Lord of the Rings Trilogy (Theatrical Versions) - April 6, 2010

[Todd Smith]

Originally Posted by Kryptonic

FOTR received the same grade as Near Dark for picture, which has the worst transfer of all Blu-Ray's released by a major studio and worse than Gladiator, again one of the worst transfers on the format. The LOTR review is way off, especially considering Bill Hunt and the other pro-critics analysis.

We have discussed all of this if you go back through the thread. Bill was being generous with his review score IMO. "pro" reviewers are often generous/political or whatever you want to call it for various reasons. This LOTR review and Daves http://www.hometheatershack.com/foru...-review.htmlis are both RIGHT ON as far as I am concerned with what we have seen and the various reports. Its a shame Just glad there are some reviewers that will call it like it is

[billzfan]

Originally Posted by Emotiva

I honestly dont believe in reviews anymore, Everyone was against Gladiator on Blu and I didnt mind at all. It was way better then the DVD version, and the same goes for Lord Of The Rings. Is it better then DVD? Yes, is the sound better? Of Course, and thats all that matters. Some people are too picky and nothing is good enough for them. I will buy it for sure, and will enjoy it all the way. I wonder what KEN (Reviewer) watched it on. Maybe a bubble TV lol. Dont listen to them, believe in your own eyes with your own equippment. Take Care

I completely agree. I own Gladiator and think it looks quite good. In fact, I happened to find this review of Gladiator's video quality that everyone here seems to bash:

From IGN.com:


Video and Presentation

As the first Blu-ray release in Paramount's Sapphire Series next to Braveheart, Gladiator undergoes one of the finest and most meticulous video transfers we've seen. Gladiator has been one of the most eagerly awaited Blu-ray releases since the format's inception and when it comes to sheer visual integrity, fans will not be disappointed. Although the precise technologies at work have not been detailed, it is clear that the video has been inspected with a fine-toothed comb. As a byproduct of its iconic director, Gladiator's visual composition goes through various color stages -- drab and gray in the first act during the barbarian wars, warm and yellow during Maximus' imprisonment, and a more neutral, naturalistic range during the latter acts in Rome. Through them all, however, the composure of the disc is absolutely staggering, with unprecedented detail and vibrance. There is absolutely no evidence of compression or grain, despite the 10-year lapse between theatrical and Blu-ray release. The Sapphire Series Blu-ray of Gladiator is a testament to the true potential of the format.

Score: 10 out of 10

[Emotiva]

Originally Posted by Mike2060

What if you had a 10 foot screen and sat 12 feet away? Movies with sub par transfers would look bad. So it is all relative although some people can really notice DNR even from 2+ screen widths away.

I dont think the studios care if we got 12 foot screens. They know most of us use Televisions at home. I believe what I see, so lets wait when it comes out.

[Kryptonic]

Originally Posted by Todd Smith

We have discussed all of this if you go back through the thread. Bill was being generous with his review score IMO. "pro" reviewers are often generous/political or whatever you want to call it for various reasons. This LOTR review and Daves http://www.hometheatershack.com/foru...-review.htmlis are both RIGHT ON as far as I am concerned with what we have seen and the various reports. Its a shame Just glad there are some reviewers that will call it like it is

Y'know, I think everyone should just wait until we can actually watch the discs, not just read reviews and look at screengrabs, both of which are entirely subjective and not entirely conclusive.

[tilapiah6]

Originally Posted by O_V_N

Wish I could change my vote...

I won't be buying now, based on the poor reviews.

I learned my lesson from Gladiator: if lots of people are complaining, there's probably a good reason.

You should understand, however, that the only true markdown in Fellowship's PQ. As such, this really isn't a huge deal breaker. At least for me, it's not. I can't wait to hear these movies like I'm hearing the for the first time. I think I've seen each one 8 times or more, and this will be the first watch-through using a real surround sound.

I will definitely be picking these up, despite the markdown on the PQ of Fellowship.

[tilapiah6]

I notice a lot of you are turning away from reviews based off of how you thought Gladiator looked good. Well, don't ever forget about the first release of Gangs of New York. That movie opened my eyes to how horrible a transfer can be. Bottom line, just be cautious. I usually depend on user reviews more than the official review only because I don't have high end equipment, and as such don't require a meticulous disection of the PQ. If the average blu-ray.com user thinks it looks good, I'll more than likely think it looks good too.

