Ask questions to The Digital Bits team (Bill Hunt, Jeff Kleist et.al.)

[tvine2000]

Originally Posted by Esox50

You kind of proved my point. You "hope" they know what they are doing. But how do you know? There are some good sites/people who have credibility.


Dead serious. Look at what Penton-Man said about the guy at WB? Keep in mind also I said "interacting". That is different than lurking, etc.

If you were studio personnel, would you want to sift through the garbage and listen to people whining incessantly like children?

but if it turns out that this boxset is crap don't we have a right to ''whine''.
for me this is not just about a crap job done on startrek,its also about blu-ray as a hi-def format,because joe 6 pack says ''looks no better then dvd to me.''
if your putting a hi def format out there and your telling people this the look and sound of perfect and then put out shit looking discs,isn't that hurting the format.we all know how good blu-ray is,we have seen bd movies that knock your socks off.i know not every bd movie is gonna look great,but tell that to joe 6 pack.
look its guys like you that have let the studios know this stuff.the ces that make the players need to tell the studios the same thing.why is it disney,sony,mgm,fox and uni take the time and put out good to great looking bds,and paramount and wb don't.some care about putting out great looking discs and some don't.this thing of ''oh put the movie out on bd they will buy it''.this kind of thinking is bs.btw its my 79.00 i can whine all i want.

[tvine2000]

Originally Posted by Jeff Kleist

Just standards and practices to make sure their discs look their best. You've seen them on their catalog output over the last year

i follow you.so has bill received his copy of the startrek boxset yet?

[mrpink134]

I would like to find out about the PQ of the Star Trek movies, bill Jeff will you please let us know when you see them?

[Vincent Pereira]

Originally Posted by Bobby Henderson

... For example Con Air has a couple of scenes with focusing errors I think are kind of funny. A viewer wouldn't see these flaws watching the DVD version. But they're right there for anyone to see in Blu-ray...

But they would have been there when watching 1st-generation-printed-directly-from-the-negative 35mm dailies projected on set. I know DPs have been fired in the past for such "errors" during principal photography (Andrew Lesnie, who won an Oscar for his work for on THE FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING, was fired from MISSION IMPOSSIBLE 2 for example supposedly due to "focus problems"), which makes me wonder (I haven't seen CON AIR myself) what happened here.

Vincent

[Vincent Pereira]

Originally Posted by Bobby Henderson

Good luck on getting an unbiased opinion from such a source.

If I was a director reviewing my own movie I'd have nothing but high praise for my movie. I would go on about how perfect it is and how perfect a job all the actors did ...

I've heard directors' commentaries where they were very candid about things they thought didn't work and could have been better. In fact, I've noticed a rather interesting phenomenon among movie directors- a lot of them (maybe even a majority of them) don't like to watch their own films, because all they can see are the problems and what didn't go right.

Vincent

[PeterTHX]

Originally Posted by tvine2000

why is it disney,sony,mgm,fox and uni take the time and put out good to great looking bds,and paramount and wb don't.

This statement doesn't make sense since Disney, Sony, MGM, and Fox all have put out discs that would be considered subpar. Not many, but they aren't perfect by a long shot. The great majority of the time Warner and Paramount have put out terrific discs.

Some of the hyperbole here is getting ridiculous.

[Eastkhan]

Originally Posted by Esox50

In honor of Sony's great DaVinci Code blu release ( @ Penton), let me ask you a question: Does the curator at the Louvre know more about the Mona Lisa than Leonardo DaVinci himself (if he were still alive )?

This is not to diminish or disrespect the EXPERT and valuable opinions/work of people like Torsten Kaiser or Robert Harris; they aren't "good" restorers, they're great restorers. However, if you're going to try to sell me that they know "better" about the works than the actual person who thought it up, created it, and was there and knows all of the circumstances when it was created...then there is no point in discussing further. Sorry.

Well my aim was not to create a discussion and take space in a thread thats not aimed at this subject.

Originally Posted by Esox50

The point is: The people who created it are in the best position to know if it is accurate and/or how they intended. Period. End of Story.

I just wanted to mean thats it not as clear-cut "period" & "end of story" as you stated and there are cases where Artists (director, cinematographer) "age", are not in state of mind to evaluate/analyze the work they've done themselves, or DVD/BD labels who put half-hearted work into their releases.

