The Rumor Mill - Archived Posts (9/4/98

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Rumor Mill
(Archived Posts 9/4/98 - 7/25/98)

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9/4/98

I first reported that South Park would be coming to DVD, way back in the 6/12 Rumor Mill update. This morning, I received follow-up confirmation on the subject. A total of twelve South Park episodes will be released to DVD (three discs in all) on October 20th. They will reportedly carry and SRP of $19.98. The episodes to expect are:

Volume One - Cartman Gets An Anal Probe, Volcano, Weight Gain 4000, and Big Gay Al's Big Gay Boat Ride

Volume Two - An Elephant Make Loves To A Pig, Death, Pink Eye, and Damien

Volume Three - Starvin Marvin, Mecha-Streisand, Mr. Hankey The Christmas Poo, and Tom's Rhinoplasty

I'm guessing those of you who aren't South Park fans raised an eyebrow at some of those titles...!

9/3/98

I'd say its high time to let you all know about more upcoming DVD titles, wouldn't you? So let's start with Universal. In addition to the titles mentioned previously, look for Fried Green Tomatoes: Collector's Edition, The Lonely Guy, One True Thing, Touch of Evil: Collector's Edition (very cool!), Major Payne, Clockers, Darkman II, Village of the Damned, and yes... Baseketball.

From the Earth to the Moon has been getting lots of attention, so let's talk about some other HBO titles. Their DVD releases through the end of the year should include: Tales From the Hood, The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, The Westerner, Wonderman, Dodsworth, Stella Dallas, Hans Christian Anderson, Balls of Fire, Spawn 2, A Bright Shining Lie, The Rat Pack, When Trumpets Fade, Hurricane, Come and Get it, and Proud Rebel.

From Polygram, in addition to the afore mentioned Cats, The Graduate, When Harry Met Sally and Misery, look for Barb Wire, What Dreams May Come, Last Days of Disco, Lion in Winter and Carnal Knowledge. Also on tap, Honeymoon in Vegas and Needful Things.

How about Blade from New Line? It's coming in December, and American History X, Nightmare on Elm Street and Robert Altman's Short Cuts should be out by the end of the year as well.

Stay tuned...

9/2/98

Word from a trio of sources came in yesterday, which included more information on Miramax's upcoming Scream DVD, as well as some new Paramount titles that are apparently in the works. The Scream special edition DVD will feature the Director's Cut, and is expected to include interviews with the cast & crew, behind-the-scenes FX work, a making-of documentary and other extras (yet to be determined). My sources say 16x9 anamorphic enhancement is up in the air as yet, but I'll keep looking into this, so stay tuned.

As for Paramount, look for Breakdown to be released to DVD before the holidays, as well as one or both of the following Star Trek films: Generations and Wrath of Kahn.

9/1/98

All right - we've got some interesting DVD information today. First of all, I've got the list of titles, street dates and SRPs for DVDs that will be distributed by Warner Bros in November (Warner, HBO and MGM titles). They are as follows:

All Dogs Christmas - 11/17 - 24.98
Kingpin - 11/17 - 24.98
A Fish Called Wanda - 11/17 - 24.98
The Secret of NIMH - 11/17 - 24.98
Tomorrow Never Dies: SE - 11/17 - 34.98
Star 80 - 11/10 - 14.98
Vision Quest - 11/10 - 11.98
Stand and Deliver - 11/10 - 14.98
Rolling Stones: Bridges to Babylon - 11/17 - 19.98
Dead Calm - 11/17 - 19.98
From the Earth to the Moon - 11/10 - 119.98
Spawn 2 - 11/3 - 24.98
When Trumpets Fade - 11/10 - 24.98
Damage - 11/17 - 24.98
Crash - 11/17 - 24.98
Casablanca - 11/17 - 24.98
Her Alibi - 11/10 - 14.98
Showdown in Little Tokyo - 11/10 - 14.98
Hooper - 11/10 - 14.98
Nothing but Trouble - 11/10 - 14.98
Clean and Sober - 11/10 - 14.98
Guilty by Suspicion - 11/10 - 14.98
Spies Like Us - 11/10 - 14.98

There's a problem, however, with some of these titles. At least a few of the MGM DVDs will be pan & scan only. They are: Kingpin, Secret of NIHM and A Fish Called Wanda. Gggrrrr...

