Wow, one hellava first post Quirky. Well done.

Yep, that's Pro-B for you. rotfl We get a lot of those posts in the HD Forum. I wouldn't take offense.

Wait till you meet the Forum Members that believe paying MSRP for DVDs/BDs is a good thing. :lol:

Welcome to the Forum. :up:

I have to run. Going to finish up watching Supernatural Season 1 on DVD, then I may watch The Forbidden Kingdom on Blu-ray, but not before I stream a High Def episode of 30 Rock on my X-Box, because I can't seem to get it to work on my PC or I-Pod touch.

:D

I do agree with much of what you say here. I'm not so snobby that I will refuse to buy a DVD if that's all that is available, but I do want to get the best quality out there.

I understand your book comparison, but the difference is that the words don't change, just how they are packaged. In the case of movies, to follow the book comparison, you can say that the packaging is the words. It's in the way that it's presented. I can enjoy a movie that I love even more by seeing it look its best. And no offense, but I don't see how any film lover can enjoy watching a movie on TV with commercial breaks, usually an incorrect aspect ratio and the editing for TV that also goes into it.

I agree with you. I, too, am a lover of film. That's why I try to get my films in the best quality possible. If that's DVD and not Blu-ray, then so be it. Because I love film so much, I try to not compromise in that regard. If a movie I really want to watch is being shown on TNT or AMC or something, I choose to wait to watch it until I can see it on Blu-ray or DVD, whichever is applicable, so I can -- hopefully -- watch it in the correct aspect ratio and without commercials.

I understand how you might get frustrated with those who might promote Blu-ray with a little too much vigor. But remember when DVD was first released? If people had the same attitude, the format would have never taken off. We'd probably still be using VHS for everything. Because what does it matter how the film looks, as long as you love it?

But I certainly understand how the financial aspect of it would keep someone from making the Blu move, so I won't begrudge someone that sticks with DVDs.

As for me, I try to stick with Blu-ray for everything that is available on that format or that I think is likely for a Blu release. Of course, there are still tons of DVDs out there that aren't on Blu and maybe never will be, so I'm still enjoying DVD titles as well.

I don't know that I would dismiss the book comparison so easily. Perhaps the words are the same from one printing to the next, but there is still room for quite a lot of variations. Everything from font and print size, to the quality of paper, the heft of the book, the cover/dust jacket art, etc. all subtly influence the reading of a book. And, yes, these are little things to someone who is not a voracious reader, but then again, the difference from DVD to Blu-Ray is similarly inconsequential to someone who is not as dedicated a motion picture fan as some on this forum. After all, the film is the same from one format to the next (unless, of course, you've got a format-specific cut of the film, but that's semantics).

Well put. I couldn't agree more with what you just said.

I haven't made the upgrade yet. I may be in the minority here, but most recent popular movies just don't interest me. I imagine Pushing Daisies probably looks great in high-def, and I love Goodfellas, Full Metal Jacket, and some of the Bond films, but that's about it for American B-R thus far. I'm not a big Casablanca fan, but that release gives me hope for classic film releases. I'm also glad the Criterion Collection is going Blu. I mostly buy classic films, silents, sports, wrestling, animation, and older tv shows. Most of what I'd like to see isn't even available on dvd, so I can't get too excited about a possible player upgrade. While I've been impressed by the video quality of the BRs I have watched at other people's homes, getting me to upgrade myself would require more than telling me how awesome The Dark Knight is, it would require for instance some evidence that The Honeymooners series isn't just a bit better on B-R, but significantly better.

:clap:

I can see that. I'm obviously not a voracious reader, but it's essentially the same reasoning I was using for film, finding the best version/format/presentation/whatever available.

I am buying a HDTV and a Blue Ray player soon next year. I still love DVD. The fact that they haven't converted most of what I have for DVD to Blu Ray gives me the option. I hope DVD doesn't fade out because they seem to be putting Blue Ray releases out pretty slowly in my opinion. Once I get my HDTV and my PS3. I will only be collecting blue ray titles in case I accidentally buy it on DVD then I find out the DVD will get a blue ray release will tick me off. So I will be focusing more on Blue Ray next year but I still love Standard DVD.

what's a blue ray player?

:down:

The thing is... your argument doesn't really make that much sense.

If an object is out of focus in the film, then it should be out of focus in the cinema, in the Blu-ray, and in the DVD as well. If you can see the cross in the CGI soldier in the BD but not in the DVD, usually it contributed to the lack of resolution of the DVD itself, not because BD make every part of a frame in focus everytime.

