Films/DVD Asylum

Cool article but why are the Criterion DVDs still so expensive...

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ToshiroMeyers

(D)

In Reply to: Chicago Tribune DVD restoration article posted by rico on November 09, 2004 at 10:10:46:

Rico,
I've been holding back for a few weeks on DVD purchases, but I loaded up this morning.
Stray Dog
Zatoichi/Sonatine
Dr. Strangelove (new version)
Gone With the Wind
Marx Brothers
Red Beard
Hero (Region 3)
Other than Amazon, Criterion films are still very expensive at almost every B/M retailer.
Zatoichi looks and sounds great.
One bit of advice for Marx Brothers fans...don't buy the other box set, unless you really have to get their worst films. Buy A Night at the Opera and A Day at the Races individually.
Hero is a region 3 release in DTS:ES and it looks and sounds incredible. The Region 1 copy is due out in a month.
Bring on that cold winter weather.
Tosh Firefly
"I think this place is restricted Wang, so don't tell them you're Jewish"

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local price - tunenut 12:31:18 11/09/04 (0)
I live near a retailer called dvd planet, also on the web at dvdplanet.com. Typically I bought Kwaidan at Tower for $30, saw it at DVD Planet for $20. They are always somewhere around $10 cheaper than other prices on these Criterion titles. And they have many in stock. I don't know if this helps you since it is not local, but maybe you have such a place around as well.
Re: Cool article but why are the Criterion DVDs still so expensive... - rico 12:04:01 11/09/04 (2)
They have always been priced higher since back in the laserdisc days. Their films generally have higher quality transfers and many are not available any place else.
- Emphasis on "generally" . . . - JefferyK 10:14:22 11/10/04 (0)
  The Criterion DVD of Ozu's "Good Morning" is much worse quality than the print I saw at the Castro Theater here in San Francisco a year or so back. Tons of grit and scratches.
  Meanwhile, the cheap MGM "Ski Party" DVD has a flawless picture all the way through!
  Go figure.
  Jeffery
- Re: Cool article but why are the Criterion DVDs still so expensive... - TA 12:24:49 11/09/04 (0)
  I thought the higher price was due to the fact that they license the films they put out, which means the studio owning the film gets paid for the film, plus a premium for the third party to do the DVD, then the Criterion company adds on its take on top.
  Add to that the cost of added lawyers and dealmakers across so many hands plus, of course, the cost of the extra effort Criterion puts into the films, many of which aren't destined to sell a lot of copies.
  
  "HO, HO, HO!" - Santa Claus

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