog
Harold Shand: What I'm looking for is someone who can contribute to what England has given to the world: culture, sophistication, genius. A little bit more than an 'ot dog, know what I mean?

#23

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10/31/09 at 12:53pm

Mike Frezon
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Thanks, John!

Oh my. Say what you will about screencaps...but this looks wonderful!

There's Jessie the yodeling cowgirl. Bullseye, he's Woody's horse. Pete the old prospector. And, Woody, the man himself. Of course, it's time for Woody's RoundUp. He's the very best! He's the rootinest, tootinest cowboy in the wild, wild west!

Top Ten Ways to Find Good Deals on DVDs and Blu-ray...

#24

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10/31/09 at 1:02pm

Eric Scott Richard
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I knew it would be. The last dvd was beautiful. The transfer was hampered only by the audio pops, which seem to have been corrected. Dare I say after all of the poor broadcast versions 20 or so years ago, followed by poor pd copies, a wonderful transfer by Republic for the 45th Anniversary that unfortunately contained some splices and audio dropouts, a newer version by Republic (still shown on NBC every year) employing awful freeze frames that covered damage, the original dvd with poor audio and a splice, the restored Paramount version I mentioned...WHEW!....could this finally be a definitive edition???? Looks like it just might be!

#25

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10/31/09 at 1:04pm

John Hodson
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Quote:

Originally Posted by Mike Frezon

Thanks, John!

Oh my. Say what you will about screencaps...but this looks wonderful!

It was always going to though wasn't it? It would take a screwup of enormous proportions to mess up the transfer of that last gorgeous restoration.

So many films, so little time...
Film Journal Blog
Harold Shand: What I'm looking for is someone who can contribute to what England has given to the world: culture, sophistication, genius. A little bit more than an 'ot dog, know what I mean?

#26

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10/31/09 at 5:45pm

dbailey100
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I'm a little confused about dvdbeaver's information. It indicates the BD was released on Nov 13, 2007???

#27

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10/31/09 at 6:59pm

TonyD
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typo

#28

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11/1/09 at 12:11am

RobertR
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I'm glad to see that the B&W version got a nice big 41 gb devoted to it. DVDbeaver's screen caps don't have a good reputation, but this looks great. There will be some complaints that the audio isn't lossless, though.

#29

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11/3/09 at 8:35am

Nelson Au
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I almost always watch this movie every year, and I always meant to add it to my library. But I never did. This looks like the one to get! In reading the review, it's too bad the BD edition is missing the Capra tribute.

#30

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11/3/09 at 12:53pm

Eric Scott Richard
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Did a spot check, and............WOW! Looks even better than the screenshots. My mouth is still agape. Audio pops are also GONE.

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