The Criterion Collection

[Doc Moonlight]

Originally Posted by Cecil B. DeMille

I could imagine at least an Early Scorsese at WB box set. Including Who's That Knocking at My Door (1967), Mean Streets (1973) and Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore (1974). After all, they all have that New Hollywood feel to them.

It may just be a matter of semantics, but I don't think Who's That Knocking On My Door should be part of a Scorsese at Warner Bros box set. WB had no involvement in the film, which was shot independently, and originally released by a small distributor. Warner eventually did acquire it, but that was several years after it had been released, and there is nothing Warner (or for that matter Hollywood) about the film (unless you count the references to The Searchers).

I do think it would make a great supplement to a Criterion Blu-Ray of Mean Streets, though. As was Murder a la Mod on the Blow Out disc.

[DWeickerSr]

Originally Posted by jkoffman

And how often did you have to use that on brand new discs instead of returning the defective product you just bought?

Given that most of these scratches seem to be the factory's fault (not the Distributor), I don't understand why people think that returning an item for a different one will get them an unscratched item.

If the factory is randomly scratching items, or has faulty equipment that creates the scratches during the item's assembly, why does anyone think there will be a better result?

(seems to match the definition of idiocy).



In the majority of posts regarding scratched discs on new discs, I've seen lots of reports about the discs containing scratches, but i've never seen (or don't remember seeing) any reports about whether these scratches actually affected playback.
Now, non-new discs that were scratched afterwards, those I've seen reports about playback issues. However those scratches are usually larger/deeper and not the same type of scratches seen on the new discs.

[Hellraiserfan]

Just pre-ordered Arsenic and Old Lace.

[jkoffman]

Originally Posted by DWeickerSr

Given that most of these scratches seem to be the factory's fault (not the Distributor), I don't understand why people think that returning an item for a different one will get them an unscratched item.

If the factory is randomly scratching items, or has faulty equipment that creates the scratches during the item's assembly, why does anyone think there will be a better result?

(seems to match the definition of idiocy).



In the majority of posts regarding scratched discs on new discs, I've seen lots of reports about the discs containing scratches, but i've never seen (or don't remember seeing) any reports about whether these scratches actually affected playback.
Now, non-new discs that were scratched afterwards, those I've seen reports about playback issues. However those scratches are usually larger/deeper and not the same type of scratches seen on the new discs.

Since Criterion is the only media company I'm aware of that essentially offers a lifetime guarantee on their products, this is an interesting situation. Do they offer replacements 5 years down the road for a disc you bought new on release that arrived scratched? When I purchase a brand new product at new product prices I'm expecting it to arrive in new condition. When we're talking about disc media like this, if the consumer handles it with care and stores it appropriately, it should play for decades. I appreciate Criterion being an outlier in the industry for offering replacements, but it's not like I'm expecting them to guarantee me a replacement 10 years from now for a disc that is scratched right now, with no way for me to prove that it arrived that way.

This manufacturing/production issue is not exclusive to Criterion, but I've received far more damaged discs from them this year than any other time or from any other company. Not sure I understand your logic about not returning an item for a replacement. In the last month I've returned 5 or 6 and already received a mint, unscratched replacement. If I didn't, then I'd simply ask for a refund.

[TheChangingMan]

Originally Posted by Cecil B. DeMille

A potential Scorsese at Warner box set could contain the following titles:

• Who's That Knocking at My Door (1967)
• Mean Streets (1973)
• Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore (1974)
• After Hours (1985)
• Goodfellas (1990)
• The Aviator (2004)
• The Departed (2006)

Aside from the last two, this would be identical to this DVD set I purchased around 2009.

[WillieMLF]

Originally Posted by Ender14

There was a product that I used on several occasions to fix scratches on DVD's back in the day and I'm fairly certain it worked on Blu-ray's as well. It was a paste that would fill in the scratches. You applied and then rubbed it in with a micro fiber cloth, then cleaned it off. I fixed several scratched DVD's using it.

Is that the stuff you use as headlight cleaner?

[hainesdogg]

Originally Posted by MifuneFan

Nice box set of Kinuyo Tanaka's work coming out in France from Carlotta (no English subs unfortunately). Criterion are doing a retrospective on her, and this is exactly the kind of set I hope they will release here too.

That is the kind of set I would love for her work. I hope that retrospective means some more releases in the future.

[Ender14]

Originally Posted by WillieMLF

Is that the stuff you use as headlight cleaner?

