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Fox's Steve Feldstein Puts The Format war To Rest (1 Viewer)

AaronSCH

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In one of the most pompous statements I have read yet from the Blu-ray camp, Fox's senior VP of marketing communications, Steve Feldstein declared that the Blu-ray release of X-men: The Last Stand is the biggest new release yet for Blu-ray... PlayStation is by far the dominant game platform, and this should put questions about format wars to rest." He is right on one point...this Christmas may indeed be the last stand for Blu-ray. Is it just me or do you sense a little sign of desperation in these comments? They know HD DVD is trouncing them right now. They continue to put all their Blu-ray eggs in the PS3 basket.

The idea that by far, the worst film in the X-men franchise is gonna bring down HD DVD is so laughable that I couldn't contain myself. This attitude is not something you hear from the HD DVD camp. Fox's venom continues to fuel my desire to boycott all of their software. Don't forget, this is the same bunch that tried to force DIVX down our throats a few years ago. Full story is here: Silly Fox
 

Cory S.

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As much as I am pulling for Blu-Ray more than HD-DVD, his statement is crazy. The Last Stand in combination with the PS3 to bring an end to the format war? Crazy talk.

Now, if he had said the Star Wars Saga on Blu-Ray, then maybe.....:)
 

TravisR

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Not that HD-DVD is some unstoppable force but no one movie is going to win the format war. Especially one like X-Men 3.

There's a few titles (like Star Wars as Corey mentioned) that would be a huge boost for whatever format had it but even that's a non-issue because no MAJOR title is likely to be released on either high def format until there's a more clear winner.
 

Ben_Williams

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Well, I doubt it will end the format war, but X3 was a huge box-office hit that many viewers are going to be thrilled to see in HD.

According to boxofficemojo.com X3 is the third highest grossing film of the year:

1 Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest BV $421,392,843 4,133 $135,634,554 4,133 7/7 -
2 Cars BV $244,082,982 3,988 $60,119,509 3,985 6/9 10/19
3 X-Men: The Last Stand Fox $234,362,462 3,714 $102,750,665 3,690 5/26 9/28

So, many, many people went to see it and, obviously, liked it. It had great word of mouth as well. So, while I agree that it is the weakest of the three X-Men films, it is still a huge release. It has also been in the top 10 in DVD rentals and sales since its release on DVD in October:

1 1 The Break-Up Universal $8.28 -18.8% $18.47 2 $118.70 15.6%
2 N Nacho Libre Paramount $7.13 - $7.13 1 $80.20 8.9%
3 2 Click Sony Pictures $6.93 -17.2% $25.11 3 $137.34 18.3%
4 N Monster House Sony Pictures $6.59 - $6.59 1 $73.66 9.0%
5 3 The Omen (2006) Fox $6.15 -16.7% $13.53 2 $54.61 24.8%
6 5 Over the Hedge DreamWorks $5.97 -13.0% $12.84 2 $155.02 8.3%
7 N An American Haunting Lionsgate $5.70 - $5.70 1 $16.30 35.0%
8 4 X-Men: The Last Stand Fox $5.20 -24.4% $31.21 4 $234.36 13.3%
9 6 Garfield: A Tail of Two Kitties Fox $3.31 -22.6% $12.50 3 $28.43 44.0%
10 8 The Lake House Warner $3.28 -19.9% $26.15 5 $52.33 50.0%
 

ppltd

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The last two years, IMHO, there have been very few movies released in the theaters that garnered much excitement, and I am an avid theater viewer who loves the experience of seeing a movie like LOTR on a mega screen. I can not recall the last film that made me want to visit a theater. It certainly has not been this year.

Fact is, there just aren't many current 'Blockbusters' the studio can go after.
 

AaronSCH

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Yes, and it will have been available on SD DVD for just a short time. I just don't see households springing for a $600 VIDEO GAME PLAYER and $60 GAMES repurchasing a title they already have in the entertainment center. Mom and Dad don't think like Home Theater enthusiasts and neither does junior. None of the Blu-ray titles have appeared in the top 100 titles on Amazon. I predict the same fate for X-men. Plus the movie just sucked.
 

Cory S.

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Ben,

The Last Stand didn't get great word of mouth when it opened. It dropped nearly 67% from it's first weekend to its second.
 

ppltd

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Not at 40.00. Fox has got their head up their you know what with their pricing structure. This goes that same for any other studio who is running with this pricing strucure. At least a 40.00 release from Universal get's you a Combo disk.
 

Ben_Williams

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MSRP is $40 but Amazon, for example, is already discounting Fox releases down to roughly $23. So, the $40 price will probably never be seen by consumers.
 

Ben_Williams

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If you hate everything under the sun about Blu-Ray, then don't buy it. Plenty of others will, however.
 

Jerome Grate

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Unfortunately that's the kind of oral defication you get when you are set in your own glory. Good thing we're around to clean through the mess and see the truth.
 

ppltd

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I agree that we can normally get a discounted price, but it still doesn't change the fact that these studios have gone a little overboard on pricing. You are not going to make HD a standard if the price for the releases cost more than the SD issues. Fox is out of line.

BTW, this being said, I will probably buy the release. Even though I did not think X3 was all that good,and I already own the SD, it might turn into my showpiece BD video for me. I already have a few in HD-DVD's that I use to demonstrate my Toshiba to friends, but I am a little short on the BD side.
 

Ben_Williams

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Agreed about the pricing structure. I'm also not too excited about X3, but, like you, I'm hoping for some eye candy. Actually, I believe it was shot in Super35, so that means it's going to be VERY grainy.
 

ppltd

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I just ordered the new Panasonic PT-AE 1000U 1080p front projector to replace my Panny 900U. Should be shipping around Thanksgiving. If Fox does their normal fine release quality on this disk, it may be the first I watch on the new projector. It will be a toss up between this and King Kong.
 

AaronSCH

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I'm sure they will...just like they bought into Beta, Minidisc, SACD, PSP/UMD and the wonderful world of DIVX. They are all useful as doorstops.
 

Ben_Williams

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I've heard great things about this projector! It should be an excellent combo! What screen are you using?
 

Larry Sutliff

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I own both formats, am enjoying both, but I see no real reason to support BD over HD DVD at this time. Support both, yes. But certainly BD hasn't shown itself to be any better than HD DVD yet. I'm actually a little worried about Fox's use of MPEG4, as I have found most of the Disney titles to be a little inconsistent in quality. I would much prefer that all studios move to VC-1 as soon as possible.

PS I will order X3 sight unseen, as I've been hoping for a high def presentation. I just hope it takes full advantage of Blu-Ray's potential.
 

ppltd

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106' 16x9 High Contrast

Can't recall the brand (Purchased from ProjectionWholesale.com), but it was priced many times lower than it's competitors, and at a price I figured if it didn't work out, I could always toss it.

1 x P169-5292 - Picture Frame 16:9 Screen - 52" x 92" 106" Diagonal @ $395.00

It was a pleasant surprise. No hot spots, good Alum. frame covered in black felt, and an high contrast gray screen surface. I couldn't touch a name brand at the price.
 

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