[teamneedle]

I totally agree with blu-ray.com's review of the video quality of Fellowship-

the quality is a FAIL.

way too soft- i felt like my vision was messed up and it made the film hard to watch except for some oddly great looking shots in the mines of moria section.

its just surprising that other review sites are giving the video quality top marks-

dvdtown has been a joke for a very long time and the digital bits gets more respect then it deserves-

blu-ray.com is the leader in blu- followed by fulvuedrive-in.com (too bad fulvue has such an outdated interface-

[Fighter]

Originally Posted by Kryptonic

Y'know, I think everyone should just wait until we can actually watch the discs, not just read reviews and look at screengrabs, both of which are entirely subjective and not entirely conclusive.

[Emotiva]

Originally Posted by tilapiah6

I notice a lot of you are turning away from reviews based off of how you thought Gladiator looked good. Well, don't ever forget about the first release of Gangs of New York. That movie opened my eyes to how horrible a transfer can be. Bottom line, just be cautious. I usually depend on user reviews more than the official review only because I don't have high end equipment, and as such don't require a meticulous disection of the PQ. If the average blu-ray.com user thinks it looks good, I'll more than likely think it looks good too.

I agree with you on this one 100%. I do have high end gear, and that is why I dont believe reviewers. Let me be the judge of the PQ and AQ. I was very happy with Gladiator on Blu and I think LOTR will please me for sure.
By the way who is getting Saving Private Ryan on Blu??????

[DetroitSportsFan]

Originally Posted by billzfan

From IGN.com:


Video and Presentation

As the first Blu-ray release in Paramount's Sapphire Series next to Braveheart, Gladiator undergoes one of the finest and most meticulous video transfers we've seen. Gladiator has been one of the most eagerly awaited Blu-ray releases since the format's inception and when it comes to sheer visual integrity, fans will not be disappointed. Although the precise technologies at work have not been detailed, it is clear that the video has been inspected with a fine-toothed comb. As a byproduct of its iconic director, Gladiator's visual composition goes through various color stages -- drab and gray in the first act during the barbarian wars, warm and yellow during Maximus' imprisonment, and a more neutral, naturalistic range during the latter acts in Rome. Through them all, however, the composure of the disc is absolutely staggering, with unprecedented detail and vibrance. There is absolutely no evidence of compression or grain, despite the 10-year lapse between theatrical and Blu-ray release. The Sapphire Series Blu-ray of Gladiator is a testament to the true potential of the format.

Score: 10 out of 10

Wow, IGN is even less credible than I originally thought.

[DJ Manyak]

when is the extended version coming out ?

[blujacket]

Originally Posted by billzfan

I completely agree. I own Gladiator and think it looks quite good. In fact, I happened to find this review of Gladiator's video quality that everyone here seems to bash:

From IGN.com:


Video and Presentation

As the first Blu-ray release in Paramount's Sapphire Series next to Braveheart, Gladiator undergoes one of the finest and most meticulous video transfers we've seen. Gladiator has been one of the most eagerly awaited Blu-ray releases since the format's inception and when it comes to sheer visual integrity, fans will not be disappointed. Although the precise technologies at work have not been detailed, it is clear that the video has been inspected with a fine-toothed comb. As a byproduct of its iconic director, Gladiator's visual composition goes through various color stages -- drab and gray in the first act during the barbarian wars, warm and yellow during Maximus' imprisonment, and a more neutral, naturalistic range during the latter acts in Rome. Through them all, however, the composure of the disc is absolutely staggering, with unprecedented detail and vibrance. There is absolutely no evidence of compression or grain, despite the 10-year lapse between theatrical and Blu-ray release. The Sapphire Series Blu-ray of Gladiator is a testament to the true potential of the format.

Score: 10 out of 10

That is hilarious.

[tilapiah6]

Originally Posted by Emotiva

I agree with you on this one 100%. I do have high end gear, and that is why I dont believe reviewers. Let me be the judge of the PQ and AQ. I was very happy with Gladiator on Blu and I think LOTR will please me for sure.
By the way who is getting Saving Private Ryan on Blu??????

I think the real question is who isn't. That one's going to sell like hotcakes!

