[Anthony Neilson]

I just watched the DVD of SEARCHING FOR DEBRA WINGER released by Lion's Gate. The case lists a commentary by Rosanna Arquette which is nowhere to be found. Not a huge loss - I don't see what she could have added, really - but that's not the point.

I remember the missing extra features from IRREVERSIBLE when that came out, and I know that I've read more than once about Lion's Gate advertising extra features that turn out not to be there.

They distribute some good and interesting films. But is there really anything much more fraudulent than a company that constantly lies about the contents of their discs, not just in the p.r releases but on the cases themselves ?
Once might be an accident but, really ; they must be taking the piss !

[TonyD]

i dont understand what your title means.
is that slang for something?

[MattHR]

He means "Taking the Piss". I believe it's British slang for exploitation, exaggeration, lying, etc. (That's "bullshit" in U.S. terms.)

[Mark Cappelletty]

It's a British phrase-- think "are they kidding?" "are they f**king with me?"

[Simon Basso]

The etymology of that fine English phrase "taking the piss" (written explanation from DATUMZEILE:BONN, although I originally learned of it from a letter printed in the RadioTimes and sent to them by a vicar):

"Have you ever read in Shakespeare where 'piss-proud' is mentioned? If so, have you ever wondered where that expression came from? Well, I can tell you it stems from the belief that to wake with an erection is a sign that the bladder is full, and to be 'proud' is an obvious pun. This expression also evolved into being a generalisation for any older men who married younger girls; i.e. they were falsely 'proud' and this developed so that 'taking the piss' was to take from somebody their feeling of self-importance or their belief that they were special, i.e. to 'deflate' somebody."

So there we have it, it should strictly be used only in the sense of cutting somebody down to size, but its usage has expanded to include anything perceived as a con-trick, as in the case of the falsely advertised features on Lion's Gate dvds, a company that would appear to match Britain's very own EiV for shoddy dvds and a crappy logo.

[Anthony Neilson]

Well, this thread has taken a strange turn. Sorry - I sometimes forget that we are separated by the same language.
But Simon, I didn't know that - I shall use the information to appear clever, like Stephen Fry.

Anyway - let's get back to bashing Lion's Gate and listing their crimes of packaging so everyone knows to approach them with deep suspicion !

[KatieL]

Anthony agreed Lion's Gate releases are a big part of my collection. Great movies! What your on about I don't know. More examples.

[Derek Miner]

Then there's the flip side where the Shattered Glass DVD has a commentary (a really good one, too) that's not listed on the box!

[Ted Todorov]

My pet peeve is with Prey for Rock & Roll which listed a whole bunch of extras nowhere to be found on the DVD. When it comes to advertising non-existent extras, Lion's Gate is king.

We really need to find a way to hold their feet to the fire.

Ted

[Zachary Cohen]

The box for "Grey Zone" (by Lion's Gate) advertises a commentary by the cast and crew for the film that is not there. In the deleted scenes' commentary, the director (Tim Blake Nelson) even says he opted not to do a commmentary.

[Anthony Neilson]

Yes, there's a thread somewhere that mentions several examples of such practice by LG but I can't remember where it is.

I know that IRREVERSIBLE declares both a commentary AND a featurette that aren't on the disc. LG know about it but, as far as I know, there's been no attempt to change the packaging to reflect this.

[Michael Qualen]

Hehe...I just knew someone would not get the title