HD DVD and Blu-ray releases on April 17th, 2007
HD DVD is officially back now, with the first week that we can remember where HD DVD has twice as many new titles. Blu-ray only has two catalog titles from Warner this week, both of which have been available on HD DVD for some time. HD DVD also has a few catalog titles, but a few new ones as well including: Feast and School for Scoundrels, both of which include TrueHD sound tracks. Smokin' Aces is arguably the biggest title this week and it's from HD DVDs biggest supporter. We're not sure what happened to the other Blu-ray titles that were previously scheduled today, perhaps the studios decided to wait for BD+ or even some new players with new features.HD DVD 176 vs Blu-ray 203.
Blu-ray
- The Dirty Dozen (Warner)
- Enter the Dragon (Warner)
- Feast (Weinstein)
- The Game (Universal)
- The Jerk (Universal)
- School for Scoundrels (Genius)
- Smokin' Aces (Universal)
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
KitKat @ Apr 16th 2007 10:15AM
Could someone explain to me, the seemingly odd choices of movies being placed on High Def discs? There are some really good ones I agree, but it just really seems so random. Anyone?
Jeffrey Mutch @ Apr 16th 2007 10:31AM
Not like I have any actual confirmation of this theory but I would get it's all about return on investment. You calculate who you would have to pay when you release and old title, check out previous sales on DVD and hope for the best. I also think there's a huge push for bulk numbers so cheapest titles would rule there too. That said I'm sure they also look for titles that would look good on paper too, maybe you wouldn't buy the Jerk but it's recognized as a good movie.
Once again just a guess.
KitKat @ Apr 16th 2007 10:50AM
Makes good sense. As usual I must be in the minority as to what it would take for me to plunge into investment. If I could add to the Planet Earth series some of my all time favorite movies...I might leap in.
Jeffrey Mutch @ Apr 16th 2007 11:05AM
What bothers me is that they don't seem to care about releasing "good looking" titles first. Planet Earth is a great example selling so well because of how great it looks, you figure they would try to pick older titles with that oooh and ahhh factor. I think the bigger problem is until the format war is over then they won't put any investment into releasing all the great older titles. I forgot to mention I think another reason we keep seeing the B-level titles is that they don't have to put all the special features/directors cut work into a release. They just make sure they do a good transfer and throw it in a box. I assume they know that if they start to release the true classics there's a lot of work to be done and they might only get one shot at it. I personally find that to be the most annoying thing about the format war, the idea that there are some titles I will never get if it carried on indefinitely, that's unacceptable.
Liqwid @ Apr 16th 2007 11:08AM
Looks like someone forgot to close his tags. I'm waiting next week for Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.
Ben @ Apr 16th 2007 11:17AM
Not sure what happend there.
It wasn't like that when I posted it. Either way thinks for the tip, I fixed it.
Timezones @ Apr 16th 2007 11:08AM
The new titles released each week ARE pretty random. I do scratch my head a bit when I see a new article about "NEW HD RELEASES" and it's some random combination of Cruel Intentions, A Fist Full of Dollars, and DOOM. I'd think the studios would be pushing as many big name titles as quickly as possible to get High Defintion Disc sales rolling (Lord of The Rings, Harry Potter, Gladiator etc). I'm sure it's got something to do with money as usual. I guess as long as new releases are available on HD-DVD/Blu-Ray the same day as regular DVD releases I'm content. Too bad you have to own both a hd-dvd & blu-ray player to have that option.
Xyzzy @ Apr 16th 2007 1:38PM
Actually, Harry Potter is avaiable, but only in the UK... It has amazing PQ and AQ though.
http://hddvd.highdefdigest.com/harrypotterandthegobletoffire_uk.html
There's lots of movies available on HD DVD overseas that aren't available here... Including lots of BD "exclusives."
As for why they release what they release, I have no idea.
Liqwid @ Apr 16th 2007 12:09PM
You can get HP and the Goblet of Fire in HD DVD from Amazon.co.uk for about 24 bucks.
Alex @ Apr 16th 2007 12:12PM
are any of the HD DVD releases decent? (Besides the Jerk of course)
Thank god for netflix - AND STOP SCRATCHING THE DISCS haha
Xyzzy @ Apr 16th 2007 1:40PM
@Alex -
The Game is an awesome movie, and Smokin' Aces is pretty good. I've heard good things about School for Scoundrals, but have never heard of Feast.
