the vynsane asylum

...how some movies get double-dipped and even triple or quadruple-dipped on DVD, when others that are probably more deserving don't get decent shrift the first time and are never revisited?

There's a fucking extended version of Meet the Spartans coming out, apparently. I've seen ads for it all week. Why? Who the fuck requested that?

Reno 911: Miami isn't as bad as some say it is (though it's not nearly as funny as the show), but a third release is forthcoming. Again, why?

Yet, I could list movies that got screwed until the cows came home. Dick Tracy is one of the most visually enthralling movies ever, and everyone loves it, but the DVD is so barebones it's not funny. Lots of movies have never been released in widescreen at all; Master of Disguise and The Powerpuff Girls Movie pop to mind immediately. (Hell, Secret of NIMH got about six shitty direct-to-DVD sequels before Amblin finally put it out in widescreen.) We still don't have the truly loaded Star Wars Trilogy DVDs we should've gotten years ago.

I think, in my experience, Sleepers got screwed the worst. It's a pretty good movie, probably not in need of some five-disc collectors edition with seventy hours of bonus material. But I shouldn't have to, in 2008, flip the fucking disc over in the middle.

anarky wrote:...how some movies get double-dipped and even triple or quadruple-dipped on DVD, when others that are probably more deserving don't get decent shrift the first time and are never revisited?

The Rocketeer.

anarky wrote:I think, in my experience, Sleepers got screwed the worst. It's a pretty good movie, probably not in need of some five-disc collectors edition with seventy hours of bonus material. But I shouldn't have to, in 2008, flip the fucking disc over in the middle.

Like Schindler's List. That pissed me off so much and switching tapes was biggest thing I hated about the VHS. Totally ruins the pace of the movie.

I'm not defending it, but at least Schindler's List is a long movie. Sleepers isn't.

And totally with you on The Rocketeer.

On the plus side, a new edition of Dark City is coming this fall. I swore off most double-dipping, but that's one I might have to get.

(Rocketeer, Labyrinth, Dark City: Isn't it funny how J-Con stars in three of the greatest "comic book movies not actually based on comics," but it's not her that makes them great? Wait, scratch that. I forgot The Rocketeer really was a comic. Given how low-profile it stayed, even after the movie, it's almost hard to remember.)

sleepers must've been released before dual-layer was available, just reinforcing your point that it's time for a new release as DL has been available as a technology for about 6 years now. same thing for goodfellas - that's got a flip in it too, i believe.

i have to say, though, i'm not too unhappy with the rocketeer dvd. i don't really know what else they could put on it anyway.

vynsane wrote:i have to say, though, i'm not too unhappy with the rocketeer dvd. i don't really know what else they could put on it anyway.

I'm not too knowledgeable about video transfers, but even I noticed how bad it was on The Rocketeer. It looks like someone took an old VHS and put it on DVD. I'm shocked it was widescreen and had the trailer.
As for extras, a few mini documentaries or featurettes (new and/or old) would have been nice.

Diabolical wrote:I'm not too knowledgeable about video transfers, but even I noticed how bad it was on The Rocketeer. It looks like someone took an old VHS and put it on DVD.

hrm... i'll have to take another look. i don't remember it being that bad...

I've been wanting a new release of Raising Arizona for years now. The current, and only release, is bare bones as hell and NON-ANAMORPHIC!!!! Argh!!! This movie is long overdue for a new and rightly justified release!

Back to The Rocketeer, I'm of the mind that any good movie for which the DVD lists "Chapter Selection" as a "Bonus Feature," the DVD should probably be re-released.

anarky wrote:Back to The Rocketeer, I'm of the mind that any good movie for which the DVD lists "Chapter Selection" as a "Bonus Feature," the DVD should probably be re-released.

Or "Interactive Menus."