Blu-ray Review Brazil Blu-ray Review (1 Viewer)

[Moe Dickstein]

Sorry, some of us pay sales tax
And if you have the membership and work some coupons along with the 50%+10%, you can get some disgusting deals during the BN sales. But when there's no sale on, Amazon/Best Buy is pretty good right now

 

[Steve Tannehill]

Here's the Amazon Criterion sale list, directly from Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Best-Sellers-Movies-TV-Criterion-Collection/zgbs/movies-tv/285082/ref=pd_ts_zgc_mov_285082_morl?pf_rd_p=1367758402&pf_rd_s=right-5&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_i=507846&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_r=0PBZPGV0T230RKB9466T

 

[cineMANIAC]

Well, I went to my nearby Best Buy after work for Brazil on blu. Found it on the shelf with a sticker that said $27.99. Took it to the register where I asked the nice man to price check it to confirm the alleged $20.99. It rang up as $34.99. He expected me to pay that, saying the sticker must've been left from "Black Friday, or something." I informed him of its new release yesterday, and produced my smartphone with the BB website which said $20.99. Only then was the price adjusted.
Much more of that hassle, and I'd have been more than happy to wait for the next B&N sale...

I got around this by ordering online for in-store pickup. The Criterion sale is still going on but the stickers will ring up $29.99 or whatever is the normal price. It's like they want to have a sale but don't want anybody to know about it.

 

[Derrick King]

Well, I went to my nearby Best Buy after work for Brazil on blu. Found it on the shelf with a sticker that said $27.99. Took it to the register where I asked the nice man to price check it to confirm the alleged $20.99. It rang up as $34.99. He expected me to pay that, saying the sticker must've been left from "Black Friday, or something." I informed him of its new release yesterday, and produced my smartphone with the BB website which said $20.99. Only then was the price adjusted.
Much more of that hassle, and I'd have been more than happy to wait for the next B&N sale...

Peter, when I picked up a copy on Tuesday and it rang up at $34.99, I was expecting the same thing to happen to me, but I lucked out and got an employee that knew what he was doing. I told him it was $20.99 on the website, he logged in at the checkout register, check the price, and matched it.

 

[Carlo_M]

Peter, when I picked up a copy on Tuesday and it rang up at $34.99, I was expecting the same thing to happen to me, but I lucked out and got an employee that knew what he was doing. I told him it was $20.99 on the website, he logged in at the checkout register, check the price, and matched it.

They can ALL do this at ALL Best Buys.
It's just up to a couple of factors:
1. The skill level and training of the employee (to know how to do this)
2. The desire of the employee to do this (rather than be lazy and tell you it can't be done or send you to Customer Service).
That's what infuriates me about Best Buy. At the very same Best Buy, just days apart, I can have an internal website match done at the register, or I can have an employee say they can't do it and go to CS.
It's about consistent, excellent customer service, and BB lacks it, which is why they're unable to stay competitive.

 

[Grady Reid]

I used to have the Criterion Laserdisc CAV box set (5 discs!). I might be crazy but I remember at the beginning of the discs of supplements there was an intro by Gilliam. He said something like, "Wow! You're still awake! Welcome to the supplements!" I don't recall seeing it on the dvd set or the new blu-ray edition. Does anyone else remember this?

 

[Moe Dickstein]

yeah i think i know what you mean. ill check on the LD when I have time, but maybe they put it within the production archives or something

 

[Doug Pyle]

Its surround, its just not flagged to switch your pro-logic on automatically.

Yeah, unfortunately I watched 1/2 of the movie tonight in pure direct mode, thinking the stereo track was intentional. When I paused halfway through, I read the enclosed booklet. Toward the back is a page "About the Transfer" that states, "Please be sure to enable Dolby Pro Logic decoding on your receiver to properly play the Dolby 2.0 surround soundtrack."
The back cover also has printed in white on blue-grey: "2.0 SURROUND"
As to the look of this Criterion blu-ray edition: I'm extremely pleased. I don't have the Universal blu-ray release (I prefer Terry Gilliam's director's cut), so can't compare. But by far this is the best-looking edition of Brazil I've seen. Gilliam is obviously not a director creating a hyper-realism look, and the grain (mentioned earlier in this thread) I think makes it look true to the art of the film as the director likely intended. It is very moody and surreal. Seems to me just right - very striking.

 

[Carlo_M]

FYI I never got around to buying this at Amazon. Happened to be at BB yesterday and saw they finally had a copy. Checked on my phone that the price was still $20.99 so I went to the register with it. Promptly rung up at $34.99 to which I told the cashier "your website says it's $20.99". She wrote down the item number, alt+tab to another screen, input the number, saw the lower price, price matched, and rung me up properly. All in about 2 minutes.
I walked over to the supervisor near the exit and said "that woman over there is one of your better employees" and explained her proficiency and expediency at price matching their own site (didn't mention the deep discount because I didn't want to get her into trouble).

 

[Mike Frezon]

That employee was then immediately given her pink slip by management...


j/k

 

[Powell&Pressburger]

Originally Posted by Carlo Medina /t/325695/brazil-blu-ray-review/60#post_4013818
FYI I never got around to buying this at Amazon. Happened to be at BB yesterday and saw they finally had a copy. Checked on my phone that the price was still $20.99 so I went to the register with it. Promptly rung up at $34.99 to which I told the cashier "your website says it's $20.99". She wrote down the item number, alt+tab to another screen, input the number, saw the lower price, price matched, and rung me up properly. All in about 2 minutes.
I walked over to the supervisor near the exit and said "that woman over there is one of your better employees" and explained her proficiency and expediency at price matching their own site (didn't mention the deep discount because I didn't want to get her into trouble).

It's ok Best Buy.com still has the price at $20.99 so they are just matching their .com price is all. No harm in that.


I always price match their .com price when I notice it is lower. It is also their policy... however they should just have the store prices linked with their .com IMO

 

[Moe Dickstein]

You don't think they don't want to make the extra money off the people who don't know any better?

 

[jeffsultanof]

It was amusing to buy Brazil recently at Best Buy. The sticker was $27.99, and I was billed $34.99. I didn't notice this as I had my son with me and he was getting antsy. Luckily I saw this when I got home, and not only returned it, but asked about the web price thanks to reading the entries in this thread. They matched it happily, but I agree that they are making extra money from those people who don't bother to do the homework and price-compare. Not very ethical.
I did manage to pick up several Criterions with reduced prices, so I am a happy camper this holiday season.
And to get back on topic, Brazil does indeed boast an excellent transfer, and as said earlier, it clearly says in the booklet that you must engage Dolby Pro-logic as well as the DTS HD-Master Audio. The surrounds are pretty busy.

 

[Dick]

It's really reached the point where most Criterion titles can routinely be had at 40-60% off by way of Amazon or B&N. There is no longer any reason to pay full price for them - they are right on par with other companys' Blu-rays, or (quite often, in fact) for even less. So, for anyone still complaining about premium Criterion prices, you now have the advantage, so take it! And, if you're over 50 like me, keep in mind that you would have paid $90. - $100.00 for laser disc sets of BRAZIL and others twenty years back with the same content (or less) as the visually-superior Blu-rays that you are now paying significantly less for.

 

[AaronMan]

Criterion's releases are not cheap in Canada. They usually start at 35 bucks, and go up from there. Amazon.ca is no different, and Amazon.com is not worth the trouble.

 

[Dick]

Criterion's releases are not cheap in Canada. They usually start at 35 bucks, and go up from there. Amazon.ca is no different, and Amazon.com is not worth the trouble.

Yeah, I neglected to take the Canadian situation into account. If you have a friend who lives in the States...