The Mummy Returns...the end of rental OAR? (1 Viewer)

[Bob Ruby]

I believe the bigger question is why the studios do not provide the full screen and wide screen versions on the same DVD??
That was the whole beauty of DVDs. You had a choice of which version you wanted to watch.
It has to be less expensive for the studios to produce and market one dual version DVD than two single version DVDs.
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[Mark McLeod]

Just did a check of the local video stores in my area.
Blockbuster : All Widescreen
Video Update : All P&S
Interesting to note that the pan and scan version doesn't have the gold bar at the top or bottom and is all black making the words "Full Frame" hard to read.
M.

 

[AaronMK]

Bob,
Because picture quality suffers and it usually leaves no room for extras. (Universal would definetly hated to have to ditch their promtional materials.... er... I mean extras on The Mummy Returns)
When both versions are on the same disc, they usually devote a single layer to each version. Even without extras, and with good compression work, many movies can't fit onto a single layer without very visible compresion artifacts.
Therefore, The best possible release structure if they must give people a P&S versions is two releases or a double disc set.
With two releases, each is usually given a dual layered disc, which is usually adequete for great picture quality on the feature with room for a few extras.
With a single two disc release, they can still devote the additional space required for a quality presantation for each version (picture quality wise at least, it is not possible to have a quality P&S presantation) and spread the extras over the additional space on each of the discs. Dreamworks is doing this with Shrek.
Or, if the masses would wisen up, stop being stubborn about having to have a P&S release, and realize why OAR is so much better, then we could have more two disc OAR only releases. We would have an entire dual-layer disc devoted to presenting the feature with the best quality and a second disc with a boatload of extras. There would be no need for Superbit (since that is what the feature discs would essentially be), and we would get more packages like Gladiator, T2: Ultimate Edition, and Fox's Five Star releases.
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My DVD's
If a movie is not available in OAR, than it might as well not be available at all.
[Edited last by AaronMK on October 06, 2001 at 05:58 PM]

 

[Gavin K]

Well I must be special, my response from the blockbuster website said that a field representative would be contacting me within 3-5 days. Should be interesting.
In regards to this thread being full of alarmists, my point of view is that between the Terminator, the Godfather, Star Wars, Monty Python and the Holy Grail, and the Beastmaster my buying dollars are already spent, but I would still like to see movies like Mummy Returns, and the Animal without having to purchase them. And unfortunately BB has driven out all of the competition. My choices are BB, Albertson's, or a small hispanic video store of which 75% of their stock is porn. There is a cool new/used DVD shop that rents anything in the store near where I work. But I live about thirty minutes from work, and the store is another fifteen minutes on the other side of the office. For the most part I use BB for new releases and older films like dressed to kill and blood simple.
The upside is convenience. The down side is no obscure titles or uncut stuff, but most of that that holds my interest I purchase, and a complete lack of knowledge by the employees - (one employee told my wife tonight "I know it's widescreen, I watched it this afternoon and it filled up my whole screen, so I saw the whole picture.") But since I am knowledgeable, I don't need their assistance anyway.
So I do not think that BB stocking fullscreen only is a sign of the end of OAR, but I do think it is poor business practice for a company that is succeeding despite itself, and is extremely insulting and frustrating to their customers.

 

[Peter Kim]

Gavin, could you post your experience once it happens? I'd like to hear what a live BB rep has to say. Wonder if a 'field representative' is more in tune with the consumers than that which is revealed by their corporate gobbledy-gook.

 

[Brett Cameron]

Universal should have used the DVD-14 format(one side dual layered, one side single layered). MGM is using it on Legally Blonde(dual layer side has both widescreen/p&s and single layer side has the extras). This is what studios should use for their releases so we don't have to worry about stores not carrying the widescreen version.

