DVD Spin Doctor

High-definition format war: What if no one wins?

The New York Times checks back in on the Blu-ray vs. HD DVD clash today. The article asks the question: "What if nobody wins the high-definition DVD format wars?"

Major update: Warner goes Blu-ray.

The two camps (Blu-ray and HD DVD) are victims of their own earlier success with DVD. The standard DVDs offered a quantum leap in quality from the picture and sound of VHS videotape, and for many that was more than adequate.

In addition, DVD players that can convert images to near high-definition quality can be found for under $100, hundreds less than a true high-definition DVD player, further reducing the urgency to upgrade to one of the new formats.

An NPD study of high-def formats (reported here a few months ago) is cited as proof that most consumers are sitting this one out. "This may emerge as a premium, luxury item, not a successor to DVD," said Ross Rubin, director for industry analysis at NPD.

The Times article won't be news to those who've been following this nonsensical format war, but it's a good read.

My advice for those ready to buy remains: Look at which studios are using which format. Go look at your DVDs and see if any studios stand out. Or think about which film franchises you might like to collect. For example, Disney is solidly Blu-ray. If you enjoy classic animation or have kids, go Blu. If your interests are in older TV shows, consider HD DVD, with Paramount and Universal cranking out the sitcoms.

Either format's players will do a great job of up-converting your DVDs -- or you can buy an Oppo player --ensuring you'll still have better images for movies not available in your HD format.

Don't worry. Be happy. As in happy new year.

Top DVDs: 'Simpsons' yellow signals green

It was dollars to doughnuts at the DVD sales counters as "The Simpsons Movie" crashed into first place in its opening week.

The 20th Century Fox release took second in rentals, chasing Universal Studios Home Entertainment's "The Bourne Ultimatum."

The rest of the chart toppers looked familiar: In sales, it was "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix" second, "Bourne" in third and "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End" chugging along in fourth.

Next week should be more of the same with few new titles of interest braving the holiday period.

Sales (week ending Dec. 23)
1. The Simpsons Movie
2. Harry Potter: Phoenix
3. The Bourne Ultimatum
4. Pirates: At World's End
5. High School Musical 2

Rentals (week ending Dec. 23)
1. The Bourne Ultimatum
2. The Simpsons Movie
3. Harry Potter: Phoenix
4. Superbad
5. Stardust

New DVDs: 'Eastern Promises, 'Jackass 2.5'

Pick of the week: Eastern Promises
Dog of the week: The Heartbreak Kid

Universal's DVD release of "Eastern Promises" should be snapped up by everyone who loves thrillers, gangster movies and intelligent action films.

Viggo Mortensen and Naomi Watts star in David Cronenberg's tale of an expatriated Russian mafia operating in London. Mortensen, in particular, stands out in a movie full of great performances. He plays a driver for the mob blessed with native intelligence and a gift for hand-to-hand combat. The movie's buzz revolved around a intensely graphic fight to the death in a steam bath.

Watts plays a midwife who stumbles into their world, seeking justice for the death of a young hooker. The driver patiently tries to guide the widwife away from a second tragedy, all the while rising in the organization.

For Cronenberg, it's a relatively straightforward work. The film looks great on DVD (1.85:1), dark and handsome in a way that recalls Francis Ford Coppola's crime dramas.

One of the two DVD featurettes looks at the tattoo language used by Russian prisoners. The top creatives appear to know a good bit about the Russian underworld. Mortensen traveled to Russia for research and spent time in the region where these gangsters hail from.

Universal also comes to market with "The Kingdom," a terrorist-themed action movie set in the Middle East. Jamie Foxx, Chris Cooper and Jennifer Garner star. Most reviewers felt the film didn't live up to its trailer.

This week's moneymaker is "Jackass 2.5," the DVD release being part of a distribution experiment in which the film premiered online. Paramount says it's the first studio to output a major film this way. Major being defined by money, and Johnny Knoxville's films make plenty of it.

This "Jackass" is more of the same. Meaning crude, full of humiliation and funnier than hell. Check out the DVD blog's "Jackass 2.5" review.

Two other guy comedies are about romantic losers: "The Brothers Solomon" has Will Arnett and Will Forte as inept brothers ineptly seek surrogate mom for baby. The Farrelly Brothers' "The Heartbreak Kid" is a quickly forgotten remake of a romantic comedy that didn't need a remake. Ben Stiller stars.

See you at "Sweeney Todd."

