caligulathegod

Usually TBS plays Wizard of Oz in their stretch-o-vision while TNT plays it pillarboxed, both in 1080i. The Blu-ray will be 1080p and should be higher quality.

WMAangel

Here is another update for those of you following the drama of this release and the various exclusive versions:

The guy at AVSforum has finally gone through and listed all of the extras his Walmart 1-disc BD has on it, and it matches exactly what the first BD (with the movie and a bunch of extras) has on it from the big UCE set....
SO, it is not a special pressing or anything like that....the sticker on the front of the package is wrong, as it does not contain the three things that were listed on it that are on the second BD of the UCE (the Munchkin featurette, "The Man Behind The Curtain" featurette on L. Frank Baum, or the "Dreamer Of Oz" TV movie)....

I don't know which one I'm going to get on Tuesday now....
I don't know if the other two discs are worth spending an extra $15 on (as the extras on the second BD don't seem all that appealing), though if the packaging of the Target copy is a regular Blu plastic case like TDK or Watchmen had (with just a slip-out/cover like T:TSCC S2 or Smallville S8), I might go ahead and get that version....a six hour documentary is pretty impressive sounding after all...

HumanMedia

Keep in mind that the 6 hour doco is standard def on a DVD-18. Its also been released for some time as a standalone DVD...

Sweet Baby James

It states that the coupon expires on 9/28 in the text, but it clearly states that it expires on 9/30 at the top of the coupon. I'm going to give it a shot tomorrow.


http://img515.imageshack.us/img515/7186/33209915.jpg

obidawsn

Just in case anyone was still questioning the Wal-mart release:

I went to the Wal-mart near where I work and decided to check out the electronics section (knowing they wouldn't have it as you're lucky to get them to put the product out the day of release). They only have a couple of endcaps for Blu-rays (I keep wondering what they do with movies when they have to make room for new ones, but I never do find them), but they had already made spaces with shelf tags for tomorrow's releases. They had a shelf tag for Wizard of Oz for $19.99. I know the guy on AVS Forum easily proved himself, but there were still people who were skeptical that Wal-mart would even have it (some claiming it was probably a mistake).

ctyankee

No more it's not. The Blu-Ray UCE is listed at $89.99 at Borders.com.

http://www.borders.com/online/store/...u=883929043477

So, even if they honor the 50 percent off coupon - in my state (6 percent tax) you're out the door at $47.69. Factor in gas and your own personal time and the chance they may not even have a copy and it's debatable whether that beats $51.99 delivered from Amazon. YMMV.

For those interested in the DVD UCE, Border's retail price is $73.99.

Edit: by the way, I'm not picking up any of the Blu-Ray sets. I'll settle for Netflix for now and pick up on the cheap later. Much like I did with the new streamlined Casablanca set which I easily picked up for less than 15 bucks. Overall, I find WHV's high priced sets with no no-frills option out of touch with what consumers want (let alone the realities of the economy). So, even though The Wizard of Oz is one of my favorite films, WHV can stuff this release.

Adam Tyner

I just finished a review of the UCE if anyone's interested: http://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/39772/wizard-of-oz-the/

WMAangel

Have you not been following any of the information posted in these threads?

There ARE no-frills options being made available...you do NOT have to buy the high-priced UCE set to get OZ on BD....you have two other choices, but they are both store exclusives...
1. the Walmart exclusive version...as no frills as they come, it is just the first BD from the UCE set (with the movie and a boatload of bonus features) in a standard plastic BD case for only $19.96....
2. the Target exclusive version....a bit more fancy as far as discs and features go, but no silly watches or posters/books/budget reproductions...it has both BD discs and the DVD with the MGM documentary, in a regular plastic BD case**(with a hinge inside like Watchmen) with a slipcase/cover for it (like Warner's latest BD TV releases of Smallville and Terminator: TSCC) at a price of $34.99....

** = edited to add there there are now conflicting reports as to exactly what kind of case is used on the Target version....one employee has stated it is what I described above, but now another employee has said it is actually a cardboard foldout inside a sleeve, which would probably mean it looks just like the one included in the UCE box....

GenPion

I haven't had time to read it in entirety, but I read parts of it and it sounds like an excellent review/rundown. Good job! You've got me even more excited about this release.

Arthur Dent

Very nice. You are--by far--my favorite DVD Talk reviewer.

Adam Tyner

Thanks! Needless to say, this was a very time-consuming project, and I only got it in the mail on Saturday afternoon (!), so I'm definitely glad to hear you guys appreciate the effort.

Timsterino

Me too. I am very happy that I bought the UCE from Amazon.

DthRdrX

I always enjoy reading your stuff Adam. Thanks for taking the time!

Drav3n

great review! lookin forward to buyin this bluray tomorrow!

Supermallet

Great job, Adam! A truly Herculean effort that is greatly appreciated, as I was on the fence about buying any version of this on release day. Reminds me of when I reviewed Blade Runner on HD DVD. Going through every commentary and special feature was absolutely overwhelming. And I couldn't even do screencaps.

Despite that, I am going for the Target version. I already need to get Gremlins there anyway, and I would only look at the physical extras once, at which point the box would just take up space.

DthRdrX

I'm working until 5 tommorow, so I'll be lucky if they still haver Oz at Target much less Gremlins. Keeping my fingers crossed.

Eric D.

So to be clear, does the Target version have all of the special features from the UCE set? I don't want any of the trinkets, but I also don't want to loose any of the special features.

DthRdrX

Wizard of Oz buying guide on blu-ray forum here with pics of Target version.

Supermallet

That Target set looks perfect. Exactly what I wanted.

Eric D.

Awesome, so the Target one is the way to go. Thanks for the link.

Matthew Ackerly

Ditto. I'm all over that.

AOD

Target version here also. Thanks for the comparison.

Jamers

I'd love to buy this movie but I'm waiting for the Video/Audio quality reviews first. Was this totally remastered and cleaned up for Blu-Ray?

dx23

DVDBeaver, Blu-ray.com and this site have given the set excellent reviews in all departments.

Adam Tyner

It's a brand new 8K remaster (despite a previous 4K remaster having been done in 2004/2005). I linked to my review (which has oodles of screenshots) a few posts back.