House: Two Stories (1986-1987) (Limited Edition)

[tenia]

Originally Posted by mar3o

Using your plane analogy,

Tell that to the plane crash survivors and see how many want to fly again after such an experience. It may still be the safest form of travel by the numbers, but no survivor is getting back on a plane anytime soon.

Which is perfectly understandable but also isn't rational. They will take their cars or take the train in which they will have roughly 10 times more chances to die.

Again : cognitive biases negatively affective objective judgements. QED.

Fortunately though, since this here isn't a case of life or death, we can try being more rational and less emotional.

I like numbers.

Originally Posted by mar3o

My point is after buying enough blu-rays and getting burned by issues that shouldn't exist, some of us are getting more and more fed up or cautious about future releases.

Which still is taking a part for the whole.
I understand that, but people who do so also need to accept what they're doing : being biased and blowing 5 problematic titles into the whole reputation of a label.

Originally Posted by JohnCarpenterFan

Why people are trying to downplay Arrow's responsibility for these issues and attempting to pawn it off on another company is beyond me.

Because we don't know who did what, gave what exactly to who, what some could have done, what they couldn't do and exactly what the issue is.
Again, we're not even sure the left side we're now seeing IS the soundtrack area. It's more on the left, sure, but where ?

So if people want to simplistically jump on conclusions, fine, but you might understand how some people want raw absolute data before making their mind. I like numbers.

[BLMN]

Anybody here ordered directly from Arrow UK to deliver in the US and already received their set ? I didn't even receive a shipment acknowledgment yet. This is getting longer then when I order on amazon Uk and they ship through asendia.

Edit: they shipped mine on 3/21 according to arrows website, 10 days ago today. Usually takes a week or less to receive stuff from the UK here.

Edit 2: Received it on Saturday the 1st of April, it was actually shipped on the 23rd so it took 9 days. Now I can relax and watch this.

[JohnCarpenterFan]

Originally Posted by tenia

Because we don't know who did what, gave what exactly to who, what some could have done, what they couldn't do and exactly what the issue is.
Again, we're not even sure the left side we're now seeing IS the soundtrack area. It's more on the left, sure, but where ?

So if people want to simplistically jump on conclusions, fine, but you might understand how some people want raw absolute data before making their mind.

I don't understand what you mean. What we're seeing is most likely an exposed area of the frame not intended to be seen. IPs don't contain soundtracks so there is no actual soundtrack area. I was under the assumption that people used the phrase "soundtrack area" to refer to parts of the image on the left which were matted for release prints and contained only the soundtrack?

So far it seems that this isn't Lakeshore's fault and I think it's unfair that people seem to be insinuating this is because of what they provided or that their IPs are faulty when it's been admitted that the IP presentation for Creepshow 2 only used one framing and wasn't adjusted accordingly.

[drb124]

I just spoke to their Facebook rep via messenger. He said they are aware of the comments/concerns and are looking into it and will hopefully have an answer once they have a chance to look into it further.

[nightmareman81]

so guys is house 3 uncut?

[DJR662]

Originally Posted by nightmareman81

so guys is house 3 uncut?

Yes and that's why I want it!!

[StingingVelvet]

Originally Posted by mar3o

The shot in Creepshow 2 where a huge vertical block of black is visible on the left side is definitely an issue, as is the unfinished animation on the far left of the frame.

This is why I hate internet arguments. Obviously I know this. What my post was saying was that watching the movie, in motion, it pretty much looks fine. Pretty much allows for brief errors or questionable scenes. The point is overall it looks fine, you don't notice much of a problem. I was even looking for a problem and didn't really see one for the vast majority of the running time.

Hellraiser III on the other hand is obviously misframed the whole movie. It looks terrible.

Hopefully House is more like Creepshow 2.

[Ruined]

Originally Posted by drb124

I just spoke to their Facebook rep via messenger. He said they are aware of the comments/concerns and are looking into it and will hopefully have an answer once they have a chance to look into it further.

Awesome. Let's hope we get a more satisfactory response than Hellraiser III.

Better chance since this all came up before the title was even released.

[Shingster]

Originally Posted by nitin

I believe you had some success communicating with James White re Phenomena's screenshots Shingster. Do you think you could get in touch with him again to see if there was any reasoning behind what happened with House?

I try to keep a low profile and not hassle folk these days nitin! I was just in facebook discussion of the Phenomena release where James was taking part and saw the concerns on here over the blue lighting and thought I'd pop the question on a whim knowing James is a pretty approachable and helpful guy. I've kinda cut right down on reviewing discs nowadays (haven't done so in over a year) so I don't really feel it's my place to enquire about technical issues on titles, and truth be told I think Arrow/James will address the House transfer in their own way soon, so don't think it's necessary.

The sad thing is that Michael Brooke probably would be here answering questions and going to James directly on technical issues (he's done so a number of times for myself in the past when I've been reviewing arrow products and had queries), but sadly he's perma-banned from here! Like I say though, if there's a problem and fans are requesting info Arrow will probably address it. It might be ultra-rare that they recall/replace discs but they usually at least try to communicate with fans over controversial releases.

