captainsolo

pittrek said:

WHAT THE FUCK ???

My response exactly. He finally did it, and sold out because no one knew what to do with the company any longer. What else was there to do other than the day to day operations? Better to hand it off to Disney and also keep the industry giants of ILM/Skywalker Sound running self sufficiently.

adywan said:

At first i was quite excited that there now may be a chance we could see a restored version of the OUT, but then realised that Disney owning the rights to the Star Wars franchise will probably spell the end of anything fan created as their lawyers will be ready to pounce

My fear. This could easily come to pass.

The main question is still why?, but the idea of sequels is one that I really doubt-at least in the OOT sense. What remains to be seen is how Disney will decide to milk the franchise.

I can't help but find this extremely sad news. Despite my ever-growing dislike for what they did, Lucasfilm was always built by industry outsiders into a self-sufficient legend. It was the "F*** you, I made THX 1138!" mantra that kept a certain spirit of individualism alive. Now the Jedi are all but extinct.

The Haunted Palace (1963). This is a silly and pointless film, based on HP Lovecraft instead of Poe. The cheapy sets really show, as does the pitiful makeup throughout. The only reason to sit through this is Vincent Price and the way he portrays being possessed by a vengeful ancestor. 1.5 balls out of 4 people who really really shouldn't piss off Vincent Price.

I thought it did. Still do, though it is very flawed-because of the struggle between the director and having to hand off major sections of the film to the second unit. But primarily due to the incompetence of Purvis/Wade to deliver a competent script. There is so much potential for depth and meaning, and it is all thrown away.

Pit and the Pendulum (1961)-mad delicious genius, the second best of the series. 3.5 balls out of 4.

The Premature Burial (1962)-surprisingly effective, and Milland is a good substitute for Price, though I wish the final reveal had more breathing room. And Hazel Court. Yay! 3 balls out of 4.

Tales of Terror (1962)-I used to like this movie as a child, but it is severely flawed and already reveals a tiredness to the direction. Only the Black Cat segment really works because it deviates from Poe to create it's own fully developed sense of narrative, and leads to The Raven/Comedy of Terrors. 2.5 balls out of 4 wine tasters.

A increasing number of theaters have their films streamed via satellite to projectors automatically with no one ever in the booth. This combined with the poor projection, lowering of bulb brightness, non-removal of 3D lenses, lack of quality control, and absolutely piss poor sound has signed the death warrant of theatrical exhibition as we know it. Few theaters still have 4K resolution, and even then it is almost always possible to have a better presentation at home with a BD for $10-20.

Back to Lord Vincent in House of Usher (1960)

3 balls out of 4, but stunning what can be done with so little.

Vertigo's new BD is supposed to have the mono in standard DTS but it may be just a folddown like the 2008 DVD. The mono track as is is very worn and seems to be the same track from the analog 1985 LD. (I think. Don't have it to compare.)

Jaws I have on the 1991 laser and it sounds spectacular, betters the cleaned up mono on the 30th aniv. DVD. However there is some replaced music and effects on this LD that should be fixed on the Signature edition.

The Old Dark House (1932)

This is a masterpiece and an absolute delight. I love James Whale. Kino's DVD is deplorable and from a battered 16mm reduction.

A black Bond?

"EYE AM A SCOTTISH PEASANT AND EYE WILL ALWAYS FEEL AT HOME BEING A SCOTTISH PEASANT."

The closest the films came to Fleming was OHMSS. The closest balance between film and books was Terrence Young on DN and FRWL. The Bonds closest to Fleming are Lazenby and Dalton because they were human and could bleed. However, Dalton may take this crown because he seems to be the only one who can truly suffer.

It's just very bright and clean with no burn in. Possibly slightly upscaled. I ran across a standup version recently but it had a loose joystick that wanted to fall down when moved downwards so the crosshair looked as if one was having a seizure. Still managed to nail 14/15 secrets somehow.

I also finally got to play a Spy Hunter cabinet which has long been one of my arcade grails. And believe me, there is nothing like playing the real thing. The emulations and ports stink and you stink at them because the controls cannot be handled in the same way. You need the steering yoke and the gas pedal. Personally, though I love the game, I can never get very far at home on ports. Managed to break the high score, get past most of the first waves and almost got into the boathouse.

Finally, I unlocked 007 mode on Goldeneye. But seriously: 00 Agent difficulty on Aztec. What were they thinking???

