Re: Criterion - disc rot/'bronzing'
 

I was checking my other movies one section at a time and came across 8 1/2 and it looks like it is bronzing but my copy still plays. I compared it to other discs and it has the brownish color to it rather than the silverish color. I didn't see it previously mentioned but if you have it then please check the disc.

Re: Criterion - disc rot/'bronzing'
 

guess i need to check that one now.

Re: Criterion - disc rot/'bronzing'
 

In response to 8 1/2:

I got to the last ten minutes or so and the movie just started skipping stuff and ultimately went back to the title screen. Also, is the title screen supposed to be black aside from the selections on the left? Is there supposed to be a title or anything there?

Re: Criterion - disc rot/'bronzing'
 

Add:
Kagemusha to the list of possible bad discs. I know mine is bad and cannot be played.

I have found about 8 discs so far in my collection that either flat out don't play or are a concern as they are turning that bronze color. This is the case with Monsoon Wedding and 8 1/2 that play for the most part but could be completely dead sooner than later. 8 1/2 only gives me about 90% of the movie and it doesn't display anything in the menu screen.

Here is a direct link to the Criterion forum where customers are discussing some of their problems. Most of what they have mentioned is what I have seen aside from 8 1/2.
http://www.criterion.com/current/pos...efective-discs

Re: Criterion - disc rot/'bronzing'
 

One question staring me in the face:

Isn't it just a little ironic that a company supposedly dedicated to the highest CRITERION of quality in their releases gets away with using a shoddy manufacturer of its media? Yeah, only just?

Re: Criterion - disc rot/'bronzing'
 

Good point. But I'm more concerned with this idea that there is an affected title list, and that list may need to be added to in the future. Unless they actually don't know the root cause, they really should know all the titles that are affected now.

So far I've seen at least 4 or 5 titles not on their list that should be given multiple reports of defects with the same title.

Re: Criterion - disc rot/'bronzing'
 

I saw the list of concern that spans over a year and a half or so period of time and it is quite a lengthy list of possibly affected discs. I know that I have more than a handful of those discs myself and they are in bad shape or are getting there.

Re: Criterion - disc rot/'bronzing'
 

"Gets away with"? Do you know anything about the pressing plant that allegedly caused this problem? Do they have a track record or reputation for shoddy manufacturing and high defect rates that Criterion could have known about in advance, or is this the first reported instance?

Re: Criterion - disc rot/'bronzing'
 

Which begs the question; what other blu-rays from other studios did they press during that time that are affected similarly that we don't know about yet?

Re: Criterion - disc rot/'bronzing'
 

It's shit like this that has me looking at my collection and asking myself why I bought it all in the first place. :(

Re: Criterion - disc rot/'bronzing'
 

The same thing is apparently affecting a bunch of Well-Go discs. I think it's mostly kung-fu stuff like Ip Man and some of their Shaw Bros. titles.

Re: Criterion - disc rot/'bronzing'
 

I wonder how long these discs have been unplayable.

Since we're just now finding out about the problem, can we assume that Criterion discs don't get played a lot?

Either these Criterions only just started exhibiting problems, or it happened a while back and nobody noticed until now.

Re: Criterion - disc rot/'bronzing'
 

A lot of Criterion's customers are people with very large collections. I have almost all of the affected discs. I've only actually watched a third of them before these reports. I never even got around to opening my copy of Howards End.

Re: Criterion - disc rot/'bronzing'
 

People have been experiencing isolated issues with some of these titles for years. It's just now that the scale of the problem is coming to light. As much as I rag on them, it really was blu-ray.com catching wind of this that caused all of the OCD pyschos to start going through their entire collections and begin documenting manufacturing codes and the like. Without them, most of us would still be blissfully ignorant. It's also reasonable to assume that a specific amount of time had to have elapsed in order for the chemical reaction that's causing this to do its damage. Therefore, it may not be a coincidence that all of these discs suddenly became unplayable within a relative narrow window.

Re: Criterion - disc rot/'bronzing'
 

Based on reports, the BDs were working at one time. Very few of them were unplayable within 18 months of their initial release. Most people probably bought them at launch, played them once successfully, and then filed them away. It was the few hardcore fans that would play a copy multiple times over the years that caught this problem.

Re: Criterion - disc rot/'bronzing'
 

This reminds me of those discs you could rent for a day or two then they would go bad. What a terrible idea that was.

Re: Criterion - disc rot/'bronzing'
 

i think i heard of that.

Re: Criterion - disc rot/'bronzing'
 

I really worried about sending Pierrot and Howard's End back to them ... I have this fear that they won't replace them... come someone calm my fears here... ?

Re: Criterion - disc rot/'bronzing'
 

I thought everyone had heard of DivX.

Paging Alan Smithee...

Re: Criterion - disc rot/'bronzing'
 

I don't think anyone knows for sure yet, but Criterion hasn't said that they won't replace them. Either way, if the discs don't work, what do you have to lose?

