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page updated: 5/20/98



Close... But No DVD:
How Close Encounters Illustrates the Biggest
Problem Facing DVD

All right, I'm REALLY peeved. I just wanted to throw that out there, so it's in the back of your minds as you read this. I'll get back to it in a minute.

Close Encounters of the Third Kind has long been one of my favorite films. I clearly remember seeing it in the theater as a kid, back in 1977, and really getting the chills from it. The film is haunting, eerie, and filled with startling imagery (well, at least startling for 1977). Close Encounters works in the same way that a good episode of The X-Files does... even in the end, there are more questions than answers. Both take full advantage of something Hitchcock knew well - the unknown is always more scary than anything you actually see onscreen. The film clearly ranks as one of Spielberg's best works, coming from a time in his career where the art of directing was more important to him than the business of producing. I can easily say that Close Encounters and Star Wars, which was released that same year, were the movies most responsible for introducing me to the wonder of the film experience.

Unfortunately, for years, it's been difficult to revisit that first experience of Close Encounters. In 1980, Spielberg, who had always considered the original theatrical version of the film incomplete, went back and added newly shot footage to enhance the film. Most of the new sequences were quite good, including one in which UN investigators discover a missing ship in the middle of the desert. But the only way Spielberg could justify the cost of filming these new scenes to the studio, was to shoot a new ending sequence as well (yes, there was a time when Spielberg didn't exert tremendous influence over the studios). This new ending, in which we see Roy Nearly inside the mothership, is absolutely awful. It completely ruins the mystery and impact of the film, and (for me at least) makes it virtually unwatchable. And naturally, this 'special edition' has been the only version of the film available on home video for some time. Finding the original version on VHS or laserdisc is difficult, and it is rarely seen on cable or network TV.

But now (finally!) there is a version of Close Encounters of the Third Kind worth owning. It took him nearly twenty years, but Spielberg finally got around to finishing this movie as he originally conceived it. Columbia/TriStar Home Video has just released a new VHS Collector's Edition of Close Encounters, that really delivers. Remastered in THX, and available in both pan & scan and 2.35:1 letterboxed widescreen, the Collector's Edition boasts a brand new director's cut of the film, which is absolutely outstanding. The new cut restores: the Air Force press conference sequence, a long sequence where Roy tears up plants and chicken wire from his (and his neighbor's) yard to build his living-room Devil's Tower sculpture, a brief scene where Roy climbs back into his house via the kitchen window after nearly getting run over by the family car, and best of all, the film's original ending! This is Close Encounters better than you've ever seen it. The new release even includes a 20 minute documentary, featuring new interviews with the cast and crew, including director Spielberg (done on location while shooting Saving Private Ryan). The documentary also contains unused footage from the mothership sequence, showing scenes or concepts that were filmed but didn't work (Roy floating into the ship in zero-gravity, streams of 'cube' ships, and more). Bottom line: the new Collector's Edition of Close Encounters is an absolute treat!

So why am I so upset? Because Steven Spielberg has apparently decided that, until there are more than a million DVD players in the market, he doesn't want any more of his films (or anything with the Amblin name attached to it) released to DVD. And although Columbia/TriStar owns the rights to the film (and therefore, technically makes the final decision), the studio has decided to defer to Spielberg's position. As you all know, this is why Men In Black was pulled just before the discs were scheduled to hit store shelves. For Close Encounters, it means that a classic masterpiece, which has finally been given the treatment it deserves, will not appear on DVD anytime soon. I've recently discussed this issue with some friends, as well as many readers of the Bits, and discovered that they are more than a little upset about this. And personally, I'll be honest… it really chaps my @#*!

Now I know that many of you who read The Digital Bits work in the industry, including folks at Columbia/TriStar and Amblin Entertainment. So these next comments are directed at you:

As badly as I want to purchase the Close Encounters Collector's Edition, I WILL NOT DO SO UNTIL IT IS RELEASED ON DVD! Furthermore, I will encourage everyone I know to do the same. If DVD players are to find their way into millions of consumer's homes, the studios MUST make popular titles available to the format! This is the format's biggest stumbling block (far more of a problem than Divx).

Look, I have every respect for Steven Spielberg. No one is asking for every one of his films to be released to DVD tomorrow, but why not start with one or two good ones now?

This cautious 'wait and see' attitude towards DVD is starting to become absurd. It was one thing when no one knew if the format had a chance. But a half a million players have sold to dealers in a little over a year, in the U.S. alone! That should tell you something! Dealers wouldn't be buying these things if they weren't selling! How about the number of people who are purchasing computers with DVD-Roms? There's not a whole lot of DVD-Rom software out there yet, so I'm guessing they're buying an awful lot of movies to spin in those drives. And keep in mind that Region 1 includes Canada as well. Based on the tremendous number of readers I hear from in Canada, I'd be willing to bet that DVD player sales there are every bit as strong as U.S. sales. Want more evidence? What about the fact that several of the studios who are supporting DVD enthusiastically can't manufacture enough copies of some titles to meet demand?! The fact is this: DVD is here to stay, holdout studios and Divx be damned.

I receive hundreds of e-mails a month, from DVD and home video consumers who are tired of being held at the mercy of corporate Hollywood. It seems to me, that the home video industry is woefully out of touch with consumers. It's the only business I know of where customers actually have to beg companies for the chance to purchase the product they want! And despite their efforts to make their feelings known, these customers seem to be largely ignored, and in some cases, even regarded with contempt.

I encourage everyone who feels strongly about this problem, to contact the studios and politely but firmly make your feelings known. All the contact information you need to do so, can be found in the Surf the Links section of The Digital Bits. And in the case of Close Encounters, direct your comments to:

Benjamin Feingold
President, Columbia/TriStar Home Video
10202 West Washington Blvd., SPP 8006
Culver City, CA 90232
RE: DVD
(310) 244-4100

Steven Spielberg
Amblin Entertainment / Dreamworks SKG
100 Universal City Plaza, Bungelow 477
Universal City, CA 91608-1085
RE: DVD
818-777-4600

It's time to make the studio's take notice, and make them more responsive to their customers. As always, I welcome your comments.

Bill Hunt, Editor
The Digital Bits


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