Amityville and Carrie :(

Aren't those technically MGM titles though? I think those were in the same boat as "Dude" as ones that were finished long ago and sat around delayed, and then they just decided to push them out the door as is...

The first DVD is tried out when I got my Samsung 46" HD LCD, KK Extended in my up converting DVD player. I was very happy with how good it looked. I already own the diaries, the standard edition and the extended edition, I'm really reluctant to buy again.

Will the picture in BR amaze me again?

IIRC, looking at the encodes, Carrie was actually finished a few years ago (MPEG2) while Amityville is using the newer encode (MPEG4) (which is odd since Carrie was never announced while Amityville was). I'd have to pop my discs in again to confirm though.

There was still plenty of "announced" titles by Fox and MGM (at CES in 2007) that may eventually come out with old MPEG2 encodes and lacking extras. Still waiting to see if the BD of The Graduate would be an improvement over my import HD DVD.

The HD DVD is still considered demo material to many, so unless Universal throws some DNR into the mix you should be very happy with it. I have yet to actually watch the entire film, but have seen the T-Rex scene a dozen times.

I guess we'll find out pretty soon, because "Dodgeball" is just around that corner (Dec. 9), and that one was an announced title that has been delayed since last year...
I have hope for it, though, since I think the old announced one was the rated cut, and the new release is supposed to be the unrated version, so maybe they went back and did it right....

I was in Best Buy last night and stopped dead in my tracks when I saw the T-Rex scene from King Kong playing on the Blu-Ray demo and I have to say the PQ looked absolutely fucking rediculously good.

What player was it? To my knowledge there is no BD demo disc with King Kong on it...so you may have been looking at the HD DVD or an up-converted DVD.

I'm not sure but i'll check next time I am in there, a Sony one i'm sure since it was playing on a Sony TV.
It wasn't an HD DVD, it had the Blu-Ray logo if I remember right and at the end of the clip it says coming soon to Blu-Ray. A Seabiscuit Blu-Ray clip is on there too.

Interesting. The store probably just got that one in. I'll have to check it out next time I go.

I've read others mention the King Kong demo recently.

I've spent way too much money on King Kong movies but I'll by the 4th version of this movie...

1 own KK SE 2 DVD set, extended 3 DVD, HD-DVD, Production Diaries and now this!
I have all the old King Kong too; King Kong 1976 DVD & HD-DVD, King Kong Lives 1986 and the original King Kong 1933 2 DVD.

I guess it won't be any better edition after this BD, I hope.

Same here. I'm a sucker for King Kong releases.

Well great, I bought the regular edition and extended on DVD and also the HDDVD.

Looks like I'll be trying to sell all 3 now and will buy the BR.

King Kong Blu-Ray-- Is it worth it?
 

I'm new to this forum, FYI....

I just got a Blu-ray player for Christmas & I've slowly been upgrading a few of my standard DVDs to Blu-ray.

One of the upcoming titles I'm not sure about is (Peter Jackson's) King Kong. Previously, I owned the 2-disc special edition, which I never watched, and upgraded to the 3-disc extended cut package... which I also never watched! Still, I liked knowing that I had the most complete set. (Excluding collectible figurines & stuff.)

Does anyone know what will be on the King Kong Blu-ray disc? I heard it was both the theatrical & the extended cuts. Is that true? Anything else in terms of extras?

I'm leaning towards picking up the Blu-ray disc, even if it doesn't have all the 3-disc features. In a way, I'm admitting to myself that I really don't care about a slew of unnecessary bonus features that I'll never get around to watching (a 3-hour making of documentary?!).

But deep down I'm a completest, so I'm wondering if people think there will be more editions of Kong on Blu-ray down the road. (I'm not a LOTR fan, but I understand there's been a lot of drama & frustration with all of those films' re-re-releases on DVD.)

I guess I should also ask if anyone has ever tackled all the bonus features on the 3-disc standard def set?!? Is it worth having? Or will a leaner Blu-ray disc trump that bloated standard def package?

Re: King Kong Blu-Ray-- Is it worth it?
 

You already answered your own question: you're a completist. Get the Blu-Ray.

And watch the movie sometime....

Re: King Kong Blu-Ray-- Is it worth it?
 

Re: King Kong Blu-Ray-- Is it worth it?
 

Reviews of the BD should be popping up in the next few days. Personally, I'm sticking with my HD DVD. DTS MA is not that big of an incentive for me over DD+ and I don't think I'd make it through the Extended cut of the film.

Re: King Kong Blu-Ray-- Is it worth it?
 

I have the HD DVD, but I prefer the longer cut so the Blu-ray is a no-brainer for me since it has both versions of the movie.
And for the OP, just go into Best Buy and watch the Kong Blu-Ray demo and I think that will make up your mind for you :)

Re: King Kong Blu-Ray-- Is it worth it?
 

I haven't seen the extended cut yet since I have been waiting for an HD release of it... so since the blu-ray has got it, I'll have to buy it.

Re: King Kong Blu-Ray-- Is it worth it?
 

I'd get the Blu-Ray. By the way, It's been awhile since I watched them, but I found the bonus features in both the 2-disc and 3-Disc sets very well done and fascinating...not the typical EPK fluff. But if you don't care for making-of documentaries, then I guess you won't be interested anyway.

Re: King Kong Blu-Ray-- Is it worth it?
 

I also have the 2-disc and 3 disc releases of this title (and haven't even looked at the 3 discer yet). I also have the Production Diaries and the disc on HD DVD (for free).

That said...this release looks good except that they don't have the Production Diaries, and apparently a lot of the extras.

Re: King Kong Blu-Ray-- Is it worth it?
 

Visually it's a stunning movie and the HD DVD version is great. I'm with Gizmo on this. The movie is already long enough, I personally don't need anything more. Being a completist, if and when you get around to watching the movie, if you want it looking the best it can grab the Blu version. Hopefully your older sets on Half.com can offset some of the cost.

I know I'm in the minority on this board regarding extras, but they're just not that important to me. I enjoy flipping through a couple. There are some really good gag reels, some nice interviews, but the only thing I will watch longer than 30 or so minutes is a documentary about the event. Band Of Brothers has some nice documentary and interview stuff. Black Hawk Down has some good doc material. Movies based on real events that include a documentary about the event on which it is based.

A 3 hour "making of" documentary? I'm sorry. No freakin way. Ever since I saw the Bullitt documentary about the making of the chase scene it ruined it for me. Now I see him pass that same green volkswagon 9 times.

Re: King Kong Blu-Ray-- Is it worth it?
 

King Kong on HD-DVD was easily a reference title for how good it looked. This should be a no brainer.

Re: King Kong Blu-Ray-- Is it worth it?
 

I passed on this one since almost no extras made it over...which means I would need to keep the two cuts and the production diaries.

If everything did make it over, then this would have been a no brainer.

If it gets to bargain bin prices, would I grab it...yeah probably.

Also for the record, I really like this version and I saw the HD-DVD which was incredible. I am just a stickler for extras being carried over.