Early Blu-rays that may have playback issues (Criterion, Well Go USA, etc.)

[#Darren]

Originally Posted by pedromvu

Another thing that worries me is that when Criterion released a statement that Walkabout disc had an error, they just said it was a problem with specific list of players, like if it could be some kind of Authoring error maybe, not sure if they really didn't knew what happened, if they didn't knew they could still be pressing their discs in the same way or same place.

Are you referring to the known error where the screen pixelates (in the scene with the sunburnt boy and the turtle)? Was that corrected on later pressings?

[Dan8700]

Originally Posted by Brent L.

Is Nero Disc Speed the same thing as Disc Scan?

I don't know what Disc Scan is, but I'm using VSO Inspector (freeware) to test my discs and is working fine. Nero Speed Test doesn't even recognize my BD player... It takes a lot to do a speed check of a Blu-ray disc, but it's definitely worth it.

[rdandura]

Originally Posted by #Darren

Are you referring to the known error where the screen pixelates (in the scene with the sunburnt boy and the turtle)? Was that corrected on later pressings?

As far as I know, the second printing fixed this issue; no problems have arisen yet from that batch.

Side note: I think this might be too big an issue for criterion to handle, hence why they haven't responded right now. It was just Summer Hours a couple weeks ago and now it's maybe half a dozen titles theta's growing by the minute.

[Dan8700]

Originally Posted by rdandura

As far as I know, the second printing fixed this issue; no problems have arisen yet from that batch.

Side note: I think this might be too big an issue for criterion to handle, hence why they haven't responded right now. It was just Summer Hours a couple weeks ago and now it's maybe half a dozen titles theta's growing by the minute.

Still doesn't justify the silence. They could at least send some generic mails like "We're aware of it, and investigating" or something along the lines.

[#Darren]

Originally Posted by rdandura

As far as I know, the second printing fixed this issue; no problems have arisen yet from that batch.

Any idea if they are offering replacements for Walkabout in relation to this issue?

[Brent L.]

They will have to issue replacements for the defective discs. It would damage their public image permanently if they just ignored the problem and refused to do anything about it.

I, for one, will be refraining from ordering any more of their releases until they at least issue some sort of statement assuring us that the problem has been resolved and promising that this will not happen to releases already released (like hearing about problems with late 2010 to mid 2011 titles a year from now), or those coming in the future.

[BaerGriggs]

I don't personally own Criterions at the moment, but just thought I'd mention that the program VSO Inspector is VERY thorough at checking Blu-ray discs, going down to the individual sectors on the discs to check for errors. It's a free download for PC and all you need is a Blu-ray drive. Good luck to everyone in getting this mess sorted out and I hope Criterion does the right thing.

[Feiereisel]

Originally Posted by Brent L.

They will have to issue replacements for the defective discs. It would damage their public image permanently if they just ignored the problem and refused to do anything about it.

I, for one, will be refraining from ordering any more of their releases until they at least issue some sort of statement assuring us that the problem has been resolved and promising that this will not happen to releases already released (like hearing about problems with late 2010 to mid 2011 titles a year from now), or those coming in the future.

I don't think they'd ever promise something so sweeping and specific, for legal reasons, if nothing else. Besides, how can you assure against the unexpected? Recall/replacement aside, they'll surely use less concrete language--"to the best of our knowledge", etc--or something about valuing their customers and working with them to assure satisfaction.

[Brent L.]

Originally Posted by Feiereisel

I don't think they'd ever promise something so sweeping and specific, for legal reasons, if nothing else. Besides, how can you assure against the unexpected? Recall/replacement aside, they'll surely use less concrete language--"to the best of our knowledge", etc--or something about valuing their customers and working with them to assure satisfaction.

I may have phrased that the wrong way.

What I want to hear from them is the following...

-An Acknowledgement of this problem

-Letting us know that they took steps back when this was first brought to their attention to prevent further damages

-A promise that if this does happen in the future that they are prepared to take care of the consumers

I know that they can't guarantee that this wont ever happen again, no one can really promise that.

[rdandura]

Originally Posted by Brent L.

I may have phrased that the wrong way.

What I want to hear from them is the following...

-An Acknowledgement of this problem

-Letting us know that they took steps back when this was first brought to their attention to prevent further damages

-A promise that if this does happen in the future that they are prepared to take care of the consumers

I know that they can't guarantee that this wont ever happen again, no one can really promise that.

Not going to happen. Remember, corporations answer only to stockholders, not consumers. So they can just let us hang dry without any remorse on their part.

[Brent L.]

Originally Posted by rdandura

Not going to happen. Remember, corporations answer only to stockholders, not consumers. So they can just let us hang dry without any remorse on their part.

I highly, highly doubt that Criterion of all companies would do that to us.

[MifuneFan]

Originally Posted by rdandura

Not going to happen. Remember, corporations answer only to stockholders, not consumers. So they can just let us hang dry without any remorse on their part.

Criterion isn't a corporation, nor do they have stockholders.

[CinemaBlu]

I just checked my copies of Pierrot Le Fou, Vivre Sa Vie, 8 1/2 and Bigger Than Life. I bought them all when they were released and there's nothing wrong with them. I guess I'm lucky. They must react badly to some type of storage.

It sucks that Pierrot Le Fou is susceptible though. The Criterion version is much different from the Studio Canal version.

[Feiereisel]

Originally Posted by Brent L.

I may have phrased that the wrong way.

What I want to hear from them is the following...

-An Acknowledgement of this problem

-Letting us know that they took steps back when this was first brought to their attention to prevent further damages

-A promise that if this does happen in the future that they are prepared to take care of the consumers

I know that they can't guarantee that this wont ever happen again, no one can really promise that.