Yes, but that is in good fun. This new spot makes all of no sense and is full of splashy visuals that serve no purpose. The last thing one is focused on is the beer. Yet another entry in the "supposed 007 that only makes my teeth grind".

Ironically, here "Bond" looks like just a random bloke on a train, whereas Roger could even make drinking milk look debonair.

Shame about that VHS. I too am used to the older video version of the credits, but I don't think anything videowise would use the original unaltered credits with wrong return tags since they weren't released or were quickly recalled and junked.

EyeShotFirst said:

To ask a noob question, what are the best laserdisc versions of the original connery Bonds?

Sorry for missing this one earlier, but here's a quick rundown:

Dr. No, FRWL: MGM for best wither single release or Connery Collection Vol. 1, Criterion edition from show print with different color and framing.

Goldfinger: MGM single or Connery Collection overall though title song in stereo. Criterion uses a show print with different color and framing. THX box has some DVNR but is full CAV. Later THX CLV repress is same.

Thunderball: MGM single or Connery Collection Vol. 2. THX CAV box great but features some DVNR and new surround sound mix with alternate dialog/effects/score cues. Later THX CLV repress is same.

YOLT: 1989 MGM single or CC Vol. 2. Almost exactly similar, with perhaps the CC version being slightly better because it was made 3 years later.

DAF: same as YOLT.

So for the easiest choice, I'd say you couldn't go wrong with both Connery boxes.

I have custom editions utilizing the best video transfers out there with correct mono audio, in addition to most of all the features and correct subtitles. The only problem is that they're PAL and I'm quite bad at trying to convert to NTSC. In addition they use menu navigation from multiple DVD sources and are quite confusing to try and find everything. I always wanted to combine these with Criterion LD PCM audio so if people are game...

HB has the best video from the TF1 DVD and the more accurate subtitles instead of Dubtitles. Needs a PAL to NTSC conversion for PCM mono addition.

The Killer has the German EMS DVD video (which is what Miramax/Dragon Dynasty badly converted to 1080i for their BD) with added features from EU editions.

Both look stunning after all we've gone through with bad NTSC transfers over the years. This is what they should have looked like years ago.

I also have both the R1 Criterion and FortuneStar DVD releases for any other missing features, and because the commentaries are different for each film on each DVD.

Ouch. To me Dalton gave the strongest performance since Moore's first outings, if not Lazenby. Each time I go back to his two, I find all kinds of new material he covered, things he brought to the role but always especially that sheer conviction.

Licence to Kill

This one just gets better with age. Sure there were heavy budget cuts, the production was forced to work in Mexico, Dick Maibaum was forced out by the Guild strike, but the necessary elements do come together to make this far more than a British Lethal Weapon/Die Hard clone. Glen's direction is very tightly wound, the cinematography is expansive enough for a Bond adventure without losing the grittier feel of the story, Davi makes a wonderful smouldering villain though I still feel Sanchez is underutilized, Pam is the feistiest Bond girl since...well since Tracy actually, Q gets a role that isn't his standard exasperated toymaker, the increasingly politicized SIS and the rather foppish M get a great axe, and top marks for the filming of one of Fleming's best ever scenes-Bond's cold blooded murder of the man responsible for maiming Leiter. Dalton is again magnificent and completely in his element.

The largest issue here is the under-baked script which was only compounded by the budget cuts. This also leads to my other main criticism: that some of the sets and locations are not only uninspired but rather fake looking. Lupe Lamora  is a character that receives far too much screen time and is so underwritten that she quickly becomes an annoyance. The bar scene is far too comedic, and after all these years I still cannot believe they used the stuffed swordfish gag. The score although reminiscent of other 80's action films does have it moments.

A dark film, one that takes massive risks despite a compromised production, and one that only earns my respect for that. Some of the stuntwork is absolutely exceptional.

3.5 balls out of 4, and the last time Bond was truly a mortal man of flesh and blood.

Interestingly, there is a shot in the climax that is the purest example we will ever see of Fleming on-screen. After all is said and done, Bond is barely alive and nearly a bloody pulp. He collapses on a rock and observes his handiwork, then letting the feeling of death wash over him with a sharp intake of breath, and almost inwardly sighs.

Goldeneye

Style. It's all about style. This is really the only thing that's left in a film that quickly goes on autopilot. It is also self-aware, and despite my great love for all the pointed dialogue like "It's what keeps me alive" this isn't how Bond works in either book or film. There is enormous potential and an actor who wants to do justice to the role, but in the end Brosnan gives his best "misogynist dinosaur Cold War relic" performance and that's about it. The film goes overboard in trying to setup Bond in a post-Cold War world and then it simply stops. GE only has these two elements fully intact and then absolutely wastes the supreme battle of Bond versus friend.