You may disagree

and for Louvre's curator vs. DaVinci example; motion pictures are a 20th century phenomena where there is a vast knowledge about their restoration & worldwide access to materials for archive-work. I think its not very suitable to compare them.

just my two cents. After all we're collectors who wish nothing but to get our favorite movies in a condition the way they were (be it dp, director) intended. You can be sure after such discussion in the thread I'll probably buy ST movies just to see it for myself, love the movies

[Holographic]

Originally Posted by Penton-Man

In consumer reality though, what all these movies come down to is the exact same purchasing decision people will make and do make with all their Blu-ray purchases. If you are a big fan of the movie, you generally buy the set if it is in any way an upgrade from the prior home media version you own – because you love the motion picture so much. For example, I’ve purchased Braveheart and Lawrence of Arabia in every home media incarnation possible over the years, because I like these motion pictures so much and I’m hooked on them. And I’ll do the same for the Blu-ray of Woodstock: 3 Days of Peace & Music, without paying any attention to what anyone says (good or bad). I imagine the true Trek fans will do the same – despite what any official or unofficial reviewers write……pro or con.

And this is exactly what it should be all about.

I mean, I can still watch the VHS-version of any movie that I like, if that is the only way possible to see it in home.

[Mr. Cinema]

Originally Posted by Jeff Kleist

Just standards and practices to make sure their discs look their best. You've seen them on their catalog output over the last year

I have been very impressed by Paramount and Universal over the past several months. Not to mention both have had catalog titles on sale regularly for $14.99 lately on Amazon.

[NoQuestion]

Bill/Jeff,

Amazon now has a listing up for ROME complete series with a price of like $94 or something like that. I know you have said in the past Jeff that if amazon has a price it is coming, so should we be getting an offical announcement shortly?

FYI, I just pre-ordered the set

[MerrickG]

I have done my best to take the high road and I have always agreed with the philosophy of holding judgement until I see the final product, but I have to say that this image from the bluray set



REALLY has me concerned. PLEASE tell me this screenshot was taken from someone who has no clue what the hell they are doing.

Again, Im not about the get into the screenshot vs moving film debate, but I do want to know if Paramount dropped the ball here before I drop my dollars on Star Trek.

I usually can handle some DNR if it is the best possible presentation, but if this screenshot is any indication (and know they are often NOT) I cant buy this. Im sorry.

[kjacobs03]

It almost looks like a cartoon drawn over live action like A Skanner Darkly.

[BluDomain]

Originally Posted by merrick97

...Again, Im not about the get into the screenshot vs moving film debate, but I do want to know if Paramount dropped the ball here before I drop my dollars on Star Trek.

Then don't post a huge picture of a screenshot.

[Grubert]

If you are a big fan of the movie, you generally buy the set if it is in any way an upgrade from the prior home media version you own – because you love the motion picture so much.

Generally - but not always. For example, I am a huge fan of Dark City but I won't buy the Blu-ray as it exists today.

[micks_address]

Hi Grubert,

Is this from having viewed the blu-ray yourself or your opinion formed based on other reviews? I bought the blu-ray at a knock down price where a store was going into administration in dublin.. havent watched it yet so i cant comment on the quality. There does seem to be a few trends coming from some of the insiders though and this is in no way an insult to anyone in particular, but if a title is deemed to below par in what it could have achieved then the advice is to buy it as its still better than dvd.. when anyone questions a titles quality the words 'screenshot scientists' are usually followed in a reply close behind. I think its fair that quality is questioned to a certain degree - ok you dont need to be rabid about it.. but if we just accept things to be as good as they can be then we're never going to get a satisfactory result.. its a fine line to balance..

Regards,
Mick

Originally Posted by Grubert

Generally - but not always. For example, I am a huge fan of Dark City but I won't buy the Blu-ray as it exists today.

[MerrickG]

Originally Posted by BluDomain

Then don't post a huge picture of a screenshot.

Im showing you what people are complaining about so I feel it was necessary.

[MerrickG]

Originally Posted by Grubert

Generally - but not always. For example, I am a huge fan of Dark City but I won't buy the Blu-ray as it exists today.

I felt the complaining about Dark City was a little overboard. I bought it and was happy with the image quality. Of course, Im not saying you should feel that way.

But IF that screenshot for STIV is reasonably accurate, then there is no way in hell I can make that purchase. Im hoping we can get some real reviews on the set before too much longer.

Im also hoping that whoever took the screenshot from STIV had bad software or didnt know what the hell they were doing.

[Grubert]

Originally Posted by micks_address

Hi Grubert,

Is this from having viewed the blu-ray yourself or your opinion formed based on other reviews?

Viewed myself. Rental.

[BluDomain]

Originally Posted by merrick97

..But IF that screenshot for STIV is reasonably accurate, ...

Im also hoping that whoever took the screenshot from STIV had bad software or didnt know what the hell they were doing.

I thought you weren't about the get into the screenshot vs moving film
debate.

[BluDomain]

Originally Posted by micks_address

Is this from having viewed the blu-ray yourself or your opinion formed based on other reviews? ...

At least one Reviewer didn't think Dark City was so bad. Even with
some DNR.
http://bluray.highdefdigest.com/263/darkcity.html