Twin Peaks pilot DVD from Republic Entertainment? Any good? (1 Viewer)

[Mr. Brian]

I've seen this DVD mentioned here before, and was wondering what the picture and sound quality were like? I've seen it for around $20 on ebay, and at that price I would pick it up if it's decent. Also, does this DVD have the tacked on ending that's on the VHS version? Finally, what are the chances that a new DVD version of the pilot would be released for region 1? Are there still legal issues about this?
Thanks,
Brian
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[Michael St. Clair]

A slick, convincing bootleg, IMHO.

 

[Greg_Y]

It's not a bootleg AFAIK. I'm top bidder on one right now that should end tomorrow. Once I get it, I'll post a mini-review.
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DVDs | CDs
"While the police are at it, they should find out where my intern is. I asked for those copies 20 minutes ago!"

 

[soop.spoon]

It's a bootleg. The description says it will be shipped from Hong Kong.
good luck.

 

[Greg_Y]

Really? It does? That's funny. When I look at the auction I bid on, the seller is from New York. Do you know for a fact that it's a boot? Is everything from Hong Kong a bootleg?

Here's a pretty good thread from DVDTalk.com that has a review or two of the disc. Scroll down to the review near the bottom: http://www.dvdtalk.com/forum/showthr...hreadid=124686

 

[Michael St. Clair]

It's actually a (pressed in) Taiwan disc, and in Taiwan there is no real enforcement of this kind of thing (labels there regularly release titles without permission of the rightsholders, and nothing is done about it). Discs from Taiwan are getting more professional looking packaging all the time, and they use (without permission) real studio logos on the packaging. It's an all-region disc, something that western motion picture studios do not permit. It's an NTSC disc of a PAL broadcast master. People, it's a bootleg. Pretend it's not all you want, but it is a bootleg.
The disc is legal...in Taiwan, where there are no copyright laws to speak of.

 

[John CW]

It's not a bootleg. (Well, if you can be sure based on what little you've typed, so can I! ) I'm not insisting it isn't, but it's clear you are not aware of all the facts:
Catalyst Logic (the company that makes the DVD -- see their website here: http://www.catalystlogic.com.tw
[Edited last by John CW on July 29, 2001 at 05:14 PM]

 

[Matt_Stevens]

I can also comfirm it is not a bootleg. It's a legit license. The thing to remember about this is that the transfer is not all that hot. It's mildly superior to VHS, so don't cry if you cannot get a copy..
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[Jeff Adkins]

It's an all-region disc, something that western motion picture studios do not permit.

The fact that it is all-region doesn't mean it's a bootleg. Cannonball Run came out in a legit Hong Kong release that was region free.
If the disc is legal in Taiwan, then it is a parallel import, not a bootleg.
Jeff

 

[Michael St. Clair]

Of course the company is a legitmate company, bootlegging is legitimate business in Taiwan!

If the disc is legal in Taiwan, then it is a parallel import, not a bootleg.

That's like saying that since marijuana is legal in Amsterdam, it's legal for me to import it and smoke it here.
A friend of mine visited his wife's family in Thailand, and brought back a Taiwan-pressed silver CD-Rom containing MP3 files of every Beatles song. It had the Apple Records logo on the back. I guess that's legal too.
Whatever.

 

[Jeff Adkins]

Of course the company is a legitmate company, bootlegging is legitimate business in Taiwan!

It is certainly common but it is not legal. Films are protected in Taiwan for 50 years. From Article 35 of Taiwan's Copyright Law:
"Economic rights for photographic works, audiovisual works, sound recordings, computer programs and performances endure for fifty years after the public release of the work."
So anything prior to 1951 is public domain there, and should not be considered a bootleg. As far as Twin Peaks goes, I have no idea what the rights situation is there. Since Republic could've licensed it out years ago, I do buy into the possibility that someone in Taiwan owns the legit video rights and decided to put it out on DVD.
Jeff

 

[MilesH]

That's like saying that since marijuana is legal in Amsterdam, it's legal for me to import it and smoke it here.

By your flawed reasoning, my Eraserhead DVD from Japan is illegal because I imported it from another country.

 

[Michael St. Clair]

Organized piracy is still absolutely rampant in Taiwan, with any token displays of enforcement being simple attempts to appease the WTO. Millions of discs without SID codes still ship out of Taiwan every year, and everyone knows it. The Twin Peaks release in question does not even include the standard 'DvD' logo as mandated by the DVD Forum for all licensed DVD releases!
If this is a licensed Warner Brothers release, when did the studio start supplying PAL broadcast masters for authoring NTSC discs? When did Warner Brothers or any other western studio start licensing region-free releases that are not officially distributed in the west?

Geez...just admit that you were wrong. The link to the news article clearly states from whom Catalyst Logic licensed the film.