Now, here's some very good news, if it pans out. I've been told that Steven Spielberg's DreamWorks SKG and Paramount Home Video have reached a tentative agreement to release Deep Impact on DVD this year. This title will not be available day and date however (on October 20th). If all goes well, it should be part of Paramount's November or December release waves. Also comes word that numerous other Spielberg films will finally begin arriving on DVD, starting in the 1st quarter of 1999. Stay tuned for more on this...

8/24/98

Some good news from the Fox DVD front. If what I've been made aware of over the weekend is true, Fox has come to their senses and has decided to drop their ridiculous $34.95 price point. Look for the SRP of Home Alone 3 and Hope Floats to be $29.95 like the rest of their titles.

As things stand at the moment, I'm told that Home Alone 3 will be letterboxed widescreen (1.85:1), but will not be 16x9 enhanced, and will have only a theatrical trailer. The Abyss however, will be the director's cut with added footage, and Young Frankenstein will have a commentary track and outtake footage. Porky's will be in pan & scan only, but the rest will be widescreen (no word on 16x9, other than the afore mentioned Home Alone 3). Look for X-Files: Fight the Future in January, and possibly Something About Mary before the end of the year.

Not a whole lot new on the Paramount front, except that Night Falls On Manhattan is among the titles currently in development for DVD release in November or December.

8/21/98

I've been able to confirm the rest of Buena Vista's November DVD line-up. In addition to The Horse Whisperer which will be a rare Buena Vista day-and-date release to DVD, look for He Got Game, Good Morning Vietnam, and best of all Dead Poet's Society. They should be officially announced early next week. If all goes well in production, as I've said before, December could see Armageddon and possibly the first of the Miramax Collector's series DVDs (likely Good Will Hunting or Jackie Brown).

Also, from a third source comes word that of Fox's upcoming titles, The Abyss and Young Frankenstein may be special edition discs. No word yet on whether this means Abyss will be the director's cut, or what the specific disc features will be.

8/19/98

Word is that Buena Vista will be releasing Robert Redford's The Horse Whisperer to DVD day-and-date with VHS in November. There is no information yet on features.

Also, hints continue to suggest that Spielberg may be close to green-lighting DVDs from Amblin and DreamWorks. As reported in August 22nd's Billboard (see today's My Two Cents column), Paramount is discussing the release of Deep Impact to DVD with DreamWorks. I've also been told that Columbia TriStar is definitely working on a Mask of Zorro DVD, and that Universal is preparing the Amblin/Universal direct-to-video titles An American Tail III: The Treasure of Manhattan Island and The Land Before Time VI: The Secret of Saurus Rock for DVD release in time for the holidays. Stay tuned...

8/18/98

Just a brief note today, but an important one for you Kevin Costner fans out there. Since my article behind-the-scenes at Image Entertainment, a lot of you have been waiting anxiously for their upcoming remastered DVD release of Dances With Wolves. At last, I've been given permission to reveal the details. The DVD will be officially announced in September, for late October or early November release. Dances With Wolves will feature a brand new, widescreen transfer of the theatrical version of the film (enhanced for 16x9 displays). For the first time in the States, it will feature a full 5.1 Dolby Digital surround mix. It will also have a spiffy new, just-recorded audio commentary track by director Kevin Costner and producer Jim Wilson. To top it all off, the DVD will be THX certified.

Cool, no? Are your mouths watering yet?

8/14/98

As promised, here's another look at some of the other DVDs in the works for the rest of the year...

Coming in October from Universal, are Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, Dragnet (1987), Fear, Holiday Inn, Xanadu, Going My Way, Black Dog, Rollercoaster, Smokey and the Bandit, The Secret of My Success, The Hindenburg, Career Opportunities, and Collector's Edition of Animal House. Not yet scheduled, but expected before the end of the year are The Man Who Knew Too Much, Jungle Fever, For Whom the Bell Tolls, Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, and Collector's Editions of Babe and Out of Africa.

Titles in the works from Image Entertainment include a trio of Samuel Bronston epics, including 55 Days at Peking (1963) starring David Niven, Charlton Heston and Ava Gardner, The Fall of the Roman Empire (1964) with Sophia Loren, Alec Guinness and Omar Sharif, and Circus World (1964) featuring John Wayne, Claudia Cardinale, Rita Hayworth and Lloyd Nolan. All three will be released in widescreen with 5.1 sound. Image is also preparing a DVD version of last year's Music for Montserrat benefit concert, featuring Jimmy Buffett, Eric Clapton, Phil Collins, Elton John, Paul McCartney, Sting and several other well-known musicians.