Case in point: after the train scene, the film is effectively over. Bond goes and gets the baddie. I find myself lamenting the loss of Mishkin and/or even Orumov because after the plot is revealed, they could actually provide some greater plot interest with Bond against Trevalyan. I could always picture Bond working against type with the Russian Defense Minister against the wishes of SIS, or better yet in a Fleming style with the drunken betrayed partner of his enemy. What is missing in the film is human vitality.

This is why we all like the one liners scattered through GE, the Brosnan smirks, the knowing sense of Bond's experience and scenes like meeting with Zukovsky. They should have worked harder on fine tuning the script for the first Bond in 6 years. The cinematography is great, sound design sublime, and the feel of a Bond submerged in the 90's Eurothriller is intoxicating. And in---you know what screw it. I love the score. They shouldn't have tried to hide what Serra composed as it only hurts the film. A traditional 007 score wouldn't have worked with such a cold stylized film. Only John Barry could have pulled what was necessary otherwise.

3 balls out of 4. And I like Natalya far better nowadays as she doesn't seem so helpless. This may have been from playing the N64 game too many times and always being tempted to leave her/shoot her/throw remote mines at her/plant mines all around her and then force her to walk with you etc.

Of course the teaser trailer gets a perfect 4 ball score. Despite the "MTV" style cutting that thing bowled audiences over in 1994/1995. Still the best trailer I've ever seen, giving audiences both old and new exactly all the right elements that entice the world back to 007. And that Parodi/Fair music was so good they've used it in every ad since. The trailer is better than the film itself.

Tomorrow Never Dies

If I said GE was on autopilot, meet TND. This is the producer's attempt to make a TSWLM-style crowd pleaser for a 90's audience. The script was not finished before shooting commenced, the story had been through numerous writers and drafts, people came and left (including Anthony Hopkins as the villain!!!) and IT SHOWS. Like GE a major strength is the produciton values, but here it IS the main strength. Roger Spottiswoode does a fabulous job holding the reins, and the film is so tightly edited that it could be used to teach students proper editing technique in addition as to hide plot weakness (which it does 100%). The sound design is some of the best ever done IMO. Just nonstop, balls to the wall.

Brosnan is a bit swept up in all this, and this time Bond is a bit of a non-entity. Carver makes for a great villain, is well played by Pryce, but is just too ineffectively written to seem like much of a threat which is lamentable. Stamper is also an underwritten non-entity. Ooh a big bad blond German...who takes a knife exactly like Red Grant hmm...Wai Lin is also written badly as a complete cliche and yet another non-entity. I've never understood why Bond insists they will "finish this together." Idiot. Of course none of this compares with the ultimate non-entity of Paris, who is supposed to provide some kind of motivation for 007 and does little more than induce cringes, provide a useless reference to Dr. No, tell Bond where to go and move the plot, induce more cringes, give Bond a more risque sex scene than usual and she actually slaps 007 in public. INSTANT DEATH WARRANT! Okay, she does lead us to the wonderful breath of fresh air that is the Bond-Dr. Kauffman scene which is not only the best in the entire film but the only one that has any true imagination or for me impact.

TND is all action, and old school styled action at that that we aren't likely to see again. It tries to move along over it's bumpy plot and when viewed on a big screen it is possible to switch the brain off. Hats of the the production team for this.

It isn't bad just not at all memorable, never reaching anything near it's potential. Autopilot 007. 3 balls out of 4.

And I like parts of the score but overall feel Arnold just can't cut it with 007. It is too overdone, too throwback, too upfront in places and too multifaceted. The title song has a great instrumental, decent lyrics but a horrid vocal.

Sean has had issues over Bond for many years, supposedly stemming from his feeling of not being paid enough by the producers (reputedly an opinion also partially shared by Terrence Young) but also I think he must have grown really tired of having it hanging over his head for so long. He did retire a few years ago though so his refusal over doing PR is justly deserved.

Baronlando said:

The end of THUNDERBALL still sounds weird to me. I don't know why it's so hard to include the U.S. version with the regular Barry soundtrack. 