Please quote from the article. When I read it, it does not say what you claim.
"This follows the success of InfoDisc Technology Co. Ltd. in obtaining authorization from Warner Advanced Multimedia Operations to produce DVD for Warner Brothers Records." InfoDisc is not Catalyst Logic. Warner Brothers Records is not Warner Brothers Pictures
"Ritek Inc. and Catalyst Logic Co., Ltd. obtained authorization from Orion Network Systems Inc., United Artists Theater Group and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc. (MGM) for DVD production and distribution in Taiwan." Orion, UA, and MGM are not rightsholders for the Twin Peaks pilot.

 

[Mark Zimmer]

Sort of on a side issue, how did Warner end up with the rights to the pilot anyway? How did it get separated from the rest of the series???

The article cited may not exactly support the fact that Catalyst Logic is (apparently) releasing the disc, but it also does point up the fact that there ARE INDEED legitimate licenses for DVDs from the major studios for product made in Taiwan, including Warner. So just the fact that it's Taiwanese, though it ought to raise red flags, doesn't necessarily mean that it's a bootleg. The distinction between Warner Bros. records and Warner Home Video doesn't bother me at all; these are journalists, not home video fanboys with time to obsess about such details, working under deadline and probably working in a second language, and this isn't a hugely important distinction considering they're all the same huge conglomerate.
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"This movie has warped my fragile little mind."
[Edited last by Mark Zimmer on July 31, 2001 at 09:36 AM]

 

[John CW]

Precisely. The argument for is definitely weaker than the argument against. Why does Mr St.Clair keep skipping around the obvious issues?
All I have ever said is that the article indicates that Catalyst Logic are a legitimate company... a point he keeps pretending not to have read: Because he never addresses it!
Also my point as to the unending sales of said DVD on eBay (unlike Indiana Jones, Back to the Future and Star Wars discs which have all been stopped by their copyright holders) despite Warner being emailed about it?
Why doesn't he address this?
For the record my DVD also comes with a nice CL hologram on the cover... have bootleggers started trying to authenticate their *own* releases now??
Any answer which covers all of the above points is welcome!
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[BrianB]

Sort of on a side issue, how did Warner end up with the rights to the pilot anyway? How did it get separated from the rest of the series???

Because the history of Twin Peaks is as twisty as its plot
AFAIK:
Originally, Lynch & Frost filmed a one-off pilot episode. Warner bought up the video rights (I believe). As a means of making back some cash, they signed a distribution deal in Europe, filmed extra footage to give it an ending & this is what's known as the 'eurovision' pilot. The series was given the green light & went ahead on TV with the usual distribution company etc.
That's why so many companies own the TV show. I'm sure someone more knowledgable about it can fill in the many blanks...
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Nothing In Particular

 

[Michael St. Clair]

quote: Precisely. The argument for is definitely weaker than the argument against. Why does Mr St.Clair keep skipping around the obvious issues?[/quote]
Absolutely not.
Evidence that release is not 'legitimate':
1. No 'DvD' logo, as mandated by the DVD Forum.
2. NTSC release sourced from PAL master
3. Region-Free
4. Studio logo and verbage is for the long-defunct 'Republic Pictures'.
For whatever reasons, you seem insistent upon ignoring this evidence.
As far as this claim of Catalyst Logic being a 'legitimate company', that is completely subjective and much pirated material in asia is released by 'legitimate companies'.
Please list the evidence that the release is legitimate.
Anybody have a good contact at Warner Bros for confirmation?
[Edited last by Michael St. Clair on July 31, 2001 at 10:18 AM]

 

[Jeff Adkins]

If this is a licensed Warner Brothers release, when did the studio start supplying PAL broadcast masters for authoring NTSC discs? When did Warner Brothers or any other western studio start licensing region-free releases that are not officially distributed in the west?

I don't believe Warner owns worldwide rights to the pilot. They definitely don't own the rights in Japan, so I doubt Warner owns it in Taiwan also.
The fact that it has the Republic Pictures logo doesn't prove anything. The MGM release of Escape From New York has a Polygram Home Video Logo at the beginning, yet Polygram had been gone for well over a year.
Jeff

 

[Matt_Stevens]

2. NTSC release sourced from PAL master

Give me abreak. MANY releases world-wide are PAL to NTSC converted transfers and vice-versa. Get your facts straight.
One of my favorite DVDs, LIFEFORCE, released by MGM, is a conversion from a PAL transfer (and one of the only non-anamorphic discs I own). Anchor Bay's DAUGHTERS OF DARKNESS and NOSFERATU discs is a PAL to NTSC conversions. Most Hong Kong DVDs released by Media Asia are NTSC from PAL masters (it's easier to go PAL to NTSC than NTSC to PAL).
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[Michael St. Clair]

The fact that it has the Republic Pictures logo doesn't prove anything. The MGM release of Escape From New York has a Polygram Home Video Logo at the beginning, yet Polygram had been gone for well over a year.

Was the logo on the packaging, or just the film? If it were on the packaging, that would be unusual. The film/video itself, not unusual.