Originally Posted by NoirFan

(The fact that he 'thanks' posts that critique him also gives one an inkling as to his adolescent mentality.)

I think he was just glad I'd finally shut up!

Originally Posted by JohnCarpenterFan

I was under the assumption that people used the phrase "soundtrack area" to refer to parts of the image on the left which were matted for release prints and contained only the soundtrack?

Only in places where people get their technical know-how from internet posts and articles and think they know better than professionals with years of experience and learning in the film handling/recording business.

[TripleHBK]

While a replacement disc (for all of these releases) would be nice. At this point I just want them to publicly acknowledge the problems and vow to not allow them to happen again on a future release.

[Shingster]

Originally Posted by TripleHBK

At this point I just want them to publicly acknowledge the problems and vow to not allow them to happen again on a future release.

The former is likely, any distributor of cult/classic/world cinema would be crazy to make a vow like the latter though TripleHBK. It's a promise they can't keep!

[TripleHBK]

Originally Posted by Shingster

The former is likely, any distributor of cult/classic/world cinema would be crazy to make a vow like the latter though TripleHBK. It's a promise they can't keep!

These are quality control issues that could have been openly presented/discussed before the films release. If Arrow is stuck using a particular scan from a studio with noticeable differences from what has come before, be they color grading, framing, aspect ratio, etc, then be open and up front about it. Arrow can and should inform buyers ahead of time when their are going to be significant differences with one of their releases. They may not be able to prevent some issues, but they can be open and up front about them when they are evident. By vowing to be more transparent in their releases they will keep a lot of conversations like this to a minimum.

[kidglov3s]

Originally Posted by Shingster

Only in places where people get their technical know-how from internet posts and articles and think they know better than professionals with years of experience and learning in the film handling/recording business.

Yes, only on the internet do people ever use that term.

https://www.google.com/search?q=35mm...w=1600&bih=785

[Shingster]

You can be as transparent as you like but sooner or later fans will be coming for your head when a release comes out they don't like. How many cult-distributor threads have we seen on here end up with representatives losing their shit? There's politics and challenges and vagaries involved in any film distribution industry. Fans only think they know how it is: a world of candy and peppermint dreams where a simple apology fixes all scenarios, or a polite request to a studio for correct materials will result in that perfect release. They've just got to be as vigilant and infallible as we are!

Originally Posted by kidglov3s

Yes, only on the internet do people ever use that term.

https://www.google.com/search?q=35mm...w=1600&bih=785

Sigh, I never said it wasn't a term, just that it doesn't mean the entire opened up left hand side of an OCN like folk here are using it for!

[pinballmaster]

It breaks my heart that the transfer is messed up. I've waited so long for one of my favorites movies to be released on Blu-Ray and we get a major screw up. Not a minor screw up. A MAJOR SCREW UP. Something shitty studios don't even screw up. This is my very first Arrow release. If they don't correct this I promise it'll be my last. IMO this is something we could file a class action lawsuit against. Especially after reading they've screwed up a number of films without remotely addressing the issues. In all of my years collecting films I've never heard of such an unbelievable mess up. They should be incredibly embarrassed as a business and studio. Is there no quality control? I would have spot these errors instantly. The only other release that pisses me off this much is the Leprechaun box set where the dumb asses decided to stretch the video so it wouldn't be letterbox. It makes me so angry how lazy and incompetent some of the studios are when it comes to releasing these older horror films. It's one thing for poor picture quality, it's another thing to intentionally botch the framing. The rule of thirds is incredibly crucial when it comes to video/photography. Moving things only a couple inches can drastically change the effectiveness of shots/scenes/effects/sequences. They should know better. Shame, Shame, Shame!

[MassiveMovieBuff]

Originally Posted by pinballmaster

It breaks my heart that the transfer is messed up. I've waited so long for one of my favorites movies to be released on Blu-Ray and we get a major screw up. Not a minor screw up. A MAJOR SCREW UP. Something shitty studios don't even screw up. This is my very first Arrow release. If they don't correct this I promise it'll be my last. IMO this is something we could file a class action lawsuit against. Especially after reading they've screwed up a number of films without remotely addressing the issues. In all of my years collecting films I've never heard of such an unbelievable mess up. They should be incredibly embarrassed as a business and studio. Is there no quality control? I would have spot these errors instantly. The only other release that pisses me off this much is the Leprechaun box set where the dumb asses decided to stretch the video so it wouldn't be letterbox. It makes me so angry how lazy and incompetent some of the studios are when it comes to releasing these older horror films. It's one thing for poor picture quality, it's another thing to intentionally botch the framing. The rule of thirds is incredibly crucial when it comes to video/photography. Moving things only a couple inches can drastically change the effectiveness of shots/scenes/effects/sequences. They should know better. Shame, Shame, Shame!

What can I say except that you are right. There really is no excuse for it frankly.