[teamneedle]

Originally Posted by billzfan

I completely agree. I own Gladiator and think it looks quite good. In fact, I happened to find this review of Gladiator's video quality that everyone here seems to bash:

From IGN.com:


Video and Presentation

As the first Blu-ray release in Paramount's Sapphire Series next to Braveheart, Gladiator undergoes one of the finest and most meticulous video transfers we've seen. Gladiator has been one of the most eagerly awaited Blu-ray releases since the format's inception and when it comes to sheer visual integrity, fans will not be disappointed. Although the precise technologies at work have not been detailed, it is clear that the video has been inspected with a fine-toothed comb. As a byproduct of its iconic director, Gladiator's visual composition goes through various color stages -- drab and gray in the first act during the barbarian wars, warm and yellow during Maximus' imprisonment, and a more neutral, naturalistic range during the latter acts in Rome. Through them all, however, the composure of the disc is absolutely staggering, with unprecedented detail and vibrance. There is absolutely no evidence of compression or grain, despite the 10-year lapse between theatrical and Blu-ray release. The Sapphire Series Blu-ray of Gladiator is a testament to the true potential of the format.

Score: 10 out of 10

it seems that there is obviously a problem with the gladiator video quality or else it wouldn't be getting remastered and re-released within a year of the first disc coming out.

[Chaotic]

Originally Posted by computergeek

when is the extended version coming out ?

2012

[Aragorn the Elfstone]

I do see some grain scrubbing in some of the screen caps from Fellowship (mostly taking place in Bag End for some reason), but otherwise the movie looks just the same to me as it always has. This includes the overall "softness" of the movie that everyone's complaining about. Even when I was watching DVDs on my standard def tube tv back in the early 2000s and everything looked "razor sharp", Fellowship was still a soft movie - just as it had been in theaters. It's just the way the movie looks.

To my eyes (based on the screencaps), the other films look awesome. Displayed on my HDTV, they obliterate the dvds a thousand times over. They're sharp, detailed, and as glorious as I could have asked for.

Personally, I have no idea how any reviewer could score Fellowship lower than Gladiator - which looked absolutely atrocious (all that Edge Enhancement!).

[Emotiva]

Originally Posted by tilapiah6

I think the real question is who isn't. That one's going to sell like hotcakes!

Yeah I think so too. Lets hope Paramount does a good job with the transfer, but then again I have two versions of Saving Private Ryan on DVD, and they are not bad, so blu should be awesum lol

[Stinky-Dinkins]

Originally Posted by billzfan

I completely agree. I own Gladiator and think it looks quite good. In fact, I happened to find this review of Gladiator's video quality that everyone here seems to bash:

From IGN.com:


Video and Presentation

As the first Blu-ray release in Paramount's Sapphire Series next to Braveheart, Gladiator undergoes one of the finest and most meticulous video transfers we've seen. Gladiator has been one of the most eagerly awaited Blu-ray releases since the format's inception and when it comes to sheer visual integrity, fans will not be disappointed. Although the precise technologies at work have not been detailed, it is clear that the video has been inspected with a fine-toothed comb. As a byproduct of its iconic director, Gladiator's visual composition goes through various color stages -- drab and gray in the first act during the barbarian wars, warm and yellow during Maximus' imprisonment, and a more neutral, naturalistic range during the latter acts in Rome. Through them all, however, the composure of the disc is absolutely staggering, with unprecedented detail and vibrance. There is absolutely no evidence of compression or grain, despite the 10-year lapse between theatrical and Blu-ray release. The Sapphire Series Blu-ray of Gladiator is a testament to the true potential of the format.

Score: 10 out of 10

Hahahaha, man, I forgot how much I loved that review.

Originally Posted by teamneedle

it seems that there is obviously a problem with the gladiator video quality or else it wouldn't get getting remastered and re-released within a year of the first disc coming out.

Even the studio itself admitted it was "terrible."

[Emotiva]

Originally Posted by Chaotic

2012

Oh No!!, THE END OF THE WORLD, and this is why I am getting the Theatrical version now because in 2012 we will be dead! lol

[Mike2060]

Originally Posted by Emotiva

Oh No!!, THE END OF THE WORLD, and this is why I am getting the Theatrical version now because in 2012 we will be dead! lol

Not true!! We might have a month to buy and watch them!