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Any non R1 discs that are superior?

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Any non R1 discs that are superior?

Old 05-31-00, 09:53 PM
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I will be traveling to Europe in the near future, and I'm looking for some recomendations. I have an Apex player, so all options are open.
I am flying through London, and will be in Spain/Portugal for two weeks. I know the duty free in Heathrow isn't the best, but it is better than nothing.

What non R1 discs shoul I buy?

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Old 05-31-00, 10:21 PM
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Hmm... none of them!

Seriously, though, there are very few European discs that are significantly better than the R1 counterparts, quite the opposite in fact. One thing I WOULD suggest, though, is that if you didn't buy the Alien Legacy boxset already, then the UK version has the "Legacy" 5th disc included as standard with all the boxsets, none of this "limited time mail-in offer" crap...
Old 06-01-00, 03:40 AM
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Fifth Element
Old 06-01-00, 05:37 AM
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Please give some explanation why R2 5th element is better than R1??

(I'm going to buy 5th myself, and would like to know which one I should go for)


(corrected some typo...)
(twice ;( )

[This message has been edited by Tec (edited June 01, 2000).]
Old 06-01-00, 06:06 AM
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Try... All of them.

Any DVD encoded in PAL will pee all over the poor excuse for a format, NTSC.
Old 06-01-00, 06:58 AM
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But I suppose the guy has NTSC-TV, so what's the point comparing the video-quality? I suppose he needed something else in those movies he's looking for...
Old 06-01-00, 07:55 AM
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Romper Stomper
Jean de Florette
Manon des Sources
East is East

All excellent films not available on R1.
Old 06-01-00, 08:18 AM
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quote:<HR>Originally posted by tonester:
Try... All of them.

Any DVD encoded in PAL will pee all over the poor excuse for a format, NTSC.
<HR>


That is such a crock of s***. I don't beleive for a second that anyone sat further than 6 inches from their television can actually see the diference between NTSC and PAL. What IS worth pointing out is that an alarming number of UK discs still aren't getting anamorphic transfers, which makes the picture quality a lot wosre than their NYSC counterparts which have gotten anamorphicised.
Old 06-01-00, 09:57 AM
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Jackie Brown
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Old 06-01-00, 12:32 PM
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Thanks for all the info. And by the way, I do have an NTSC set.
Old 06-01-00, 05:33 PM
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Go to www.rewind.org.uk

They have a list of all the R2 disks which are superior to R1.



[This message has been edited by Sebby The Frog (edited June 01, 2000).]
Old 06-01-00, 06:01 PM
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Das Boot is one to consider as its not a flipper.
Old 06-01-00, 08:52 PM
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quote:<HR>Originally posted by Tec:
Please give some explanation why R2 5th element is better than R1??<HR>


The Fifth Element

Region 1

4:3 and 2:35:1 widescreen anamorphic formats
Dolby Digital 5.1 format

Region 2

"Searching for the Fifth Element" documentary (22mins)
Theatrical trailer
Hidden Menu
Cast & crew biographies
Animated menus with music
2:35:1 widescreen anamorphic format
Dolby Digital 5.1 format
Old 06-01-00, 08:56 PM
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Armageddon R2 anamorphic is superior to Armageddon R1, as far as I know. There's a Total Recall R4 that's anamorphic and the R1 isn't. Can't remember any others.

REMEMBER, DVD's are NOT encoded in NTSC or PAL "per se". They're just digital MPEG2 data streams. For more information, look at the big DVD FAQ at www.dvddemystified.com . Of course, different MPEG2 resolutions for output to NTSC - 720x480, and for output to PAL - 720x576. The player converts to PAL or NTSC as needed, depending on the player you have. DVD's are NOT encoded in native NTSC or PAL - the player does it. Again, see the DVD FAQ.

But there's a gotcha: The PAL transfers are sometimes poorly compressed, which makes some of the better Region 1 nonanamorphic DVD's look better than some of the poorer Region 2 anamorphic DVD's! You have to be careful of not buying a lemon when you buy Region 2 discs to bring back to USA - You would be surprised at how superior some Region 1 anamorphic DVD's are to many of the Region 2 anamorphic DVD's, especially if you have a big 92" screen - because of fewer MPEG2 compression artifacts on many Region 1 DVD's. There are some PAL DVD's so terrible that they have artifacts similiar to those you see on VCD's! Digital macroblock artifacts, etc.