No, it was an actual product sold as DVD repair. I used it on my kid's DVD's and 99% of the time it made them viewable again.

[MifuneFan]

I used to put toothpaste (the white one, not gel) on my DVD's to help with scratches. It did help get some discs to play, and also smell minty.

[Rayjg]

Originally Posted by MifuneFan

I used to put toothpaste (the white one, not gel) on my DVD's to help with scratches. It did help get some discs to play, and also smell minty.

With or without fluoride.

[DrEricVornoff]

Originally Posted by jkoffman

I've already returned half of the new Criterion releases I've received this month because they're too scratched. Devil In A Blue Dress UHD/BD arrived today and after inspecting it the UHD has a new wrinkle for me, a 1 cm circle mark on the play side that doesn't wipe off. I tried over a dozen times to capture a pic on my phone, but I can't get it. I might just send this one to Criterion directly.

I have to pipe in here...

I too have noticed that recently Criterion is one of the worst offenders of "out of the box" disc scratches. For a long time it was Shout Factory that held this title (and they still are a frequent offender)... but recently Criterion has been really bad with this in my experience.

What gets me though is... for as much as we pay for Criterion releases... you'd think their packaging QC would be much better. It's really a shame.

It's why I've recently decided to only purchase Criterion discs from Amazon (because exchanging with them is so freakin' simple and hassle free). I've bought a few recent Criterions from other small boutiques and gotten scratched discs more than a few times... but I feel bad about exchanging them in those situations because boutiques are the little guy... and stuff like this hits them the hardest. So, I buy my Criterion from Amazon... bottom line. The only exception would be maybe larger box sets that I want to make sure don't show up all dinged up. But if it's a normal Criterion release in the Scanavo case... Amazon all the way. It's just the way to go.

As far as buffing out Blu-ray Discs - you can't really do it. I used to live near a CD Warehouse a number of years back... and I used to take scratched DVDs to them because they had this machine (looked like something that should be in a wood shop or something) that would buff the disc to a pristine shine. And they only charged like $1.50 to do it. So, I would take my DVDs there. Well, one time I took a Blu there and they refused to buff it. The guy explained that Blu's have this protective coating plastic over the underside because the data layer is so much closer to the underside's surface. Well, this coating makes the disc much more scratch resistant than Blu's... but at the same time... once there is a scratch - there's nothing you can do. He said if you put a Blu under his buffing machine it will just chew up the plastic coating and ruin the disc. Also, the old toothpaste trick or the Disc Doctors (remember those) won't work because the coating is so much tougher than the underside of a Blu.

So bottom line... if you have a Blu with a scratch and the disc's playback is affected... you're only solution is to replace. Bottom line. The good news is... scratches on Blu's and 4K are not as problematic as with CDs or DVDs. But, I'm OCD as hell - so that is small consolation for me.

So... buy Criterions and Shout Factory discs from Amazon. That way... if they arrived already scratched - send them back for hassle free replacement. Amazon is big enough - they won't be affected by a damaged disc being returned here and there. Trust me.

I hope this helps...

[jkoffman]

Originally Posted by DrEricVornoff

I have to pipe in here...

[Show spoiler]
I too have noticed that recently Criterion is one of the worst offenders of "out of the box" disc scratches. For a long time it was Shout Factory that held this title (and they still are a frequent offender)... but recently Criterion has been really bad with this in my experience.

What gets me though is... for as much as we pay for Criterion releases... you'd think their packaging QC would be much better. It's really a shame.

It's why I've recently decided to only purchase Criterion discs from Amazon (because exchanging with them is so freakin' simple and hassle free). I've bought a few recent Criterions from other small boutiques and gotten scratched discs more than a few times... but I feel bad about exchanging them in those situations because boutiques are the little guy... and stuff like this hits them the hardest. So, I buy my Criterion from Amazon... bottom line. The only exception would be maybe larger box sets that I want to make sure don't show up all dinged up. But if it's a normal Criterion release in the Scanavo case... Amazon all the way. It's just the way to go.

As far as buffing out Blu-ray Discs - you can't really do it. I used to live near a CD Warehouse a number of years back... and I used to take scratched DVDs to them because they had this machine (looked like something that should be in a wood shop or something) that would buff the disc to a pristine shine. And they only charged like $1.50 to do it. So, I would take my DVDs there. Well, one time I took a Blu there and they refused to buff it. The guy explained that Blu's have this protective coating plastic over the underside because the data layer is so much closer to the underside's surface. Well, this coating makes the disc much more scratch resistant than Blu's... but at the same time... once there is a scratch - there's nothing you can do. He said if you put a Blu under his buffing machine it will just chew up the plastic coating and ruin the disc. Also, the old toothpaste trick or the Disc Doctors (remember those) won't work because the coating is so much tougher than the underside of a Blu.

