IN SEARCH OF THE CASTAWAYS, THAT DARN CAT, etc. coming in PAN AND SCAN ONLY! (1 Viewer)

[Mark_TS]

ISOT Castaways is listed as 1:75 on iMDb....

Corporate Stupidity.

 

[MatthewA]

Eisner's still here until September, you know...

 

[MarcoBiscotti]

If the Shaggy Dog films aren't MAR, I will be really pissed.



Whoever's heading this company's home video department is a complete idiot. They are so out of touch it's scary. Nothing from Disney has ever been consistent in the past 20 years...

 

[rich_d]

quote:What are these people thinking?

Marketing will try to sell you this stuff as many times as they can, it's true. But I suspect that this is more incompetence than thoughtful scheming.

After all, what makes us think there is much talent left at Di$ney?

 

[MarcoBiscotti]

But... Disney hasn't ever tried to sell me any of this before. Where's the upgraded version of "Honey I Shrunk The Kids" or any of their horrid lackluster 1st issue live-action releases from years back? I don't think there's any motive here apart from ignorance.

 

[Ken_McAlinden]

Not for the purpose of a DVD release. The current Darby DVD looks and sounds quite nice, better, in fact than some of the Vault Disney releases. There are some problems with the title opticals and some less than stellar vocal dubbing, which might not be fixable, but there are a lot of other Disney films I would want them to revisit on DVD before this one.

Regards,

 

[AnthonyC]

Another MAR-only title: Heavyweights. Knowing that it's not a title that Disney would ever revisit, I bought it. Horrible transfer, looked like it was direct from the VHS. No extras, nothing. Now this isn't a title I'd expect a 2-disc SE from, but at least put some effort into it.

It's a shame that Disney doesn't realize that kids really couldn't care less about the aspect ratio.

 

[rich_d]

I'm guessing that this sentence didn't come out as you intended it ...

 

[Ernest Rister]

Not for the purpose of a DVD release. The current Darby DVD looks and sounds quite nice, better, in fact than some of the Vault Disney releases.

I don't know what disc you've got -- the one I own has positive and negative density artifacts throughout the entire film, especialy noticeable during the opticals. Treasure Island looks gorgeous, Darby looks like a somewhat beat-up film print.

 

[AnthonyC]

I mean that they always say things like how children only want to watch movies that are fullscreen. But most kids probably don't care if the movie takes up the whole screen or just part of it.

 

[Mark_TS]

exactly. since they DONT care-get them used to widescreen NOW.

now if we could get OAR, 16x9 enhanced issues of

CASTAWAYS
NIGHTMARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS
[what where they thinking, doing 4:3 Ltbx on a second-issue "SE"???
ROMY AND MICHELLE's HIGH SCHOOL REUNION
[guilty pleasure]

 

[Ken_McAlinden]

We must not be watching the same DVD presentation. There was not a lot of digital clean-up compared to some releases, but it is a generally outstanding transfer, with very mild film-source related artifacts. Are you basing your comments on the R1 release?

Regards,

 

[Larry P]

It's situations like this that show that Disney really does have some major problems. This just should not be happening in the year 2005. I hope this information is wrong. Disney should just go back to producing VHS if they want to do this!

There aren't all that many adventure/fantasy films prior to the late sixties that can still work for today's audiences but I believe In Search of the Castaways is one of them. I think this would have looked great on the shelf next to Disney's recent Around the World in 80 Days. Jules Verne's stories have a huge presence in Disney's theme parks, so I think they could have sold some of these.

"That Darn Cat!" is a great classic Disney animal comedy, that they even remade, and both films will now be in incorrect aspect ratios apparently. Hayley Mills was wonderful, the Lindsay Lohan of her time (and much better IMO), and it's too bad Disney doesn't realize that they could still make money off of her. But Disney just treats all of it's fans like they are 8 or younger and can't remember anything prior to the year 2000, asides from their animated features.

 

[LukeB]

Actually the 1997 remake IS non-anamorphic widescreen, despite packaging that claimed Fullscreen. Of course, I'd rather have the Hayley Mills version done right, but there's no really need for reformatting to fill 4x3 screens at this point.

 

[Bill Thomann]

It's a crime the way they're treating one of the 2 biggest live action stars they've ever had (along with Annette F). Hayley did 6 theatrical films for them & they really did justice to Pollyanna & Parent Trap. Unfortunately Moon-Spinners, Summer Magic, In Search Of The Castaways & That Darn Cat will not be joining them in my library with all 4 being bare boned p&s. I wonder if they realize the money they're losing with such an inept home video dept.

 

[Jon Martin]

I don't think they are, though.

I mean, has anyone really gone out shopping in a Wal Mart or some mainstream retailer and listened to people talk about DVDs? Unlike everyone here, they really don't care about the widescreen/fullscreen debate. For every one person who says "I REFUSE TO BUY A FULLSCREEN TITLE!!" there are ten who don't know the difference.

The last five times I've heard a clerk ask "Do you want widescreen or fullscreen" the answer has always been either "I don't care" or "Fullscreen".

 

[Scott Shanks]

Lt. Robin Crusoe (with Dick Van Dyke) is also listed as fullscreen only.

 

[rich_d]

Each of us can make a difference. Word of mouth is more powerful than any marketing scheme around. If you like movies you are my friend and friends don't let friends buy foolscreen.

When I hear someone asking for a fullscreen version or discussing which version to buy, I apologize for butting in but inquire as to why they are considering fullscreen.

I don't give esoteric answers or talk about director's intent and stuff like that. I keep it short and simple. I tell them that I hate to see them lose money on a purchase or pass on a DVD that their friends and family won't appreciate. Invariably they ask why and I say that fullscreen is going the way of the dinosaur and many companies have already stopped producing them altogether. That usually is enough to get the point across.

Btw, consumers are much more likely to listen to what you have to say than any clerk. I'm guessing that I've done this 10 times and only once did the person not go away with the widescreen version. The one that got away with fullscreen was kinda interesting ... the clerk actually was trying to talk her into widescreen and she said no ... I pardoned myself and asked her why and she (quite angrily) said that she knew all about the differences. My guess is that someone hurt her feelings at some point discussing this whole thing, but it sure shut me up in a heartbeat.

Heck, 9 out of 10 ain't bad.

 

[Jesse Skeen]

The "FULLSCREEN" term MUST stop being used. Not today, but yesterday.

 

[Jon Martin]

I was in a Media Play a few weeks ago. A couple were pre-ordering a title and the clerk asked if they wanted widescreen or fullscreen. The couple said fullscreen.

Believe it or not, the clerk then got out some literature to explain the difference between the two and why they should go with the widescreen. He spent several minutes going over the differences, eventually getting them to pre-order the widescreen version.

I was very impressed by that.