The Day Of The Triffids (1981, BBC) on Blu-ray...... (1 Viewer)

[David Norman]

I've used several relatives addresses with no pattern showing up.

I think the items themselves are starting to look like a big/main part of the issue. Several people on Bluray.com are seeing std charges until they add a specific item (even if direct Amazon issue). Someone earlier found Bugsy was causing them to lose the std shipping option completely and Priority became the only choice, but a dfferent 5th or 6th titles just added £1.50. On the Item Pages next the price there should be a + 6.96 for Delivery not -- so far several items that say 8.99/9.08/7.99 instead of 6.96 are causing problems. The Fulfilled by Amazon items are causing more issues right now than direct Marketplace Items from places like Rarewaves via their amazon port

If that's the case then it's going to continue to be a case by case problem.


What I'd try is adding one item at a time and see what happens to shipping if you keep having the bizarre $$ show up.
Unfortunately if it's a random set of items -- Amazon is going to have to fix it or deal with tons of extra Customer Service contacts
wanting refunds (or worse)

 

[ptb2020]

Try getting Amazon to deliver to a friend locally and get them to post it on. Much cheaper!

 

[David Norman]

Try getting Amazon to deliver to a friend locally and get them to post it on. Much cheaper!

ASSUMING you can get the shipping working the way it's supposed to - no.

But even with the more expensive options it isn't likely to be cheaper to the US (Canada is a completely different problem for now) since a local delivery includes VAT. The VAT removal for many of my orders almost equals or exceeds the shipping costs

 

[Bob Cashill]

...and so, to conclude this saga, my Triffids shipped last Saturday from Amazon UK and arrived today (it often takes 10-14 days). Another order from Indicator (directly) also took a week.

 

[David Norman]

...and so, to conclude this saga, my Triffids shipped last Saturday from Amazon UK and arrived today (it often takes 10-14 days). Another order from Indicator (directly) also took a week.

Still seems to be some confusion on the region status of Triffids. Will it play in your Region A player

Someone specifically said it played in their region A Pan 820 and a couple others on a different forum said it played on their Region A players. A later poster said it was region locked though I haven't gotten confirmation of what player was being used or whether he got a "Region Mismatch" message or it just didn't play for him, I'm guessing he ran into a 50Hz issue likely with an older Sony player rather than a Region B Locked disc


Beyond that I;d love to hear your impression of the PQ since there has been more than a bit of controversy

 

[Bob Cashill]

Still seems to be some confusion on the region status of Triffids. Will it play in your Region A player

Someone specifically said it played in their region A Pan 820 and a couple others on a different forum said it played on their Region A players. A later poster said it was region locked though I haven't gotten confirmation of what player was being used or whether he got a "Region Mismatch" message or it just didn't play for him, I'm guessing he ran into a 50Hz issue likely with an older Sony player rather than a Region B Locked disc


Beyond that I;d love to hear your impression of the PQ since there has been more than a bit of controversy

It plays fine on both my Oppo BDP-93 and my Samsung BD-JM59, which was modified for all regions play. (There's no region information on the packaging that I can find.) Thus far I'm not put off by what I've seen given what I've heard but I'm not that far in.

 

[David Norman]

So sounds like most BBC TV sets -- Region Free/50Hz.

When you get a chance to watch more/most of it please throw out some more impressions

 

[Bob Cashill]

Although I don't own this (but I do have the previous DVD), here's the gist of what people who have seen it are saying on Roobarb's:

1. The film sequences all exist, and were cleaned up, so good news there. Opinion is split on the colour grading. Some people seem to think it's too vibrant and not sympathetic with the original broadcast, while the majority seem to feel the 1981 telecine was probably not very good in the first place (I remember how bad some film inserts looked back in the day), and that the new transfer likely reflects what's actually there on the film itself.
2. The re-scanning of film elements includes the opening titles sequence, meaning all the on-screen text (which was video-generated) has been re-laid in. Unfortunately, they did not use the original title cards as was done on Fawlty Towers (maybe weren't available?), so the text has all be re-created. They made a close approximation, but it's not exactly the same as the original. A minor quibble for most, admittedly.
3. A "Part One" caption has been added to part one. It wasn't there on the original broadcast, though it may have been there on some of the syndicated/worldwide versions and might explain why it was added.
4. The biggest problem for many (and for myself, honestly) is that during the restoration process, someone apparently decided to "film-ise" all of the studio/videotape footage, to try to make those sequences look more film-like. So, instead of the fluid motion of shot-on-tape video, it has sort of taken the appearance of 'shot-on-film', even though it wasn't. Although I'm sure the producers at the time would've probably liked for this to have been an all-film shoot, for purists, screwing around with framerates is akin to screwing around with aspect ratios. If they'd have wanted to be as close to the original elements as possible, instead of rendering everything 25p, they could have simply encoded the whole thing (film and all) at 50i, just like they do for UK broadcasts now, and converted to 60i for the US). The film would have still looked like film, the video would have looked like video.