That's what I'm hoping for, too.

I just want to watch Summer Hours, jeez.

[neo_reloaded]

Originally Posted by GeorgeP12

I have 8 of 10 released from the list and they do have the problem.

I has checked SID Mastering Code on some of them. The code is located in the inner ring from optical disc. It's IFPI LB42. The disc from the recent "The Innocents" release has IFPI L322. Hence Criterion changed a mastering plant at some point in past.

UPD: A few discs from collection sorted by release date:

29-Jul-09 L021 Kagemusha
29-Jul-09 L021 Playtime
22-Sep-09 L021 Complete Monterey Pop Festival, The
22-Sep-09 L021 Pierrot Le Fou
20-Oct-09 L021 Monsoon Wedding
03-Nov-09 L021 Howards End
03-Nov-09 L021 Wings of Desire
01-Dec-09 ---- Christmas Tale, A
01-Dec-09 ---- Rolling Stones, The: Gimme Shelter
16-Dec-09 ---- Chungking Express
12-Jan-10 ---- 8 1/2
26-Jan-10 L021 Paris, Texas
16-Feb-10 ---- Revanche
23-Mar-10 ---- Bigger Than Life
23-Mar-10 LB42 Days of Heaven
23-Mar-10 ---- Yojimbo / Sanjuro
20-Apr-10 L322 Summer Hours
20-Apr-10 ---- Vivre sa vie: Film en douze tableaux
11-May-10 LB42 M
18-May-10 LB42 Walkabout
25-May-10 L021 Stagecoach
25-May-10 L021 By Brakhage: An Anthology

I did not yet check the mastering code for all these discs. The "bronzing" discs were printed on LB42 and on L021.

Originally Posted by Dan8700

Thank you, sir. This is what I was thinking about, the SID code.

Please, pay attention, all the posters: doesn't matter if the cover reads "first printing", doesn't mean ANYTHING, you have to check the disc matrix-SID codes, as George said. Let's see if this method is a good one to sort the problem out (it can be of help for CC guys, too).
I own three of these, one of them bought recently, the other two some time ago, but surely not in 2010.
No bronzing.
They don't seem to have any issues=OK discs.

Chungking Express - IFP L321 (Second printing on the cover)
Days of Heaven - IFP L324 (FP on the cover)
Vivre Sa Vie - IFP L325 (FP on the cover)

I gather this L32* code indicates a recent "matrix", therefore it should be "safe".

Everyone should take note of these posts - this kind of analysis seems like one of the most useful things we can do on our own until Criterion addresses the situation. If we can determine which pressings contain problematic discs and which pressings appear to be fine, it will go a long way towards easing people's concerns. I'd argue to not just include the IFPI information, though - we should also be looking at the two strings of numbers/letters that coincide with the layer barcodes on the bottom of the disc.

[rdandura]

Originally Posted by Feiereisel

That's what I'm hoping for, too.

I just want to watch Summer Hours, jeez.

That will never happen again thanks to Criterion. You'll have to download or stream it now. I am beyond angry at this, and everyone at criterion deserves the worst possible punishment for this kind of issue.

And now I will never be able to own a physical copy of Gomorrah either.

[jscoggins]

Originally Posted by rdandura

That will never happen again thanks to Criterion. You'll have to download or stream it now. I am beyond angry at this, and everyone at criterion deserves the worst possible punishment for this kind of issue.

And now I will never be able to own a physical copy of Gomorrah either.

There's always the DVD...

[neo_reloaded]

Originally Posted by rdandura

That will never happen again thanks to Criterion. You'll have to download or stream it now. I am beyond angry at this, and everyone at criterion deserves the worst possible punishment for this kind of issue.

And now I will never be able to own a physical copy of Gomorrah either.

You are overreacting and incorrect. It does not seem like all copies from release week are even affected, nevermind all future pressings. If you get a bad copy, you will be able to find a working replacement.

If you mean that you will "never be able to" own a copy of these movies because you cannot accept the uncertainty of the disc one day dying, that is a personal problem that you should seek to remedy. Manufacturing errors happen, replacement discs will be issued to those with bad discs, and life will go on.

That Criterion "deserves the worst possible punishment" is absurd - they are victims of this just as much as their customers are. Again, manufacturing errors happen - it's unavoidable every now and then. If the problem is only rearing its head 4 years later, how could they have known at the time? Especially Criterion, who is not in the business of actually pressing discs themselves? Criterion will replace discs, the pressing plant will reimburse Criterion, insurance will reimburse the pressing plant, etc. etc. etc.

[rdandura]

Originally Posted by neo_reloaded

You are overreacting and incorrect. It does not seem like all copies from release week are even affected, nevermind all future pressings. If you get a bad copy, you will be able to find a working replacement.

If you mean that you will "never be able to" own a copy of these movies because you cannot accept the uncertainty of the disc one day dying, that is a personal problem that you should seek to remedy. Manufacturing errors happen, replacement discs will be issued to those with bad discs, and life will go on.

But we still do not deserve this silent treatment Criterion is giving us. They are causing MY panic, and have decided to turn to the dark side on US.

[neo_reloaded]

Originally Posted by rdandura

But we still do not deserve this silent treatment Criterion is giving us. They are causing MY panic, and have decided to turn to the dark side on US.

It takes time to figure these things out. Especially if they're talking to the pressing plant so that they share the responsibility, if insurance is involved, if legal action is involved, etc. You are causing your panic. Things like this happen, and it is far too early to be throwing the company under the bus. There is still ample time for them to make things right, and I'm not going to work myself into a panic attack while we wait to see.