[Brutalizer79]

I ordered mine from Amazon UK and as of right now it is showing an arrival time of April 10, so I still have about a week and half left to wait until I get mine. At least I got the Wishmaster collection to hold me over in the meantime

[TripleHBK]

Originally Posted by pinballmaster

It breaks my heart that the transfer is messed up. I've waited so long for one of my favorites movies to be released on Blu-Ray and we get a major screw up. Not a minor screw up. A MAJOR SCREW UP. Something shitty studios don't even screw up. This is my very first Arrow release. If they don't correct this I promise it'll be my last. IMO this is something we could file a class action lawsuit against. Especially after reading they've screwed up a number of films without remotely addressing the issues. In all of my years collecting films I've never heard of such an unbelievable mess up. They should be incredibly embarrassed as a business and studio. Is there no quality control? I would have spot these errors instantly. The only other release that pisses me off this much is the Leprechaun box set where the dumb asses decided to stretch the video so it wouldn't be letterbox. It makes me so angry how lazy and incompetent some of the studios are when it comes to releasing these older horror films. It's one thing for poor picture quality, it's another thing to intentionally botch the framing. The rule of thirds is incredibly crucial when it comes to video/photography. Moving things only a couple inches can drastically change the effectiveness of shots/scenes/effects/sequences. They should know better. Shame, Shame, Shame!

Is the film framed incorrectly? Yes. However let's not act like it's some pile of dog shit that somehow is utterly and completely unwatchable. I have no doubt that when viewed in motion the framing issues will be an annoyance to some, and invisible to others. This isn't a case of Arrow intentionally trying to screw over it's fan base, rather it was likely poor quality control or even possibly a good faith effort that just wasn't executed well. There is absolutely zero grounds for a class action lawsuit and it's these kinds of "the sky is falling" reactions that cause these studios to turn a blind eye to the constructive criticisms that fans often have. As Stinging Velvet has pointed out, these have been 5 films out of a collection of several hundred. It's ridiculous that 5 films have all befallen the same problem, but at the same time Arrow shouldn't be taken to the woodshed because of these 5 films alone either, regardless of the disappointment many of us feel regarding these releases.

[drb124]

Originally Posted by TripleHBK

Is the film framed incorrectly? Yes. However let's not act like it's some pile of dog shit that somehow is utterly and completely unwatchable. I have no doubt that when viewed in motion the framing issues will be an annoyance to some, and invisible to others. This isn't a case of Arrow intentionally trying to screw over it's fan base, rather it was likely poor quality control or even possibly a good faith effort that just wasn't executed well. There is absolutely zero grounds for a class action lawsuit and it's these kinds of "the sky is falling" reactions that cause these studios to turn a blind eye to the constructive criticisms that fans often have. As Stinging Velvet has pointed out, these have been 5 films out of a collection of several hundred. It's ridiculous that 5 films have all befallen the same problem, but at the same time Arrow shouldn't be taken to the woodshed because of these 5 films alone either, regardless of the disappointment many of us feel regarding these releases.

I agree. If Arrow is unable or unwilling to fix this set, I would rather them just say so. They can't get the materials, it is not financially viable, etc. So long as they realize and admit that a mistake was made and that more care will be taken to avoid similar mistakes in the future. And I doubt there is any lawsuit here other than perhaps a negligent infliction of emotional distress, certainly no class action, or not one any lawyer would take as there is zero money in it. This is not some communications monolith that has immense bargaining power from which consumers must be protected. It is a niche movie company wherein the consumer is free to purchase or not purchase what amount to luxury items.

[GaragePoet]

Originally Posted by pinballmaster

It breaks my heart that the transfer is messed up. I've waited so long for one of my favorites movies to be released on Blu-Ray and we get a major screw up. Not a minor screw up. A MAJOR SCREW UP. Something shitty studios don't even screw up. This is my very first Arrow release. If they don't correct this I promise it'll be my last. IMO this is something we could file a class action lawsuit against. Especially after reading they've screwed up a number of films without remotely addressing the issues. In all of my years collecting films I've never heard of such an unbelievable mess up. They should be incredibly embarrassed as a business and studio. Is there no quality control?

man, i was SO with you for the first part of this post, but then you lost me in hyperbole world.

this is also my first Arrow purchase, and it's a pretty big disappointment for a favorite movie of mine. i've watched this movie since i was a little kid and my LE DVD w/ "House 2" has been a prized possession of mine for a long time (which appears i won't be giving up). i would love to hear an official explanation, moreso a replacement disc, but i'll try to accept whatever it is for just what it is and pick up the pieces & move on w/ my life.

i do agree w/ another member who pointed out that it actually makes the films and the filmmakers themselves look incompetent, and that is the ultimate insult for what very well may be the last defining release of movies like these, at least in the physical realm. who knows what kind of work will be done to preserve these films in OARs and proper color timings, etc, in the digital age.

i had some definite reservations about my $38 pre-order from amazon. i figured the best thing i could do is order the complete set for $4 more on amazon UK. that way at least i'm getting more crappy value for my money. "House 3" will be a blind buy and i'm not even looking forward to watching "House 4" again, but i suppose i'll just have to now...