What happened to DVDFile??? (1 Viewer)

[Matt Butler]

Im with George.

HTF is the only site that I will post to or even read the threads. DVDfile and DVDtalk among others are too damn immature for my speed.

I am a loyal reader of DVDfile for news and reviews though. (As well as HTF )

Oh and Peter Bracke is a really cool guy if you ever get to meet him.

 

[Adam Tyner]

Similar to what Arnie posted above, but from DVD File reviewer Josh Zyber:

 

[Jeff Brooks]

Tough audience. I appreciate all of the different review sites. I, too, am disappointed when I don't see an update every day. However, I think we all know well from our experience here at HTF, that it is next to impossible to make money running a web site that seeks to serve the interests of so many.

 

[Damin J Toell]

The site is coporate-owned (by major DVD software provider), so presumably they don't face many of the difficulties that independently-owned sites do.

DJ

 

[Jeff Brooks]

I did not know that.

 

[Hans M.]

On another forum, Joshua Zyber, a Staff Reviewer at DVDFile, stated: "All I can say for the moment is that our editor is currently on leave for personal reasons. We are trying to pick up the pieces and get new reviews posted as soon as we can." That's it.

 

[Ronald Epstein]

I absolutely agree. Actually, Peter Bracke and
Bill Hunt (THE DIGITAL BITS) are two of the warmest
guys I have met out in Hollywood. Both have been
very supportive of Home Theater Forum as well.

 

[MikeEckman]

Im with everyone else in here. The HTF, Digital Bits, and DVDFile are my only 3 stops when it comes to this stuff, and I am saddened to see DVDFile slipping over the last year or so.

 

[Fredrik L]

And I really miss Bracke's editorials, which used to appear every month or so. Aside from the promotional dvd-book editorial thing he published a couple of days ago, I wish he could write us more often.

On the whole, these days, I sincerely feel DVDFile lacks that spontanious 'on the fly market and/or personal updates' that they used to do really well. The Digital Bits are the only ones still committing to that (they do it very well though).

I'm not sure if it has something to do with Interactual coming in.

But the reviews are still great! Best there is actually.

 

[Dharmesh C]

Maybe Bracke needs to hire a couple of more reviewers, I guess there must be a backlog of dvds to review. If a studio sends a review copy, you're obliged to review it.

 

[Mark Zimmer]

Lucas was apparently very picky in who he gave Star Wars to for review. I don't know if DVDFile got it, but digitallyObsessed was ignored, even though they used one of our reviews to quote from in ads for The Phantom Menace. That's fine. George doesn't need any publicity from us. We'll continue to cover the less blockbuster titles that others ignore.

 

[Matt Butler]

I saw Bill Hunt once but didnt get to talk to him. I do need to give Digital Bits props as well; they do run a great site. I just dont read them as often.

BTW, Thanks for the reply Ron.

 

[David_Blackwell]

Mark, I think that might have more has to do with the amount of DVDs the promotional firm (that sends out FOX DVDs for review) had to send out. Just a thought. Although I do wonder about how many copies were sent out for review. At least, it's not the situation Lion's Gate has with sending out less screeners (maybe due to the loss they reported that is probably tied in with the debt they took on from buying Artisan).

 

[Adam Tyner]

Did they send out screeners at all? I know in the case of a website I'm associated with, the copy we reviewed was handed directly to us at Star Wars Media Day.

 

[Ronald Epstein]

I think screeners were given out by request only.

Don't quote me on that.

 

[Gordon McMurphy]

DVD File is a great site. Some of the reviews can be a bit... weird sometimes, but overall, it is a superb resource - second only to that Home Cinema Forum site or whatever it's called.

I have emailed Bracke a few times in the past and he has always replied quickly and gave feedback, thoughts and suggestions. You can't argue with that, he's a top man.

I'd be interested in hearing his thoughts of the Star Wars set.

 

[Vincent Matis]

I like his style when writing column and critics.
I don't always agree with him (who does?) but he's fun to read. I hope everything he's fine...

 

[Colin Jacobson]

For information? Definitely. For reviews? Not even close. TDB does some decent reviews, but they don't write up very many titles - you only get a small sample. 20 reviews over the last month, 12 for the month before that? That's not much content.

As for DVD File, their reviews are often shoddy. They frequently include glaring errors that no one bothers to correct even when told about them. I don't mean simple typos or slips - I mean notes that indicate substantial mistakes.

For news, you can't beat these two. For reviews, there are plenty of superior sites out there. HTF is better, and Digitally Obsessed, DVD Verdict, and DVD Town stand out as some of the best - I'd trust them over DVD File of TDB any day of the week...

 

[Ian Currie]

I prefer DVDFile reviews over any other - mostly because I care about the quality of video transfer and how it comes across on a large screen. Their attention to detail is pretty good.

That being said, I love David Boulet's reviews (here on this site) for the same reason.

In my own DVD collection database, I actually use DVDFile's ratings for video & audio as I find I rarely disagree with them.

 

[Jeff Ulmer]

I doubt it. digitallyOBSESSED is the largest review database in North America and has been on Fox's automatic list for ages, and, as Mark mentioned, was one of the very few sites whose quotes were used in the TV promo of their previous releases. Screener distribution is pretty convoluted these days, some come direct from the studios, some from agencies. Why there isn't more widespread coverage is a mystery to me.