40Mbps better happen. That was Sony's promise and the reason for sticking with MPEG2. If they are just going to use the same lower bit rates they are using on the current 25GB discs there is really no point in using MPEG2 at all.

That would be very smart....they should definately make these stand out compared to their other releases.

I actually am betting that these will be delayed further. I think its all a ploy to keep people thinking that BD50 is alive and well. Im just a skeptical person though. Ill believe it when I see it (or read someones review ).

Remember, this format war has to appeal to MORE than just fanboys and just because you don't care about extras doesn't mean that the rest of the public doesn't. And, again, if "you" (meaning BD) keep wagging your dick around about it being the biggest, it better work as well as you proclaim and that means including all the extras.

I still don't understand why anyone cares about SD extras on a HD disc, but we're getting off topic here. This thread is about the release of the first (?) BD-50 movies and its becoming yet another BD vs HD DVD thread.

So here's the deal. If you don't care about the release, and all you want to due is complain, then get the hell out of the thread and stop trolling. This is not a comparison thread (there is a thread for that).

I completely agree....there is NO excuse for releasing a BD50 and not including AT THE VERY LEAST the important extras from the sd release.

I think this will be a significant release for BD similar to how Troy was for HD-DVD (long movie with TruHD and IME plus sd special features).

Sorry but this is a release thread. I'm upset over the theatrical version of Superman not being included on that release as well but at least THAT is not a size matter.

It's an important issue because, as you pointed out, this is the first BD-50 release and they still can't get all the extras on one disc when all we've been hearing about is how great the size is. If that were true, they should have no problems. Clearly, they do.

And do you magically think that suddenly everything will be available in HD? I got a newsflash for ya: MOST extras will not be available in HD. Will you suddenly not watch anything unless it's in HD? That's what your comment says to me. And let's face it: someone who's desperately waiting for a video game system to watch HD material isn't exactly a "quality whore."

Well, the extras for this movie were very good. Especially the history channel documentary. It was excellent.

Those of us who would possibly purchase this, do not want to have to keep our old sd 3 disc set. Its probably a deal breaker for me.

Its something that hd-dvd seems to understand and those of us who are hopeful for BD would like to see from them.

The size is there, so they should include it.

Well, we dont know the final details, so lets wait until then. From the early details, it sounds like at least the major extras will be there which is a good sign. Lets reserve judgement and criticism for the official announcement if they exclude anything major.

Similar to Superman Returns, alot of people were disappointed about no TruHD and in fact they corrected later and said that it would have it.

It's a discussion thread. Discussing the shortcomings of the titles is not off-topic. Otherwise, what's the point in having a thread? To reply "yippee!"?

Because some people (and, judging from this statement, I'd guess it's a LOT more than you think) care about content and extras, not just having everything in shiny HD. Porting over the existing SD extras for a film should be baseline. Trimming obvious fluff, adding additional content, or upgrading certain things (trailers, cut scenes, docus) to HD is great. But if fans of the films can't even get rid of their SD versions because the extras weren't ported over, that's a strike against an HD edition.

And, I realize this is very early in the game for both sides, but... the studios have to realize that there's no shame in including an extra disc. They've been doing in on standard def for years. Hell, with most titles, it's a selling point.

But TrueHD isn't something that's being carried over. At this point, anything we get that's extra is gravy. But the meat should be the film in HD with pristine quality and, at the very least, all of the extras from the SD release.

Sacrificing visual or audio quality for extras I may watch once is not an option I am comfortable with for a next generation format.

Honestly, I have all my HD channels set up as my favorites on my cable box, and only a few non-HD channels (FX, Comedy Central, and Cartoon Network). So yes, I typically do not watch anything but HD content.

And waiting a few months for a player is not going to kill me. If the PS3 gets delayed (not likely at this point), then I'll go pick up the Panasonic.

That's too bad that BD has to sacrifice visual/audio quality for extras. HD DVD certainly hasn't had to do that. Hope they get that worked out someday. Maybe then I'd be interested in something BD has to offer.