 

[ScottCC]

I dislike P&S as much as anyone and will only watch movies in OAR. However why do some people insist on going on a crusade to inform people of the benefits of OAR and how crap P&S is. The enthuasts who buy hundreds of movies a year will always prefer OAR and these were the main buyers of DVDs at the start which is why we mostly saw OAR. Now that DVD has become more mainstream we are seeing OAR and P&S releases of movies. And people are complaining saying we should take P&S DVDs of the market and force these people to buy either OAR DVDs or P&S tapes. The fact is there is a market now for P&S DVDs and the studios will fill it to cash in on it and i dont blame them. As long as they always churn out a OAR version as well, i dont care if they do a P&S as well. If this bothers you then get a f**king life. If people want to watch P&S than that's there choice, same as it's my choice to watch OAR. I'm certainly not going to waste my time trying to teach them how bad P&S is. You'll just end up looking like a nerd. Live and let live.

 

[Brian Kidd]

I have an idea. After complaining to BB and getting back a similar automated reply, I think I'm gonna send them a real nonsense email and see if they reply to it. Could be fun! [sarcasm]It's nice to know that they take the time to read their email. They must really care about their customers![/sarcasm]

 

[Gavin K]

Quote: "The fact is there is a market now for P&S DVDs and the studios will fill it to cash in on it and i dont blame them."
Therein lies the problem. The mainstream vastly outnumbers us enthusiasts. So eventually, OAR may not be worth the efforts to studios. Read the Studio Day report section concerning dreamworks. 90 million households still have only VHS and 54 million of those households still buy VHS. Once those households begin converting to DVDs and still want P&S do you think the studios will still care about us?
As long as people like Mr. Staddon remain in charge I would hope so. But then again, you don't see FOX pulling this dual release crap. (Thank You Mr. Staddon).
I for one don't want to wait until its too late, and when the majority of J6Packs rent from BB, and Hollywood video, and their employees don't know shit from shinola when it comes to their product it hurts everyone.

 

[Francois L]

Is it full frame or pan & scan?
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"My god, it`s full of stars!"

 

[Jesse Skeen]

"Read the Studio Day report section concerning dreamworks. 90 million households still have only VHS and 54 million of those households still buy VHS. Once those households begin converting to DVDs and still want P&S do you think the studios will still care about us?"
What makes everyone think that ALL households will "convert" to DVD? A lot of people think VHS is still "good enough".

 

[Matty B]

Correct me if I'm wrong here, but in 2006/2007 won't ALL broadcasts be in HDTV, completely antiquating analog signals? I would think that would foreshadow the death of VHS completely. 5/6 years isn't that long, DVD has been out that long as it is, and it seems like it just got here. I'm not worried because I have yet to find a movie that I wanted to PURCHASE that wasn't available in OAR format. If you are REALLY serious about Cinema, I believe you would purchase the movie you wanted to see anyway, because it would require multiple viewings. A movie like the Mummy Returns doesn't require multiple viewings. I saw it in the theaters. I feel you could block out half of the screen with a big yellow smiley face and the effect of the movie would be the same. When it comes to true CINEMA, it is at that point in which OAR becomes important, and you won't see P&S versions released. We only need to whether the storm for 5 to 6 more years, which admittedly IS a long time and it would be NICE to be able to rent whatever we would like, but as long as the medium IS available, there is no need to sound the alarm bell. On a side note, I refuse to rent P&S DVD, because it feels weird to me, and I've got a 4:3 TV. It has a much bigger picture than my friends 16:9 mits though, one of the benefits of bigscreen 4:3 HDTV. Bigger picture than a 16:9, and it displays 4:3 material correctly. There are some things that will never look as good in 16:9 as they will in 4:3, IE Sports. Sports are vertical things, I don't even think of them as horizontal, that could be because I am used to playing them though. I think that referring to the masses as "Joe six pack" is kind of hipocritical when most of us DON'T live our lifes according to the finest standards. How many people here can say that all of their clothes are tailored, they drive bentleys, porches, and jags, and they live in the country club? THAT is elitism. Living in the burbs, or in a townhouse with a very expensive home theater, while the rest of your life rests in the doldrums seems like false elitism to me, or hipocrisy in the highest form.

 

[Ryan Wright]

When both versions are on the same disc, they usually devote a single layer to each version. Even without extras, and with good compression work, many movies can't fit onto a single layer without very visible compresion artifacts.

