nightmaster

Nope, I won't be. That sucker will stay on the shelf in all its ratios if thats the game they intend to play.

Notice that they're selling the R rated version for $15.98- that's likely the one that was in the theatres. Looks like they're testing all sorts of waters these days to see what will sell and what won't with the DVD fanatic.

nightmaster

We are indeed, to the point where many are disdainful of even the best looking and sounding new releases, holding off till the 'next big thing' comes down the pike, in this case HD discs. The studios are apparently looking at more and more angles to sqeeze every nickel out of the standard DVD format in anticipation of it becoming an even cheaper selling format once HD discs are available.

It truly has everyone on both sides spoiled, the studios seeing phenomenal profits and puzzled at what they say is a falling market (for lots of obvious reasons) and the consumer able to buy movies released 3 months ago or 50 years ago that look and sound as good as most have ever seen them for, in some cases, as little as a ten dollar bill.

djtoell

I think it looks much more like Amazon hasn't properly priced a release that is about 5 weeks away. I doubt there's any thought behind it. By the time the release date gets closer, Amazon will line up the prices correctly.

DJ

Drexl

Another thing that sucks in some of these cases (BB, CATCF) is that the single-disc version lacks a commentary or other substantial extras, so if you want some decent extras you have to buy the 2-disc version. With Mystic River a while back, they actually witheld the commentary from the single-disc version, so you had to buy the expensive version (with price-raising CD soundtrack) to get any extras at all. At least with The Wizard of Oz there are plenty of extras in the 2-disc version, and with Cinderella Man you get some extras with the single-disc version.

speedy1961

I believe this rationale is considered MOST sensible to the studio honchos.

AdamComic2

As a suggestion, everybody check their local FYE, Strawberries, or whatever... Usually they have these 2-disc special editions for $2 more than the regular edition after rebates. Usually a reliable, pretty fast turnaround time for them, too!

Mr. Cinema

I went ahead and pre-ordered "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory: Deluxe Edition" from DDD for $18.76. It shipped today. Looks like they'll get my business on overly priced 2-disc sets.

Rocketdog2000

That's what I've been doing, too. I got my Batman Begins:SE there, where they had plenty of copies of it - yet I'd read in other posts here where people were having a hard time finding one.

lamphorn

I hope this isn't a reposted topic, but I've got to vent. It used to be that a film would come out in a special edition, often with two discs, averaging around 19.99 (or 15.99 during the first week at Best Buy).
However, I'm noticing a trend of releasing a bare-bones disc at this price and then a two disc set for 30 or 40 dollars! This price used to be if it was a 3 or 4 disc set, but now these overpriced sets only have 2 discs and don't have any more material than special editions of a year or two ago that went for the lower price. But the're packaged in a slightly bigger box, as if to fool us by looking like a 3 or 4 disc set.
Examples: Cinderella Man- why is this two disc set going for 35 dollars on Amazon?? War of the Worlds (2005)- Bare Bones is like 20.00, but the TWO-discer was like 40 bucks!
This is a really crummy trend because I don't like buying bare-bones discs, but I refuse to spend 35-40 dollars on a 2-disc set that isn't Criterion. So, I'm buying far fewer DVD's than I used to because of this bizarre 2-tier system.
I could get it if the bare bones discs got cheaper, but they cost the same that 2 disc sets used to cost.
AAAH!! (sorry, rant)

gutwrencher

'Cause they know there are suckers like me who will buy it no matter what.

Thats right...it's all my fault.

Drexl

I don't like it either, and for the most part, I haven't played ball. As long as the A/V quality is the same, I'm fine with the single-disc version, especially with HD on the way.

Another trend I don't like is what I might call the "de-cheapening" of releases. They take a title that has been out for a while and has gotten big price drops, and then they add a few extras and/or an advertisement for something related (like a remake or a sequel or something). Now, it's a new release with a higher price tag. (See Jumangi, The Producers, Godzilla) The A/V quality is the same, but now if you want the movie you have to pay twice as much.

DVDude!

Blame Wal-Mart for their $5.50 bargain bins. Sure, it encouraged Joe Sixpack to jump on the DVD bandwagon, but now we have 1) true collector's edition for higher prices, and 2) non-OAR becoming a necessity in the eyes of studios--to appeal to the lowest common denominator.

Snowmaker

http://www.dvdtalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=444084

SINGLE104

Wait a couple of months later for a price reduction.

