MGM Press Release: 007 on Blu-ray (1 Viewer)

BOND, JAMES BOND ON DISC, BLU-RAY DISC

MGM AND FOX TO RELEASE SIX CLASSIC
BOND FILMS ON BLU-RAY WORLDWIDE THIS FALL



Includes the Fully Restored Bond Classic DR. NO and FIVE More
Action-Packed, Must-Own 007 Titles Available For The First Time Ever in High Definition; Timed to Theatrical Premiere of QUANTUM OF SOLACE

LOS ANGELES – June 18, 2008 – The world’s most well known secret agent and his bevy of babes are even hotter in high definition when six, must-have, classic James Bond films debut worldwide on Blu-ray Disc -- (OCT. 21 North America / OCT. 20 UK/International) -- from MGM and Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment.

Recently restored and re-mastered for the highest quality picture and sound quality via the state-of-the-art Lowry process digital frame-by-frame restoration and featuring special features galore, Bond is primed for Blu-ray Disc with a selection of 007 adventures spanning the storied career of cinema’s most recognizable spy. Bond titles arriving on Blu-ray Disc, timed to the highly anticipated worldwide theatrical premiere of the 22nd James Bond mission QUANTUM OF SOLACE this November, include DR. NO, DIE ANOTHER DAY, LIVE AND LET DIE, FOR YOUR EYES ONLY, FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE and THUNDERBALL.

The world’s most successful film franchise, Bond… James Bond has generated more than one billion in global box office gross and boasts an astounding 98% global consumer awareness. CASINO ROYALE, the most recent James Bond film starring Daniel Craig, debuted on BD March 2007, and continues to rank as one of the best selling Blu-ray Disc releases to-date.

“With QUANTUM OF SOLACE on the horizon, Bond fever is building once again and there is no better time to re-introduce these beloved films featuring the best picture and sound quality available today to the 60 million+ HD-capable households worldwide,” said Eric Doctorow, General Manager Worldwide, MGM Home Entertainment.

Exact worldwide market release dates and title configurations will be announced in the coming weeks.

Blu-ray Disc is the next generation optical disc format developed for high-definition video and high-capacity software applications. A single-layer Blu-ray Disc holds up to 25 gigabytes of data and a dual-layer Blu-ray Disc holds up to 50 gigabytes of data. This greater storage capacity enables the Blu-ray Disc to store over six times the amount of content than is possible with current DVDs, and is particularly well-suited for high definition feature films with extended levels of additional bonus and interactive material. Blu-ray also features the most advanced copy protection, player backward compatibility with the current DVD format, connectivity and advanced interactivity.

MGM and Fox’s commitment to emerging technologies is dedicated to enhancing the consumer experience of its products and providing for backward compatibility with their existing home entertainment libraries while also aggressively protecting its intellectual property from piracy. The Blu-ray companies fully embrace the studios’ steadfast commitment to the fight against piracy and the preservation of the integrity of its properties. Twentieth Century Fox is a member of the Board of Directors of the Blu- ray Disc Association.

I hope they remember to include all of the supplements for Die Another Day with this release. The last DVD was supposed to have all of the features from the original disc, but many of them were omitted even though the packaging states they're on there.

The recent DVD releases were plagued with problems despite the
fact they did look better than they ever have.

Are these titles pretty safe bets? I know they did a really bad
job on the color scheme on the opening credits of LIVE AND LET DIE.

This is good news. Even better news will be an announcement for Goldfinger.

-R

For the average person, most likely. For the hardcore Bond fan, absolutely not. There will be some choice made that is different from previous video incarnations and they will not be happy about it.

EDIT: Just to clarify, I'm not singling out Bond fans. I just mean that any movie with a devoted fanbase is always going to deem themselves authorities on the movies and be less accepting of changing what they consdier correct.

I hope the color-timing and film grain issues have been addressed for the Blu-ray editions, but, 007 fan that I am, I will buy Dr. No, From Russia With Love, and Thunderball regardless.

Oh, the mono tracks better be here, too.

MGM/Fox = Region coded = No sale.

Um, did you read the part of the press release where it says this will be an international release? I'd hate to think you were just threadcrapping...

