bunkaroo

Anyone planning to blind buy The Warrior from Sony, due out 3/7, should take note of the specs found on the back cover of the release (scan from DVDEmpire):



Not only does it not specify anamorphic (like the recent botched Cutting Edge release, also a Sony), but it shows that only the English dub track is 5.1. The original Korean is only present 2.0. Also states "Mastered In Standard Definition" as opposed to Sony's usual "Mastered in High Definition".

Seems like they went out of their way to make this a lackluster release. A shame because I wanted blind buy this.

Smithers

I was planning to blind buy this also, I watch movies on a normal TV but I might invest in a HDTV pretty soon.

Brooklyn

That runtime of 133 minutes also says it's the international cut of the film
which is 24 minutes shorter than the original Korean release.

eXcentris

I'm reviewing this for another site. The transfer is anamorphic but it's too bright so while you can see a bit more detail in darker scenes, the colors in daytime scenes often look washed out. The colors look more natural and richer on the Korean SE which I also own. Soundwise, as was indicated, only Korean 2.0 is offered on the Sony and it's terribly unimpressive. The 5.1 sound on the dub track packs more punch but it remains a dub... Only advantage I see is that the subtitles on the Korean release are too big and riddled with syntax and grammatical errors. The Sony is also the shorter, international cut of the film. Verdict = avoid.

Other versions compared here:

http://www.dvdcompare.net/comparisons/film.php?fid=2191

If you do not own a region free player and want to own the longer cut, your only option is the R0 Australian release.

Hope that helps.

pro-bassoonist

Very interesting (though sad) development!!

I was not impressed with the film when I bought the Korean LE awhile ago but to see such terrible treatment by Sony is quite upsetting. I am certain there would have been plenty of people that would have given this R1 disc a chance...they should reconsider as the original poster implies.

Pro-B

Josh Z

You'd still need to be PAL capable to play an Australian disc, regardless of its region coding.

bunkaroo

Thanks for all the feedback! I don't have a region free player, although I do have what I need to make one of my older Philips player region free. However, I hate PAL speedup, so unless there's a good NTSC version out I probably will just forego seeing this film. Bummer.

eXcentris

Oops, correct. So much for that idea...

The Reaper

I've got the version that Tai Seng distributed over here a while back. I can't remember about the audio but it's the international cut and the picture quality is fantastic. I thought about getting the Sony version if it was the longer version but I guess I'll just stick with the one I got.