How Is BLADERUNNER on DVD? (1 Viewer)

[Anthony Neilson]

Mark - get on over to the Studio Feedback and add your name !
I know it may all come to nothing but at least we know that Warners do pay some attention to this site. It's worth a try, right ?

 

[Jack Briggs]

Again, I wouldn't call the current disc's picture quality "poor" at all. It does indeed have that early-DVD look, but it's quite good I think.

 

[Chuck Stephens]

I agree with Jack on this one. The current dvd may have been one of the first released but the quality is certainly not "poor", if anything it amazes me how good it is considering it came out in 1997. The only thing other than the bit of edge enhancement that bothers me on is are the two vertical black bars running on the either side of the frame. Most people probably won't notice this unless there TV has no overscan but because I watch most of my dvds on my computer it shows up.

 

[Will_B]

The expression I want to use involves a donkey, but I'll refrain and just say this is sad to hear. I can't imagine how sad it was for Zinema, who had his sights set on making this the best ultimate edition ever. Or at least the most personally relevant.

On the plus side, maybe some of the people involved in the dispute are old and might pass away sooner than the rest of us will.

I hope that at least a commentary track was recorded before work stopped, so if any cigar-chomping folks happen to shuffle off, we'll still get his insight into his "flawed masterwork."

 

[Jim C]

Again, I wouldn't call the current disc's picture quality "poor" at all. It does indeed have that early-DVD look, but it's quite good I think.

perhaps 'poor' was the wrong way of putting it, but the transfer on the current DC DVD could be much, much better, by todays standards. I popped my Alien DVD on the other day and the picture quality is magnificent for a film of it's age. Personally, I can't say the same for the BR DVD.

 

[DaViD Boulet]

Some trivia about the current PQ on the "D.C." Blade Runner DVD:


The transfer/master was produced *prior* to the DVD format. Warner had been producing 16x9 standard-def (PAL resolution) transfers for some time before the advent of DVD. They would do a 16x9 PAL transfer as the "master" and then downconvert for 4x3 and 16x9 480-resolution (remember those anamorphic laserdiscs?).

Anyway...the point to sharing this is that not only was Blade Runner one of the very first DVDs (was among the first handful of titles Warner produced during the "test market" DVD excercise in major cities...when MPEG2 compression was in its infancy), but the film-tape transfer was even older.

The same film elements transfered to day with modern equipment at the 1080 24P resolution, downconvered digitally to stadard def and compressed with state-of-the-art MPEG2 compression techniques would produce an image markedly improved over the current DVD.

The early Amadeus DVD shares a similar history...and we've seen what an improvement the new DVD has gained!

-dave

 

[Geoff_D]

Judging by the previous dvd, the DC would require a lot of work to get it looking 'good' by today's standards, so I don't think Warner will bother. The positive elements alone have numerous specks and scratches which would be highlighted even more by a new transfer. As David has described it'd still look nicer than the current release, but IMO they would need to find/create much better elements to give BR the transfer it deserves.

 

[Zen Butler]

While we're at it, Zen, is there anywhere on the Web that offers a definitive explanation of where matters stand for the SE? This has to be the most-delayed DVD release ever. All the work on it has to have been finished for some time

Jack I have no idea at all :cough: "check my signature!" :cough:

The Official Blade Runner SE Thread :cough:


Future Noir


(/end cough)

 

[Zen Butler]

Another interest would be Amazon USA (Dec 2003), will be offering what looks to be some sort of reissue of
Don Shay's

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg...15847?v=glance

It's not new and basically a reissue/repackaging of the 1982 Cinefex Mag #9 EXT. Issue. Still should be of interest to those who don't own it.

 

[Will_B]

That book was released a year ago in the UK; it was a popular import among the fans. Appears to be a domestic printing at last.

 

[Will_B]

Zen, that documentary is "The Edge of Blade Runner." I have a synopsis of it, but it is in ALL CAPS, sorry about that:

A 52 MINUTE DOCUMENTARY WHICH TRACKS THE HISTORY AND LEGACY OF RIDLEY SCOTT'S SEMINAL DYSTOPIAN THRILLER,NOW THOUGHT OF AS THE MOST INFLUENTIAL SCI-FI MOVIE EVER MADE...