Thunderball with John Barry's 'Deep Sea Rescue' end titles music - MI6 Community

I've come to the conclusion that either it's all the result of different US and UK mixes (which is unlikely) or an abandoned 70mm 6 track mix (even more unlikely). The CAV box liner notes mention the new mix was done as an alternate for Bond fans to spot all the differences. Every mix previously released was the original mono with TB ending cue.

The Aluminum Falcon said:

EyeShotFirst said:

What is really sad is the fact that I could've been editing all this time I've been waiting for the goldeneye blu ray. Now I've got to scrap using it as a source.

You may consider wanting to use an HDTV rip as the source for your edit. It has grain still and the best detail of the available versions of Goldeneye. The only downside is that its the cropped UE version.

Indeed. I've only seen a 720p version and it is the best looking version of the film despite the cropping (which isn't too far off from what could be cropped theatrically.) Great intact grain. Even more problematic is the restoration of the original soundmix which has to come from Laser for both Dolby and DTS. The SE DVD was reportedly mixed 10db too high for the LFE. But any of these trump the new remix which loses all that wonderful bass overload. Heck, even the surround downmix on LD is fantastic!

The problem with using UE transfers for projects is the scope of what was done to the image itself. Over on AVS they go into the application of fake grain layers to cover up the intense sharpening and removal of detail done by the processors. It may be possible to restore more of the original color, as has been shown on the half-hearted attempts on the recent BD issues, but I don't know if these will ever look the same.

The point made with NSNA is solid, as it and all the Bonds that were struck from video masters are more accurate to their original iterations than the Lowry 4K processed titles.

The Aluminum Falcon said:

SilverWook said:

This looks like the cheapest copy of an early Fox pressing of FRWL at the moment. Doesn't come with the jacket though.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Laserdisc-No-Jacket-James-Bond-007-From-Russia-With-Love-EP-Connery-/230840128906?pt=US_Laserdisc&hash=item35bf24d58a

On that note, here is the VHS captainsolo initially mentioned. It's dirt cheap. Any takers?

http://www.ebay.com/itm/From-Russia-With-Love-VHS-1963-Sean-Connery-Daniela-Bianchi-LIKE-NEW-/271005361632?pt=VHS&hash=item3f192da5e0

Did somebody here get it? I was just about to pounce on it.

bkev said:

Is there any truth to the rumor that non-US releases of OHMSS include the original mono mix but that we've only been left with the 5.1 DTS track?

edit: for that matter, when do we get the singles? I can't justify buying all the movies, but OHMSS remains a must-have for me. And heck, why not Goldfinger too?

There are reports of the BD mono track going into extended periods of muffled audio.

Most Wal Mart and Target stores have theirs out on shelves or displays, you just have to search high and low to find them. Best Buy has no clue whatsoever, and I haven't come across any at all. Supposedly they might not be out until the 23rd. (YOLT, OHMSS, TSWLM) BTW these covers look terrible in your hand. Even just due to the printing which honestly is quite lackluster.

I've always wanted to see the five ex-00s at a round table, drinking and having an honest discussion amongst themselves. No PC, no editing, no pandering to appease the producers, just the honest truth from all five Bonds.

Will it ever happen? No. Connery has refused again to participate in anything 007 related this year, and no ever does anything worthwhile to entice him into even speaking about it.

skyjedi2005 said:

Maybe its a matter of choice but i really like the colors on the criterion Bond's but especially DR No.  There is no way to say if the colors are correct.  When ever a transfer from film to video is done the operator makes the color decisions or tweaks if any.  At least as far as i know the way they did it in the old days.

Like Al.F mentioned Criterion primarily seem to have used studio supplied prints in their earlier LD days. Their North by Northwest looks different to any other video version I've seen and is my preferred version, lacking the over-processed feeling of the 50th anniv. DVD/BD and the pink tint added during Lowry's harsh over-scrubbing. (Plus it has the incredible original mono!)

The restored CAV boxset of Thunderball i really like the color on too.  But if i had to wager a guess they timed it with a IB tech print for reference as it kind of has that sort of look.  Not sure about the DVD as i don't have the older one.

Despite what has been claimed by different sources, the CAV box is really just a better pressing of the video master with a newly created ProLogic surround track that was an attempt to correct some audio errors and utilize the alternate dialogue. The SE DVD seems to simply be the same but in 480p with the 5.1 audio remix of that ProLogic that first debuted on the THX CLV LD repressing of the CAV box.

Live and let die clv letterbox in the US was pressed twice.  The earlier had the defective audio.  When buying it on ebay or lddb the sellers wont usually help you in finding out which version they are selling so you could end up with a ruined bad disc.  This title had the isolated score so that was the only reason i tried to find an unaffected copy to no avail.

