Eagle’s Anand Blu-ray vs DEI upscaled DVD

[HDDCS]

BTW, my copies of Kaala Patthar, Daag and Noorie have a message before the movie saying "Reproduced from a vintage source for the sake of nostalgic appeal possibly compromising over quality."
This is the excuse they have been using since the past 16 years in the name of dishing out absolute crap.

[prepress]

You posted it just after my comment, which I did last year in June. It shows there is not much response from end users.

[HDDCS]

I'm not even sure if the 'fans' of this movie even know what a Blu-ray disc is. :-p for such audience, even a worn-out 30 year old VHS converted into a VCD will suffice.

[prepress]

Originally Posted by HDDCS

BTW, my copies of Kaala Patthar, Daag and Noorie have a message before the movie saying "Reproduced from a vintage source for the sake of nostalgic appeal possibly compromising over quality."
This is the excuse they have been using since the past 16 years in the name of dishing out absolute crap.

Definitely it is blunder excuse (consider it a kind of disclosure). By putting this they are free from all kind of legal activities and no body can challenge them for providing worst quality DVDs.

Another worst thing is, we can't get superior quality content even we want to pay more. I can understand there is not much space on DVDs but still they aren't doing great job for DVDs as well even it can hold better quality content. Indian industry don't want to work hard but always eager to compete with other countries. Indian industry running after money and never think about the quality standards.
Some foreign studios like Criterion, Twilight Cinema etc are working on Indian movies because they know which movie deserves better treatment. Even now Arrow is planning to work on it.
You can find 1920's Blu-ray(s) in other countries but here we are struggling to get Blu-rays of Indian Milestones like Mother India, Sholay, and many banners like RK Films, Guru Dutt Productions, BR Films, Navketan Films (International). Leave Blu-rays we are not getting even proper treated DVDs here. It's shame.

The Phantom of the Opera

Nosferatu

[rajkapoor]

1920? They have movies from 1902. I just got one. It's called "A Trip to Moon". It's a 15 minute movie. They spent a couple of years to fix it. It's a hand colored movie. The BD also has a 1898 movie as a bonus. Check it out.

I don't think we are ever going to get old movies on BRs. Even newer movies BRs are not coming out. Piracy is the main reason. Here in the USA, Indian groceries store start selling DVDs of movies still running in theaters in about a week after the release. Most people just buy those for $3.00 a piece.

Yash Raj is selling HD version of Daag on Youtube. I didn't get it as it cannot be downloaded. They have most of their movies on iTunes also. Some are available in HD.

Newer movies like Mumbai Delhi Mumbai is also available in HD on iTunes. This plus streaming seems to be the new way of distributing movies. ErosNow subscribers get movies in HD. Amazon streams movies in 1080p and DD5.1 on their FireTV. Most people are happy with their streaming services.

[zombeaner]

Originally Posted by ravenus

In screenshots of that resolution it becomes difficult to distinguish the quality of blu-ray and DVD. A comparison is only relevant with actual screengrabs. I have seen Deewaar and while it is not a Arrow/Criterion class release, I feel quite sure that it's not an upscale job.

SPeaking of Arrow, I've been talking to them about whether or not there is a market for Bollywood classics on Blu-ray and what it would take to get the rights for the UK. They want to do it, but aren't sure if the local rightsholders would be interested in selling/sublicensing

[ravenus]

^Talking to them? In what capacity? I only know they'd put out a FB post asking for fan interest in releases of Bollywood classics. The overall response was negative, I think. Also getting hold of original film materials is going to be a real nightmare.

[zombeaner]

Originally Posted by ravenus

^Talking to them? In what capacity? I only know they'd put out a FB post asking for fan interest in releases of Bollywood classics. The overall response was negative, I think. Also getting hold of original film materials is going to be a real nightmare.

Consulting in terms of viability of the venture in general. It certainly wouldn't attract the usual Arrow crowd. Materials would most definitely be an issue, and they are aware of that

[prepress]

Originally Posted by rajkapoor

1920? They have movies from 1902. I just got one. It's called "A Trip to Moon". It's a 15 minute movie. They spent a couple of years to fix it. It's a hand colored movie. The BD also has a 1898 movie as a bonus. Check it out.

I don't think we are ever going to get old movies on BRs. Even newer movies BRs are not coming out. Piracy is the main reason. Here in the USA, Indian groceries store start selling DVDs of movies still running in theaters in about a week after the release. Most people just buy those for $3.00 a piece.

Yash Raj is selling HD version of Daag on Youtube. I didn't get it as it cannot be downloaded. They have most of their movies on iTunes also. Some are available in HD.

Newer movies like Mumbai Delhi Mumbai is also available in HD on iTunes. This plus streaming seems to be the new way of distributing movies. ErosNow subscribers get movies in HD. Amazon streams movies in 1080p and DD5.1 on their FireTV. Most people are happy with their streaming services.

True, I have posted a comment earlier in which I have mentioned that the companies are more interested in releasing VOD way. Which has less risk and will remain for long time without investing on physical media. Some of my friends (abroad) never buy physical media and watch online because it is cheaper and almost similar in quality. Amazon is also providing Instant Video facility.

But in India, it will take more time because of slow internet bandwidth (in most areas). DTH operators providing VOD services to play pre-loaded DVD content.

But the thing is, if they are releasing anything physically, it should be decent no matter it is on DVD or Blu-ray.
As DAAG dvd quality is pathetic but it is available in HD quality online, I am not sure if it is a tactic to promote VOD.