In addition to the Rambo Trilogy films (all of which have been digitally remastered for 16x9, and will include behind-the-scenes materials), Artisan is remastering Dirty Dancing for September, repackaged in the Amaray case and repriced as well. Also, look for DVD releases of Bad Lieutenant and Narrow Margin in November, and Weekend at Bernie's and a special edition of Earth Girls Are Easy in December.

More upcoming DVD information will be posted here soon, so stay tuned...

8/13/98

I've been informed by my sources, that there are a ton of good DVD titles coming from the studios this fall.

Starting with Warner Bros, in addition to those already announced, look for the following: October should see Altered States, Burglar, Bloodsport, Doc Hollywood, Frantic, Over the Top, Sharky's Machine, and Swing Shift. On tap for November are Lethal Weapon 4, My Fair Lady, Best Friends, City Heat, Deal of the Century, Falling Down, Lean On Me, Made in America, Protocol, Dolores Claiborne, Dead Calm and DVD concert videos from The Eagles and The Rolling Stones. And December should see The Avengers, The Negotiator, The Music Man, The Outlaw Josie Wales, Wrongfully Accused, Mr. Roberts, Boiling Point, Final Analysis, Lovesick, Man With Two Brains, Next of Kin, Stroker Ace and a DVD version of the Monterey Jazz Festival.

In addition to Godzilla, the titles already announced from Columbia, and those listed in their new DVD pamphlet, look for Fright Night and Les Miserables (1998) in November. Bugsy and Can't Hardly Wait are expected in December.

If all goes well on the production end, Armageddon should appear on DVD by year's end. In addition, Buena Vista is discussing the possibility of adding additional features to their DVD releases, including anamorphic (16x9) enhancement. Perhaps best of all, they are preparing to launch a new Miramax Collector's Series of special edition DVDs. These will be released at a rate of about one (and occasionally two) per month, hopefully starting in December. All will be major Miramax or Dimension films (Miramax's genre label). Specific titles are still under discussion, but look for Good Will Hunting, Jackie Brown and possibly a collector's edition re-release of one of the Scream films.

In the works for November 17th release from MGM are: Kingpin, Casablanca, Pee Wee's Playhouse, Vol. 1, Tomorrow Never Dies: Special Edition, A Fish Called Wanda, and The Secret of Nimh.

Stay tuned tomorrow for lots more upcoming DVD information...!

8/11/98

Now that he's finished most of the press junkets for his Saving Private Ryan, I'm hearing word that director Steven Spielberg may be close to giving a green light to DVD. According to some sources, Spielberg has asked Universal to begin readying digital masters of some of his older films (Jaws, Duel, etc...) for eventual DVD release. Word is also that Columbia TriStar may finally get the go-ahead to release Men In Black and Close Encounters. And several DreamWorks films are reportedly being considered for DVD release, distributed by Universal. Titles include The Peacemaker, Mouse Hunt and Paulie. I've heard also, that when DTS finally begins releasing DVD titles in the 4th quarter, Spielberg films may be in the first couple of waves, including possibly Jurassic Park. Official announcements would have to begin coming in the next month or two to make holiday releases.

Are there big things ahead from Fox, now that they've committed to DVD? I'm hearing that December and January releases from the studio may include ID4, Alien, Aliens, Home Alone 1 and 2, Anastasia, Dr. Doolittle, Ever After and X-Files: Fight the Future.

Divx titles... with DTS soundtracks? And widescreen? Yes, indeed. Word is that new Proscan and Panasonic Divx players will have the DTS-out, and that Divx is mastering dual pan & scan and letterboxed versions of Amistad with a DTS soundtrack. MGM's Tomorrow Never Dies will be their first widescreen Divx disc, and will reportedly include 16x9 anamorphic enhancement. Looks to me like they're going after some of the DVD market after all, instead of just those 'casual renters' they first claimed. Stay tuned...

8/4/98

Word is that Paramount has decided to replace Grease with Primal Fear in its initial October DVD line-up. This move seems to be confirmed by an article in this week's Video Business magazine. The move to replace the title may have to do with Paramount's decision to delay their DVD title announcement from last week. Look for Grease to still be released, just delayed by a month or two. Stay tuned...

