HTF DVD REVIEW: There Will Be Blood: 2-Disc Collector's Edition - Page 2

Josh Steinberg · 04-09-2008, 03:26 PM

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Originally Posted by Eric Peterson

This is absolutely shameful packaging. I'm all for "GREEN" efforts by reducing plastic, but if that's the case the price should also be lower. This is the most that I've paid ($23) for a single movie (non-Criterion or OOP) in at least 5 years.

Why should the price be lower just because they're using more environmentally friendly packaging? I haven't seen this film in stores priced any differently than standard new releases; it doesn't appear that they've raised the pricing because of the packaging. And if anything, environmentally friendly/green packaging should raise the price, not lower it; everything about the packaging is more expensive, from the cost of materials to the fact that these non-standard cases need to be packed by hand instead of by machine.

I wouldn't mind paying an extra dollar or two if it meant that the environment would be better off with each purchase, but that doesn't seem to be the case here (that is, being charged extra for packaging). I love good packaging, don't get me wrong, but I don't think it has to be an amaray to be considered good, and I like the "Inconvenient Truth" case - both in how it looks and the thought that was put into it.

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Thomas T · 04-09-2008, 04:41 PM

Let me add my voice to the chorus of disapproval of this horrendous packaging. Cheap and flimsy cardboard that must be handled with kid gloves lest you tear it and the DVD jammed in so tight in the slot that you almost can't help getting your fingerprints on the disc itself.

Oh, the irony of a major Oscar winning film from a major director packaged like the cheap sleeve public domain DVDs that you can pick up at the 99 cent store.

Eric Peterson · 04-09-2008, 08:47 PM

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Why should the price be lower just because they're using more environmentally friendly packaging?

TravisR · 04-09-2008, 10:17 PM

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Originally Posted by Eric Peterson

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I haven't seen this film in stores priced any differently than standard new releases;

I don't know what titles you buy or where you shop, but it appears to me that you are being ripped off then. I buy at least 20 titles per month (Granted many are classic titles), but I haven't paid more than $20 for any single movie in nearly a year...

When there's a movie with a two disc and a one disc release, the two disc is regularly $22.99. Obviously, some are more than $22.99 and some are less but $23 isn't unusual for a two disc release and it's been that way for at least a year.

Reggie W · 04-10-2008, 09:16 AM

Well, I'm all for being green but I don't think there is much question that this is not only lousy packaging but a lousy second disc in the two disc set. So, it's already got my vote for worst dvd release of the year. This has nothing to do with the film itself only the total package of the dvd, features, packaging, and what I would see as total value of the entire set. The extras are of minor interest and have little to no business being tossed onto a second disc to bump up the price. I love this film but I will probably never load that second disc into the player again now that I've watched it. The scenes that were cut from the film add nothing and should have been cut. They were pretty lousy and do not at all gel with the tone of the rest of the film. The outake is a waste of time unless watching a weaker take of an existing scene where Daniel Day-Lewis laughs at the end is of interest to you. 15 Minutes is a slide show. The Story of Petroleum is an interesting silent that is not related to the film but is of some very minor historical interest. It's worth watching once if you have an interest in the history of the oil business but in all honesty there are better places to go if this is an area you wish to research.

So, if I am grading this dvd package I would do so as follows:

Film: A

Extras: D-

Packaging: F

Advice: Buy whatever version you can get the cheapest because the 2 disc "Collector's Edition" is a complete waste and the only thing worthwhile is the film. If you really are a "collector" (which implies you want to preserve the disc or discs in the best possible fashion) you will want to repackage your disc or discs once you get them home.

Basically this is the second two disc set I've seen recently where there is no reason for the second disc (Into the Wild being the other example). I would compare the There Will Be Blood set with the No Country for Old Men single disc because they are both from Paramount Vantage/Miramax and it's quite obvious that for the "collector" the No Country single disc is a far better value. I applaud any efforts to "go green" but I do not find calling something a "Collector's Edition" when it's anything but a good deal.

Hey, I still bought the product because the film is worth having but the rest of this can be tossed in the trash...that's not very "collectable" is it? I think a "green" option and an honest "collector's edition" would have been the way to go. They did two versions anyway right? I think people are correct to say, "Hey, I bought this product and I don't like what I got for my money."

The last thing I would say is if the idea was to go "green" with this set there is a great deal of comedy in that. If that was really their idea they should have just done the single disc edition with the green packaging and stated they were doing so in an effort to be green. It's far more wasteful to print and run two separate editions, one with a wasteful second disc, two sets of artwork, etc...to do that and then claim they did things this way to be "green" is, quite frankly, idiotic. You either go green with the single disc green package or you don't. I have not heard anybody claim this was "green" packaging yet and so we are just speculating that is what they did. Either way they look foolish.

Josh Steinberg · 04-10-2008, 10:22 AM

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Originally Posted by Eric Peterson

I have a hard time believing that cheap printed cardboard is more expensive than a full plastic case. Plastic prices are through the roof these days with the price of oil. And we're both assuming that the reasons for this package are environmental in nature (which is assuming a lot from a major company). The only other reason is to try and gouge the consumer (far more likely).