THIS DOCUMENTARY IS SO RARE NOT EVEN THE ACTORS INTERVIEWED OWN A COPY....HOW DO I KNOW THIS?,WELL A FRIEND OF JOE TURKEL (TYRELL) CONTACTED ME ABOUT THIS... HE HAD BEEN AFTER IF FOR A WHILE AND TOLD ME NOT EVEN JOE HIMSELF HADNT SEEN THE FINAL PRODUCT.....

NEVER BROADCAST OUTSIDE THE UK IT WAS SHOWN ONCE ON THE BRITISH TELEVISION CHANNEL C4 3 YEARS AGO ,PRESENTED BY MARK KERMODE (WELL KNOWN ENGLISH CULT FILM CRITIC) AND FEATURES PREVIOUSLY UNSEEN FOOTAGE (THE DECKARD HOSPITAL SCENE) AND ORIGINAL SPECIAL EFFECTS FOOTAGE ,PART OF A PREVIOUS INTERVIEW WITH PHILLIP .K.DICK, AND INTERVIEWS FROM THE FOLLOWING...

RUTGER HAUER ,DARYL HANNAH, WILLIAM SANDERSON (J.F SEBASTIAN) ,JOE TURKEL (TYRELL) ,M EMMETT WALSH (BRYANT) ,JOANNA CASSIDY (ZHORA) ,JAMES CHONG (CHEW) ,HAMPTON FANCHER (SCREENWRITER) ,PAUL M SIMON (AUTHOR OF "FUTURE NOIR") ,MICHAEL DEELEY (PRODUCER) ,DAVID PEOPLES (CO-WRITER) ,KATHERINE HABER (PRODUCTION EXECTUIVE) ,BUD YORKIN (CO -FINANCIER) ,DAVID SNYDER (ART DIRECTOR) ,LAWRENCE PAULL (PRODUCTION DESIGN) ,DOUGLAS TRUMBULL (VISUAL EFFECTS )

..............AND OF COURSE RIDLEY SCOTT ,WHERE FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER HE FINALLY REVEALS THE ANSWER TO THE QUESTION OF WHETHER DECKARD IS HUMAN OF REPLICANT

FIND OUT WHY SCOTT AND FORD FELL OUT,WHY SCOTT WAS FIRED BEFORE THE FILM WAS FINISHED,WHAT PHILLIP K DICK THOUGHT OF HIS NATIVE AMERICANS ,WHAT HAURE THOUGHT OF FORDS CHARACTER ,WHAT LIFE CHANGING EVENT HAPPENED TO SCOTT JUST BEFORE FILMING, WHO WROTE THE LEGENDARY "TEARS IN RAIN" LINES 1 HOUR BEFORE THE SCENE WAS FILMED AND MORE........

This documentary was supposed to have been part of the Definitive Edition, but with that appearing to not happen in our lifetimes, we can only hope that the producers of the documentary will sell it seperately.

 

[Zen Butler]

Thanks Will, I found the post finally.

Cinefile Video(Santa Monica & Sawtelle) has a PAL conversion.

Information compliments of Mark Cappelletty

 

[EricW]

just for the record, wasn't it Rutger Hauer who thought of the film's "tears in rain" ending? i recall him saying something toward that end on a talkshow once (i believe it was on Whoopi Goldberg's shortlived nighttime talkshow), but this was like 10 years ago so i don't really remember.

 

[DannyS]

oh, yes. It was Rutger alright.

He wrote it in his caravan and read it to ridley just before the scene was shot.

 

[Jim C]

Zen, that documentary is "The Edge of Blade Runner." I have a synopsis of it, but it is in ALL CAPS, sorry about that:

It's a fab doc - one of the best I've seen. I have a copy on SVHS - must dig it out and watch it again. If memory serves the doc has the famous Hospital deleted scene as well as some deleted SFX footage.