'Mask of Zorro' SE - 5 star ratings by BigPictureDVD (1 Viewer)

[Brajesh Upadhyay]

http://www.thebigpicturedvd.com/cgi-bin/master/viewer.cgi/The_Mask_Of_Zorro_Se -- it seems to better the original DVD's picture & audio quality, which were already reference quality.

 

[Luis A]

That review is dead on. I had a chance to view the SE about a week ago, and the picture and sound on the SE is by far better than the original. I'll be selling my original copy today and get the SE tomorrow. L

 

[Jeff Adams]

Is this movie out yet?
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"I'm your Huckelberry"

 

[GlennH]

It streeted today, 9/25.
My copy from Amazon won't arrive till next month since I included it with some other stuff and chose to save on the shipping. No matter; too much else to watch/too little time anyway.
I never bought the first release, just rented it and then put it on my "buy someday" list. So when the SE was announced I jumped on it.

 

[Robert George]

Before dumping the original version of Mask of Zorro I would suggest a side-by-side comparison. I've looked at both and I will not be getting rid of the originla version. In fact, I find the video slightly better on the first disc compared to the new "special edition". One need only look at the specs to get an idea what to expect...
Original disc:
Single DVD-9
137 minute film
One Dolby Digital 5.1 track (384 kb/s)
One Dolby Digital 2.0 track (192 kb/s)
One subtitle track
Theatrical trailer
Featurette (8 min.)
A handful of still frame photos
Special Edition:
Single DVD-9 (second disc contains fullscreen transfer)
137 minute fil
One English Dolby Digital 5.1 track (448 kb/s)
One English DTS track (768 kb/s)
One French Dolby Digital 5.1 track (448 kb/s)
One commentary track (192 kb/s)
Three subtitle tracks
Documentary (45 min.)
Deleted scenes (5 min.)
Two trailers (5 min.)
Twelve TV spots (5 1/2 min.)
Music video (5 min.)
Full motion menus
Various and sundry still frame sections
You do the math. A DVD-9 holds the same amount of data today as it did three years ago. The DVD format still has a maximum data transfer rate of about 10 mb/s. Sony is still using what is essentially the same proprietary MPEG encoder as they were three years ago. This does not appear to be a new film transfer.
If one is truly interested in a better looking version of this film, I suggest waiting for the inevitable Superbits version (maybe). On the other hand, the supplements on the new disc are okay.
[Edited last by Robert George on September 25, 2001 at 05:31 PM]

 

[Dmitry]

Original disc:
Single DVD-9
137 minute film
One Dolby Digital 5.1 track (448 kb/s)

A small correction -- the DD 5.1 track on the original disk (at least on my copy) is at 384 kb/s, not 448 kb/s. I just checked after receiving the SE.

 

[Robert George]

Thanks, Dmitry. I had the SE disc in the drive when I checked the audio stream data. I corrected my post.

 

[Dmitry]

Correcting the great Obi -- that just made my day!

But lower bitrate on the audio only means that they had even more space available for the video -- of course, the question is whether they've used it (on the original).

 

[DanR]

Robert,
Aren't you inherently assuming the first release used the maximum bitrate and also used the entire space on the disc? It might have, I just don't know for sure.
Also, I'm not totally sure, but I thought Sony was claiming a "more efficient" proprietary video encoding scheme in mid-1999.
Regards,
Dan

 

[Robert George]

Dan:
Sony does claim greater efficiency with their encoder, and in my experience their claims are more than just hype. However, I decided to take out both discs again and turn on the bit rate meter in my player (the RP91 bit rate meter carries the reading out to three decimal places).
Sampling the opening 5 minutes on each disc, I estimate the average bit rate on the original disc runs somewhere between 5 and 10% above the SE overall with peaks over 9 mb/s on the first disc and nothing over about 8.1 on the SE (and that only once that I saw). Also, don't forget that on top of the SE having a lower average bit rate, less of the stream is given over to video. Well over a meg/sec less than the original disc.
Looking at these two discs again, I see less fine detail, weaker color, and a darker look to the new disc.

 

[Bjoern Roy]

Interesting to hear, Obi! I am eagerly awaiting my copy. Since i also have the non-SE, i will also compare the 2.
Are they identical EE-wise? The final battle was halo parade on the non-SE.
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[DanR]

Robert,
Thanks for the bit-rate "test". The results you saw with your own eyes are interesting. Still, as I'm sure you would agree, I'm going to purchase this disc and check it out. It's one of my favorite movies of the past 3-4 years; so the SE is most welcome.
Regards,
Dan

 

[Jason Merrick]

Obi,
Which disk would you recommend to someone who doesn't have the original? Price being equal, would you buy the original or the SE if they were side by side on the shelf?
I hope the differences are "slight" as you say, since I eagerly awaited this SE! I didn't purchase the original because I had heard of the impending SE, I hope I didn't make the wrong decision!
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[Bjoern Roy]

I also hope the differences Obi noted are only slight. I was looking forward to replacing my non-SE

 

[Robert George]

Jason:
That's a difficult question to answer for someone else. Certainly the SE does not look "bad". Actually, it looks quite good. However, my first priority is the film presentation. If I were given the choice now between the two discs I have that I could only keep one, I would probably choose the original disc. YMMV, of course.

 

[GlennH]

What a pity they couldn't have used that second disc for all the extras and made disc 1 a "superbits"-like disc.
Having a P&S version on disc 2 is a waste of plastic.

 

[Brajesh Upadhyay]

I already sold my original DVD; now I wish I'd waited a while. My SE DVD is still on its way.
DVDFile's review is more reassuring. I'd be happy if picture & audio quality were as good as the original.
Re: Video...

The original Dolby Digital track from the 1998 DVD release ran at 384 kilobits per second; this new track runs at 448 kilobits per second. Despite the lower level of compression, I could not discern any audible differences between the two as I switched back and forth between two players playing the original disc and the new release.

The DTS track is noted as a "subtle improvement" over the DD track.

 

[Robert George]

What a pity they couldn't have used that second disc for all the extras and made disc 1 a "superbits"-like disc.

That would have been a "special" edition, unlike what we got.

 

[Dmitry]

That would have been a "special" edition, unlike what we got.

I think what we got is commonly referred to as Ultimate edition

 

[Matt Wallace]

(snicker, snicker) Ulitimate Edition - ha!
Matt
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"And I say I'm dead, and I move"....
[Edited last by Matt Wallace on September 27, 2001 at 12:22 AM]