8/3/98

Now that most of this information has already been leaked, I no longer feel uncomfortable revealing the rest of the Paramount information I've been sitting on for the last month. The titles and features that had been expected to be announced last Tuesday are:

October 6th

Kiss the Girls, Star Trek: First Contact, The Saint, Twilight and Grease

October 20th

In and Out, Face Off, The Odd Couple 2, Clear and Present Danger, Top Gun

There's expected to be one wave of 5 or 6 titles each in Nov and Dec. The packaging is Amaray keep case. Most titles will be in widescreen and 16x9 (except possibly Twilight and Clear and Present Danger). Top Gun and Odd Couple 2 will be dual-layered and have both widescreen and pan & scan. All will have at least a theatrical trailer. The Saint will include director's commentary, and Grease will have a 17 minute documentary. Titanic will not be mentioned (as least wasn't to be mentioned if the announcement had been made last week) but is expected 2nd week of December. The Odd Couple 2 is Paramount's first day-and-date DVD release. Braveheart and The Odd Couple are also in the works, among other titles. Pricing is $29.99 SRP.

The delay in announcing apparently resulted from a couple of minor but important issues. I've been told however, that we should be hearing from Paramount "very soon"... Stay tuned...

8/1/98

Based on the translation contained in that Japanese video magazine, I think it's safe to say that Fox is now officially in the DVD business. It's clear that although these titles are being distributed by Pony Canyon in Region 2, this release is officially sanctioned by Fox.

Why? Because Fox owns the foreign release rights to all these titles. They are simply using Pony Canyon to distribute them. The recent distribution agreement between Buena Vista and Warner Bros is a good example - Warner does not own the Disney titles in question. It's merely distributing them in Europe through this agreement. This is not the same as the case with Point Break, White Squall and the few other Fox titles that have thus far been released in Region 2 on DVD. The foreign video rights to those had been sold by Fox to the company that issued them.

This is clearly a case of 20th Century Fox sanctioning release of its titles on DVD, and making a distribution agreement with Pony Canyon - something they've long said they weren't in the business of doing. The magazine apparently mentions some 24 titles expected by Jan. 1999. The timing of this announcement is fascinating, coming so soon after they came close to announcing DVD support at VSDA. I can't help but think that Fox has something planned for Region 1 in the same time frame as the Region 2 releases. Based on preorder windows, they still have a few weeks before they would have to announce something here in the States.

Here's my last comment: anyone else find it interesting that Fox has long claimed concern over digital piracy as the reason they've been holding out on DVD... and now they've announced DVD releases to Asia - the very Region where the worst (and most organized) piracy in the world occurs? HHhhhmmmm.... Stay tuned.

7/30/98

A reader from Europe sent me this information the other day - it's the complete Region 2 advance release list (which includes the Fox titles - distributed by Pony Canyon). The prices shown are in Dutch guilders. By way of comparison, 119.99 is equivalent to about $60 US dollars. Numbers in ( ) are expected release date.

NEW ANNOUNCEMENT JAPAN:

Region # 2:

Abyss, the - 119.95 (18-09-98)
Alice In Der Stadten, 1974 - 99.95 (25-09-98)
Chain Reaction - 119.95 (18-09-98)
Chamber, the - 119.95 (25-09-98)
Courage Under Fire - 119.95 (18-09-98)
Creepshow - 99.95 (25-09-98)
Crimson Tide - 119.95 (25-09-98)
Der Amerikanische Freund, 1977 - 99.95 (25-09-98)
Die Angst Des Tormann's Beim Elfmeter, 1972 - 99.95 (25-09-98)
Edward Scissorhands - 119.95 (18-09-98)
Far And Away - 119.95 (25-09-98)
How The West Was Won - 89.95 (02-10-98)
Mad City - 89.95 (02-10-98)
Nightmare On Elm Street 1 - 99.95 (25-09-98)
Nightmare On Elm Street 2 - 99.95 (25-09-98)
Nightmare On Elm Street 3 - 99.95 (25-09-98)
Point Of No Return - 89.95 (02-10-98)
Pretty Woman (Dir. Cut) - 119.95 (25-09-98)
Ransom - 119.95 (25-09-98)
Up Close & Personal - 119.95 (25-09-98)
X-Files - Tooms/Squeeze - 119.95 (18-09-98)
Virus 1, Chapter 1~3, 90 min. - 129.95 (25-09-98)
B.G.V. - World Of Flower - 159.95 (11-09-98)
B.G.V. - World Of Water - 159.95 (11-09-98)
B.G.V. - World Of Sky - 159.95 (11-09-98)
B.G.V. - World Of Car - 159.95 (09-10-98)
B.G.V. - World Of Human - 159.95 (09-10-98)
B.G.V. - World Of Animal - 159.95 (09-10-98)

All Regions:

Christmas Songs Selections with Hermann Prey & Jose Carreras - 99.95 (25-10-98)

7/29/98

First a quick note. Monday's issue of the Hollywood Reporter mentioned that the special edition DVD version of Columbia/TriStar's Godzilla will be released in early November, day and date with the VHS version.

