Anyone get Sick from smelling the Book Of The Dead DVD Case? (1 Viewer)

[Ernesto Santos]

Well, the smell is pretty much gone now unless you put it right up to your nose. The sensation/reaction I got is exactly like the one I get when I smell heated tar or when you walk into a fabric shop, dry cleaners, tailor shop. It's got to be the chemicals in all three of those things. The fabrics/textiles are treated with chemicals when dyed, the tar is a petrochemical product and latex and paint must have similar solvents.

 

[Jason Cole]

Hi All,

I'm sitting here at work and listening to WCKG in Chicago. Today on the Buzz and Wendy show they were having a 10 minute discussion on how bad the smell is coming from the Evil Dead dvd case. It sounds like the problem is being noticed the general dvd buying public. One guy called and complained that the section at best buy stinks because of the dvd.

 

[Jack Briggs]

This is one interesting story. If it's making its way into the mainstream media, then the studio has an interesting problem on its hands.

 

[Kai Zas]

Well, here's something they'll mention in the booklet of the next special edition, that's for sure!

We'll sure miss the smell when we plug in this chip and hit our heads on a wooden door to see the movie. O wait, we'll get to smell it all day UNTILL we hit our heads on a wooden door.

Free publicity. Bruce and Sam are rubbing their hands already.

 

[Dome Vongvises]

Not me.

 

[Jesse Skeen]

Geez, I finally bought this damn thing yesterday and was expecting having to hold my breath, this turned out to be NOTHING! I've bought Nintendo cartridges that smelled worse than this. What I did smell though was a bit... intoxicating... must go smell it again.....

 

[Alex Shk]

I strongly resent the lack of adherence to OPO (Original Presenation Odor) on this disc, and I intend to speak with my wallet and NOT purchase this disc. If I was more 'net savy, I would create a petition to inform the manufacturer's just what kind of buying power they are potentially shutting out.

OK - it was a joke - no flames please!

Afetr reading through this thread, I was ultimately convinced (mostly by the poster that felt he had to air out the disc in his garage) that something is probably seriously amiss with the manufacturing of this set. More than likely - the disc manufacturer subcontracted the packaging to another company. Given the elaborate presentation, it may have been deemed to expensive to scrap an entire run. This is how manufacturer's screw up every time - it is not the lack of detecting the problem by Quality Control, but some executive that overides their finding. There just may be a basis for all of these claims.....

By the way - by profession I am a Quality Assurance Manager.

 

[Dave Scarpa]

From the DVD Empire Newsletter:
The Evil Dead
Rating: 4.75 out of 5.00
Bound in human flesh, inked in blood, it's
finally here! The special "Book of the Dead"
edition of Evil Dead has arrived! Ok, so maybe
it's bound in neoprene and inked with soy.
It's still the coolest special packaging on
a DVD yet. The only complaint I have so far
is that the latex they use for the packaging
is fresh and shrink-wrapped; so when you
first open it, watch out. The smell alone is
enough to make you join the ranks of the
Army of Darkness. I highly recommend letting
it sit overnight with a fan on it,
unless you like the smell. To Read More:
http://www.dvdempire.com/eyes/deadreview

 

[Josh_Hill]

Ive had mine since Tues. and the smell pretty much is gone.

 

[David Von Pein]

I've just come up with THE perfect solution to the "bad smell" dilemma!! .......

Don't buy this DVD!!

Horrible film!

 

[Josh_Hill]

Horrible film!

Blasphemy....... :frowning:

 

[Sean Oneil]

Smells like..... Troll

 

[Will_B]

There are various "softeners" used in plastics and polyvinyl chloride, to change the plastic from hard to pliable, and they're all deadly to some extent. They're chemical additives known as phthalates, and because they do not bond with plastic, phthalates tend to stink to high heaven. Shower curtain smell (same as new car smell) is also a major carcinogen, but the immediate allergic reaction is more of a concern. Don't smell it! The more you smell now the less you can take in the future!

 

[Paul_D]

There's a lot of flippant remarks in this thread, but this actually sounds like a rather serious issue to me. If people are developing multiple symptoms (head-aches, sore throat, light-headed etc.), as a reaction to exposure to the disc case, I think that a major mistake has been made. I had this one on pre-order, but cancelled at the last minute, cos I don't have that much to spend on DVDs at the moment, and it wasn't on the top of my list. I still want to pick it up, but I'll definitely be waiting to see if an official announcement is made regarding this idiotic blunder by someone involved in production.

 

[Greg_C_T]

I smell a possible disc recall...

Sorry, bad pun.

 

[Malcolm R]

I think talk of lawsuits and recalls is going a bit overboard. I was in BB tonight and despite more than a dozen copies on the shelf, there was no smell "permeating the aisle." I also bought a copy and, though it's still wrapped, I cannot smell a thing unless I put it right up to my nose and take a big whiff.
And from what I can detect, it smells to me just like those rubber masks they sell at Halloween. It's probably made of the same stuff. The masks are generally not wrapped, so they've had a chance to "cure" properly. And people apparently put their heads inside these masks and wear them for several hours with no ill effects. So once the BOTD is unwrapped and exposed to air for a day or so (preferably outside or in a garage/basement) it should be fine.
I think it's just a typical characteristic of something made largely of petroleum products. Not a defect.
For those who are sensitive to such things, I'd suggest getting the basic version. Same video/audio and extra features, exclusive of the two documentaries, and standard plastic keepcase. And a lot cheaper to boot ($12.99 at BB vs. $29.99 for BOTD).

 

[Sean Oneil]

-"Are you allergic to latex?" is often asked when you visit the Doctor or hospital, due to the use of latex gloves.

I wonder if this DVD case is constructed with latex, and is causing some people to have an allergic reaction?

I don't own one so I can't say what it is made of.

 

[Sam Hatch]

My mom keeps trying to get high off the damned thing. Every time I glance through it, she asks to 'borrow' it and proceeds to sniff it. It's not a very appealing smell for me, but more power to her I guess.

Mine's stinky, but like others I was expecting a lot worse. I was actually thinking that my room was going to smell like chemicals but no such thing happened. I have to get pretty close to it to catch a whiff.

 

[Dana Fillhart]

Well, I visited Best Buy yesterday and hovered in the SciFi aisle for quite a few moments where probably more than 50 copies of the BotD stood. About 5 minutes later I was sneezing and my nose was dripping some snot, where it had not done so at all earlier. A few minutes after leaving the store it went away.

The first time I had seen the thing was in another Best Buy where they had an even bigger stockpile; I even picked up a copy of it to examine closely for the actual "Limited Edition" serial number (hoping like with Bad Taste to find a relatively low-number copy). I can't recall, but I don't think I suffered any ill effects that day.

Point of the story? There's no way for me to know for sure, so why should I blame it on the book? For all I know, it could've been a customer's perfume that triggered my reaction.

Remember the golden rule: Correlation is not causation.

 

[Julie K]

Remember the golden rule: Correlation is not causation.

And remember that you are not a person sensitive to various odors and chemicals. If you don't get sick when you eat a peanut, does that mean no one can?

I have allergies and sensitivities to a number of things. My reaction to the BOTD was completely in keeping with past cases.