Not exactly sure what you mean about "film grain issues," but if you're implying they should use DNR, no thank you.

I love Bond but truth be told I'm tired of buying these films. My wife got me the ultimate edition sets pretty cheaply, I've watched most of them Upconverted on my Bravia and I'm content with these. Maybe some day down the road I can get a deal on the Blu rays and I'll buy them again.

I hear ya, which is why I will only be buying the Connery ones from this group, assuming they're being offered individually. I'll wait for a sale to pick up the others.

Yeah, great point brought up...

Tell your friends FILM GRAIN IS GOOD!

The industry is being ruined by studios applying DNR to films
to satisfy those individuals who can't deal with visible film grain.

Sorry, Ron - but I hate visibly grainy-looking films! I like my movies to appear smooth, clean.

As for the Bond films on BD, I would prefer to buy them somewhere down the road when they're all available in boxed sets. This is the same pattern that occurred with SD releases... you have to buy movies separately, then together in a box set along with documentaries and MORE extras, etc...

It's one dilemma I have. Do I buy PLANET OF THE APES alone when it's released, even though I want all five APES movies and then have to re-buy when the inevitable multi-movie set arrives?

I'm waiting. I still haven't gotten through all the recent SD releases. I'm up to Moonraker and I keep putting it off, because it's such a horrible movie. I am happy, overall, with the quality of the recent releases so the only way I will be buying these on Blu-Ray will be down the road when they are on sale and/or I can cherry pick the movies I want.

I hope they keep the same color scheme on "Dr. No" and "From Russia With Love" as the Lowery DVD versions. Those discs have a beautiful, Technicolor look, and fabulous contrast. The skintones are particularly good, very clean and neutral.

Do you want your movies to appear smooth, clean with missing detail too? That is exactly what's been happening with excessive DNR being applied to certain titles.

Then you don't have to buy films that have grain.

Doug

I had posted this before, but since the post is now closed...

Glad to hear that 6 of the films are coming to blu ray later this year.

I also STRONGLY AGREE that MGM has some work to do with fixing previous mistakes on the UE dvd's. In addition to the framing issues (Goldeneye and A View To A Kill), color issues (Live and Let Die and On Her Majesty's Secret Service) and audio issues with the new DD and DTS mix (again On Her Majesty's Secret Service).

I made the following post in the standard DVD James Bond thread, but will paste here as well for comments:


I was watching On Her Majesty's Secret Service on Friday. I believe MGM should look at this film again. The audio mix on DTS and DD is not right during the scene in Burn at Gumbolt's office. This is the scene where Bond breaks into Gumbolt's safe. The music on previous versions and the mono track also included on the UE DVD slowly builds and builds building the tension of the scene. For some reason they have muted the music during this seen. I can only wonder what John Barry would think of this decision!!! Anyway, I was watching it with my wife, who hasn't seen the film and it was kind of a bummer to stop it and go back and compare the audio when trying to watch the film. It was really distracting for me, as it's one of my favorite scenes and pieces of music in the film. The scene is pretty subdued as a result of the down mix of the soundtrack on the DTS and DD tracks.

Overall I am very happy with the UE DVD's, but this really needs to be addressed for Blu Ray, IMO.

Here's a review from DVD Times commenting on the same problem:

DVD Times - On Her Majesty's Secret Service (Ultimate Edition)

Audio
Not the strongest part of the disk. There’s no original mono soundtrack and of the new mixes there have been some questionable decisions made. The most notable of these is the toning down of Barry’s music across quite a lot of the movie, noticeable especially in the scene when Bond breaks into the office. In the past the music has enlivened a scene which, as the main review notes, isn’t as tense as it should be otherwise. Gunshots also sound odd and I also have the problem I had with YOLT in that the clarity of dialogue now somehow underlines the dubbing. That said, in other aspects the remix is really nice, especially in setting up atmosphere and immersing one in the mayhem resulting in a transfer that is at times excellent and other times clueless.

Is there any chance that there will be some more tweaking on these?

Will they replace the missing frames in Goldfinger (the scene where Oddjob's car is turning around the corner) or any of the color issues (like Ron mentioned above)?

It's doubtful, but it will be interesting to see.