[mrbrat_Boy]

Originally Posted by zombeaner

Consulting in terms of viability of the venture in general. It certainly wouldn't attract the usual Arrow crowd. Materials would most definitely be an issue, and they are aware of that

Hi Zombeaner, that is really heartening to read. I'm glad we sort of have an 'insider' to assist with this. I hope that they do go ahead with this as I feel Arrow will give the correct exposure to Bollywood Blu Ray, with proper marketing and a wider group of buyers. Maybe even convert some Arrow fans to Bollywood. But for now, what are they thinking of? Popular, classic or cult movies? Hoping something positive comes out of this, fingers crossed.

[ravenus]

I would be happy if Arrow Academy could pick up some of the sensible parallel Indian films - Benegal, Kumar Shahani, Adoor Gopalakrishnan, Gautam Ghose - an assorted boxset like the World Cinema Foundation series release would be fantastic. Of course, I am just dreaming here.

[rajkapoor]

prepress

I completely agree with you that if someone releases a physical media, it should be of the highest quality. The problem is they don’t want to spend too much money to attain it as they don’t see a big demand for it. It’s a catch-22 situation here. I looked at my Daag disk. It was made in 2000. If YR hasn’t released a BR for it for last 15 years, when there were no streaming or on line selling, why would they release it now. As you mentioned it, it’s a tactic to promote VOD - a cheaper way of distribution.

By the way, you owe me $20.00. You are the one who said that Atmos Mary Kom wouldn’t have a watermark. Just kidding! I always knew it’s not going to happen. Ugly is by YR. Why was Amazon missing their logo? My copy has it. Thanks!

[prepress]

^

I was guessing may be they are releasing Mary Kom quickly without WM to get instant profit and added Dolby Atmos for attraction. But I was completely wrong. Did you see this in another thread? Naseeruddin Shah's frustration.... My god, LMAO

Naseer Hates Mary Kom - YouTube

Yes, Amazon has uploaded UGLY poster earlier but in the description they clearly mentioned from day 1 it will be released by YRF.

[rajkapoor]

HDDCS & prepress

As the Daag DVD was out, I watched it. It's not bad at all. The print they used for digitizing is quite nice. I don't have any vintage source message either. There must be two versions. Mine is made and printed in the USA. Audio is fake 5.1. What’s yours DVD’s file size? Mine also has a trailer and an interview with Yash Chopra by Karan Johar. Here are some screen shots:

Dg_01.jpg

Dg_02.jpg

Dg_03.jpg

Dg_04.jpg

Dg_05.jpg

[HDDCS]

The Indian edition is exactly the same. The Sharpness, I think, isnt that bad. But the picture has a lot of dirt and scratches. The colors are very poor. Very dark and bluish. It doesn't look pleasing to me.
Also, the DVD looks like crap in motion because of excessive noise filtering.
The DVD I have is around 7.18 GB. It only has the theatrical trailer as an extra, even though the cover mention about the Yash Chopra - Karan Johar convo. There's no such feature.

Yours is the very first edition which only has a different menu and subtitle font from the current batch. Transfer is identical though.

Maybe if the colors were properly set, the DVD would have been watchable at least. From what I saw, the picture is very dark.

[rajkapoor]

YR rarely cleaned any of their movies. But they were still considered the best and were the most expensive ones because they would use a good print and a high bit rate. While DEI did process their DVDs properly though cropping some, EVP and Super Digital did some of their DVDs. But where are those companies now? The only companies which have survived are the ones involved in production and distribution. There never was a huge demand for DVDs. Frozen made $400 mil in domestic box office and $347 mil in video sales. How much money Dhoom 3 made in video sale? As long as there is piracy and no desire for quality or in other words no demand, we cannot expect to get properly treated movies. If we can figure out why Sholay flopped and no BDs have been released so far, then probably we can understand the behavior of Bollywood fans.

The movie is on the dark side but not that dark. I think you are setting your standards too high.

[HDDCS]

^ you're right! I think I shouldn't keep any expectations from such companies.

YRF wasn't this bad with their transfer for movies like "Noorie", "Kaala Patthar", "Doosra Aadmi", "Faasle", "Aaina", etc. Color rendition was vastly superior than their Daag transfer. I would have forgiven the dirty print only if colors were pleasing. Color rendition, I guess is what makes the first impression of a DVD.
Please also note that some dark scenes are really unwatchable.

On second thoughts, maybe that is the way Daag was shot (with a bluish and dark effect) because the theatrical trailer too has similar colors.

However, the snaps uploaded on the YRF website show a better color rendition
http://www.yashrajfilms.com/Movies/M...e-e727a960b325 (take a look at the picture gallery)

[HDDCS]

prepress, what do you think of the PQ of this Daag DVD?

[Dragun]

I was never impressed with YRF DVDs of older films. They were PAL to NTSC converted and DNRed, and aside from that they had some problems depending on the source. Their DVDs of Guru Dutt's films are probably the best of a bad lot, though.

[prepress]

I remember, I have seen similar quality VCD's in late 90's. They were using similar color tone for movies, dark, any color tone on whole image (like Daag looks cyanish/teal). Last screenshot is better than others.

Yes, YRK snapshots are decent than this but I have noticed a kind of Blue tint in the corner of mostly images. And the above uploaded screenshots has dark corners. I have tried to fix the colors of one image, see attachment.

Daag_04.jpg