Jay G.

Actually, if you buy either release, you are playing ball. The studios are betting that most people are going to be happy with the single-disc release, and offer the 2-disc for those enthusiasts who are willing to pay a bit more for extras. I think that as DVDs have become more mainstream, studios have discovered that less people care about the extras, they just want the film. Making seperate releases means that they can offer a lower price point at a lower cost to themselves.

It's akin to how studios sometimes downgrade DVDs later after release, like the 1-disc DVDs of Fight Club or Cast Away, or non-SEs of Terminator and Bowling for Columbine. Or akin to seperate SEs that come out months later, like the Sin City SE, just at the same time.

On the plus side, the 1-disc editions seem to be dropping in price much more rapidly these days. I've seen the Batman Begins 1-disc at Target for $13.78, only 3 months after release.

At least they don't make the original release OOP first, like Disney often does. With Jumangi and The Producers, the original releases are still available for purchase online, with the new Deluxe DVD of The Producers selling for less than the original SE.

nightmaster

I think the inevitable price reduction (of the one disc editions, usually) has alot to do with the prices being raised on the two disc sets. The studios are trying to recoup some of the money they know will be lost 6 months down the road when they drop the price on many titles.

As was mentioned by another poster, regardless of which version you buy, if you buy it when it's first released you're playing ball...because they're still making what they hope to make on that title, rather than what they'll settle for when they drop the price due to less demand for it. I'm very picky about the titles I'll pay release date prices on because they're bound to be had for less, assuming they're mainstream title releases anyway.

Jay G.

Back when I first started frequenting DVDTalk, it used to be a given that online stores would offer insane discounts on new DVDs (3 for $1). Then the dot-com burst happened, and the only survivors where places like Amazon, which offers nice discounts at times, but nowhere near what it used to be.

Back before DVDs existed, it used to be a given that if you wanted a SE release of a film, you'd be paying sometimes upwards of $100 for a laserdisc release.

Things change. In this case, for the DVD enthusiast, it seems like a change for the worse, since we are paying more for what used to be a given. I don't see any way to affect this change though, and at least we still are getting the extras-loaded SE. Complaining about it just makes us look like cantankerous elders longing for "the good old days."

Atreus

This does seem to happen a lot now but it is the opposite marketing strategy that I don't get which is also very common now; which is to release a single disc and a deluxe set that is only a couple bucks more. In the past couple months I can think of Polar Express, Life Aquatic, Lord of War, as some one mentioned earlier Batman Begins. These all had a barebones version and usaully for two or three dollars more a 2 disc set. I could never figure out why people would still pick up the barebones when for 2 bucks more they could get a better set.

matrixrok9

$$$$$$. Greed consumes us all.

TheKing

The difference is usually more than 2 or 3 bucks.

When Batman Begins came out, the single disc was $15.99 at BB, while the 2-disc set was 22.99. Polar Express was about the same. The single disc sets become loss leaders, while the deluxe sets do not.

Sometimes you get lucky and find the deluxe set cheap (Batman Begins was cheap at Amazon, Fry's put the Polar Express 2-Disc on sale for $13.99), but it's not often enough.

Mr. Cinema

For most titles, the single disc is around $28.99 retail and the 2-disc is around $30.99, yet the b&m stores like Best Buy and Circuit City will only put the 1-disc on sale and not discount the 2-disc, so you can blame them for alot of the pricing. Because the way I and many others see it, if you discount the 1-disc to $14.99, then the 2-disc should be $16.99 on release week...not the absurd $22.99

Snowmaker

I ended up picking up the SE of Batman Begins (w/ book) at Media Play a few weeks ago for $16.79. That was the price with 40% off. I guess it pays to be patient.

Josh-da-man

It might have something to do with the discount structure the retailers get.

The two-disc SE might have a lower discount margin than the single-disc releases.

The Bus

No kidding.

Amazon.com prices:

Panic Room: 3-disc edition [Sony] - $35.99 (two years old)
Black Hawk Down: 3-disc edition [Sony] - $35.99 (three years old)
Master & Commander: Collector's Edition [Fox] - $31.99

And then Warner has Ben Hur (4 discs) for under $30, Gone with the Wind (4 discs) for under $20...

matome

Also sucks when they start putting the DD-EX and DTS tracks only on the 2-disc SE (a'la Lord of War). The single disc has no extras so it had nothing to do with space.