But some of the PAL DVD's are pretty good too. They have been improving lately, of course. The difference in image quality is often only slight right now for newer releases now - but too slight (sometimes worse, sometimes better) to warrant buying Region 2 DVD's over Region 1 without reading a R1 versus R2 review on a website, to decide for yourself whether it warrants buying the disc from overseas. Like the Kubrick DVD (no digital alterations). Or the Armageddon DVD (superior transfer to R1).

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[This message has been edited by Mark Rejhon (edited June 01, 2000).]
Old 06-01-00, 11:34 PM
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I don't beleive for a second that anyone sat further than 6 inches from their television can actually see the diference between NTSC and PAL. What IS worth pointing out is that an alarming number of UK discs still aren't getting anamorphic transfers, which makes the picture quality a lot wosre than their NYSC counterparts which have gotten anamorphicised.

The difference between PAL and NTSC is basically that between anamorphic and non-anamorphic, except that with PAL you see the extra resolution WITHOUT requiring 16:9 support.

I grant you that most will not see the difference, heck I couldn't on my site - until I had it accurately calibrated, and boy does that make a hell of a difference. Not only can I see the colours in perfect beauty, but I can see an absolute amazing difference in detail and quality between NTSC and PAL.

Heck under NTSC you can't even read the closing credits clearly with a 2.35:1 transfer, yet under PAL it's as clear as day - what would you expect with almost 200 extra lines of detail. That's more significant that it appears, 200 is almost the difference between VHS and DVD.

This is all excluding of course the difference between non-anamorphic NTSC and anamorphic PAL, almost 400 lines of difference there (virtually the entire resolution of NTSC). Most region 4 discs are all anamorphic now, and all our Disney titles have always been anamorphic. Granted R4 and R2 were quite poor in the paste, and whilst I can't vouch for R2 I can certainly declare R4 to be virtually the best out there now.
<HR>Chris Till
www.dvdplaza.com.au
Old 06-02-00, 12:38 AM
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The new bond disc has about 40 minutes of exclusive documentaries that the region 1 disc does not have. The main interest are to get the discs that are not out here (and there are a few).

Chad http://www.geocities.com/freeregiondvd
Old 06-02-00, 03:28 AM
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Point Break Region 2 disc. Why? Because for some odd reason there is no region 1 disc! Strange.

Sand
Old 06-02-00, 11:24 AM
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Try Vertigo. The R2 version is superior with stunning anamorphic transfer while R1 is soft lacking detail and not anamorphic.
Old 06-04-00, 12:03 AM
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Is this the DVD equivilent of a pissing match
Old 06-04-00, 12:14 AM
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but seriously:

Friends Series 1,4,5 (2 and 3 soon)
Farscape series
Live Flesh
Lock Stock (extras on R2)
True Romance (R2 is DD5.1 and anomorphic)
Jean de Florette
Manon de Sources
All About My Mother
Bugsy Malone
Life is Sweet
Black Adder (series 1)
Alien Legacy set (contains 5th disc)
La Reine Margot
The Big Blue - version longue
Men Behaving Badly
Eyes Wide Shut (uncut)
Old 06-04-00, 05:51 AM
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While this is all very laudable, the hard figures are that there are well over 6000 region 1 discs vs barely 1000 region 2 and there will always be that kind of a gap until region coding is abolished (if ever). I for one can put up with 100 less lines (makes 0 difference on my portable or my Apple Mac, and barely any on my home set) in return for not having to worry about censorship or missing extras or titles just simply not being available. It’s bad enough having to wait an extra two months to see MI2 at the movies without also waiting to see if R2 will get the T2 Sp Ed or Magnolia Sp Ed.

I’m not interested in supporting the cultural censorship that exists everywhere outside of the US - I want to see what I want to see at the same time as the States.

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Old 06-06-00, 01:41 AM
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Glengarry Glenross
The War Zone
Secrets and Lies
La Reine Margot(released here as Queen Margot) is worth another mention too
Old 06-06-00, 06:11 AM
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And don't forget some new Spanish movies that are available with English subtitles:
Torrente
El Milagro De P. Tinto
Abre Los Ojos
Old 06-06-00, 07:06 AM
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If you like Disney then you might consider Dumbo, AFAIK it is not available in USA.
Also, if you are very impatient then The Sword in the Stone might be something to think about (however, some versions have been cut, only few seconds, but still...).
Old 06-06-00, 07:51 AM
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quote:<HR>Originally posted by Paul.B:
Das Boot is one to consider as its not a flipper.<HR>


Das Boot has already been announced for rerelease in the US on a RSDL DVD.


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