I almost always only buy a steelbook, if that is the only option available, such as with the Panic Room or the Lionsgate Basic Instinct 4K UHD releases. However, I purchased the Se7ven 4K UHD steelbook, even though there was a DigiPack available, because the DigiPack in that case is so badly designed, that the discs are difficult to remove.
Unfortunately, it's because they know that they can make more money by making people pay more for a box than giving them a less expensive box-less option.
Yup, this hobby is getting more expensive during a time when even the basic stuff that people need to live on is getting much more expensive due to inflation and tariffs. Guess which discretionary spending is going to decrease during this rising pricing crisis? A rhetorical question because I'm a big collector and even I have cut back on his physical media spending. Boutique companies placing tariff pricing will only encourage me to further decrease my physical media spending going forward.
Obviously, cost of living is a large part of it but the boutique labels have already mined alot of the best cult titles from the 70's and 80's so they are now trying to manufacture cult movies from 90's studio pictures. If they keep doing that, I think the higher end boutique labels are going to need to readjust their pricing. Vinegar Syndrome and Arrow do great work but charging $50-ish for movies like Drop Zone, Congo, Jade, Deep Blue Sea or Swordfish is definitely not going to last.
Warner Bros. have done this every now and then - Furiosa and Se7ven being a couple of recent examples. In both those cases, the steelbooks sold out immediately. So they know that steelbooks are more desirable to the collector, than an amray case edition - if there is a choice on the day of release.
Good point. Trying to sell all the pressed discs is likely the reason why different packaging gets put out on different dates.
minus the glow in the dark function that would have made a perfect cover for the UHD release just missing the VistaVision at the bottom, the only thing i see as a positive in the steelbook is that they are using the original poster as coverart. But i agree with others, this is only becoming increasingly expensive if the only option is a much higher priced steelbook.
Maybe because aluminumbook doesn't have quite the sane ring to it.
I must be seeing a different pre-order as the link above shows $29.99 and doesn’t specify it’s a 4K UHD.
