Has there ever been a perfect, uncontested DVD? (1 Viewer)

[earl_roberts]

My Perfect, Could Never Do Without, Would Grab First If The House Was On Fire DVD's Are:

Do The Right Thing: Criterion Collection
E.T: 3 Disc Limited Edition
The Godfather: DVD Collection

Be extremely hard pressed to find faults with E.T and The Godfather, Do The Right Thing is flawless!

 

[WillKTaylor]

I might add Monster's Inc. in there somewhere. No DTS, however and like Fight Club, the soundtrack rivals those of which have been mentioned.

 

[Patrick McCart]

I don't think anything is wrong with The Producers. It's an older film, so it escapes the "DTS must be on there" mantra. The video and audio are both perfect and the extras are great.

Pee-Wee's Big Adventure is another...I don't think anyone could really find anything wrong with the DVD.

 

[Josh Steinberg]

As far as classic releases go (so take in consideration that there's no way that prints of these films would ever be perfect), I really like the Lost Horizon DVD. The movie quality ranges from great to awful, and there's still about seven minutes missing picture where they use stills to fill in the holes, but it's a fabulous movie and this is the best it's looked in a long time. The extras are great too: the feature-length commentary with restoration artist Bob Gitt is very informative and a joy to listen to.

I think Fox's new "Sunrise" DVD is outstanding.

Despite the slight alteration to the Pastoral Symphony segment, the Fantasia Anthology box set is amazing; Fantasia and Fantasia 2000, DD and DTS soundtracks, hour-long making of specials for each film, two commentaries for each film, conceptual art, production notes, deleted segments, segments in progress, etc., etc.

 

[Magnus T]

I might add Monster's Inc. in there somewhere. No DTS,

That's funny, mine has a DTS track. Then again, I have the R2 UK 2 disc SE.

 

[Louis C]

Although no DVD releases are perfect (as long as people will vary on what makes a good set), I found these to be exceptional (not yet mentioned here):

Once Upon a Time in America (The new relase, director's intended version)
Dances With Wolves DE
Jerry Maguire SE
Star Trek II - The Wrath of Kahn
JFK DE

 

[Nathan*W]

Um, that should be: Star Trek II - The Wrath of Khan, not Kahn.

 

[Nathan*W]

Oops, double post. (my first one!)

 

[James Reader]

Of course none of them are perfect - no SDDS soundtracks!

My vote is for the Rocky Horror Picture Show from Fox. I can't believe nobody has mentioned this yet. A good fun release with lots of fantastic supplements (love the b/w opening Easter Egg) but most importantly the original mono soundtrack and an all new 5.1 remix which keeps the original singing tracks - unlike the crappy stereo soundtrack we have been stuck with in the past.

Still, Fox reports this set has sold way below expectations. :frowning: Everyone, go out now and buy this two disc set and appreciate DVD prefection!

 

[Voon Jiet]

I am surprised no one mentioned Band of Brothers.

This set blew me away. I can't find a single complaint!

Otherwise, I concur with Se7en and Godfather Trilogy as well.

 

[Adam Horak]

Definetily not the Godfather Trilogy for me. The transfers are sub-par. For as much as I had to shell out for that set I expect the transfers to be second to none.

Band of Brothers is a great choice. My only problem with that is the pain-in-the-ass super long foldout to get to a disc.

 

[rich_d]

Definitely not the Godfather Trilogy for me. The transfers are sub-par. For as much as I had to shell out for that set I expect the transfers to be second to none.

I don't think that it was the transfer that was sub-par but the source materials. Others have commented that the original elements are in poor shape. I don't know if that is true - but if it is that would explain much.

Hopefully they will restore these great films. Then (of course) they will have an improved DVD to try to sell us.

 

[Damin J Toell]

I don't think that it was the transfer that was sub-par but the source materials. Others have commented that the original elements are in poor shape. I don't know if that is true - but if it is that would explain much.

It's very true. As Robert Harris explained in an interview with The Onion a few years ago:

"The Godfather is a mess. The Godfather is as bad as Rear Window. ... It's the period and the way they're handled, and The Godfather was butchered by the laboratories. It was handled horribly, like a piece of garbage."

DJ

 

[Larry Talbot]

I agree with those who say SEVEN. Out of all the DVDs I've ever seen, that one has the best picture and sound quality. I believe both picture and sound were specially remastered for the DVD and it absolutely shows.

For me a perfect DVD is all about three things: maximum picture quality, maximum sound quality, and not screwing up the original version by deleting and/or adding scenes (unless the added scenes are merely included as extras).

Wait, I forgot a fourth quality, one that should go without saying but I think often doesn't on this forum: the actual FILM has to be excellent to begin with. In other words, I could care less about the Special Edition THX Certified Five Disc Director's Cut of Patch Adams. No matter how nice the presentation, it's useless if the film is worthless to begin with.

For the most part I couldn't care less about special features. Every once in a while I'll see a documentary about the making of a film that actually adds to the experience of viewing the film (latest example would be the doc's on Spider - really enhanced my take on the movie itself) but those are the exceptions. Most "making of" documentaries are fluff, pure and simple. I'd gladly trade them in for enhanced visual/audio quality.

PS: People keep mentioning the Toy Story box collection. Is the actual quality of the boxed set better than in the single versions of the films?

 

[Adam Horak]

Regardless of the reason behind the poor looking Godfather discs, they still look poor. That means its far from a perfect DVD set for me. The set is also way too expensive. The MSRP is $55 more than the upcoming Indiana Jones trilogy and the street price is $30-$40 more.

Thanks for that link to the interview with Robert Harris. There is some good stuff in there. Another comment he made in the interview seems to indicate that the "restoration" of the Godfather films was very poorly done.

 

[Christ Reynolds]

has everyone forgotten about brazil cc? probably the most important dvd that can illustrate how critical editing is to a movie. plus a ton of extras too

CJ

 

[Jesse Leonard]

has everyone forgotten about brazil cc? probably the most important dvd that can illustrate how critical editing is to a movie. plus a ton of extras too

Nope, its non-anamorphic.

 

[Scott Weinberg]

Nope, its non-anamorphic.

Criterion's Brazil was my first pick too, but I knew the non-anamorphic status would preclude its acceptance.

Valid complaint on an otherwise flawless DVD package.

 

[ChristopherBlig]

Donnie Brasco, one of the few set in 70s flicks that did more justice on DVD. Everything on here from the featurettes and trailers to the isolated music track were things that should have been taken note for a movie set in the 70s while planning Saturday Night Fever's release onto DVD. They blew it, but Donnie didn't, great commentary track and great extras, what can I say

 

[Eric Eash]

i'll put a vote in for band of brothers. i'm partial to war flicks being in the military though. godfather trilogy, LOTR, fight club 2 disc, anything pixar, matrix, fifth element superbit, pearl harbor, and gladiator. can't wait for LOTR:TT EE, finding nemo, matrix reloaded, hulk, national lampoons DSP edition. the wife is looking forward to chicago and the lion king. i'm betting that at least half of these will be near perfect. i'll be throughly upset if they aren't.

eric