Bad Review for "National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation" HD DVD - Contradicted here! (1 Viewer)

Sounds like Warner doesn't deliver the A/V quality goods on every release:

http://hddvd.highdefdigest.com/christmasvacation.html

in case you dont fell like or dont want to go to the link.

"'Christmas Vacation' is presented in 1.78:1 widescreen and 1080p/VC-1 video. Blacks are fine, but contrast lacks pop. Most scenes look flat and two-dimensional. Softness is also all over the place -- some scenes are nice and crisp, others fuzzy and ill-defined. Colors can be fairly well saturated, but again they are inconsistent -- some shots are as icky and pasty as an over-the-air standard-def broadcast. Hues certainly never leap off the screen like you expect on even the most marginal high-def transfer. Fleshtones also look too red, making Chevy Chase's already-round face even more piggish. A low level of grain also permeates the transfer, and dirt and speckles are frequent, if still minor."

Oh well, still a must-buy for me. Then I can retire my original, first edition release...

A lump of coal from Warner.

This movie has never looked good. I remember it in the theaters, and even then, would not have called the film stellar in any sense of the word.

The DVD release was even worse. As this is a movie most of my relatives want to see yearly, I will fork out the money for it, but I don't think I ever expected much from this release.

Hopefully, Christmas Story will be one of Warners fine quality releases. If it is not, I would find that a major disappointment.

I think a bit of crucial information was left out. I always find thoughts taken out of context to be suspect. Here is the little piece of info TonyD left out:
This isn't the first nor will it be the last transfer to HD DVD or Blu-ray that could have used a thorough clean-up. I guess the decision you need to make is whether the improvement over the SD is good enough to warrant a re-purchase. I never cared much for Chevy Chase's brand of sophomoric humor. Time hasn't been kind to his theatrical efforts. So I guess I will be picking up Bob Clark's film of Jean Shepherd's homage to Christmas... I just hope the reviews are positive.

...now that is scary. I guess you beat me to the punch, Thomas.

In this case:
Don't KILL the format.
KILL the source!

People can buy, if they wish, this title with confidence, according to the review posted by the OP:
"compared to standard-def DVD, it's still a marked improvement".

Happy Holidays!!!

i'm gonna buy it anyway.
i love the movie.

i just copied the last paragraph from the section that reviewd that image.


i didnt add the entire section because i figured most would go there anyway.

Great flick. I'm short on cash because of the holiday crunch, but I'll definitely rent it from Netflix. I'll buy it it in time for Christmas next year.

I will be getting it anyway. I know I wore out my taped version of it and I cant wait to send my standard dvd up to my cabin. The HD version may not be perfect but it has to be an improvement over the standard dvd which wasn't that great either.

A good lesson in any case, not just this one -- no matter whether the format is HD DVD or Blu-ray.

For clarity's sake, I pointed out from the get-go that this was a Warner Bros. problem.

I think (hope anyway) we are all on your side on this one, Chuck!

Maybe when "every" HD Disc title is selling like a million zillion copies, we'll always get pristine/fully restored sources for transfer.
Here's hoping!

I don't think you can expect much better with 'The Christmas Story'. I mean the DVD doesn't look reference, so why should the HD-DVD? Probably accurate to the source. Only the very very few titles get the totally cleaned up 'Loewry' style treatment ala Cinderella or Bambi or Casablanca.

A Christmas Story has a very stylized look. I wouldn't expect that one to be HD demo material either. It is still the best X-mas movie EVER, so I'm looking forward to it.

Also planing to get Christmas Vacation. What a fun film!

Well, if it's a marked improvement then it's a no brainer for me. Actually, I pre-ordered about 2 weeks ago anyway....Can't wait. Will it look as good as Batman Begins or Superman Returns? No. Is is funnier? Yes!

Another prime candidate that I will not upgrade to HD DVD, but instead will let my VP50 video processor do its upconvert magic on the SD DVD disc I have in my collection.

Bun-O-Vision

Would be cool if that were a bonus feature.

http://www.dvdfanatic.com/news.php?id=0612033

I was gonna pass on this and get the SD, but I read thats so bad I may as well pick up the HD

My Xmas Vacation HD-DVD was shipped yesterday. Should be here Wednesday! Not expecting it to be the reference disc of the year....but I know I'll be laughing so hard I won't really care too much. Although when "Mary" displays her "no lines" legs in High Def, if it's at all clearer than the SD version then