Believe it or not, it ends up being that way. Part of my job is DVD development, packaging included, and without wanting to put too fine a point on the matter, here's what I've seen. The standard amarays, despite being made out of plastic (which has seen an increase in price), are the cheapest way to package a commercial DVD. Everything about packaging an amaray is automated, from putting the artwork into the case to packing the DVD in there, to putting the security stickers on, and shrinkwrapping it all. Nothing else is fully automated - not cardboard cases, digipaks, slimlines, nothing. Amarays are manufactured on a larger basis because they're not title specific, which is part of the reason that they're so cheap. Standard inserts for amarays are pretty cheap as well. For the packaging they made for "There Will Be Blood", it's not like they can reuse it for another title if they don't sell as many copies as they think they will, so it ends up being more expensive to create a smaller quantity of a customized design that can't be automated.

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I don't know what titles you buy or where you shop, but it appears to me that you are being ripped off then.

Walter Kittel · 04-10-2008, 10:38 AM

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All I can say is that I like the packaging a lot, and that I'm not concerned about the discs getting scratched or damaged anymore than I'd be worried about an amaray or digipak.

In complete agreement. My disc (single disc - I plan to double dip when a Bd copy is available) was pristine.

- Walter.

Reggie W · 04-10-2008, 11:41 AM

You guys that like the packaging, I'd be interested to know what you like about it. I think the art work on the collector's edition is sharp but overall I find nothing else to like. If you pick up a cold drink and then touch this slip cover or case you will likely leave marks from the moisture on your hand. I don't see how sliding the discs in and out is better than securing them in an amaray. I think this will end up scratching up the discs. Spill a little of something on this cover and it's finished. What's to like about that? I let family and friends borrow my discs and in a case like this the original package will soon be trashed.

I have no issue with paying more for better packaging or even to buy from a store I prefer (like Newbury Comics) but I see no upside to this packaging and just stuck the discs in new amarays. I'll scan the covers to create my own art work for the sleeve and I'm done, problem solved. Basically though they just created more paper for me to throw away...not real green, if that was even their idea.

I'm not a package freak, the most important thing to me is the film and storage of the discs. It's a bonus when the package is good but I don't care much about it. This package to me is just like the plastic it was wrapped in, junk to be thrown away. I'd rather they just sold the disc in a lined paper sleeve with no art work if this is how they want to put it out. To me it just seems like poor planning.

Walter Kittel · 04-10-2008, 11:48 AM

I like the artwork and I really like the gate fold with Plainview laying on the assayer's office floor (which IMHO, visually communicates his drive.)

I've never had a problem with a paper sleeve damaging a DVD, so I'm not certain why this would be different. I will admit that moisture could damage the sleeve, but I don't tend to loan my discs, and I try to keep them stored properly so once again not an issue for me. Perhaps part of what I like is the distinctive nature of the packaging.

- Walter.

Josh Steinberg · 04-10-2008, 01:11 PM

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Originally Posted by Reggie W

You guys that like the packaging, I'd be interested to know what you like about it. I think the art work on the collector's edition is sharp but overall I find nothing else to like. If you pick up a cold drink and then touch this slip cover or case you will likely leave marks from the moisture on your hand. I don't see how sliding the discs in and out is better than securing them in an amaray. I think this will end up scratching up the discs. Spill a little of something on this cover and it's finished. What's to like about that? I let family and friends borrow my discs and in a case like this the original package will soon be trashed.

Fair question. I'm at work right now and don't have it in front of me, but of what I remember, I really liked the front cover. Very Criterion-like as someone pointed out here, and more arty than I've come to expect from studio releases. I liked the inner case, the one with the plain background with a slightly aged look and the title of the film printed on it, very distinctive, just seemed to have the right feel for the movie. I liked the picture on the inside showing Daniel and H.W. Plainview and Eli Sunday sitting at that dinner table, key scene in the film and just evoked the right memories of the film for me when I opened it. That's obviously not the most scientific description of the cover; it just felt right to me. (There are plenty of examples of packaging that just doesn't feel "right" for the film it's promoting...of semi-recent purchases, the "if you liked Armageddon, you should check this out" design of Fox's "Sunshine" stands out to me.)

I generally don't loan out my DVDs anymore, not because I've had a lot of issues with things being returned damaged, but because I've had issues with things not being returned. The people that I do loan stuff out to tend to be as careful with their discs as I am with mine, so that's not really a concern. I do have a few empty Amarays I keep around, generally to replace any broken ones, or if I'm loaning someone a single disc out of a set; if I was that worried about loaning someone this disc, I suppose I'd put it in one of those. But again, just knowing the people I loan my stuff to, it's not an issue. However, I am the oldest of three children and I definitely do understand what it's like having people wreck your stuff when there's not a darn thing you can do about it, so I get where you're coming from. It doesn't appear to be as durable as a standard Amaray, but for my needs, that's OK.

As for the scratching of the discs, I'm guessing I'll watch "There Will Be Blood" on DVD maybe two or three times this year, and I'm just not that worried about the disc getting scratched from being taken out of its case a handful of times. And let's not forget, there are some Amarays where the disc is stuck so tightly on that hub where it feels like you're going to snap the disc in half trying to take it out. I'm just sayin', there's not one perfect kind of case that's totally without flaws. This case to me is no worse than storing discs in a binder or spindle, and I have plenty of DVD-Rs/CD-Rs stored that way that have never been a problem.