Now... on to more interesting matters. Could there still be problems with the video quality of Divx titles? Well... remember back in March, when I reviewed the Divx player and mentioned that there seemed to be strange 'rain-dropping' artifacts visible in the picture? Well a reader who works in a technical capacity in the industry had this to say to me yesterday:

"I just read your article about your first look at a Divx player.

I stopped at your description of the "rain splatter on a window" effect, and had to write you immediately.

Your description is very accurate. I have used the words "splattering", "peppering", and "shot-gunning."

I am told that the effect is caused by the Divx "watermarks" inserted to track down video pirates. Thousands appear on each disc playback. If un-authorized copies are made, they will presumably contain at least some of the watermarks, which can be analyzed by computer. If such piracy copies make it back to the Divx HQ, player ID number and disc numbers could be determined, and the offending party would be arrested (or at least his Divx player will shut off).

Nice idea in theory.

The trouble is, the watermarks are just blocks of noisy video in a pseudo-random pattern. (Normal MPEG-2 Digital Video Compression breaks a frame of video into blocks of pixels, 16 wide and 16 tall. Each block is then processed as a data string, then re-assembled during playout.) Divx increases the noise in selected blocks.

These noisy blocks are plastered all over the frame. On camera shots held for a few seconds, they will repeatedly hit the same area over and over, until even the unsophisticated viewer will be tempted to say "what is wrong with that picture?"

Because the MPEG-2 process looks so very good (different versions will be used with the upcoming Digital TV transmission system) the constant assault of the blocks of noise becomes painfully obvious. The better quality your Video Display, the more obvious the blocks (and any other compression-related artifacts)."

(Editor's Note: Interesting, no?)

7/25/98

A number of good sources began informing me last week, that Paramount is expected to announce their DVD titles next Tuesday (7/28). I had already been told to expect the announcement before the end of the month by a number of retail sources, and I was told by Paramount directly (at VSDA) that their announcement would be made very soon. So if all goes well, after Tuesday, we'll know exactly where Paramount stands on DVD. I'm keeping on top of this story, so I'll post more details as I get them.

Steve Tannehill's always excellent DVD Resource Page posted information yesterday, that Fox has announced a number of Region 2 DVD releases expected to arrive on September 18th. Among the titles are: The Abyss, Chain Reaction, Courage Under Fire, Edward Scissorhands, Broken Arrow, and The X-Files (episodes Squeeze & Tooms).

Now, I've been unable to directly confirm any of this. Reportedly, the announcement was made directly to Region 2 distributors without a press release, to avoid causing a stir here in the States. If it is true, however, I've got a gut feeling Fox may be preparing to make a Region 1 announcement soon.

Let me explain my reasoning. All of you know that I had good information that Fox came very close to announcing at VSDA, but got cold feet at the last second. I've been told that they do want to have DVD product available in the States around the same time frame as Paramount's, which will arrive in September. If Paramount announces Tuesday, Titanic could be among the titles mentioned - a title which Fox developed, produced and paid 80% of the bills for. Also, if Paramount announces Tuesday, Fox is left holding the bag, as the only major studio without announced plans to support DVD - the flak they will have to endure will be thunderous. I've been told that most everyone at Fox Home Entertainment is gung-ho to do DVD, but it's Rupert Murdoch and Bill Mechanic who are dragging their feet. That said, however, Fox has only released Divx product so far (a very unpopular move) and has publicly stated on many occasions, "we are not in the DVD business." If the Region 2 information is accurate, Fox is suddenly very much in the DVD business. They had to know that the news would reach Region 1 consumers, and that it would create a major stir. Which is why I can't help thinking that they're up to something. Again, if the Region 2 news is true, I have a feeling we may be hearing from them soon...

Now, on to other news. There's been quite a stir on the newsgroups, about Buena Vista's allowing Good Will Hunting to be released on Divx, but not DVD. If you ask Buena Vista, they'll tell you that there are no Divx exclusive titles. If all goes well, look for a collector's edition Good Will Hunting DVD as early as December. Also, Image Entertainment is going to be releasing a THX-certified DVD edition of Ron Shelton's Bull Durham in October. The disc will include a newly recorded director's commentary track, and will be in anamorphic widescreen (enhanced for 16x9 TVs). Finally, look for a DVD version of When Harry Met Sally from Polygram (acquired from Castle Rock) before the end of the year.

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