MJ defender

I guess that soon it is time to pick up this great movie for me too, but which 'region' version to choose?

1) As far as I understood, the R1 version has more correct English subtitles (more on this read here - the comments at the bottom).
2) NTSC vs. PAL
3) R1 SuperBit's "grey" cover looking better than R4's...? :-))
4) Price difference: R1 is approx. 24-25$ (USD), and R4 is ~36$ (usd). Both including the shipping (to Latvia).

OK, the cover doesn't really matter to me. Subtitles... (dunno) NTSC vs. PAL would be the most important dilemma although at this moment I'm watching my DVDs on a 19" monitor though BUT... I know that one day I will upgrade for a bigger screen. :-) And the price is quite important, of course.

Although I usually try to get PAL release (when the discs are otherwise equal), this time R4's price really BITES.... :-((( (and those subtitles, too...)

What would you suggest (in this case)?

Mark_vdH

You can also opt for the R2 PAL Superbit version, which is pretty cheap:

http://play.com/play247.asp?page=tit...&p=57&c=&g=72.

FWIW, I owned both the regular R2 version and the R1 Superbit, and (despite the sharper picture quality of the R1) sold the Superbit. I just can't stand big, ugly, yellow subtitles that most R1 Columbia Tristar titles seem to have. I also hate the 'dubtitles' of the R2 version BTW, but I'm not sure if the newer R2 Superbit has proper subtitles.

Another option is to go with the complete series, which will be released in Europe on May 17th:

http://play.com/play247.asp?page=tit...5&p=57&c=&g=72

MJ defender

Thanx, Mark!

For some reason this "European" shop doesn't list Latvia among the countries they're shipping to...

And hmmm..., are the subtitles on R1 (SB) really SO ugly (yellow?)...?

dyerjp

they look like all of the other subs that columbia/tri-star uses on their dvds. i prefer the ones that are originally on the film print but columbia likes to use the yellow ones.

Mark_vdH

Well, perhaps it's more of a personal annoyance than an objective fact, but I do really dislike the subtitles Columbia uses on their R1 titles (Lola Rennt is another example). It almost seems their subtitles are not only for those with hearing difficulties, but also for near blind people.......

I doubt the "quality" of the subtitles of Dreyer's Vampyr will ever be beaten, though.

MJ defender

And what are the subtitles like on R2 release (I mean particularly this "Das Boot" title)? Less annoying...?
(maybe somebody can post a screen shot...)

> I doubt the "quality" of the subtitles of Dreyer's Vampyr will ever be beaten, though.

And where are these available? (on 'european' DB?)

Mark_vdH

Columbia uses white, normal-sized subtitles in Europe, like most other studios. The 'dubtitles' are also annoying though, and I don't know if they're still present on the R2/Superbit release.....

I just named Vampyr because it's the DVD title with the worst subtitles ever. Including black backgrounds, they obscure about 1/3 of the screen:

MJ defender

> Columbia uses white, normal-sized subtitles in Europe, like most other studios. The 'dubtitles' are also annoying though

Hmmm, and now I'm even more confused... :-/// LOL

jscout

How about the R3 on sale from this thread:
http://www.dvdtalk.com/forum/showthr...hreadid=348328

I think I read somewhere that this is actually coded as R1,3,4 even though it says R3 on the package. You can save yourself a few dollars.

MJ defender

> How about the R3 on sale from this thread:

Hmmm..., thank you for the link/info - actually I just made an order there! Took it together with the Patriot SuperBit DeLuxe...

Now I hope my decision was successfull 'coz it was the first order that I made on this web-site... :-)