So... yeah. If you still prefer DVD over BD, I'm fine with that. As long you have a valid point ;)

... that you can afford.

All the 35mm complexities aside, if anyone can afford, and have a 35mm projector and have an access to get a print (I remember Howard Stern mentioned that Bon Jovi have this kind of privilege), then that would just be awesome because 35mm is much better than Blu-ray.

Yeah, I addressed the financial aspect of it in my earlier post. My comment you quoted was merely a response to someone else.

Amen to that. Too many times on this forum, whenever someone talks about "real" film buffs or engages in those assinine "rate my collection" threads, what they really mean is "someone whose tastes are the same as mine," whether it's genre or format.

Far too often, the people who embrace new technology, whether its High Def, the latest surround sound formats, Blu-ray or whatever, are technology fans or status seekers rather than real film or music fans. These people would be just as happy seeing anything up on the big screen, as long as it looks sleek and flashy and sounds great.

I know that Blu-ray looks and sounds better. But I also know that what I see now with my decent but not great 42 inch TV and $600 sound system in a fairly small room is satisfying to me. I will be able to appreciate classics appropriately with the equipment I have; on the other hand, no matter how much money I spend to make it look and sound better, crap will still be crap.

Yes I would rather see The Dark Knight in Blu-ray. But if I buy it in Blu-ray (and spend the money for the Blu-ray player) and buy a few more titles, I'll have to give up some of the other movies I enjoy because I have limits on what I can spend. And I would rather have more things to watch the rest of the time than get some degree more enjoyment on an occasional Saturday night Blu-ray session.

And I don't think that makes me less of a film fan than anyone else out here.

Yeah, well...
I buy BD if reviews indicate that the disc quality lives up to the format's potential. To me, that means pristine video and lossless sound track. Purchase of new releases is usually a clear cut decision but purchasing films on BD I already own on DVD is a much tougher call.

I'm going to have to disagree with this point. Some people are clearly buying Blu-ray discs just because they are in High Definition, but then there are many people buying them because they like the movies being released on the format and they DO want them to look and sound as best as possible (which can be part of the experience). It has a greater impact on watching movies than you may now realize. I'm not trying to be a status seeker. I LOVE MOVIES. I see that there are reasons for people to not jump onto Blu-ray just yet, but I disagree that fans of Blu-ray are just technology fans - we are, as everyone else, movie fans. The people that ARE in fact status seekers can be found collecting both DVDs or Blu-ray's in my opinion. Some collect DVD's just to collect. Some collect Blu-ray's just to collect. Both sides can show off. Both sides could feel happy with their "superiority". But do you really think that is the majority of people here, or people collecting movies for that matter? I don't think so. Not at all. And I am not trying to slam collectors that genuinely love a film and want more of its memorabilia. We all have are own thing to adore.

That is something more of us need to recognize.

Even though people are free to do what they want with their money, my biggest concern about movie fans changing from DVD to blu ray are those DVD collectors with over 100 DVDs who replace all their DVDs with the Blu Ray editions. By the time you replace all your DVDs with their Blu Ray editions, there will be something else new out, and then people will be replacing their blu ray editions with the newer technology...The focus has shifted to the upgrading aspect rather than the watching aspect. Just as another poster said, a movie should be enjoyed whether it's on tv, VHS copy, or wherever. The difference between DVD and Blu ray IS the same as the old, crummy, wrinkly book vs. a nice, new print of that book. It's the same words, same story that you read. And the difference between DVD and blu ray is not the same as the LP vs. the 8-track vs. the cassette tape vs. the CD comparison ...The rationalization of "owning the Blu Ray because it's the closest thing to what the filmmaker wants to show" is not enough reasoning for people to constantly be upgrading, compulsively wasting their money, and being victim to the home theater media marketing ploys...

Hypothetically let's say that every single movie was available on Blu Ray. Someone replaces their dvd collection of over 1000 movies with the blu ray editions. Tell me that's not crazy?

I am unsure what is more baffling here, the fact that you decided to disagree in principle generalizing on my words, or the fact that you decided to comment only on a incorrectly interpreted portion of my statement.

There are some great parallels that have been made already, so I am just going to clarify to you what you, intentionally or not, did not take into consideration when you posted.

The statement I left, clearly, addressed best quality in terms of presentation. Blu-ray is what, according to current standards, delivers it. I feel very strongly about the fact that it allows one to experience film in a way no other format has been capable of securing. As such, it is the only way to experience a film as close to the theatrical presentation as possible.

This has nothing to do with your, or others', claims about appreciation.

