What's left, unreleased on 4k, that you would pay $50 to own on day one? (1 Viewer)

[SwatDB]

“How the West Was Won” and “Raintree County”.

And "The Alamo" (1960)

Just wanted to get it out of the way, since HTWWW used Archive Footage of both Raintree and Alamo.

In a Perfect world? Yes. But if MGM had the available 65mm OCN/IP and the 70mm 6-Track Mix were a green light to use in order to release the film, they'd probably go for the General Release Version.

 

[TravisR]

It's the theatrical version that's upgraded to 4K. A disc is coming but will the director's cut be in 4K?

If it is, it'll be the first time that the director's cut hasn't been the only version released since 2007.

 

[Sultanofcinema]

Marlowe, Pretty Maids All In A Row, Hotel, Splendor In The Grass, A Brief Vacation.

 

[Peter Neski]

What is it about these that would be worth a $50 price point to you?

well they are some of my favorites, as for price 1900 ,Godfather saga(epic),and Once Upon a Time are all sets that would probably cost around that

 

[Peter Neski]

El Sur? A typo, perhaps. Should it not read “El Cid”?.

No!

 

[Peter Neski]

To think about what we had to pay for featureless Last Tango In Paris, I would love a 4k version of that

 

[JoshZ]

well they are some of my favorites, as for price 1900 ,Godfather saga(epic),and Once Upon a Time are all sets that would probably cost around that

I get being eager for some of your favorite titles to be released on the format, but I personally don't see justification for some of these to hit a $50 price point. Maybe the Godfather Saga, assuming you mean the version where the whole trilogy was edited together into one miniseries. That's a lot of content.

Perhaps I'm just honing in on your pick of The Fugitive on the original list. Decent movie, sure, but to me that's a pretty run-of-the-mill catalog title that Warner Bros. has reliably issued on every home video format, including a 4K UHD that was released last year and you can currently pick up on Amazon for $21. I just don't think we should be encouraging the studios to jack up the prices of titles like that without a very clear justification for it.

Same for The Searchers. Yes, Warner recently did some remastering work on that, but does that alone merit $50? For that much money, I need it to come in a nice package with lots of extras and some physical swag. YMMV.

 

[Josh Steinberg]

I think I may have said this earlier in either this thread or a similar thread, but for me it’s not a question so much of “which titles are worth $50?” so much as it is a matter of, “if movies on disc follows the pattern of music on vinyl, the standard retail asking price for everything is going up” and if that’s indeed the case, it’s more of an existential question of “is this niche still for me?” - right now the answer is a tentative yes.

If you look at the top vinyl boutique labels, the standard price is often $60 - $150 for audiophile releases, regardless of artist. I think a reasonable comparison can be made between high end vinyl and 4K UHD disc - they’re both extremely high quality products aimed at audiences that prefer collecting tangible objects rather than digital files. Maybe pricing for most movie discs won’t be so drastic, maybe it will be. On the vinyl side, I’m a lifelong collector, and I’m still into getting new vinyl. The higher price point hasn’t stopped me from adding to my collection, but it does cause me to think carefully about my double dips - there are albums I have where there is obvious room for improvement and a $60 reissue is worthwhile, and there are albums I have that sound amazing as is where I don’t think it’s worth $60 for what might be a marginal improvement at best. There’s also the added factor of understanding how capable my setup is or isn’t at being able to take advantage of improvements on remastered titles. I’ll make the same or similar calculations with more pricey discs. I’ve hit that target of good enough/best my eyes and ears can perceive/best my system can show off on many titles, where buying them again doesn’t really yield a tangible improvement.

I guess what I’m trying to express is that for me, it’s not about parsing which titles are worth which dollars amounts. It’s about deciding whether this hobby as a whole is worth continuing, and just accepting that the barriers to entry are now higher than they once were, and letting the selection be guided more by “this item fills a specific area I’m trying to improve” than “I’ve bought every previous version of this title so I will automatically buy the new edition too.”

 

[Sultanofcinema]

Le Femme Infidele, Feast Of Love, Little Children, Hammerhead, Remember Me My Love, A Guide For The Married Man, Hotel, Tin Men, Twice In A Lifetime, Narrow Margin (original), 11 Harrowhouse, They All Laughed, SHE (Ursula Andress/Hammer), Heartburn, Celebrity, A Lot Like Love, Falling In Love, Le Balance, Sunset, Goodbye Lover.

 

[JSLasher]

No!

“El Sur”? Thanks, but no thanks!

 

[Worth]

…If you look at the top vinyl boutique labels, the standard price is often $60 - $150 for audiophile releases, regardless of artist. I think a reasonable comparison can be made between high end vinyl and 4K UHD disc - they’re both extremely high quality products aimed at audiences that prefer collecting tangible objects rather than digital files...

If disc prices start creeping up and over $100, I think I’ll be perfectly content with digital copies.

 

[ManW_TheUncool]

If disc prices start creeping up and over $100, I think I’ll be perfectly content with digital copies.

... unless they also bump up the prices on those at similar rates...

Currently, many digitals eventually drop to ~$5 on occasion and maybe avg around $8-12 after initial release at say $20-30. IF they bump prices to match a $100+ MSRP for disc, then we might be looking at $15(?) for those occasional sales and maybe avg $25-35 much of the time after initial price of say $50-60 (or more).

