What's up with sony?

[BobbyC1987]

It seems logical that properties owned by Sony pictures would be fast-tracked to Blu-ray releases, but several titles, such as; Men In Black II, Ghostbusters II, Bad Boys II have no current release dates. What's with the odd sequel prejudice? On top of that, Heavy Metal was canceled, then brought back as a Best buy exclusive. Hell, they created the Blu-ray format, but other studios are better at releasing titles than they are.

[menaceuk]

maybe has something to do with the sales of the first releases ?

I am sure they will come eventually though.

[aggienader08]

Originally Posted by BobbyC1987

[Show spoiler]It seems logical that properties owned by Sony pictures would be fast-tracked to Blu-ray releases, but several titles, such as; Men In Black II, Ghostbusters II, Bad Boys II have no current release dates. What's with the odd sequel prejudice? On top of that, Heavy Metal was canceled, then brought back as a Best buy exclusive.

Hell, they created the Blu-ray format, but other studios are better at releasing titles than they are.

No, they're not. As for what Sony's problem is? Simple, they don't have one. MGM is/was the one with the problems, and I mean that literally. There are so many more catalog releases to get to in the coming year(s). Focusing on just three particular releases, it's easy to get frustrated with a certain studio. That's how we reason with the trouble of not having our favorite titles.

I'm frustrated Universal hasn't put out Jaws, E.T., Jurassic Park, The Lost World, Schindler's List, The Big Lebowski. Fox hasn't released, nor is even rumored to be releasing True Lies, or The Abyss (may be slightly rumored); even less, they never released an anamorphic DVD for either film.

I'm even more frustrated Paramount hasn't released the Indiana Jones Trilogy. But Universal is by far the worst.

It takes a lot of time to release a catalog title. Some people think they can just release them whenever they want to, but there are so many hurdles that we don't even know about as the consumer. And when a studio neglects those hurdles and rushes a poor transfer, that usually means they don't care too much about the consumer. It takes time, and in some cases a lot more time than we expect. The thing is that we as consumers have proven time and time again that we can't wait for these things.

Just hold your horses. You'll get your catalog titles. Ghostbusters II has been rumored for a while to be an upcoming anniversary release, like Ghostbusters I, and Bad Boys 2 has been rumored and supposedly in long time development since the beginning years of the format. Look at any old Sony Pictures release from 2005-2007 and you'll see a clip of Bad Boys 2 in the beginning trailer advertised as "Your favorite movies in High Definition" or something like that.

If Sony keeps on giving us the same quality transfers for each new and catalog release, then I'm fine with them taking the time necessary to be sure that my favorite films don't turn out to be blu-ray duds.

[melbye]

There has been rumors of Ghostbusters 3 and Bad Boys 3 for some time now, while MIB 3 is shooting right now. Might have something to do with it

[BobbyC1987]

Originally Posted by melbye

There has been rumors of Ghostbusters 3 and Bad Boys 3 for some time now, while MIB 3 is shooting right now. Might have something to do with it

I hope that's not the reason, GB3 shows no signs of actually being green-lit. It's not going to happen.

[Dotpattern]

Originally Posted by BobbyC1987

It seems logical that properties owned by Sony pictures would be fast-tracked to Blu-ray releases, but several titles, such as; Men In Black II, Ghostbusters II, Bad Boys II have no current release dates. What's with the odd sequel prejudice? On top of that, Heavy Metal was canceled, then brought back as a Best buy exclusive. Hell, they created the Blu-ray format, but other studios are better at releasing titles than they are.

Why would you single out Sony? All of the studios have done this.

[Blu-ray Fanatic]

Everybody has problems. Sony's problem is they try to be creative but they end up making something stupid. Samsung's problem is they're trying to make stuff that actually works.

[kdo]

Originally Posted by BobbyC1987

It seems logical that properties owned by Sony pictures would be fast-tracked to Blu-ray releases, but several titles, such as; Men In Black II, Ghostbusters II, Bad Boys II have no current release dates. What's with the odd sequel prejudice? On top of that, Heavy Metal was canceled, then brought back as a Best buy exclusive. Hell, they created the Blu-ray format, but other studios are better at releasing titles than they are.

At some point, people are going to have to accept the fact that many titles released on DVD aren't going to get a Blu-ray release. It's difficult to know which ones (after all, if films like "Jesus Christ Vampire Hunter," "Class of Nuke 'Em High," "Tromeo & Juliet," "Troll 2," and "Uncle Sam" can get a release, I suppose anything is game), but there's simply not enough demand for many films to warrant studios spending the kind of money required even for low end hi-def transfers, let alone fancy restoration and/or upgraded scans of the film elements.

Prepping a film for a quality hi-def release is not a cheap process, and considering how oversaturated the market already is with DVD, digital downloads & streaming, and on-demand TV, the studios need to make sure that they're not wasting time and money.

And as already stated on this thread, it's not just Sony being careful as to what they release, it's many (if not most) of the other studios as well.

[yojoeski]

I wonder what their problem is with releasing Lawrence of Arabia. This thing has been in the pipeline since 2007 and we've heard absolutely nothing on it other than that it's "in the works." It's David Lean's greatest masterpiece and the only of his 4 major masterpieces not currently on blu-ray yet it was the first one of the 4 to be promoted. Why is this?

[ANDYBALLINA]

Universal ****ing suck. They are so slow releasing back catalogue, esp anything from Speilberg.

I wish they would hurry up and release The War, E.T, Jaw's and Schindler's List.