The previous DVD version, it should be noted, has the studio "on-tape" sequences presented as they should be, and the original captions, but does not have a restored picture. So, unlike Fawlty Towers (which used the same master for both the remastered DVD and later blu-ray), the two releases of Triffids are a compromise whichever way you go. You either get the DVD if you want the footage to have the same motion, etc. as the original presentation (but from an off-the-shelf, un-remastered tape), or you get the Blu-Ray and watch knowing the studio sequences don't look how they were originally shown, plus other (more minor) inconsistencies.

People have contacted the BBC, and they have the attitude that this was done on-purpose, so this isn't going to get fixed.

Based on my viewing last night this is exactly right—but, never having seen it before, I was so engrossed the compromises/problems, etc., didn’t bother me on my 65” screen. (The film portions look great.) Mileage will vary on that score but it’s an excellent show.

 

[Johnny Angell]

Anyone else think the cover of this release looks almost like a cartoon? It can be bought from A.USA or UK and it looks like the price and delivery are a wash. Except I’d get my rewards point buying it USA.

Anyone know about the version with Brian Cox? Any good?

 

[jayembee]

The 1981 version is the best one. The 60s movie is fun, as an SF/"monster" movie of that day tends to be, but it's not really all that good. The Brian Cox/Dougray Scott version isn't ghastly beyond belief, but isn't especially good, either.

Turns out, I have the British DVD of the 1981 version, so when I get the Blu-ray (sometime this week, if nothing untoward happens, post-wise) I will be able to compare them to see if the the BD looks better despite the noted issues.

 

[mark27b]

Anyone else think the cover of this release looks almost like a cartoon?

Clayton Hickman produced an alternative cover

 

[Jeff Flugel]

I don't mind the new Blu cover, but Clayton Hickman's is definitely better.

Looking forward to hearing about the quality of the transfer from any members who have the set and care to chime in.

 

[mark27b]

There are also colour and font issues

I don;t mind the new Blu cover, but Clayton Hickman's is definitely better.

Looking forward to hearing about the quality of the transfer from any members who have the set and care to chime in.

They have rebuilt the titles and used the wrong font etc... and colour issues

 

[Johnny Angell]

It plays fine on both my Oppo BDP-93 and my Samsung BD-JM59, which was modified for all regions play. (There's no region information on the packaging that I can find.) Thus far I'm not put off by what I've seen given what I've heard but I'm not that far in.

Do you have to go thru the change regions procedure on your Oppo to play it? On Amazon.usa it clearly says it’s region locked.

 

[David Norman]

Do you have to go thru the change regions procedure on your Oppo to play it? On Amazon.usa it clearly says it’s region locked.

Clearly or not Amazon region lock listings are best ignored since they are wrong far more often than correct.

Triffids has been confirmed Region Free though it is 50i which the Oppo should have no trouble with

 

[Bob Cashill]

Do you have to go thru the change regions procedure on your Oppo to play it? On Amazon.usa it clearly says it’s region locked.

No.

 

[Bartman]

I received the Day Of The Triffids PAL DVD from Ebay and the picture quality is good enough not to detract enjoyment of this excellent TV series. Interestingly, my Seiki all region player was set to 2K, upscaling to 4K gave a small but useful improvement on my LG OLED TV.

When or if international mail rates return to previous norms I'll order the Blu-ray.

 

[Bartman]

For those that are curious, the BBC 2008 The Day Of The Triffids two episode series is available to stream free from Tubi, enjoy!

 

[Bartman]

I decided to buy The Day Of The Triffids Blu-ray, before it went OOP. It's a definite upgrade from the DVD and I'm glad I bought it. Even more of an upgrade is the Edge Of Darkness Blu-ray although it has the advantage of being from a newer all 16mm source, highly recommended.