Warner DVD's not working thread - watch to make sure they still play (1 Viewer)

[gudemameshiba]

Forbidden Hollywood, Vol 2
Disc 1

Are there any Canadian collectors with primarily Canadian-manufactured Warner DVDs (IFPI 6000) from this time period? I'm wondering if those were manufactured better than the US-manufactured Warner discs (IFPI 2U** and 2V**) that this thread is primarily dealing with.

My Forbidden Hollywood, Vol 2 was manufactured in Toronto and A Free Soul craps out a few chapters in

Spoiler: image of mould code

 

[cdirks]

I finally made a video about the dvd rot issue. I searched high and low to find all reports of rotted titles and compiled a list of every reported rotter that I could verify along with the rotted discs I own. The third document is a selection of the technical posts made in this HTF thread and other forums threads to better explain the disc manufacturers and various plants-and the Cinram plant that apparently caused this whole mess. Thankfully I haven’t seen reports of other rotted discs and 2010 DVDs onwards are fine as are 2005 and before.

Master List of rotted DVDs: https://docs.google.com/document/d/...ouid=104657163513621066025&rtpof=true&sd=true
My rotted DVDs: https://docs.google.com/document/d/...ouid=104657163513621066025&rtpof=true&sd=true
Technical information from Warner DVD rot threads on hometheaterforum, dvdtalk and Bluray.com: https://docs.google.com/document/d/...ouid=104657163513621066025&rtpof=true&sd=true

Doggone it I didn’t see that about The Man From Uncle having rotted discs. I’ll have to add that to the list later.

Spencer: Thanks for this. It brings added attention to all the various posts over many months (including mine -- particularly #668 from Oct 4, 2020 and #672 from Oct 6, 2020). Your list would benefit if you would list release dates for the bad discs and/or box sets (since re-releases -- for example the re-packaged 2012 sets or TCM compilation sets -- may be error-free); you might also want to provide specific titles in box sets that are bad since some titles in a set may not be affected (single-layer titles, for instance) while others may routinely be defective (such as Discs 1 and 2 in Forbidden Hollywood #2 released March 4, 2008).

 

[gudemameshiba]

Spencer: Thanks for this. It brings added attention to all the various posts over many months (including mine -- particularly #668 from Oct 4, 2020 and #672 from Oct 6, 2020). Your list would benefit if you would list release dates for the bad discs and/or box sets (since re-releases -- for example the re-packaged 2012 sets or TCM compilation sets -- may be error-free); you might also want to provide specific titles in box sets that are bad since some titles in a set may not be affected (single-layer titles, for instance) while others may routinely be defective (such as Discs 1 and 2 in Forbidden Hollywood #2 released March 4, 2008).

I've started pulling together a spreadsheet; unfortunately, in some cases it's difficult to determine which exact releases are indicated. (Not Spencer's fault I assume!)

It's also not clear what is coincidental. I mentioned above that my Canada-pressed A Free Soul will not play, and I believe you have the same issue; that may be its own one-off problem. Similarly, multiple people have mentioned Desperate Journey, from Errol Flynn Adventures (TCM Spotlight), which wasn't released until August 3, 2010 (though I don't own it so I can't confirm that it was not pressed in Olyphant). As well, any mentions of snapper cases significantly predate this known issue!

 

[gudemameshiba]

I've started pulling together a spreadsheet

link to spreadsheet

Additions, corrections, comments strongly encouraged!

 

[gudemameshiba]

My Forbidden Hollywood, Vol 2 was manufactured in Toronto and A Free Soul craps out a few chapters in

On one of the Warner Archive podcasts someone wrote in asking if the reissued Forbidden Hollywood volumes (1-3) would be pressed or burned discs, and George Feltenstein went into his spiel about how the professionally burned discs rival pressed discs in reliability (but to answer the question, the initial run would be pressed). I remember listening to that and thinking, "yeah, yeah, yeah, but I'd still prefer a pressed disc."

At the time I already owned a copy of the original issue of Forbidden Hollywood, Volume 2, but I can't help but laugh at the irony that one of its discs has now rotted.

 

[K72]

Can also confirm defective discs 2&3 of the "Spawn" Animated Series 10th Anniversary Steelbook.

 

[gudemameshiba]

My King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters (New Line) looks like it might be at the very earliest stages of bronzing, but it appears fully functional. I'm also keeping an eye on my Manda Bala (City Lights, distributed by Warner's) though it also appears to function normally.

