Which version of Peter Jackson's Braindead to get?
 

amazon.co.uk has this version

Then there's this version

and this one

And here are two other versions on Ebay:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...sPageName=WDVW

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...sPageName=WDVW

And there are probably others. From what I can tell they are all Region 2. I would like to see this movie in its uncut form, but I have no idea where to start with all these different releases.

Can anyone supply a comprehensive list of all the versions, and how they differ? Is there one that sticks out as the best version?

The UK is uncut, and as far as I know, it looks as good as any other uncut release.
It's OAR (non-anamorphic 1.66:1), stereo (DD2.0).

Sorry, which one are you referring to?

UK=Amazon.co.uk=the top one. The other ones are, I think, German, Spanish, Scandinavian (here with the Danish cover).

yeah the best at the moment is the UK one, may not be anamorphic, or have superb extras and sound, but its uncut and correct aspect ratio, other versions are either cut, or cropped.

so cheap UK version is the one to get, until someone pulls out there finger. tut tut.

there were other threads on this and i thought the German version was the one to get...the one that was "Blood Edition" or Christmas Edition" or part of the Peter Jackson 3-pack collection. One of those was the best to get i thought.

I have the German release (Red Edition) and it appears to be uncut. The quality of the transfer is quite good. This page has a comparison of all the features:

http://www.dvdcompare.net/comparison...e.php?fid=1227

I'm still waiting for the inevitable Good Edition with an anamorphic transfer from a high-quality print and stereo (can I dream?) sound. Maybe some extras too... It has to happen. With this film, they could safely call it the "Whacked Out Edition" and it would make perfect sense. Does TriMark still own the rights?

The UK release is in DD2.0 stereo (regardless of what it says on the cover, and on the dvdcompare site), and some of the others are as well.

The German edition is difficult if not impossible to find and isn't even anamorphic... the German version that comes with the Peter Jackson Collection is the only one that's anamorphic... even more difficult to find.

Fortunately, there's a new version of this that got released under the radar (well, my radar at least) last year (I think)... It's the "Raro Video" version from Italy. It says "Splatters gli schizzacervelli" on it and could be the best version available if you want the uncut version.

I ordered it and might report back after watching it.

All European versions are good and uncut. I just like the UK cover more :) And avoid R1 release under the title 'Dead Alive' - it's couple of minutes shorter than European editions.

Glitches in Raro Release
 

I have the Raro disc and while it is anamorphic and looks solid, there are some weird cuts in it, particularly in the pre-title sequence. When the zoo official is getting his hand and then arm hacked off, there is at least one very jarring cut that shortens the violence. I have not seen this cut in any other version of the film. Back when I first bought the disc, I searched the web for an explanation or at least someone else who noticed, but had no luck. Has anyone here noticed?

Braindead seems to be one of those films destined to never be perfect on DVD.

I have the R1 and the Dutch DVD. This one needs a nice new release and I wouldn't mind a good "Meet The Feebles" DVD.

Dirk

Oh shit, you're right - it is cut. They cut out his "what are you doing?" - that's a new one.

I'm kinda pissed since I just bought it - I just notified xploited about it since they list it as uncut.

So the Raro version is not "uncut"?

Does that leave the UK version as the only version readily available to get?

The Raro version has a nice transfer, but is indeed cut in the beginning. xploited took it back as a return and offered a refund, but I opted to use it as credit towards something else. Great site.

I read that the US Unrated cut on the R1 release is actually Jackson's "preferred" version. Still, I would definitely like to see a comprehensive edition with at least that cut and the extended European cut. Something along the lines of the "Dawn of the Dead" Ultimate Edition, perhaps.

The added party scenes are very interesting to see, but I think the Unrated cut is a little tighter.

How does this edition stack up?
http://xploitedcinema.com/catalog/br...ase-p-611.html

I picked up a sealed copy at Fangoria's Weekend of Horrors in L.A over the weekend.

Seems like the German discs are still the best uncut versions up to day.

I don't support the Austrian E-tailers, but I think for international customers it's the best way to get the German edition:

Braindead

An interessting comparisson between the two German discs (the nonanamorphic Bloodedition and the anamorphic disc from the Peter Jackson Collection can be found on cinefacts.