So release a single, dual-layer dual-sided disc. I own many discs that have P&S on one side and WS on the other.
Oh, but then Joe Six Pack will complain because the pretty graphics on the front of the disc are gone. The bastard.
I, too, sent a complaint to Blockbuster - even though I never rent movies. I figure $18 to own the disc is half of what it would cost to take the family out to the theater, so what the hell...
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-Ryan (http://www.ryanwright.com )
Before you criticize someone, walk a mile in their shoes.
That way, when you do criticize them, you'll be a mile away and you'll have their shoes.

 

[Rob Tomlin]

I just opened my Netflix envelope with "The Mummy Returns" in it. DAMN!!! The disc says "FULLSCREEN"!!!
I will have to return this to Netflix without watching it. I have a Mitsubishi HDTV and Progressive scan player, which locks in the stretch mode, so this will appear distorted on my screen.
Universal screwed up on this one. So ironic, I posted a very nice review on their release of Cape Fear, which was VERY well done. Why they felt the need to issue two seperate DVD's for widescreen and pan and scan doesn't make any sense. Thumbs down!

 

[Rex Bills]

It pays to complain!! I made a huge stink at Hollywood Video's all DVD store in Portland about their copies of "Mummy Returns" being all fullscreen and had a friend complain, too. Then I emailed Hollywood about it. Two days later the store had twenty copies in Widescreen as well as several copies of the collector's edition which has both versions! BE VERY VOCAL ABOUT THIS!!

 

[Ryan Wright]

Double post. Sorry.
[Edited last by Ryan Wright on October 11, 2001 at 05:12 PM]

 

[Ryan Wright]

as well as several copies of the collector's edition which has both versions!

You sure about this? The "Collector's Edition" was released in both versions, but a single purchase is either/or. That is, you can't get both versions in the same package. You'd have to buy two copies, one "Collector's Edition Fullscreen" and one "Collector's Edition Widescreen".
As for Blockbuster. Their response to me says they are forwarding my complaint on to the appropriate department for further review. Not bad.
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-Ryan (http://www.ryanwright.com )
Before you criticize someone, walk a mile in their shoes.
That way, when you do criticize them, you'll be a mile away and you'll have their shoes.

 

[Robyn Young]

Well, more bad news. We just got our copies of Cats and Dogs at hw video, and all the rental copies were the fullscreen version. I had thought we won the Cats and Dogs war regarding the addition, or at least provision of a widescreen version, so I can only guess this is yet another hideously bad marketing decision.
I'm pretty annoyed, because I would have thought warner would just put both versions on the same disc.
Anyway, I could be mistaken about the availability of a widescreen version, but if not, then this is just plain bad. The funny thing is that the menus are in widescreen...
robyn

 

[Robyn Young]

Well, more bad news. We just got our copies of Cats and Dogs at hw video, and all the rental copies were the fullscreen version. I had thought we won the Cats and Dogs war regarding the addition, or at least provision of a widescreen version, so I can only guess this is yet another hideously bad marketing decision.
I'm pretty annoyed, because I would have thought warner would just put both versions on the same disc.
Anyway, I could be mistaken about the availability of a widescreen version, but if not, then this is just plain bad.
robyn
[Edited last by Robyn Young on October 11, 2001 at 09:35 PM]

 

[Rex Bills]

Whoops! I went back to the Hollywood Video DVD store to check on "The Mummy Returns." What I saw a couple days ago were a bunch of copies of "The Mummy" (in widescreen) moved over near the sequel and I mistook them for the sequel. As of yesterday all copies of "The Mummy Returns" were fullscreen. The covers look similar.
I talked again with the manager and he said he had had a phone conversation with the buyer about the widescreen issue. The buyer said the decision in the company was after a lengthy conversation especially for the copies that were to go to the DVD store, but the decision to go fullscreen won out. Maybe they will give consideration next time to stock both.
I suggested they get stickers that say "fullscreen" and "widescreen" and put them on the display boxes. The store manager said he had told all the help to tell renters that what they were getting was fullscreen.