Call me spoiled, but I may just have to be content w/ my existing collection and rarely, if ever, buy anymore at that point, heh...

_Man_

 

[Carl David]

... unless they also bump up the prices on those at similar rates...

Currently, many digitals eventually drop to ~$5 on occasion and maybe avg around $8-12 after initial release at say $20-30. IF they bump prices to match a $100+ MSRP for disc, then we might be looking at $15(?) for those occasional sales and maybe avg $25-35 much of the time after initial price of say $50-60 (or more).

Call me spoiled, but I may just have to be content w/ my existing collection and rarely, if ever, buy anymore at that point, heh...

_Man_

I think what we are dealing with here is how much can the disc sellers ultimately get away with in relation to pricing.

Like any good or service sold to the public too high a price demand falls and profits get reduced. The aim is to find the "sweet spot" where profits are maximised. That balance is reached through trial and error over time and they appear to have found that balance.

It's usually a price point where it's high enough to sell in big enough numbers and not too low to risk low profit margins even if sales numbers are high.

Therefore, it's not in their interest to bump prices to double or triple from where they currently are. If any industry does that where people have gotten used to a certain price point it usually never turns out well. Just look at McDonald's CEO recently complaining about sales declining at an alarming rate since prices have risen significantly over the last few years.

How many people will pay $25 for a big Mac and Fries? I would argue not many and that would result in many franchises closing down. With any good or service there is a maximum price a company can get away with unless they have a monopoly.

As far as I can tell the current market players seem to doing okay with prices at their current rate so it's unlikely prices will go higher unless their costs do.

It's also difficult to tell if they can reduce costs significantly from here too.

Where are the discs usually pressed? Can they be pressed in another country with cheaper labour and energy?

Can they be more astute in their title selections and avoid releasing movies to small sale numbers?

And so on.

Looking from the outside companies such as Arrow and Kino Lorber are doing brilliantly in a declining market (physical media) that relies on discretionary spending in a highly inflationary environment where many people are struggling.

One can only assume they have gathered much expertise operating in the market for a number of years.

It's rational to assume going forward the challenges they face will be more difficult but as the old saying goes necessity is the mother of invention.

Should they face some mighty obstacles it may act as a stimulus to become more efficient as companies which will enable them to continue providing their customers with great products just like they have over the past few years.

4k and blu ray will most likely be their key items for future prosperity. I am sure both will be around for some time coming and the companies currently in the market will do fine barring some unforeseen event.

 

[Peter Neski]

I get being eager for some of your favorite titles to be released on the format, but I personally don't see justification for some of these to hit a $50 price point. Maybe the Godfather Saga, assuming you mean the version where the whole trilogy was edited together into one miniseries. That's a lot of content.

Perhaps I'm just honing in on your pick of The Fugitive on the original list. Decent movie, sure, but to me that's a pretty run-of-the-mill catalog title that Warner Bros. has reliably issued on every home video format, including a 4K UHD that was released last year and you can currently pick up on Amazon for $21. I just don't think we should be encouraging the studios to jack up the prices of titles like that without a very clear justification for it.

Same for The Searchers. Yes, Warner recently did some remastering work on that, but does that alone merit $50? For that much money, I need it to come in a nice package with lots of extras and some physical swag. YMMV.

Not That Fugitive! The John Ford Film.......................I sure hope none of these are 50!

 

[RICK BOND]

King of Kings, El Cid and The Fall of the Roman Empire. All Samuel Bronston Epics that I Love. Cleopatra (1963) would be another.

 

[OliverK]

King of Kings, El Cid and The Fall of the Roman Empire. All Samuel Bronston Epics that I Love.

If these were released I would even promise to repurchase Circus World in 4K

 

[JoshZ]

Not That Fugitive! The John Ford Film.

Ah, I see. When you said "The Fugitive (ford)," I assumed you meant Harrison Ford.

 

[Douglas R]

In reply to the specific question I've just spent the equivalent of $50 for the 4K Chinatown 50th anniversary UK release.

 

[ManW_TheUncool]

In reply to the specific question I've just spent the equivalent of $50 for the 4K Chinatown 50th anniversary UK release.

Isn't that supposed to be heavily grain managed?

I don't really want to spend much of anything on a heavily grain managed 4K disc of anything where I already have a serviceable BD (and 4K digital) -- I still haven't bothered buying the Godfather trilogy 4K set (though I do have all of them in 4K digital), for instance, despite it costing something like only ~$40 or so at one point during holiday sales season.

_Man_

 

[Douglas R]

Isn't that supposed to be heavily grain managed?

I don't really want to spend much of anything on a heavily grain managed 4K disc of anything where I already have a serviceable BD (and 4K digital) -- I still haven't bothered buying the Godfather trilogy 4K set (though I do have all of them in 4K digital), for instance, despite it costing something like only ~$40 or so at one point during holiday sales season.

_Man_

I’m happy with what Robert Harris has said - especially as I’m not a grain lover:

“Beyond color, this release eschews the more recent desire to reproduce every grain, and more properly (in this archivist's opinion) reproduces the appearance of the original prints. Colors, density, the subdued grain structure, and black levels all seem correct”.