Blu-rays in Thailand

[garlad]

Has anyone travelled to Thailand and seen blu rays for sale? What are the prices like? I am going there next month

Thanks!

[OrlandoEastwood]

The only real Thai Blu-Ray is P. Apparently Catalyst Alliance Thailand issues the Hong Kong Blu-Rays with Thai covers and censorship approval. They are non-existant, they rely on imports.

[garlad]

Thanks. I saw the posts about the film P. Looks interesting, might pick it up if I come across it. As they rely on imports in their shops, like you say, I imagine they would not be cheap!

[steve_dave]

Only places to buy locally are the Sony Store Thailand which can be around $40 - $60 US a BD and Boomerang which is around $30-$50 a BD.

The Sony Store Thailand sells the Hong Kong imports of all titles but converts the Hong Kong dollar retail price to Thai Baht. So they are going to be more expensive.

Boomerang allows you to become a member of the store (if you are a Thai local/national) so you can get a lower price (the $30 - $50 I stated earlier). However, if you are not a member, expect to pay $2-$3 more per title. Boomerang will participate in Pacific Marketing's promotions on Blu-ray and DVD. So you can get a Buy 2 get 1 free offer on selected catalog titles. But at around $64 US total, you are not saving much compared to US sales.

Both the Blu-rays I bought at Boomerang were $32 each and that was the lowest price they sold them for since I was not a member.

[garlad]

Thanks for the info steve! Going there on holiday so by the looks of things will be keeping my holiday money for things other than blus!

[steve_dave]

Just a heads up...they are not high-definition but you can find some great buys on DVD there.

Hard Boiled Region 3 PAL is around $1.60. Check the small stand/shop on the 4th or 5th floor of The Mall, Bangkok. Its really called The Mall by the way. Its only got the trailer but the English subtitles are far better than the US DVD.

You can also find God of Gamblers Collection real cheap there. Note that its keepcases with just cardboard sleeves. This cuts the cost down so don't freak out thinking its a pirate copy. Also, look for The Coffin, an English language Thai horror film, Bullet Wives aka The Mia, and Ocean Butterfly.

For non-movie purchases, check out CDs labeled Thailand Special Edition. You get the same CDs as the US but to keep the prices low, the liner notes are not included. You can also find some exclusive CDs there as well. Finally, check out the clothes...many Thai local brands are available at good prices.

Oooh, almost forgot to also say: YOU CAN BARGAIN with most of the shops to get better deals. Although Boomerang does not haggle, other places will.

[OrlandoEastwood]

Originally Posted by steve_dave

Just a heads up...they are not high-definition but you can find some great buys on DVD there.

Hard Boiled Region 3 PAL is around $1.60. Check the small stand/shop on the 4th or 5th floor of The Mall, Bangkok. Its really called The Mall by the way. Its only got the trailer but the English subtitles are far better than the US DVD.

You can also find God of Gamblers Collection real cheap there. Note that its keepcases with just cardboard sleeves. This cuts the cost down so don't freak out thinking its a pirate copy. Also, look for The Coffin, an English language Thai horror film, Bullet Wives aka The Mia, and Ocean Butterfly.

For non-movie purchases, check out CDs labeled Thailand Special Edition. You get the same CDs as the US but to keep the prices low, the liner notes are not included. You can also find some exclusive CDs there as well. Finally, check out the clothes...many Thai local brands are available at good prices.

Oooh, almost forgot to also say: YOU CAN BARGAIN with most of the shops to get better deals. Although Boomerang does not haggle, other places will.

Yeah, my Thai Godzilla DVDs from EVS are cardboard sleeves. I thought it was weird when I got my copy of Godzilla Vs. Destoroyah. Since I'm not in Thailand, I do all my buying off eThaiCD.com. Even though by Thai standards the website is too expensive but since they tack on the price of importing the movies, which isn't that much more expensive, the movies are still pretty cheap. The Godzilla movies from EVS, I was about to get them for $7.50 each. The customer service at eThaiCD.com is great too. They aim to make their customers happy and I have nothing but good things to say about them.

I've purchased the following off eThaiCD:

VCDs:
28 Weeks Later - English with Thai subs
AVP:R - English with Thai subs
Babylon A.D. - English with Thai subs
Horton Hears A Who! - English with Thai subs
Speed Racer - English with Thai subs
Trick II - Thai Dubbed

DVDs:
Always: Sunset on Third Street
Always 2: Sunset on Third Street
Captain Alatriste
Casshern
Confession of Pain
Dolls
Godzilla: King Kong Vs Godzilla
Godzilla: Destroy All Monsters
Godzilla Vs Biollante
Godzilla Vs Destoroyah
Godzilla: Final Wars
I Am Omega

The only DVD that was bad quality was Dolls and that was due to the PAL speed up. It's rough to watch but considering the US DVD is hard to get a hold of, I managed to get the Thai DVD for $8.50. The VCDs were all released early compared to the US releases. In Thailand, with Catalyst Alliance Thailand, they do these so-called VANILLA DVD Versions with just the film and Thai dubbing. 12 Rounds and Dragonball Evolution will be coming out in a few more weeks, like at the beginning of June so I might pick those up.

[unjichan]

There Are Some Blu-Rays From Thailand That's Really Cool But I'm Not Sure About All The PQ/AQ But These Are Import From Either Hong Kong, Or Taiwan

Like, Charlie & The Chocolate Factory, Peter Pan (2003), High School Musical 2 [Dance Edition] These Are Few Of My Favorite Titles But There Should Be More That I Have Never Seen It Release In The US.

I Can Say Buying Blu-Ray From Here (Boomerang) Are The Same Experience You'll Get From Buying From Hong Kong Or Taiwan But The Whole Cover Art Will Be English-Only, Unlike From HK/TW where There'll be Chinese On It.

The Prices for Local Discs In My Currency Are

799 baht to 1299 baht

depends on what studios it from. For Disney it's the most expensive.
this is where you can check which one is available

www.boomerang.co.th

the 2 import companies are 'Catalyst' and 'MVD'(Former name 'Pacific')

If you see blu-ray without any stickers or labels on the box states one of these 2 companies, it won't be local disc, it'll be import from the US. So it's going to be 1300-1600 Baht.

BTW If you need help or more info i can help u find out because mostly everything in thailand are thai... not many ppl speak english and you'll be lost in translation here.

good luck and hope u enjoy the trip

[unjichan]

About The DVD, it sure are very cheap but please be aware of the quality, even the licensed or genuine ones are craps. Some of them are cencored, cut or letterboxed. It might pissed you out, please expect some crappy discs here lol.

And watch out for the pirate discs, some of them states are blu-ray
that is indeed impossible, it's just a dvd and the PQ isn't even blu-ray. some titles never exist in the world as hi-def are available in fake blu-rays here, it's just dvds, I can tell. I wish these stuffs just be gone.

And there are some thai movies that are surprisingly good but not many of them has english subtitles on DVD.

[unjichan]

wait... am i too late? sorry, i've never been in this section before

[OrlandoEastwood]

Nah, you're good.

Yeah, the censoring can be annoying at times. My copy of King Kong Vs Godzilla was missing the opening of the film after the credits. I've noticed that nudity is censored too, so I tend to stay away from buying Thai DVDs of American films. Unless they are the releases on VCD that are still in theaters here in the US.