If you wish to argue that I am wrong, from a purely economical point of view, then by all means I can agree (or disagree with you). But that is an entirely different topic we must cover. DVD, when it was becoming mass, underwent precisely the same pricing progression we see with BD now, and there were precisely the same dismissive concerns that collectors brought forward - yet, the format, with the help of many enthusiasts, became the norm for viewing films at home. I happen to believe that its viability as such is ending.

With other words, you could disagree with my view that standard definition is on its way out, but don't attach observations to my name which I have not produced. You clearly did not grasp the emphasis on quality which I placed in my post, yet you proceeded to justify your collecting habits with your economical status. There is nothing wrong with that if I were to argue value, I am not.

What is really ironic here, and perhaps arrogant in a somewhat bizarre way, is that you actually contradicted your very own observation by recognizing that I am also a DVD collector, which somehow goes against the supposed theory I have produced that Blu-ray is "the only way". With other words, no one is questioning, or arguing, how much you could love cinema, what the gist of this discussion was is that Blu-ray is the "only" way to experience cinema in the best possible quality, arguably replicating one's theater experience. And for some, this is a very strong reason to adopt the format. Whether or you wish to take full advantage it, or not (or are not allowed to at the moment), for whatever reasons, has very little to do with my statement.

Thank you,

Pro-B

I've stopped buying new releases and hold off on any catalog titles that have BluRay editions out or coming, while not owning the DVD.

This is why I've gone ahead and bought Sony's Three Stooges sets, Warner's Popeye and Looney Tunes collections, Fox's Hitchcock collection, etc. But not Iron Man, An American in Paris, Sleeping Beauty, or The Godfather restored.

As an avid fan of silents, classics, and experimental/avant-garde, a lot of niche stuff will be slow or non-existent. How many years will it take to get Fantoma to release their two volumes of Kenneth Anger films to BluRay? When is Intolerance coming out? Will we get a BluRay set of Norman McLaren's work? Consider that no shorts collections have been released besides Pixar's. No silents unless you count "The Story of Petroleum" on There Will Be Blood. Metropolis and Wings are given releases for 2009, plus the possibility of the silent Ben-Hur when the '59 film is released next year. But they're not going to be big sellers and studios might as well hold off until the market is large enough to make a release profitable. Criterion was wise in picking their first BluRays from their most popular or awaited.

Same here.

Agreed. I'm not holding my breath on much in the way of these genres coming to Blu in the next few years, if at all. Which is unfortunate, as the three genres you list are my favorites. Anger on Blu would be wonderful.

I think where the rope starts becoming frayed at the edges is people who watch a lot of films have heard the "looks better than ever before!" or "the closest to cinema as the film has ever been" with widescreen VHS, laserdisc, DVD and now Blu-ray. The whole cycle gets tiring after a while when it becomes apparent that this is going to be what is said with every technological upgrade we will experience until we die. Yet when one thinks about it, I would venture into saying a lot of the film freaks on here were hardcore back in the VHS days and we enjoyed films then, we enjoyed them on DVD (and the lesser used format in between), and we're going to enjoy them on Blu-ray. Ten years from now, we're right back here talking about how Blu-ray just can't compete. It's a drag. Eventually, the technology discussion becomes a broken record and what it always amounts to is how good the film is. It's a never-ending (yet pseudo-necessary) ploy to make people buy the same thing ten times. Imagine if you upgraded every single time for everything. Stereo to 5.1 to DTS to 7.1 to HD audio, etc... there's no way you can keep up and half the time a DVD/Blu is obsolete a year after you buy the disc. Unless one re-buys every single movie with every single a/v upgrade, you aren't really watching it to the "best quality" you can. At some point, I'm sure even the most hardcore collector has to draw the line.

On a side note, the theatrical and home viewing experiences as a whole are two different birds. I understand wanting the closest to max quality as you can get, but at home there's also no cell phones, stupid teen chatter and the guy behind you spoiling the ending right before it comes. Give a little to get a little perhaps.

I've been buying HD discs since day one of the HD DVD launch in 2006, but still buy more DVDs than Blu-ray. I really don't see myself ever moving to Blu-ray only. The selection is far too limited and even DVD after all these years and success still is missing titles I want.

Do you still collect DVD's by any chance? With how you act in regards to promoting Blu-ray I think a lot of us thought you no longer did. At least that's what I thought. But this post seems to imply otherwise. So you are still a fan of both formats then? It is obvious that you think Blu-ray is better (and I of course agree) but It seemed to me as though you look down as DVD's as being entirely inadequate.

:clap: