DVD Talk review of 'Frank Miller's Sin City: Recut, Extended, Unrated'

[scott1598]

I read Randy Miller III's DVD review of Frank Miller's Sin City: Recut, Extended, Unrated at http://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/read.php?ID=19223 and...yes!! i love it when a fav of mine gets the 'Collector's' rating. this is a great package, misleading marketing or not!! More "Sin City" whatever it may be is good, very, very good!

[Randy Miller III]

Thanks, Scott! The "marketing angle" almost made me drop the rating a notch---but in this case, the release should speak for itself (and does, of course!). I'm sure you'll enjoy it.

[scott1598]

thank you for the nice review! i will admit the only, only disappointing thing is that the 'extended' stories doesn't have DTS. that really does bum me out a tad. i would have given up the theatrical release to get DTS on the individual stories.

[Randy Miller III]

Yeah, that's a bummer (not to mention that an overseas version of the original DVD got a 6.1 DTS-ES mix), and I also wish the content could've been stretched to fit three discs for a bit more breathing room. Even so, there's really not much to complain about here.

[scott1598]

hey randy, how thick is the set? in terms of DVD case thickness (3 DVD's?)...i want to see if this puppy will be displayed a top or within my collecion...

[Randy Miller III]

Originally Posted by scott1598

hey randy, how thick is the set? in terms of DVD case thickness (3 DVD's?)...i want to see if this puppy will be displayed a top or within my collecion...

It seems to be about as thick as the Dawn of the Dead Ultimate Edition or any of the Lord of the Rings Extended Editions (roughly the width of two standard keepcases). Sizewise, it's just as tall as a standard keepcase and about 1/4" wider. In short, it should fit on a standard shelf just fine.

[Cosmic Bus]

Frankly, I felt like a sucker for buying the original disc when this SE was announced so quickly (I knew it was coming, but didn't expect it this soon), but now almost wish I'd kept the single-disc simply out of spite. Five or so minutes of actual footage added in makes the upgrade a rather pricey, and frustrating, endeavor. I'm not terribly interested in the rest of the extras (behind-the-scenes stuff has never had much appeal to me) so the idea of a genuinely extended cut of the film was the big selling point.

Rodriquez, or more accurately, Dimension really screwed the pooch here. I'm starting to think I may just borrow the recut disc from a friend and pick up the original release on the cheap.

[Josh H]

I can't wait for it. I passed on the first release knowing this was coming as I really wanted to see the extras for this film. A little new footage, and being able to watch the stories seperately (great for my busy schedule) are fantastic as well. The comic is a nice bonus for me as I've wanted to check them out but they're too pricey for something I'd read through once quickly and never look at again.

[The Ferret]

Should I blind buy this? I have never blind bought anything and don't buy anything unless it's a favourite movie of mine. With Sin City though i've got this feeling that i'll love it...

[Josh H]

Originally Posted by The Ferret

Should I blind buy this? I have never blind bought anything and don't buy anything unless it's a favourite movie of mine. With Sin City though i've got this feeling that i'll love it...

It's a very stylish, and very violent crime movie based on a graphic novel.

If that sounds like your cup of tea, then go for it. Though with it being $25-30 I'd probably reccommend catching the current release first via rental or borrowing as it is a bit pricey for a blind buy.

[TimeandTide]

Originally Posted by Josh Hinkle

It's a very stylish, and very violent crime movie based on a graphic novel.

If that sounds like your cup of tea, then go for it. Though with it being $25-30 I'd probably reccommend catching the current release first via rental or borrowing as it is a bit pricey for a blind buy.

Ditto. Or, run to your local Borders and flip through some of the graphic novels. Since the film is almost scene-for-scene identical to the books, you'll get a pretty good idea of what to expect.

[Richard Malloy]

Excellent review, Randy... thanks!

I think I'll pass on this version, and get the best version of the original cut with the better video transfer and DTS track. Is the R1 original release still the best audio/video version available? (Though the HK release has a DTS-ES track, as you mention, that release is reported to be non-progressively transferred per DVD Beaver, and the screen shots seem to bear that out.)

[Randy Miller III]

Richard,

Thanks for the kind words! As far as I know, the R1 offers the best total A/V presentation---though I've got to point out a slight error in your post. The theatrical cut found on the new version is basically identical to the original release, and it's the extended version on Disc 2 that appears a little softer.

Anyway, for those interested, I made a slight extension to the review at the end of the "Bonus Features" section, pointing out a few things that would have made this release even better overall.

[auto]

Great review Randy.

This set just looks tremendous. They should have marketed it on the Special Features alone. It's laughable that people are talking about not buying it based on the shady marketing techniques.

[mifuneral]

Thanks for the review, Randy!

I especially found the detail about the "bonus minutes" to be...enlightening. I was on the fence about this release since I found the theatrical cut a bit disappointing. At this point I don't see any reason to get the Recut version either, as it won't really add much to my original opinion of the movie.

[scott1598]

Originally Posted by auto

Great review Randy.

This set just looks tremendous. They should have marketed it on the Special Features alone. It's laughable that people are talking about not buying it based on the shady marketing techniques.

great point on the marketing of the extras. that would have sold me even if there wasn't any new footage added.

and i bought 2 of the barebones releases (sold one back, but kept the slipcase), just for the slipcases i wanted. can you say S-U-C-K-E-R?...i knew you could.

[Richard Malloy]

Originally Posted by scott1598

great point on the marketing of the extras. that would have sold me even if there wasn't any new footage added.

I don't know about that. From my reading of the review, it sounds like the featurettes are about 45 minutes of often overlapping info that Randy describes as "fairly standard in format and execution". Sounds like the typical, shallow-as-a-puddle EPK sorta stuff.

On the other hand, I'd like to hear the commentaries. It'd be great if there was a stand-alone release of Disc 1 from this set (with the original cut, superior audio/video and commentaries) and priced more in-line with its actual value.

[datarush]

I've bought extended/collector's/special/etc.. editions after owning the original basic release, but with such a small amount of additional footage I just don't see the value in this one.

[bareva]

so how much has been added to the new release?

[Randy Miller III]

About 22 minutes of total running time, roughly 10 of which make up the actual *new* footage. I'll agree it's a bit grey from a marketing standpoint, but I think it'd be silly to avoid such a solid release because of this.

[scott1598]

Originally Posted by Richard Malloy

I don't know about that. From my reading of the review, it sounds like the featurettes are about 45 minutes of often overlapping info that Randy describes as "fairly standard in format and execution". Sounds like the typical, shallow-as-a-puddle EPK sorta stuff.

On the other hand, I'd like to hear the commentaries. It'd be great if there was a stand-alone release of Disc 1 from this set (with the original cut, superior audio/video and commentaries) and priced more in-line with its actual value.

45 minutes? i think not. Randy?

[Randy Miller III]

Originally Posted by scott1598

45 minutes? i think not. Randy?

The featurettes on Disc One add up to just under 50 minutes---he's probably just referring to those. They're all decent, but the Rodriguez-hosted ones on Disc Two are a bit more interesting.

[bareva]

Originally Posted by Randy Miller III

About 22 minutes of total running time, roughly 10 of which make up the actual *new* footage. I'll agree it's a bit grey from a marketing standpoint, but I think it'd be silly to avoid such a solid release because of this.

Agree.

[C_Fletch]

That TOTALY misleading marketing campaign has totally put a bad taste in my mouth. If you're going to advertise 23 minutes of extended footage then give it to me, not 13+ minutes of credits.

But as the review goes, the DVD sounds great. But, to voice my displeasure, I'll be picking it up used. They'll see no money from me to reinforce their bogus "23 minutes of added footage" claim.

[Fok]

I'm glad they gave us warning of this release. Still waiting for Kill Bill though