James Dean Ultimate Collection (Blu-ray) Available for Preorder (1 Viewer)

[Ronald Epstein]

That's why I'm waiting for the inevitable price drop. I got the Sound Of Music big box for $20 eventually, There's no reason to think that wont happen with this set which is arguably even more niche.

Yeah, I'm with you on this Russell.

I wanted the larger box. I am compromising greatly on the short stack
just for price sake.

....but then again, I'm not a James Dean fan. Just hoping to become one.

But to get back to your point...

It took about two years for that box of THE SOUND OF MUSIC to be at a
$20-$25 pricepoint. I am guessing when it originally streeted it was $59.95
(I am certain someone will correct me on that).

The JAMES DEAN box is vastly more expensive. I don't know if it will ever
drop down to a $25 pricepoint, but you can bet it will eventually drop down
to the price that the UK version is selling for right now.

I still have a bit of time to cancel my UK preorder if I decide to wait it out
a year or two for that price drop.

 

[Ruz-El]

you're looking at about $30 american, not including shipping. I have no doubts it will hit around $40 eventually. Maybe even this boxing day with amazon gold box. There was some pretty good pricing last holidays with the Hitchcock and Bond sets.

 

[Ronald Epstein]

I agree with your predictions.

It could hit $40 in a Black Friday sale or holiday Gold Box deal.

Trust me, I'm not committed to the UK set. Just have it on order
until the very last minute.

 

[Robert Crawford]

you're looking at about $30 american, not including shipping. I have no doubts it will hit around $40 eventually. Maybe even this boxing day with amazon gold box. There was some pretty good pricing last holidays with the Hitchcock and Bond sets.

My preorder is $28.13 including shipping. All of that stuff that comes with these ultimate collections, I rarely look at anyway. I might glance at the booklet and that's about it.

 

[Scott Merryfield]

My preorder is $28.13 including shipping. All of that stuff that comes with these ultimate collections, I rarely look at anyway. I might glance at the booklet and that's about it.

Same here -- plus I prefer the smaller packaging so it fits easily on a shelf like all my other films.

 

[JPCinema]

James Dean Blu Ultimate Collection. In Paris yesterday I purchased the James Dean Blu Ray Boxset. It was 30 euros or $40. It was a great price and a nice surprise to get it early.. I looking forward to watching the films

 

[willyTass]

they came out today in Oz- Giant (the non dissolves) looks superb

 

[Persianimmortal]

Woah, didn't realise it was already out in Australia! And talk about ultra-compact - the James Dean Set here is 3 discs in what looks like a standard blu-ray case for $20.

 

[John Hermes]

Woah, didn't realise it was already out in Australia! And talk about ultra-compact - the James Dean Set here is 3 discs in what looks like a standard blu-ray case for $20.

Thanks for the heads-up. I ordered it and it has been shipped already!

 

[Persianimmortal]

No problem. I'll duck out and buy it in-store tomorrow myself. I'll post some pics of the case for anyone else who is interested (plus screenshots and region coding info if possible).

I have no interest in the extras of the boxed US or UK sets, so this one is exactly what I wanted. Granted the cover could look a whole lot nicer, but that's not really a deal-breaker for me

 

[Andrew Budgell]

I received my set from France this morning.

I sampled Giant, and I agree with willyTass, it looks stunning! I can't wait to watch it this weekend.

It's great to have another Elizabeth Taylor film on Blu-ray.

 

[JPCinema]

There are scenes in GIANT that almost look 3D! EAST OF EDEN also looks amazing!!!!

 

[battlebeast]

Giant is the only Best Picture nominee, so that's all I am getting.

 

[Escapay]

It's great to have another Elizabeth Taylor film on Blu-ray.

Agreed. Hopefully we'll see Warner release A Place in the Sun and Elephant Walk from Paramount's catalogue.

 

[Andrew Budgell]

Agreed. Hopefully we'll see Warner release A Place in the Sun and Elephant Walk from Paramount's catalogue.

I hope so! Elephant Walk is available in HD on Amazon Instant, so maybe it will be a Warner Archive Blu-ray release.

 

[Robert Crawford]

Giant is the only Best Picture nominee, so that's all I am getting.

That's too bad as the other two titles are better films.

 

[Persianimmortal]

OK, as promised here are some pics and screenshots of the Australian James Dean Collection, which I bought today for $20.

First, pics of the set itself. It's 3 Blu-ray discs in a standard Australian Blu-ray case (slightly thicker than a US Blu-ray case). Perfect for people who have no interest in extras, or a big box taking up a lot of shelf space:



In terms of region coding, it appears to be Region Free. I set the Blu-ray software on my PC to forced Region A, and all three discs still played fine.

Now for some screenshots. These are taken directly off the discs via a Blu-ray drive on my PC. The software used is the barely adequate Leawo Blu-ray Player, which I got for free in a recent promotion at Neowin. I took care to disable any image processing features in the player or on my graphics card, but these are only provided as an indication of quality.

Click to enlarge each one to original size.

Giant




East of Eden




Rebel Without a Cause




I've only skimmed the three discs, but to me, all three generally look very good. Lots of detail, natural grain and contrast, nice colors and deep blacks. There are some weak scenes, where things become slightly hazy, particularly in Giant but that appears to be source-related.

 

[jra66]

Persianimmortal, can you tell me if the Australian discs include the commentary tracks found in the larger collections?

 

[Matt Hough]

Thanks for the report on this set. Since it appears to be region free, I'd certainly be interested in it. The clips from East of Eden look especially good. This was one of the films the colorist at Warners was working on when we visited there last October.

 

[Persianimmortal]

Persianimmortal, can you tell me if the Australian discs include the commentary tracks found in the larger collections?

Going into the menus I can confirm that there are some special features on each disc.

Giant, the special features are: commentary track, and a documentary called George Stevens: The filmmakers Who Knew Him.

East of Eden, the special features are: commentary track, Forever James Dean, East of Eden: Art in Search of Life, Screen Tests, Wardrobe Tests, Deleted Scenes, 3/9/1955 NYC Premiere, and Theatrical Trailer.

Rebel Without a Cause, the special features are: commentary track, Behind the Scenes: James Dean Remembered, Behind the Scenes: Rebel Without a Cause: Defiant Innocents, Behind the Scenes: Dennis Hopper: Memories from the Warner Lot, Screen Tests, Wardrobe Tests, Black & White Deleted Scenes without sound, Color Deleted Scenes without sound, Behind the Cameras, and Theatrical Trailer.

Thanks for the report on this set. Since it appears to be region free, I'd certainly be interested in it. The clips from East of Eden look especially good. This was one of the films the colorist at Warners was working on when we visited there last October.

No problem. By the way, I watched Giant tonight, and those hazy scenes I described are just long dissolves. Like the first screenshot I posted. Otherwise looks superb, clearly a good quality restoration job, though obviously I have no expertise as to whether they are faithful to the original look of the films. I'll give the other two movies a spin over the weekend.

By the way, I screwed up the screenshots slightly. I took them while my player was on fullscreen mode, and since my monitor is 1920x1200, the screenshots are also the same resolution. But they're not rescaled or distorted - the player settings lock the aspect ratio, so all that's happened is that there's additional black pixels in the bars above and beneath each image.