Oh and I, too, only watch HD material on regular cable. I barely ever go past the few HD channels that TWC has to offer. But I am, first and foremost, a movie fan and as such, I can accept that all of the extras won't be in HD. If I'm interested in and care about the film, I'm going to want to watch as much as I can about its creation regardless of the quality. Would I appreciate something of great quality? of course. For example, would I have liked the deleted scenes on Backdraft to be of finished quality? definitely. But I'm just happy for them being there in the first place.

Anything else makes me seem like a spoiled brat which, unfortunately, I think we're seeing a lot of due to the popularity and cheapening of SD DVD.

I understand....my point was just that details can change. This title has not been officially announced yet (according to TDB).

Well I stated this in another thread, but I was waiting for validation that BD discs would look great and that was it for me. The rest is about studio support. I have always been waiting for Blu-Ray for the simple reason that I'd much rather go without Universal than the BD only studios. HD-DVD was never an option for me on that alone, along with component clutter. I would've bought BD from day one, until I read the early reviews about The Fifth Element (one of my most wanted titles, unfortunately) and held off, waiting for resolution on if it was the player or software encoding. Since there are no other players to compare it to, I continued waiting. Upon reading reviews of the Warner BD titles with VC1 as being identical to HD-DVD as well as the MPEG2 Tears of The Sun and firmware being upgraded on the later Samsung builds, I decided to go out looking again. And that was that. Everything is hooked up, looks and sounds great and I can look forward to getting most of the titles I really want in HD (BHD being one of them). In the meantime I will look into the HD add on for the 360, though to be honest, with the noise that machine makes I don't really find it a viable addition to a home theater.

BD (and even HD-DVD) should not have to sacrifice anything for extras (especially sd extras).

If either do not have enough room (which both should have plenty), then a second disc should be included.

Alot of people like the extras and want them included, so they should try and appeal to everyone for these releases. It should be a complete version of the movie and supplements.

I dont even notice it and I have a first gen one. Ive watched movies (I watch my pal discs on it) and played games on it without it being an issue.

If you have a surround sound setup, I doubt you will notice it.

Oh yeah? Then why no TrueHD on my Corpse Bride disc? I would rather them drop all the extras and put on a TrueHD track!

You are so quick to dismiss BD, but always forget the shortfalls of HD DVD.

Did the Traffic HD DVD completely replace your Criterion version? No. Did that keep you from buying it? No.

And the cause of either title not including all the extras of the DVD version (rights vs capacity) is irrelevant. You considered it acceptable to buy an HD DVD, knowing that you'd have to keep the SD DVD for the extras. But you consider it unacceptable for Blu-ray.

Note that I'm not letting Sony off the hook. You might be right (they should be able to put everything in). But your double standards don't help your case.

Was there confirmation that a TrueHD soundtrack existed and was scrapped due to the extras taking up too much space??

I think Criterions are a bit different. Universal most likely did not have the rights to those special features.

I do give HD-DVD and BD a pass for those extras.

I don't consider that irrelevant at all.

The Universal TRAFFIC could not include extras that they don't own. So it's that or nothing. (Or wait for Criterion to get into the game and hope that they still have rights to distribute it on the new format.)

That's fine. For some films like that (Spartacus), I'll buy the HD as a supplement to my SD. For some (Fear and Loathing), I'll skip the HD.


Capacity is a completely different story. That's the studio either saying (a) we don't want to bother or (b) we can't figure out how to do this. Both of those are easily solved.

Because of the size constraints, one was never attempted! That is a damn shame! To leave off better AQ just to keep the extras is, to me, a wasted effort when the title could have been so much more.

TrueHD is an EXTRA on HD DVD. it's not a requirement, IMHO.

And re: Traffic, that's already been covered. They don't have the rights just like the SD DVD companies sometimes do not have the rights. For instance, New Line does not have the rights for the extras to the Se7en Criterion edition. it's just the way it works.

However, if they DID and did not include them, then I would also conclude that it was fucked up. This has absolutely nothing to do with bias and everything to do with irresponsibility.

This is EXACTLY the argument.

Im interested to see how Sony responds and thats why I think it will be a significant release even beyond the fact that its just the first BD50.

If they dont include all of the extras and the disc has 10gb of empty space, it will be very disappointing and sends a message to many of us.