Have done the exact same thing myself, and is the reason why I'm still without LALD. What was the error-just audio dropouts? At one point I had heard that they had accidentally placed the isolated score on the digital tracks.

I am led to understand that the older bond catalog pre Brosnan had only 3 ac3 releases i wonder if captain solo has those.  He said he had the rarest ones and those were the rarest and last pressed ones in the USA.  Though the world is not enough japan laser is so rare that it sells for thousands in comparison. 

TB, TSWLM, MR. All of these are identical to their first THX DVD and SE releases except that you lose the PCM original audio. I was saying earlier that I had some of the rarest of the original letterbox series, being TLD and TMWTGG which was the last film to pressed in widescreen. (even uses the different rear cover style of GE!)

Little to no difference between TWINE and the DVD except having it on laser to brag about.  Unlike say X-men which had a different cropping of the picture on the laserdisc than the DVD. 

The only thing you'd get extra is a Dolby Surround mix in PCM. And the DVD 5.1 may be different as the LD has the original 5.1 EX matrix.

There was no DTS flavor separate release for that either.  Unlike Goldeneye and tomorrow never dies which both got dts and dolby ac3 in japan and the states.  The USA even got a pan and scan laserdisc release of goldeneye i still laugh about that why in gods name would you get that instead of the letterbox release,lol.

I love the GE LD, but some have said the deep bass was accidentally tweaked and increased by 10 db on the SE DVD. I'll have to get the DTS LD to check it's bass levels.

I don't have the early foxvideo releases of the catalog titles with the mono mixes of the earlier films retracked into stereo and usually bad laser rot, and time compressed and made pan and scanned and i don't know anyone who has those laserdiscs.  They seem to be avoided for having legendarily bad transfers or something.  I always wondered if those were the same as the ones hbo showed in the early to mid 80's.

All the fun stuff!

bkev said:

What's the word on Lowry's Dr. No from those in the know? I thought it looked really good color-wise, though it might be a bit scrubbed of detail.

Over on the AVS thread they mentioned something that answered some of the nagging problems I had with the Lowry transfers despite their detail. Apparently they have a practice of wiping all grain and detail away and then simply adding in fake grain to cover their dastardly processing. What. The. Fuuuuuuu.

Asaki said:

Yowza, popped in The Spy Who Loved Me UE DVD last night for a minute (had the title song stuck in my head), Zeta Minor's website hadn't mentioned how much of a grainless DVNR nightmare it is @_@

Looked like there was some edge enhancement haloing going on too, and everything was so stable that it looked unnatural...but as soon as the title sequence ended, the frame started wobbling and bouncing all over the place...very strange.

I'll just have to sit at a normal distance from the screen next time, and not straight in front of it.

Yep it's pretty bad. The THX/SE disc had lots of EE but at least it looked like the original film. Even riddled with compression artifacts it bests the UE which has those awful color changes and looks terrible. The new BD actually presents the film fairly well for the first time on home video, but is a bit hazy and the black level is off somewhere.

And don't forget the UEs nasty habit of window-boxing the scope title sequences!!

greenpenguino said:

Tobar said:

Why are pictures of Rowan Atkinson in a thread currently concerned with Bond avatars?? He was NEVER in a Bond film.

You forget the rather silly yet entertaining character of Nigel Small-Fawcett in Never Say Never Again. A completely random character that doesn't fit into0 the film at all.

Also, if you watch the John Cork produced Inside documentaries, all the film footage is from the LDs, even with frame freezes that have LD noise.

It's called the "Sleeping projectionist forgot the Reel 1-2 changeover point" recreation. ;)

Why not try one of the older SE DVDs first? They're the same masters just with some added compression and edge enhancement. But it will give you the idea of the LDs and original color timing, though some don't feature original audio and DN, FRWL, GF, LALD, TMWTGG are cropped to 1.78:1.

 A View to a Kill

As part of my ongoing Bond LD crusade, this gets back to the original presentation and looks quite good for LD. Sound is brilliant and far better than anything on the DVDs. As for the film, I know it's flaws but am not as quick to write it off as most. It's a lower-key film for sure, Moore has gotten too old-but this gives the film its best theme-that of Bond being tired, rundown, fed-up and this is what the score continually underlines throughout the film. Stacey Sutton is perhaps the worst or blandest female character in the series, with Zorin being one of the most fantastically interesting villains ever. As with the great Bond villains you simply want him to succeed in order to see what he'll do next, while absolutely fascinated. As I have said many times, Christopher Walken is a genius. I always enjoy the Moore-Macnee banter in the chateau, and overall if you're not too critical this is really a just very sleepy swan song for Moore.