Re: Criterion - disc rot/'bronzing'
 

That's actually different. DivX discs were locked via software, the players had to be hooked up and dial into their mothership every so often and certain discs were able to be viewed for a certain number of hours each time you paid.


There was a separate format that actually physically degraded (as in a chemical reaction in the disc, like these Criterion discs) after a day or two preventing further play. The name of that escapes me now, I'll try to find it later.

Re: Criterion - disc rot/'bronzing'
 

I'm in the same boat as Giles.

If the my copies of Pierrot and Howard's End were completely unplayable like Walkabout, yeah, nothing to lose.

With Howard's End, it seems playable so far. So, I'm going to hold on to it even if it is a ticking time bomb of unplayability.

But, with Pierrot...I rather have half a film and the supplements (still seem to work) than no film at all.

In either case, I'm holding off on sending them anything until I hear people are starting to get replacements back since a) I'd like to send one big shipment in (counting on the exchange expanding beyond the listed titles) and b) will be sending in all eligible titles even if playback is not unaffected [I]yet[I] since there is no foolproof way to know if you have a bad pressing or not.

Re: Criterion - disc rot/'bronzing'
 

Yeah, which why I was wondering if it just happened or if someone just noticed it. If it has taken the discs four years to deteriorate to the point they won't play, then this could just be the tip of the iceberg, and we'll see more and more Criterions (and potentially discs from other labels) fail in the next year or two. Whereas, if the problem is only now being brought to light and the discs crapped out a couple of years ago but nobody noticed, then we should be in the clear. If people have been reporting isolated occurrences of failed Criterions for a couple of years, it looks the latter scenario might be the case.

Re: Criterion - disc rot/'bronzing'
 

Flexplay.

Re: Criterion - disc rot/'bronzing'
 

I have 6 for sure discs on my list for exchange and I'm still looking. Walkabout is the most bronzed of them all and it doesn't even attempt to load on my bd players but my laptop loads it up. Weird!

Re: Criterion - disc rot/'bronzing'
 

Has anyone exchanged any discs yet?

Re: Criterion - disc rot/'bronzing'
 

I sent the 5 I had from the list in a couple of weeks ago, they received them the next day. From calling them a few days ago I was told that it will be at least another week before they send anything out (they're still waiting on corrected discs) and that the out of print titles will also be replaced.

Re: Criterion - disc rot/'bronzing'
 

So far they are still sending out their canned response to the issue and they have not added any new but obviously affected titles to the list. Also, their lack of a 100% clear answer on whether or not they will replace the affected OOP discs is a bit disconcerting to me.

Re: Criterion - disc rot/'bronzing'
 

Obviously this is one of those believe it when you see its, but they were very clear with me on the phone that the OOP titles on the list were being replaced with the same title. I explained my question so there was no doubt as to what I was asking, even adding that there were numerous people across varying forums I frequent who had their doubts. I mentioned having sent in my Howard's End and they even went as far as to bring up Pierrot le fou without me mentioning it as another that they were sending out that was OOP.

Re: Criterion - disc rot/'bronzing'
 

so you receive your replacement soon?

Re: Criterion - disc rot/'bronzing'
 

Hopefully. He said there'd be no individual notice (e-mail or something like that) that the replacements were shipping as that would only slow them down. They'll just show up.

Re: Criterion - disc rot/'bronzing'
 

Sounds like I'll be packing my titles up (including the OOP ones) and shipping them out next week then.

Re: Criterion - disc rot/'bronzing'
 

I haven't sent anything in yet, but has anyone that has, received replacements or a time table for such yet?

Re: Criterion - disc rot/'bronzing'
 

I have not sent anything in, but from what I've read in various places, no replacements have been sent out yet. I think replacement discs won't be ready for another week or two. Also, reportedly Criterion is telling people to send in the oop discs as they will be replaced.

Re: Criterion - disc rot/'bronzing'
 

So where's this "official list" that they're replacing? Or should I just go ahead and send whatever disc I have that's bronzed? Should I send non-bronzed discs that are on the list?

Re: Criterion - disc rot/'bronzing'
 

The "official" list is as follows:

SUMMER HOURS
WALKABOUT
PARIS, TEXAS
M
THE SEVENTH SEAL
PIERROT LE FOU
HOWARDS END

At least those were the titles listed in their initial e-mail. I don't think they've officially named any others at this point. I know plenty of people have been asking about others, but I'm not sure what Criterion's stance is at this point.

Damn, I'd forgotten about this. I have to get on it.

Re: Criterion - disc rot/'bronzing'
 

So how are they doing the OOP titles?

Re: Criterion - disc rot/'bronzing'
 

My Kagemusha and Monsoon Wedding are also toast as well as my 8 1/2 being partially jacked. There are some more suspects that Criterion needs to be looking into. Just put one of your staff on it and get the list updated, get that updated list out to your customers and exchange the discs.

Re: Criterion - disc rot/'bronzing'
 

Apparently the replacement discs are starting to be delivered. I've read multiple reports online of people having received theirs in the last day or so.