 

[johnnybear]

I've been told the bronzing is not a problem and that if a disc loses it's rainbow flash then you have a problem!
JB

 

[Matt Hough]

I had another classic Warner/MGM DVD go bad on me tonight: the 1936 David Copperfield. I watched this DVD a year or a year and a half ago, and it played fine, so I was deeply disappointed when it froze in the player at around the 85 minute mark, obviously at the layer change.

 

[cronosmantas]

Add another Warner box set to the list: Elvis Presley [Deluxe 2-Volume] (10-Disc Set). All 10 discs are affected

Elvis (Deluxe 2-Volume) (10-Disc Set)

Volume 1
Jailhouse Rock Remastered (50th Anniversary Deluxe Edition)
This is Elvis (2-Disc Special Edition)
It Happened At The World's Fair
Kissin' Cousins

Volume 2
Viva Las Vegas (Remastered Deluxe Edition)
Elvis: That's The Way It Is (2-Disc Special Edition)
Girl Happy
Live A Little, Love A Little

 

[David_B_K]

Similarly, multiple people have mentioned Desperate Journey, from Errol Flynn Adventures (TCM Spotlight), which wasn't released until August 3, 2010 (though I don't own it so I can't confirm that it was not pressed in Olyphant).

To be on the safe side, I backed up all the discs from the Errol Flynn WW2 Adventures Set to DVD+R DL. I was worried that one of the discs would stop halfway through the process, but they all made it. I may do the Flynn Western set as well. In fact, I think I'll look to see what else I have from Warner that hasn't already been released on Blu.

 

[cronosmantas]

About once a week I head to a few thrift store on my lunch break and these classic Warner Brothers box sets show up quite often (no doubt due to older relatives dying and people donating their collection of older films). Well, I usually don't even check the sets due to the rot issues (and feel sorry for anyone that happens to buy them). In a bin today was Film Noir Classic Collection Vol. 3 and normally I would just pass it over due to rot, but for some reason I decided to crack it open and was shocked to see it was a re-pressed set, with the IFPI KK** facility code around the center holes instead of the dreaded IFPF 2U** which has the rot issues. Thanks to this thread I knew enough to know this repressed set would be good to go.

 

[Jaytee]

Can also confirm defective discs 2&3 of the "Spawn" Animated Series 10th Anniversary Steelbook.

Just checked mine, disc 1 on this has gone defective for me. Disc 4 is probably the only one on this set unlikely to ever have any issues as it's a single-layer disc.

 

[Darby67]

I did not purchase the Literary Classics Collection (with the slim clear cases) due to multiple reports of playback issues. However, recently I have been acquiring the stand alone releases in the black keep cases of all five films (which also have different UPCs from the ones released in the box set) and can report that The Three Musketeers and The Prisoner of Zenda stand alone releases played just fine (for now!). I will report on the Madame Bovary, Billy Budd, and Captain Horatio Hornblower stand alone rleases once I've watched them.

I would have loved to purchase the Motion Picture Masterpieces Collection but since the playback issues on these discs are also numerous and both the box set and the individual releases were both released in black keep cases (as opposed to the different types of cases and UPCs for the Literary Classics Collection box set and individual releases), I decided not to buy them.,

 

[Darby67]

The standalone release of Madame Bovary in the black keep case that I bought on Ebay has playback issues so I'm returning that and buying one from another seller.

The standalone release of Billy Budd is arriving Monday and I will be ordering the standalone release of Captain Horatio Hornblower soon so I will update on those two titles later.

 

[Thomas T]

Was watching Body Heat on DVD tonight when it locked, sputtered and skipped around chapter 17. Guess I'll have to upgrade to the blu ray.

 

[Robin9]

Was watching Body Heat on DVD tonight when it locked, sputtered and skipped around chapter 17. Guess I'll have to upgrade to the blu ray.

I'll check my DVD as well. It's one of the first DVDs I bought, with a snapper case too!

 

[Robert Crawford]

I'll check my DVD as well. It's one of the first DVDs I bought, with a snapper case too!

The "Body Heat" DVD came out in 1997, which means it's going to be 25 years old later this year.

 

[Thomas T]

The "Body Heat" DVD came out in 1997, which means it's going to be 25 years old later this year.

Actually, the Body Heat DVD I was watching is the 2006 special edition. Not the 1997 snapper case version.

 

[Robin9]

Actually, the Body Heat DVD I was watching is the 2006 special edition. Not the 1997 snapper case version.

Ah, that means my DVD might well be OK.