Site created 12/15/97.		page updated: 7/21/99 Rumor Mill (Archived Posts 11/4/98 - 3/5/99) Back to Previous Archives Back to Current Posts 3/5/99 From the same source that brought us all that cool Star Trek DVD information, comes word of more new titles in the works over at Paramount. All of this is tentative, but if it pans out, the month of June should see DVDs of Varsity Blues and A Simple Plan from the studio, as well as 8 other titles (released in two waves). We'll come back to July in a minute, but later in the year (November is the tentative time-frame) look for that new South Park film to hit DVD, along with Beavis & Butt-head Do America. Now then... July is shaping up to be Mel Gibson month over at the Mountain. Word is that the studio has plans to release Payback and Gallipoli to DVD in July, along with the long-awaited Braveheart. No word yet on whether this will be a special edition DVD, but we're digging and we'll let you know as soon as we hear anything. Moving on to Buena Vista, I've been told that Aladdin is being prepped for DVD later this year. A VHS re-release has been slated for December, so this would make sense. Also, as we've mentioned before, Dumbo is apparently in the works for DVD as well. Word is it's expected to be re-released in July to VHS. Finally, we're hearing that Trimark's The Curve is expected to hit DVD soon after a very short solicitation to distributors. Stay tuned... 2/26/99 The Mouse is gettin' busy with DVD! We've got a sneak peek for you at Buena Vista's May DVD line-up, and it looks pretty good. Finally we're seeing more Miramax titles. Here's what to expect (all on May 18th, and all for a $29.99 SRP): Holy Man, Velvet Goldmine, Beloved, Simon Birch, Monument Avenue, Muriel's Wedding, Sirens, and Mighty Aphrodite. 2/25/99 We've got the skinny on MGM's planned May DVD releases, and you all might want to start diving for the nearest foxhole - bombs and bullets will definitely be flying. Look for Lewis Milestones' 1959 classic Pork Chop Hill (starring Gregory Peck), and John Wayne in They Were Expendable (1945 - directed by the esteemed John Ford), as well as Battan (1943), and Robert Wise's Run Silent, Run Deep (1958 - starring Clark Gable and Burt Lancaster). No word yet on features, but I'm sure you can expect at least 8-page booklets, and trailers. So why the World War II hype? There's been some speculation that May or June is when DreamWorks plans to release Saving Private Ryan to home video, particularly VHS (keep in mind that any discussion of a DVD release is still speculative). Certainly, the war theme is designed to capitalize on the fact that three of this year's Best Picture nominees are World War II films (although Life is Beautiful isn't typical of the war genre). 2/23/99 We've been told that when Fox releases its classic musical Oklahoma to DVD (on 4/27), the transfer will be the 30fps Todd-A-O version. Also, we mentioned before that The X-Files will include a commentary track with series producer Chris Carter. Director Rob Bowman will be on this track as well. We're also hearing that an alternate ending will be included on the DVD, and possibly a behind-the-scenes featurette. We've got some additional Paramount news. Those original Star Trek TV episode DVDs have been pushed back to July or August instead of May, as reported a few days ago. But the studio apparently intends to release 2 discs a month, with 2 episodes each. And they may now begin releasing episodes from one of the other Trek series as well (no solid word yet on which, but believe it or not, we're hearing it will be The Next Generation after all). As for film titles, we're hearing that Star Trek IV won't be out until September or November. But look for Virtuosity and The Phantom (with Billy Zane) in May, Congo in June, and Nick of Time possibly in July. We're hearing that MGM's Dr. Zhivago DVD may finally be released on July 28th (it was delayed from last year apparently due to concerns about the film transfer quality). We'll let you know if we hear of any changes to this tentative street date. Finally, we mentioned this yesterday in our My Two Cents post, but it bears repeating here. Noted horror film scholar David Skal (author of Hollywood Gothic and The Monster Show) has announced (via AOL) that he's going to be producing the Universal DVD collector's editions of Dracula (both versions), The Mummy, Frankenstein, Bride of Frankenstein and The Wolf Man. The discs will include documentaries, commentary tracks and more . Production is expected to