Want a demo for Dolby Surround? Crank the title sequence. Who needs neighbors anyway?

3 balls out of 4.

The Living Daylights

For my money, the best modern-era Bond film, and the last great Bond film period. Stunning that the fourth time around John Glen pulls the rabbit out of the hat with a complete 180 in the style in which he had done FYEO, Octopussy and AVTAK. Barry's final 007 score is one of the great film scores, the cinematography is top notch, the tone ambitiously straddles not only film 007 and Fleming but also fully incorporates both into the Cold War reality of 1987. It is this quality that truly makes the film, especially for big Bond enthusiasts because this all feasibly could actually happen with Dalton seeming to believe 100% that it is. Of course, Dalton is magnificent in the film. There's enough of Dick Maibaum in the script to make everything tick properly (unlike LTK which was mostly penned by Exec. Producer Michael G. Wilson) and of course there's actual espionage going on. Bond must actually think and use his brain to decipher the villain's scheme and maneuver around the ever closing grasp of political machinations.

I love this film.

The LD is stunning, with brilliant picture and perfectly clear sound that exposed things even I had never heard.

4 balls out of 4. One of the 10 best Bond films ever made, and truly underrated.

Moth3r said:

Actually, I've read that most players run the signal through a comb filter regardless, do some chroma and luma processing, then recombine for the composite output.

Only top of the range players, like the X0, or some industrial models give a "clean" composite output.

You find something new about this hobby every day...so of course I fiddled with s-video and composite cables back and forth for a good 30 minutes today. ;)

SilverWook said:

Has anyone ever checked out the earliest LD release of FRWL for this? They generally used the same video master across all formats back then.

That's an idea. It would correspond to the initial CBS/Fox pan n' scan LD with Connery at the gypsy camp on the cover, which was later repackaged for MGM with the flare gun cover.

Figured I go ahead and give a quick rundown on the other Laser titles for those interested:

AVTAK: Has that softness of the first three Glen directed Bonds and in fact looks wonderful. Some moments it even looks like film instead of video, with color accurately represented instead of the sometimes garish hues inserted for the UE. Also present is the haziness that has always been a part of the film's visual look which may be due to it being printed by MGM. The sound is phenomenal, very natural warmth and range to this track which really comes across in Barry's hugely underrated score. (especially the Stacey themes!) Wipes the floor with the pitiful DD track on the UE. Oddly I did notice what appears to be a camera originated negative scratch on a shot in the Main Strike mine. Cropping is looser and accurate unlike the unnaturally tight UE.

TLD: Of the three discs I bought, this one was a risk being a former rental, but was still in shrinkwrap and I had wanted to see this disc for so long that I gave it a shot. Damn glad I did. Though I have not yet seen the LDs for LALD, Moonraker, Octopussy and the MGM Licence to Kill, I'm going to go ahead and proclaim this the best looking of all the pre-90s era on Laser. For once a 2.35 film looks good on CLV without tons of noise. Full of shots that look like film, full of moments restored that were tweaked by Lowry unnecessarily, almost completely free from video noise and with sound so good it's almost as if you've had veils off your ears. One scene at the fair even has audible background noise that can quickly be recognized as a game of Galaxian. Even the ghetto blaster and Necros' Walkman have punch and clarity. This felt like listening to a vintage 1st press LP of a favorite album mostly, but with the experience of the original presentation to match. I love this movie.

TooMuchGarlic said:

I'm probably out of line, but I would put a vote for DTS-HD Master Audio as a preference for the audio, as I sadly don't have the proper hardware to listen to lpcm (my hardware only play that as stereo and not as surround).

It shouldn't be a problem with the mono and stereo tracks. Only the discrete surround 70mm mix will necessitate 5.1. The stereo track is 4 channels matrixed onto 2 channel stereo.

The size is debatable, but remember that most films on BD hardly ever use their full potential size on disc. Trying to grab a BD-25 size file is going to be tough enough for most everybody.

As for print quality, the only thing that really gets me is color fading/turning, but I can live with it usually because I know the source isn't in the best shape. Everything else couldn't bother me in the slightest. The real problems are things like film wobble, tears, missing frames etc.