So bottom line... if you have a Blu with a scratch and the disc's playback is affected... you're only solution is to replace. Bottom line. The good news is... scratches on Blu's and 4K are not as problematic as with CDs or DVDs. But, I'm OCD as hell - so that is small consolation for me.

So... buy Criterions and Shout Factory discs from Amazon. That way... if they arrived already scratched - send them back for hassle free replacement. Amazon is big enough - they won't be affected by a damaged disc being returned here and there. Trust me.

I hope this helps...

The times I've requested a replacement online from Target has been just as easy as with Amazon, and more often than not they do not require that I return the damaged item.

[DWeickerSr]

Originally Posted by jkoffman

Since Criterion is the only media company I'm aware of that essentially offers a lifetime guarantee on their products, this is an interesting situation. Do they offer replacements 5 years down the road for a disc you bought new on release that arrived scratched? When I purchase a brand new product at new product prices I'm expecting it to arrive in new condition. When we're talking about disc media like this, if the consumer handles it with care and stores it appropriately, it should play for decades. I appreciate Criterion being an outlier in the industry for offering replacements, but it's not like I'm expecting them to guarantee me a replacement 10 years from now for a disc that is scratched right now, with no way for me to prove that it arrived that way.

This manufacturing/production issue is not exclusive to Criterion, but I've received far more damaged discs from them this year than any other time or from any other company. Not sure I understand your logic about not returning an item for a replacement. In the last month I've returned 5 or 6 and already received a mint, unscratched replacement. If I didn't, then I'd simply ask for a refund.

In regards to replacement discs 'in the future' - as you said, that is an unknown. However, Criterion has been extremely generous with issuing replacements so far. It seems that if you say the disc doesn't play, they will send out a replacement. The cause of the non-playability doesn't seem to factor into their decision. Whether that policy continues, who knows. But as I said - extremely generous.

As for new products, these scratched discs are new. They aren't selling used discs. The presence of scratches doesn't change that these are new. They aren't pristine or error free, but they are new. "New" just doesn't mean scratch-free (and never actually has). "New" just means not previously "Owned".

In regards to my statement about requesting replacements. Since the scratches are occurring during the manufacturing/assembly, it is just as likely that any replacement disc will also have scratches (given how prevalent these scratches are among so many different companies, maybe all the workers at the assembly plant were issued bright shiny steel wool gloves).

[mande2013]

Originally Posted by DrEricVornoff

I have to pipe in here...

I too have noticed that recently Criterion is one of the worst offenders of "out of the box" disc scratches. For a long time it was Shout Factory that held this title (and they still are a frequent offender)... but recently Criterion has been really bad with this in my experience.

What gets me though is... for as much as we pay for Criterion releases... you'd think their packaging QC would be much better. It's really a shame.

It's why I've recently decided to only purchase Criterion discs from Amazon (because exchanging with them is so freakin' simple and hassle free). I've bought a few recent Criterions from other small boutiques and gotten scratched discs more than a few times... but I feel bad about exchanging them in those situations because boutiques are the little guy... and stuff like this hits them the hardest. So, I buy my Criterion from Amazon... bottom line. The only exception would be maybe larger box sets that I want to make sure don't show up all dinged up. But if it's a normal Criterion release in the Scanavo case... Amazon all the way. It's just the way to go.

As far as buffing out Blu-ray Discs - you can't really do it. I used to live near a CD Warehouse a number of years back... and I used to take scratched DVDs to them because they had this machine (looked like something that should be in a wood shop or something) that would buff the disc to a pristine shine. And they only charged like $1.50 to do it. So, I would take my DVDs there. Well, one time I took a Blu there and they refused to buff it. The guy explained that Blu's have this protective coating plastic over the underside because the data layer is so much closer to the underside's surface. Well, this coating makes the disc much more scratch resistant than Blu's... but at the same time... once there is a scratch - there's nothing you can do. He said if you put a Blu under his buffing machine it will just chew up the plastic coating and ruin the disc. Also, the old toothpaste trick or the Disc Doctors (remember those) won't work because the coating is so much tougher than the underside of a Blu.

