The Silence of the Lambs: Collector's Edition - Due 1/30/07 (1 Viewer)

[Stephen J*]

And a nice Chianti! Fff! Fff! Fff! Fff! Fff!



I'm sure it's ok to substitute, say, calve's or deer liver though.

 

[Dave H]

This has been re-hashed over and over again in seemingly every Lambs thread, but BOTH transfers were approved by Tak.

 

[Andrew Bunk]

Well I see the book will be written by Harris, so maybe there's hope for that. I did enjoy the Hannibal novel, but thought the movie version was a bit lacking.

 

[Lyle_JP]

This looks like a direct port of the Region 2 Ultimate Edition (minus the excellent DTS track). I just hope they fix the completely FUBARed title sequence from that edition.

-Lyle J.P.

 

[Colin Jacobson]

Which is why it's weird that they look so different...

 

[James_S]

Same here. I love this movie, but purchasing for the 4th time, although it's a nice cover.

 

[cafink]

What exactly was FUBARed about it?

 

[GuruAskew]

I've yet to see any proof that Tak Fujimoto approved the MGM transfer.

Like most non-Criterion DVD's the MGM edition doesn't say who supervised and/or approved the transfer.

 

[Lyle_JP]

Many of the beginning opening credits are missing, including the title of the film! The first title seen on screen is not until "Brooke Smith/Diane Baker/Kasi Lemmons".

Also, all of the location cards that appeared in the film in the lower right hand corner are missing, and the player generated replacements won't show unless you have the english subtitles on.

-Lyle J.P.

 

[Travis Brashear]

Sigh...once again...

http://www.dvdverdict.com/interviews/silence

Read the final question and answer.

 

[Felix Martinez]

Wow, my bad. So much for consistency. Now I'm really curious what the new one will look like.

 

[CameronMcC]

so is anything from the last 2 disc mgm disc going to be missing

 

[Dave H]

I guess it'll take the best "two out of three" rounds to find out.

On any rate, the I'm glad they are using two discs this time as last time the extras were on the same side as the disc I believe.

 

[Lou Sytsma]

Still does not explain why the two versions look so different. At this point Tak's approval seems to be nothing more than a rubber stamp.

 

[Travis Brashear]

I doubt anyone would argue but it does mean that having Tak's approval is not the bar by which to measure the existing, or any future, releases of SotL. It's going to have to come down to each viewer's own perceptions and preferences...

 

[ZackR]

Has anyone gotten this early or read any reviews? I have the Criterion and last MGM release, so I am probably not going to pick this up. Still, the A/V will be the deciding factor for me. I'd really appreciate any insight if anyone has any.

 

[David (C)]

If it means anything, he did participate in the telecine of the Criterion transfer.

 

[seanOhara]

So do I have this right -- Manhunter is only available as part of the set with Red Dragon and SotL, but Silence is only a single disc edition? The only way to get Manhunter and the two-disc SotL requires me to buy Red Dragon and an extra copy of Silence?

 

[GuruAskew]

You're a tad bit confused. The box includes "Manhunter", "Silence" and "Hannibal", not "Red Dragon" because it's a Universal title (though "Red Dragon" would make much more sense to be included in this box if not for the rights issues).

That said there are still a couple unanswered questions about this box set:

Issue #1: The initial reports said that the "Manhunter" version included would be the theatrical cut in widescreen. That would be a first in Region 1 as all the widescreen versions (all released by Anchor Bay) are modified in some way and the theatrical cut (released by MGM) was in fullscreen. It remains to be seen if this box set truly does included the first widescreen transfer of the theatrical cut in R1 but whatever it is it's not available outside of the box set, there is no new individual "Manhunter" release coming out.

Issue #2: The disc count. Many retailers are reporting that this is a 3-disc set, which would mean that all three movies are single-disc editions. It's pretty much a given that "Manhunter" is gonna be a single disc but whether the "Silence" included is the new 2-disc edition or just the first disc remains to be seen, as does whether or not "Hannibal" gets the packed 2-disc release from 2001.

Personally, the easiest and most convenient scenario would be if this box set includes the 2-disc "Silence" and "Hannibal" releases, that way I'd get rid of my old and identical 2-disc "Hannibal" and my 1-disc MGM SE (which seems to be completely replaced in every way by the new 2-disc CE, though I'd still keep my Criterion disc) and my p&s theatrical "Manhunter".

That said, if it really is just 1-disc editions and the only "draw" of the box set is the theatrical widescreen "Manhunter" it's such a cheap release (less than $20 on Amazon) that I'd just look at it as a single "Manhunter" release and it would be worth it even if the "Silence" and "Hannibal" discs are worthless.

In any case, the release is just over a week away so I'm sure the disc count and content included will be clarified in the next few days.

 

[Arnie G]

In case you didn't see the other post, DVDBeaver has a comparison up now of the new vs. old release!