Your response carries no weight in this "Blade Runner is too expensive" discussion. Lazerdiscs were expensive for every version. You may think the briefcase is expensive, but extensive sets of Blade Runner are available in much cheaper versions. Complain that you can't get the fifth disc in the cheap versions, too bad, it is an enticing bonus to try and get you to spring for the ultimate set. I think it makes sense that those that bought the ultimate set get a significant bonus that those that refuse to buy it don't get. Otherwise it wouldn't be an ultimate version.

What doesn't make sense though is that they chose to release a cheap HD/BR version with the 5th disc and didn't in SD. That is where the trouble starts for me. Why can HD adopters get a cheap 5th disc and not SD users.

The doc does, admittedly, start off a little slow and dry. It does, however, become completely engrossing as it goes on. You could almost argue that it is overkill, but then you would have folks bitching about not enough. It's almost academic in tone which might account for some of the "dryness" you speak of. It's definitely not "filler" or "fluff". It's definitely made for the hardcore fans only.

Okay, this is weird.

My local Best Buy (as of this morning) had 3 HD briefcases, and nothing else - not only were they out of the other briefcases, but they also didn't have any 2-disc, 4-disc or 5-disc sets - just the 3 copies of the HD briefcases. And they had a shit-load of everything on Tuesday.

Weird.

I did. It's an amazing doc and even cooler, someone I know is in it (author Tim Powers).

Slop how much was the briefcase? $100?

i disagree. i think the doc is a bit boring. in my opinion the film doesnt have the content to fill that amount of time. instead it goes on about the struggle of filming it far too much. actually very few films could do a documentary that long and not be boring. but the doc on disc 5 is awesome as is the workprint commentary.

Of course it does. And don't try and pretend there were not special and exclusive LD sets, because there were. Plenty of them. Many being at least 50% more expensive than the standard version.

In the context you stated it, no, it carries no weight. Sure there were special editions that were more expensive, but the point the other poster was making is that the BARE BONES versions were expensive, the special editions were even more.

I didn't check - was the sale price only on release day? If so, then yeah, it'd have been $100.

I was just miffed that they didn't have ANY of the 3 SDdvd versions.

Thank you Lt. Ripley, that was my point exactly. ALL bare bones were a minimum of $39, and if you were lucky you could get a cut out a year down the road for $29. I remember contemplating $130 for the special edition of "Natural Born Killers", and i just couldn't bring myself to do it - no matter how "special" it was. Funny thing is, now the DVD of that very LaserDisc is like $5.

Still back in the day, us...whatever we are called...bought LaserDiscs on Tuesdays the same way we now buy DVD's on Tuesdays. I am just grateful DVD's finally came along ten years ago for space and definitely for price reasons.

It's all a matter of price when looking at each format, and in that light it's very similar since the same kind of Standard/SE system is used in both cases.

But the barebones versions of DVD's are cheap. There is no comparison between LD and DVD, especially considering inflation. LD was expensive then, DVD is cheap now. What is the average msrp of a barebones dvd? $20 or so? Man, that is cheap. We are able to own a movie for $20. Then considering all the $5 bins, and the way the price drops on them (many) after a few months. The SD briefcase was a steal at the price it was available for on release day.

That's still a very flawed argument, but I've tired of this back and forth.

The only people "whining" more than the people "whining" about the set of the briefcase are those going on about how much they paid for LDs "back in the day". The key is that you didn't see people claiming the LD buyers were "whining".

I want to kick this LD vs. dvd price conversation right in the nuts.

If we are going to consider the price of LaserDiscs back in the day, shouldn't we also be considering the usual price of $89.99 for new releases on VHS back in the day? And VHS, as we all know, was full of frills.

Don't forget the huge markup on those that presented the movie in full letterboxed widescreen! Want to see the whole movie? Give us more money.

My point when referencing Laserdiscs, had nothing to do with comparing formats or their costs. It was comparing the value, and just how far a consumers money is going. Forget what format was around 12 years ago, the point is, 12 years ago something like the BR set with 5 cuts of the film and LOTS of extras in a collectible case would never have been released for 50-75 bucks. That was my point that the briefcase is far from a rip-off, indeed it's a steal.

Again I will state that including the 5th disc in the HD sets does seem alittle odd, and does make it seem you are over paying for the briefcase.

This is probably the first release where I really wish the Blu-ray and HD DVD format war had been settled long ago. If one of these was the clear victor, this Blade Runner release would have been just the incentive for me to buy a high definition DVD player. Blade Runner is one of my all time favorite movies. But right now I don't feel like gambling on which HD format will end up being the winner. And I suppose they might both choke each other to death while some other superior format takes over.

So I'll probably just buy the SD version for now.

Has anyone seen both the new SD release and one of the HD variants on the same display? (I have a 36" Sony KV-36XBR400 HD CRT so perhaps, for me, the image improvement would be diminished on a smaller display.)

And, on a positive note, I am thrilled with the release of these updates. It's a wonderful thing when a director can return to a movie 25 years later and release a "final cut".

After buying a new Tv eariler this year. I decided that I was going to go high def, because of one film being released "Blade Runner". I choose the HD DVD version, because I basiclly paid the same for the player as I would have if i had bought a normal upconverting player. Not to mention the 12 or so free movies I got from the deal for free.

Around a 120 bucks, less than the movies would have cost by themsleves.

So even if HD DVD does loose this war. I've haven't lost much if anything.

Cool enough. I wasn't wining about the price of LD's. I was trying to help you understand the other posters point of view.

I've been going through all the docs.... simply amazing stuff.

But one thing I must say: Philip K. Dick's daughter is f'ing hot!

I got the 5 disc HD-DVD release and disc 5 is loose and scratched. Was there word going around about that already and a contact # to get a replacement?

The documentary on Disc 5 that shows them re-shooting a sequence with Joanna Cassidy on a green screen to be re-edited back in the film was amazing to see. They actually had a split screen comparison and it was quite obvious they used a stunt woman.

Here is the number for WHV Customer Serivce: 1-800-553-6937. Make sure you have the Catalog Number on hand.

which doc specifically??