New and notable:
The Brothers Solomon (Sony)
Eastern Promises (Universal)
The Heatbreak Kid (Paramount)
Jackass 2.5 (Paramount)
Kingdom Come (Universal)
Maximum Cage Fighting (Echo Bridge)
Robin-B-Hood (Dragon Dynasty)

Holiday feast: top 5 DVDs for Christmas

Just back from Brian Setzer's rocking Christmas show over at Universal. My son Nick and I had good close seats for the sold-out show, which has become a snazzy L.A. tradition.

Setzer, the guy from the Stray Cats, works with about 20 musicians and a couple of female singers. We went last year, which was good, but this show was something special -- tight and hard-driving as well as festive. Many good vibes. Setzer seemed quite proud of the concert and his musicians. A lot of old folks there, Nick noted, including me.

Settling in for the final weekend before Dec. 25, I got to thinking about which DVDs to break out. I was never one for "It's A Wonderful Life," but maybe we'll give it another try: Paramount just put out a double-disc version with a restored black & white print (and a colorized version for those trying to get in some last-minute naughtiness).

Here are the top 5 Christmas DVDs in our house:

A Christmas Story. This 1983 film seems to have become America's favorite holiday film. Everyone loves the tale of Ralphie the kid and his quest for a Red Ryder BB gun. Doing its bit for peace on Earth, Warner Home Video has released the classic in both warring high-def formats: HD DVD and Blu-ray. The high-def discs port over most of the extras from the 2003 double-disc DVD.

Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas. A remastered version of this animated masterpiece came out last season via Warner. A real treat for those who've only caught "Grinch" on television. The featurette "From Whoville to Hollywood" extends the too-short viewing experience. Boris Karloff narrates and Chuck Jones animates. Woo-Who!

Bad Santa. Heard Billy Bob Thornton on a radio show last night talking about how he keeps a Christmas tree up all year and listens to holiday music in the summer. Here's his gift to those of you with, um, savory tastes. Probably the nastiest Christmas movie to see a theatrical release. Certainly one of the funniest. And still it ends up being all holiday sappy. Awwww. Dimension slipped this one onto Blu-ray right before the holidays. A great looking video with two versions to pick from: the director's cut, same as the "Bad Santa" DVD from last year, and a new uncensored version.

A Christmas Carol. The one from 1951 with Alastair Sim. Released this season by VCI in a double-disc collector's edition. I always enjoyed the 1938 version with Reginald Owen as well. Generous extras on VCI's set. Amazing what a little Dickens and a bit of undigested beef can unleash. ...

Holiday Inn. Fred Astaire and Bing Crosby make magic as they sing and dance their ways around a resort that's only open on holidays. Features some of Irving Berlin's timeless songs, notably "White Christmas." Extras include a 45-minute look at Crosby and Astaire. This spruced-up version of the 1942 film was released last fall by Universal.

Check out some more new holiday DVDs.

Merry Christmas, folks -- hope you get what you want.

Top DVDs: 'Potter,' 'Bourne' both take No. 1

The last big DVD duel of the year was between Harry Potter and Jason Bourne, with "The Order of the Phoenix" and "The Bourne Ultimatum" both landing No. 1 spots on the charts.

Warner Home Video's "Phoenix," fifth in the Potter series, took the top spot in sales and the second in rentals. "Bourne," from Universal, raced into No. 1 in rentals but settled for No. 2 in sales. "High School Musical 2" premiered at No. 3 for Disney.

Potter and Bourne met again on the HD DVD chart, with "Bourne" diving into first while "Phoenix" conjured up second. In Blu-rays, it was "Pirates of the Caribbean" and then "Phoenix." (Warner releases titles in both high-def formats.)

Sales (week ending Dec. 16)
1. Harry Potter: Phoenix
2. The Bourne Ultimatum
3. High School Musical 2
4. Pirates: At World's End
5. Superbad

Rentals (week ending Dec. 16)
1. The Bourne Ultimatum
2. Harry Potter: Phoenix
3. Superbad
4. Pirates: At World's End
5. Live Free or Die Hard

Deja Vu review: Wilder's 'Sunset Blvd.'

The pictures were big again on "Sunset Blvd." the other night.

AFI screened Billy Wilder's creepy classic in one of the main cinemas at the new Arclight in the Valley, playing to an enthusiastic and participatory crowd.

People voiced their favorite lines, laughed mercilessly at the black comedy and cheered heartily as the credits rolled.