So bottom line... if you have a Blu with a scratch and the disc's playback is affected... you're only solution is to replace. Bottom line. The good news is... scratches on Blu's and 4K are not as problematic as with CDs or DVDs. But, I'm OCD as hell - so that is small consolation for me.

So... buy Criterions and Shout Factory discs from Amazon. That way... if they arrived already scratched - send them back for hassle free replacement. Amazon is big enough - they won't be affected by a damaged disc being returned here and there. Trust me.

I hope this helps...

Well I guess I just worry about being banned from Amazon for too many returns at some point. I've heard this can happen. However, I wonder if having done next to no returns on Amazon France would compensate for how many I've done on Amazon US.

[jkoffman]

Originally Posted by DWeickerSr

[Show spoiler]In regards to replacement discs 'in the future' - as you said, that is an unknown. However, Criterion has been extremely generous with issuing replacements so far. It seems that if you say the disc doesn't play, they will send out a replacement. The cause of the non-playability doesn't seem to factor into their decision. Whether that policy continues, who knows. But as I said - extremely generous.

As for new products, these scratched discs are new. They aren't selling used discs. The presence of scratches doesn't change that these are new. They aren't pristine or error free, but they are new. "New" just doesn't mean scratch-free (and never actually has). "New" just means not previously "Owned".

In regards to my statement about requesting replacements. Since the scratches are occurring during the manufacturing/assembly, it is just as likely that any replacement disc will also have scratches (given how prevalent these scratches are among so many different companies, maybe all the workers at the assembly plant were issued bright shiny steel wool gloves).

I hope you don't think I was suggesting that if one new disc arrives scratched then all new copies of that same disc will be scratched as well. As I said, I've requested replacements regularly and then received unscratched discs, otherwise I wouldn't bother asking for a replacement. As others throughout the forum have suggested, this is likely an ongoing quality control issue at one of the few plants left, but that doesn't imply that all discs are affected.

[jkoffman]

Originally Posted by mande2013

Well I guess I just worry about being banned from Amazon for too many returns at some point. I've heard this can happen. However, I wonder if having done next to no returns on Amazon France would compensate for how many I've done on Amazon US.

I've only ever heard that rumor offered here in the forum. Yet even when pressed, no one has ever been able to provide a firsthand account of anyone being banned for returning damaged items for a replacement or refund. There are other reasons that retailers could ban someone for returning items. I would estimate I've requested a refund/exchange for over 30 items to Amazon, more than a dozen to Target, etc. Since I shop with them regularly without issues, I imagine I'm a fairly typical customer.

[Sifox211]

Originally Posted by DrEricVornoff

It's why I've recently decided to only purchase Criterion discs from Amazon (because exchanging with them is so freakin' simple and hassle free). I've bought a few recent Criterions from other small boutiques and gotten scratched discs more than a few times... but I feel bad about exchanging them in those situations because boutiques are the little guy... and stuff like this hits them the hardest. So, I buy my Criterion from Amazon... bottom line. The only exception would be maybe larger box sets that I want to make sure don't show up all dinged up. But if it's a normal Criterion release in the Scanavo case... Amazon all the way. It's just the way to go...

Except that when you return an item to Amazon, even though it’s not faulty or the damage was done by them through poor handling or packaging, it is the supplier who has to pay for the re-stock, not Amazon. And most returns are binned.

Originally Posted by jkoffman

I've only ever heard that rumor offered here in the forum. Yet even when pressed, no one has ever been able to provide a firsthand account of anyone being banned for returning damaged items for a replacement or refund. There are other reasons that retailers could ban someone for returning items. I would estimate I've requested a refund/exchange for over 30 items to Amazon, more than a dozen to Target, etc. Since I shop with them regularly without issues, I imagine I'm a fairly typical customer.

It definitely happens - we had a UK member on here who was banned for too many returns, even though almost all were due to poor packaging by Amazon. The ban is remarkably broad too - you can’t re-register using a different email or a relative’s details (not sure how they achieve that one though!).

[regeyer]

I hate to say this because it's probably going to jinx me, but I don't think any of the Criterion discs I've purchased, including large boxsets, have had scratches. If they do it certainly hasn't affected playback.

[jkoffman]

Originally Posted by Sifox211

It definitely happens - we had a UK member on here who was banned for too many returns, even though almost all were due to poor packaging by Amazon. The ban is remarkably broad too - you can’t re-register using a different email or a relative’s details (not sure how they achieve that one though!).

Name, please?

[Sifox211]

Originally Posted by jkoffman

Name, please?

Polaroid, iirc. Not sure if he’s still around…