[BobbyC1987]

My point was that Sony created the format, so it must show a lack of confidence, or interest in the format. I was under the impression that there wasn't much restoration done on the Sony releases, at least DNR, I thought it was just a transfer from the master print. It seems elitist to release some films, but not others.

[Dotpattern]

Originally Posted by BobbyC1987

My point was that Sony created the format, so it must show a lack of confidence, or interest in the format. I was under the impression that there wasn't much restoration done on the Sony releases, at least DNR, I thought it was just a transfer from the master print. It seems elitist to release some films, but not others.

Sony has been releasing a large number of titles on a monthly basis, both new releases and catalogue titles. Just because all of the studios aren't releasing exactly all of the titles that you want, doesn't make them elitist, or disinterested in the format. Those are some wild conclusions you're jumping to.

[Bruce Morrison]

Originally Posted by yojoeski

I wonder what their problem is with releasing Lawrence of Arabia. This thing has been in the pipeline since 2007 and we've heard absolutely nothing on it other than that it's "in the works." It's David Lean's greatest masterpiece and the only of his 4 major masterpieces not currently on blu-ray yet it was the first one of the 4 to be promoted. Why is this?

I would imagine they intend to release a 50th anniversary edition in 2012. That would make a lot of sense.

[P@t_Mtl]

Originally Posted by yojoeski

I wonder what their problem is with releasing Lawrence of Arabia. This thing has been in the pipeline since 2007 and we've heard absolutely nothing on it other than that it's "in the works." It's David Lean's greatest masterpiece and the only of his 4 major masterpieces not currently on blu-ray yet it was the first one of the 4 to be promoted. Why is this?

Tomorrow night here in Montreal Artv (French channel) will have Lawrence Of Arabia in HD. I will put it on my DVR. Cannot wait to see what it will look like. This should hold me up till a Blu-ray release.

[Kyo28]

Two things come to mind:

1. Sony didn't create Blu-ray, the Blu-ray consortium did, of which Sony is a member but not exclusively so

2. I think it's simply a matter of marketing and prioritising. New theatrical releases will get priority over catalog titles and there's only so many Blu-rays that can be mastered and pressed in a year's time. I'm sure if they had the capacity, those discs would already have been released together with the many theatrical ones and other catalog ones we've seen so far

[Rob71]

Originally Posted by P@t_Mtl

Tomorrow night here in Montreal Artv (French channel) will have Lawrence Of Arabia in HD. I will put it on my DVR. Cannot wait to see what it will look like. This should hold me up till a Blu-ray release.

Wonder if it's the one they showed on HDNet? It was ripped to shreds over at AVS if memory serves. Although those guys are like Mikey, they hate everything.

Sorry for the dated reference.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vYEXz...yer_embedded#!

[P@t_Mtl]

Originally Posted by Rob71

Wonder if it's the one they showed on HDNet? It was ripped to shreds over at AVS if memory serves. Although those guys are like Mikey, they hate everything.

Sorry for the dated reference.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vYEXz...yer_embedded#!

I do not know what it will be like. A lot of time Artv as original language with subtitles (sometime dubbing but not often). I am looking forward to seeing it however.

[DaleDark]

Originally Posted by Kyo28

Two things come to mind:

1. Sony didn't create Blu-ray, the Blu-ray consortium did, of which Sony is a member but not exclusively so

Very true, but I can see why someone would think so. During the format wars, it seemed to me that the HD-DVD crowd were more "anti-Sony" than against blu-ray. So we had a 2 & 1/2 year period of Sony bashing w/ barely a mention of the fact that they were one of many companies that were involved in blu-ray's development.

Personally, I find it amusing that someone would start a thread bashing Sony for not releasing 3 (some would argue substandard) sequels, when there are literally 100s of classic/important/groundbreaking films that haven't been so much as hinted at being in the works.

Lets play the "What Releases Should Be Prioritized" game....

Bad Boys II or Pulp Fiction
Ghostbusters II or Jaws
Men In Black II or Indiana Jones (hell, I'd take both MiB films and flush 'em down a garbage disposal if I could get the Addams Family films)

[Musashi]

Originally Posted by DaleDark

Very true, but I can see why someone would think so. During the format wars, it seemed to me that the HD-DVD crowd were more "anti-Sony" than against blu-ray. So we had a 2 & 1/2 year period of Sony bashing w/ barely a mention of the fact that they were one of many companies that were involved in blu-ray's development.

I still remember 1 or 2 dumbarses/forum trolls who kept calling blu-ray a "proprietary Sony format". Challenged for proof, they puked up more babyish insults while the other forum regulars could feel their respect for the guy vanishing. I even challenged one of them to a monetary bet requiring proving his claim to an impartial university professor. He ducked the challenge, yet still claimed to be 'right'

[kingofgrills]

Every studio has a vast back catalog that we, and they, would like to see released on Blu-ray. It's not just a Sony problem, or a Universal problem, or an MGM problem.

It takes a lot of resources and work to complete a high quality Blu-ray release of a title previously mastered for DVD. Audio and video remastering of the movie and extras takes work, as does the menu design. If the studio wants new material for the release on Blu, additional searching cataloging and remastering of deleted scenes and promotional material may be necessary. Also, the original director may want to be involved, so that raises scheduling issues.

The alternative, is to have the studios crank out poor rehashes of the original DVD release, just as we experienced when Blu-ray was first introduced. Lossy audio soundtracks, fuzzy picture, no extras.

Sound good?