Seeing this great dark Hollywood film with a pumped-up audience was a real treat. (The other Arclight is on Sunset Boulevard, ironically.)

The last DVD version of "Sunset Blvd" came in 2002, after an extensive restoration by Paramount. It remains best in market.

Filmed on unstable silver nitrate, the 1950 "Sunset" no longer existed as printed when Paramount decided to revive the black comedy for its archives and its DVD "Special Collector's Edition."

The movie so closely identified with the studio survived only as flawed acetate copies of the original internegative. They were converted to digital at 2,000 lines -- a resolution double that of high definition. Restoration specialists Lowry Digital Images went through the film frame by frame, buffing out scratches and removing the dirt. After several years' work, the results were transferred back to 35mm prints, and DVD.

On DVD (and at the Arclight), the film was presented full frame (1.33:1), as Wilder shot it. Like tarnished star Norma Desmond, the post-surgery "Sunset Blvd." images have their ups and downs, but their inner beauty can't be denied.

Read the complete "Sunset Blvd." DVD review.

New DVDs: 'Blade Runner,' 'The Simpsons'

Pick of the week: Blade Runner
Dog of the week: Balls of Fury

This is the week of "Blade Runner," put together as Ridley Scott wants it. At least for this year.

The Warner Home Video title comes in three versions, including an "Ultimate Collector's Edition" in a silver briefcase with four discs. Here's the "Blade Runner" preview.

Also representing in 2007's last week of real video activity are "The Simpsons Movie," a revival of "Braveheart," a tricked-out "The Evil Dead," more "Adventures of Young Indiana Jones" and my old favorite "The Mod Squad."

Fine last-minute gifts, every one of them.

New and notable:
Adventures of Young Indiana Jones, Vol. 2 (Paramount)
Balls of Fury (Universal)
Blade Runner: The Final Cut, Final Cut Special Edition and Collector's Edition (four discs) (Warner Home Video)
Braveheart Special Collector's Edition (Paramount)
Bring It On: In It to Win It (Universal)
Cinderella II: Dreams Come True (Disney)
Deep Water (Genius Products)
The Evil Dead Ultimate Edition (Anchor Bay)
Halloween (Weinstein Co./Genius Products)
Hatchet (Anchor Bay)
The Last Legion (Genius Products/Weinstein Company)
The Mod Squad: Season 1, Vol. 1 (Paramount)
National Treasure Collecter's Edition (Disney)
Once (Fox)
One Tree Hill: Fourth Season
Rawhide: Season 2, Vol. 2 (Paramount)
The Simpsons Movie (Fox)
Stardust (Paramount)
Underdog (Disney)

Complete list of today's releases on my pal Harley's site, onvideo.org

DVD review: 'Jackass 2.5'

“Jackass 2.5″ is just what it sounds like: outtakes and deleted scenes from “Jackass Number Two.”

Damaged goods? Nah, this is another balls-to-the-wall effort from Johnny Knoxville and the gross-out gang. Making the movie about as funny as guy humor gets. This DVD is strictly for those who can't be offended. Yeech.

Knoxville says in the DVD extras that “2.5″ is due to “my and the boys’ inability to stop shooting 'Jackass Number Two' ” And so we have stunts such as anal-bead kite flying, fun with snapping turtles, a Russian prostate massage, a cobra-infested bed of nails, the mouth-to-butt powder “poof” and the “rattlesnake salad toss.”

The best bit is fat man Preston Lacy dressed as King Kong, balancing atop an outhouse while fending off radio-controlled airplanes. His love interest is Wee Man, as Fay Wray.

In between bits, the boys talk about each stunt and how much the victim Jackass guy hated doing it. They say things like, “We filmed this atrocity at … ”

All the extras are worth checking out. There's a making-of, bonus segments, stunts, a game preview -- the party just keeps rolling for yet another 90 minutes.

“Jackass 2.5″ debuts online Wednesday -- not in theaters -- in a $2 million deal between Paramount and Blockbuster's Movielink unit. The "Jackass 2.5" DVD comes to market Dec. 26.

Paramount calls this the first major feature film to debut online. The rollout scheme is pretty interesting. Read more about the online "Jackass 2.5" premiere at Download Movies 101.

Top DVDs: 'Pirates,' 'Superbad' jacked up

Disney's "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End" began hauling in its home video treasures with an intimidating No. 1 showing in DVD sales. Sony's guy goof "Superbad" came in a distant second, but managed to run wild atop the rental chart.

