blu ray releases to avoid?

[Member-909734]

delete

[bigdaddyhorse]

Predator Ultimate Hunter Edition, unless you like people looking like wax figures. The 4K is beautiful though, but still has the old crap BD included so you have to have a 4K player to see it proper. Even the first release BD with no features is better than the UHE.

[jtu128]

I’m sure there is a few other posts started here on this exact same topic over the past couple decades if you search. For me, it’s Young Guns.

[RCRochester]

Originally Posted by jtu128

I’m sure there is a few other posts started here on this exact same topic over the past couple decades if you search. For me, it’s Young Guns.

Help! is another one. The last time I watched it, it was as terrible looking as that OG Young Guns release.

[filmlover22]

I dream of Jeannie
Laurel and Hardy - the Definitive restoration

[Metalbeast]

Hail Caesar (1994) is probably the worst Blu-ray release ever and one to avoid. It's a AI upscale of a SD master that looks like garbage.

[TripleHBK]

Originally Posted by Metalbeast

Hail Caesar (1994) is probably the worst Blu-ray release ever and one to avoid. It's a AI upscale of a SD master that looks like garbage.

I see you Hail Caesar and raise you Rabid Grannies.



These are actual screen shots from the Troma release.

The AVC encoded image (2.25:1 aspect ratio) presentation on "Rabid Grannies" and the "Producer's Cut" is an absolute mess. Featuring an unsettlingly low bit rate and sourced from what appears to be a VHS tape, the viewing experience is completely lost from the moment it begins. Color timing is all over the map, never consistent as parts of the picture are coated with sepia while the rest carries a cooler, blue monochrome look. Hues rarely make sense, washing away anything natural about the image, also diluting gore zone visits. Softness is rampant, with no fine detail available, while banding, ghosting, and pockets of noise are omnipresent. Blacks are completely solid, with no delineation provided to pull out the particulars of evening encounters, while a few scenes manage to cloud the actors entirely, turning select moments into shadow play. Framing is too tight, cutting off heads and bodies, looking uncomfortable. Scratches, debris, and harsh reel changes are also on view. Considering how "The Toxic Avenger" and "Bloodsucking Freaks" made it to Blu-ray from Troma without major issues, it's shocking to see how poorly "Rabid Grannies" has been treated for its HD debut.

This is the only Blu Ray release I've seen with a .5 video rating. The screenshots somehow manage to make it look better than it does in motion. It is truly the most horrendous release I've ever seen on any format and should have been recalled years ago. Sadly I didn't see the review until after I had purchased the film. I couldn't even make it through the video as the quality was so atrocious. I still will watch the occasional VHS but this is like a 10th generation vhs copy.

By comparison, here was Vinegar syndromes release from last year...

[jtu128]

Originally Posted by wanderingfins44

i was literally looking at my copy of young guns last night, its got a minor crack in the center ring somehow. i dunno how but in my big portable cases a few of my blu ray movies have cracked in the middle. i was trying to figure out if it was going to play but i havent tried it yet.

Mine looks fine and wont even play in a PS5. I haven’t tried my other players but I feel like the Blu Ray is almost unwatchable.

[meremortal]

There are so many at this point and I can sympathize with the OP since I'm not always great at finding older topics through search.

[Geode]

Originally Posted by filmlover22

I dream of Jeannie
Laurel and Hardy - the Definitive restoration

The person who posted this said he ignores replies, so my question is for others. What is wrong with the Laurel and Hardy set?

[Watershipdownisgood]

Skinamarink terrible movie and terrible video and audio quality it has a very Grindhouse Video quality, and not in a good way avoid the steelbook Blu-Ray and the standard Blu-Ray too

[filmlover22]

Originally Posted by Geode

The person who posted this said he ignores replies, so my question is for others. What is wrong with the Laurel and Hardy set?

LOL. MASSIVE grain removal. one disc makes them look like wax dummies. Some shorts are ok, while most of them I found unwatchable. Rumors are that these were indeed 4k definitive restorations and some yahoo decided to turn the DNR button to 11 before final mastering.

[drush9999]

I would say over half of Universal's discs from the late 2000s to early 2010s, awful digital tinkering on some of their masters.

[Member-839946]

Originally Posted by wanderingfins44

i scanned through the entire 51,781 blu ray database from the home page in alphabetical order and ended up with 430 something that i added to my account that had reviews.

I don't understand the necessity of this. You're aware you can search by title, right?

[Lum]

Cost effectiveness can be a factor. For some titles, the blu ray is dramatically more money than the dvd. (Free Willy, Air Bud, Turbo A Power Rangers Movie)

[RCRochester]

Originally Posted by wanderingfins44

i was literally looking at my copy of young guns last night, its got a minor crack in the center ring somehow. i dunno how but in my big portable cases a few of my blu ray movies have cracked in the middle. i was trying to figure out if it was going to play but i havent tried it yet.

Originally Posted by jtu128

Mine looks fine and wont even play in a PS5. I haven’t tried my other players but I feel like the Blu Ray is almost unwatchable.

I will point out that this release is stellar and includes a blu-ray if you're not 4K compatible.

[Mose Harper]

Originally Posted by ReedSolomon

I don't understand the necessity of this. You're aware you can search by title, right?

This.
You would be much better off looking up each individual title as you consider purchasing.
Not only will you have a hard time keeping track of them all, but certain remastered releases may be better (most) or worse (To Catch A Thief) that even a blanket suggestion like "buy the latest release" would be bad advice.

Also on the review page for each title will be a link to the thread. If you care enough you may want to peruse each thread to see if most people agree with the reviewers assessment or if there is a different consensus you should be aware of.

[Infallible Presence]

https://www.blu-ray.com/movies/Reind.../35137/#Review

Part of the reason why I only have the DVD. Otherwise I would've upgraded to Blu-ray long ago. Hopefully, Paramount or some other distributor will give us an UHD release soon to fix Lions Gate's atrocity.

[ninfan81]

Originally Posted by Watershipdownisgood

Skinamarink terrible movie and terrible video and audio quality it has a very Grindhouse Video quality, and not in a good way avoid the steelbook Blu-Ray and the standard Blu-Ray too

That's how the film was made, it's not a bad transfer.

[Watershipdownisgood]

Originally Posted by ninfan81

That's how the film was made, it's not a bad transfer.

Got it thanks the film still sucks though it was very very boring and not scary