And as you noted, Jerk is awesome :)
PS - sorry for the duplicate UK comment -- the confirmation didn't get to my inbox until just now, so my reply is much later than Liqids :)
Phoenixxx1974 @ Apr 16th 2007 8:29PM
did anyone else see this?
http://hddvd.highdefdigest.com/news/show/Disc_Announcements/Universal/Universal_2007_HD_DVD_Release_Schedule_Leaked/498
May - Alpha Dog, The 40-Year-Old Virgin, Smokey and the Bandit, The Hurricane, Skeleton Key, The River, Midnight Run, The Frighteners, The Big Lebowski, Dragonheart, Lost in Translation
June - Breach, Bruce Almighty, Liar Liar, Sneakers, Born on the 4th of July, Scent of a Women, Daylight, Monty Python's The Meaning of Life, Meet Joe Black, Mallrats, Being John Malkovich, Mystery Men, American Me, The Watcher, Bulletproof
July - Billy Madison, The War, The Wedding Date, Dante's Peak, Cat in the Hat, Dead Silence, The Bourne Identity, The Nutty Professor 2, In Good Company, Streets of Fire, Hot Fuzz, Sea of Love, Darkman, Shaun of the Dead, Deliver Us from Eva
August - Heroes: Season One
September - The Last Starfighter, Legend, Battlestar Galactica: Season One, For the Love of the Game, Knocked Up, Evening, The Getaway, Patch Adams, Cat People
sweet hereos and battlestar is awesome :-) and a ton of good movies.
Phoenixxx1974 @ Apr 16th 2007 8:29PM
did anyone else see this?
http://hddvd.highdefdigest.com/news/show/Disc_Announcements/Universal/Universal_2007_HD_DVD_Release_Schedule_Leaked/498
May - Alpha Dog, The 40-Year-Old Virgin, Smokey and the Bandit, The Hurricane, Skeleton Key, The River, Midnight Run, The Frighteners, The Big Lebowski, Dragonheart, Lost in Translation
June - Breach, Bruce Almighty, Liar Liar, Sneakers, Born on the 4th of July, Scent of a Women, Daylight, Monty Python's The Meaning of Life, Meet Joe Black, Mallrats, Being John Malkovich, Mystery Men, American Me, The Watcher, Bulletproof
July - Billy Madison, The War, The Wedding Date, Dante's Peak, Cat in the Hat, Dead Silence, The Bourne Identity, The Nutty Professor 2, In Good Company, Streets of Fire, Hot Fuzz, Sea of Love, Darkman, Shaun of the Dead, Deliver Us from Eva
August - Heroes: Season One
September - The Last Starfighter, Legend, Battlestar Galactica: Season One, For the Love of the Game, Knocked Up, Evening, The Getaway, Patch Adams, Cat People
sweet hereos and battlestar is awesome :-) and a ton of good movies.
Liqwid @ Apr 16th 2007 3:09PM
Hot dog, I just now got it in the mail too, I didn't expect it until tomorrow. Talk about irony!
Steve @ Apr 16th 2007 9:16PM
Looks like HD DVD is back infront of the sales charts. Of course you'd never read it here!
http://www.eproductwars.com/dvd/index.cfm
Ben @ Apr 16th 2007 9:20PM
Amazing what one group buy with Amazon can do with the numbers for one day. Lets see if it sticks more than 24 hours. Not to mention I don't believe we ever covered that site when Blu-ray first passed HD DVD.
Tom @ Apr 17th 2007 8:20AM
Can somebody explain what the point is in buying old films in blu-ray/hd-dvd format? I've just noticed an old John Wayne film is available on Blu-ray. I don't want to sound stupid, but the quality can't be any better than DVD as it wasn't film in HD. Can it?
Liqwid @ Apr 17th 2007 9:29AM
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High-definition_video#Film_to_High_Definition_Transfer
Pretty much, if one digitizes any 35mm film one could capture the source in HD.
And the John Wayne movie is available in HD DVD as well and has been for some time. More are to follow.