The third "Pirates" installment sold twice as many copies as "Spider-Man 3" and swamped "Shrek the Third" as well, Home Media magazine reported. These summer blockbusters are the biggest commercial releases on DVD for the holidays.

"Pirates" and "Superbad" repeated their 1-2 performances on the Blu-ray sales chart.

Sales (week ending Dec. 13)
1. Pirates of Caribbean: At World's End
2. Superbad
3. Shrek the Third
4. Ratatouille
5. Hairspray

Rentals (week ending Dec. 13)
1. Superbad
2. Pirates of Caribbean: At World's End
3. Live Free or Die Hard
4. The Nanny Diaries
5. Waitress

New DVDs: 'Two-Lane Blacktop' souped up

Pick of the week: Bourne Ultimatum
Dog of the week: Big Love: Second Season
The much-discussed but seldom-seen "Two-Lane Blacktop" guns back to life this week via a double-disc set from the Criterion Collection.

"Blacktop" (1971) doesn't disappoint or show its age. Credit, in part, the naturalistic, dead-pan acting of James Taylor and Dennis Wilson, both famous musicians who never made another feature film.

"Blacktop" feels like a modern indie film, complete with a soundtrack of down-to-the-ground songs. The road becomes the ether for the heroes' listless detachment -- leaving the film with "an existential stigma" that's persisted for decades, director Monte Hellman says.

The print survives in terrific shape, colors and sharpness intact for the film's gallery-ready images of rural America. Hellman's unusual widescreen technique (the frame was sort of cut in half) unspools at 2.35:1 letterboxed, adding to the contemporary feel.

The road movie doesn't allow for much talking, but the extras sure do.

Director Hellman, a film professor, clearly is high on the chance to relive his glory months. He does a feature-length commentary and conducts drawn-out interviews with Taylor and Kris Kristofferson (whose "Me and Bobby McGee" plays prominently in the movie).

Hellman also chats his way through a student docu about his road trip back to Needles, Calif., where some of "Blacktop's" non-action occurs. The DVD extras feel like Hellman's vanity project. It's all interesting -- but it's also a bit much.

The movie's story feels stripped-down, even now. Two car guys hustle drag races in their '55 Chevy. They're identified as just the Driver (Taylor) and the Mechanic (Wilson). They set off cross-country with a barely legal hitchhiker, the Girl (Laurie Bird).

A big talker dubbed GTO (Warren Oates) lets the boys talk him into a race to Washington, D.C., for pink slips. "I could suck you right up my tailpipe," he tells the Driver. Total bullshit, but no one cares. They all end up traveling together, race blown off. The movie wanders around for another hour until its famous non-ending.

"The dialogue becomes a music track," Hellman says of the extreme economy of words. "It has nothing to do with the story." The Criterion set includes a booklet with Rudolph Wurlitzer's screenplay.

Hellman had on-set friction from young Taylor, irritated because the director doled out the script a day at a time. Reunited on-camera with Hellman after 35 years, the singer still seems a bit peeved as the talk begins. He says he's never seen the movie. (Neither musician plays or sings in the film.)

The director has high praise for the acting of Wilson, who died a decade after the film was made.

"He (seemed to) have no awareness of the fact there was a camera or even that he was acting in a movie. ... the perfect definition of what acting should be."

"Blacktop" was shot in sequence as the production made its way across the country, via the old Route 66.

"A lot of people appreciate the film because it's a time capsule," Hellman says.

Also circling the DVD blog's players this week: Universal's killer action movie "The Bourne Ultimatum," every bit as good as the other two films in the Robert Ludlum trilogy. And Disney's "Treasures" series, which returns with three metal-boxed collectables, including a new Donald Duck set: The Chronological Donald, Volume 3 (1947-1950)Buy them while you can.

New and notable:
Beverly Hills 90210: The Third Season (Paramount)
Big Love: Second Season
The Bourne Ultimatum (Universal, also HD DVD)
Dirt: First Season (Buena Vista)
Frasier: 10th Season (Paramount)
Frasier: The Tenth Season (Paramount)
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (Warner, HD/BR)
High School Musical 2: Extended Edition (Disney)
Interview (Sony)
Lost: Third Season (Disney)
Mario's Story (Westlake Entertainment)
Masters of Horror: The V Word (Anchor Bay)
Two-Lane Blacktop (The Criterion Collection)
Walt Disney Treasures Wave VII (Disney)

Complete list of today's releases on my pal Harley's site, onvideo.org