asianxcore

Seeing that probably all of the LE releases of this film are long out of print, I'm looking for recommendations.

Outside of the LE releases, what region/release is the best for this film? Is the R1 any good?

Thanks!

Giggles

LE releases are available on asiandb.com, pretty costy though.
Aside from that dvdcompare.net says Australian edition is the best choice for an English-speaking person.

dleedlee

Is this the LE that you're looking for?

http://dddhouse.com/v3/product_detai...ProductID=4179

http://www.buyoyo.com/cgi-bin/ncomme...AGE=1&curr=USD

Of the two, I'd go with dddhouse. The buyoyo version is the collector's edition w/postcards - I wouldn't bet it's actually in stock.

...also

http://www.hkflix.com/xq/asp/filmID....qx/details.htm
Site says not available in US due to Sony copyrights.

samper

I am quite happy with my R1. Good quality.

asianxcore

I was actually looking for the 3-Disc Korean Version, but it was only limited to 2046 pieces I believe.

I saw some screen shots of the Mei Ah release (the link you posted), which look pretty nice. I might have to go with that version.

Does anyone have the Mei Ah release? How are the subtitles. I read the DVDTalk review of the R1 release of the film and it mentioned the yellow subtitles. Is the Meh Ah release the same, or does it have white subtitles?

dleedlee

I'm pretty sure the subs are white. I don't recall any yellow subs on the Mei Ah version.

Richard Malloy

I've seen the old Mei Ah (Netflix used to rent it), the R1, the Fox R3, and the Aussie R4. In my opinion, the Aussie R4 from Madman is the best. Unfortunately, you can only get the single disc release as the 2-disc set is now OOP. But that single disc release includes a very fine commentary track.

But here are the main reasons why I prefer the R4: audio and video quality. The R4 boasts the full surroundsound track and no "dead rear speakers" like on so many releases, including the R1 (search for the long thread over on the DVD TALK page of this forum for full details on the soundtrack issues). The 20th Century Fox R3 release also has a full-blooded surround-track, but it doesn't have the greenish color timing that is the preferred correction for this film. And the R4 does.

EDIT: here's that discussion of the soundtrack problems on certain "2046" releases (this is a crucial bit of information as nowhere else on the web have these soundtracks been compared so completely, and many reviewers missed this issue): http://forum.dvdtalk.com/showthread.php?t=449369

asianxcore

Thanks for all the help!

I'm definitely going to give that thread a read now before I make a purchase.

Giggles

Here's a link to Korean 3-disc LE if you decide to go with it: http://www.asiandb.com/store/detail.pfm?num=3738

Richard Malloy

I should also mention that while the Mei Ah disc had the nice surroundsound track, it was rife with digital artifacts and the color timing was not correct, as I recall.

asianxcore

Yea, I noticed it had a similar transfer to the R3 Korean release (via DVD Beaver screenshots).

I'm thinking I'll either go for the R4 release or the Tartan R2.

Thanks for the link Giggles.

Arpeggi

Any opinion on the Tartan R2?

I might be buying the boxset that also includes Days of Being Wild and As Tears Go By.

pro-bassoonist

It is a great set to own and indeed it does offer what consider to be the top English-friendly print of this film.

Pro-B

Dan Average

I believe the Madman R4 (both the one-disc version and two-disc LE) uses the same transfer as the R2 -- I haven't done an A/B comparison, but it looks very much like the R2 screencaps I've seen and it would be in keeping with Madman's modus operandi (they don't do their own transfers, they just license them from others). Bear in mind that the one-disc Madman just has the aforementioned audio commentary whereas the Tartan has a handful of EPK-type interviews. Decide which extras you'd rather have, or just go with the cheaper one (probably the R2).

Richard Malloy

I've had my eye on that boxset, too, primarily for "Tears" and "Days", and amazon.co.uk just upped the purchase price considerably (like 35%). I'd load it in your cart and give it a few weeks to see if it goes back down in price. If I see that happen, I'll try to remember to update this thread.

Arpeggi

Tartan has it for around $50 US.