begin immediately. (LATE UPDATE - 2/22/99 - 3 PM PST) We've received some good news for those of you who are waiting for those Aliens DVDs from Fox. We're being told that all four of the Alien series DVDs will be THX-certified, and that the discs WILL be the studio's first anamorphic-widescreen DVD releases. What's more, the studio will continue to support anamorphic widescreen in the future, at least on some titles. Cool, no? (EARLY UPDATE - 2/22/99 - 5:15 AM PST) From a very reliable source, comes word that that Star Trek: Insurrection DVD we've mentioned will be in full anamorphic widescreen (16x9 enhanced). That's more good news for you Trek fans out there. We're hearing that The Stunt Man is also being prepped for the DVD format, and will include a bunch of special edition materials. We've also confirmed DVD File's report on The X-Files - the DVD will include new, previously-unreleased materials, among them a commentary track with creator Chris Carter. Alas, the DVD will not be in anamorphic widescreen. We've also received information that Disney's Dumbo is being readied by Buena Vista for DVD release in Region 1 later this year, along with Mulan. And from Universal, we've confirmed that Patch Adams will be a collector's edition DVD, but Babe: Pig in the City will not. Babe II will, however, include both full frame and widescreen versions. 2/19/99 Some terrific news for you Star Trek fans came my way yesterday. Paramount is preparing a real Trek DVD blowout for late May or early June. That's when the studio plans to release it's recent feature film Star Trek: Insurrection to DVD. But even more exciting, the studio will also release two DVDs of episodes of the original Star Trek TV series at the same time! The discs will include two episodes each, in the order that they were originally broadcast. And here's some even better news - the episodes will be the new Star Trek: Sci-Fi Channel Special Edition versions, and will include all the special introductions and cast interviews. If these two discs sell well, look for Paramount to begin releasing the entire series, a few episodes at a time. The reason Paramount is able to do this, is that the original series episodes have all digitally-remastered specifically for the Sci-Fi Channel, making it easier to create high-quality DVDs of them. Episodes of Deep Space Nine and Voyager are all also digitally mastered, so they're likely to follow. But only the last couple seasons of Star Trek: The Next Generation were digitally mastered, so until the studio can go back and remaster them, TNG episodes will have to wait. As for the other feature films, Star Trek V: The Final Frontier is expected on April 20th. Look for the rest of the Star Trek films to be released one at a time, in the late summer and fall. The reason for releasing the films on DVD in reverse order, is that the older the film is, the less likely it is to have a good master (specifically a fully-digital master), so more work needs to be done. I'm told that Star Trek: The Motion Picture will be the theatrical version (as will all of the others), however Paramount may come back in 2000 and revisit the entire series as Collector's Edition DVDs (likely with anamorphic widescreen, deleted scenes, commentaries, etc...). Moving to another studio, New Line is hard at work on a series of Nightmare on Elm Street DVDs. All 7 films will eventually find their way to DVD, but the studio is considering the use of DVD-18 discs, to include some of the films two per disc. And an entire seperate DVD will be created to contain all of the special edition materials from the series, including trailers, interviews, deleted scenes, and the like (similar to the 4th disc of extras on HBO's From the Earth to the Moon set). Finally, have I mentioned that New Line is already working on the Austin Powers 2: The Spy Who Shagged Me DVD? Believe it or not, they are. The film began shooting in November (scheduled for theatrical release on June 11th) and New Line Home Video has been working with the production team to compile a bevy of unique behind-the-scenes materials, specifically for use on the Platinum Series DVD, expected this fall. The folks at New Line tell me that they're getting some really great stuff for the disc. If the film is even half as good as the studio's original Austin Powers, the DVD should be a major blast, baby... yeah! 2/16/99 A very reliable source has supplied me with a list of some of the DVD titles that Universal has tentatively scheduled for release in May and June. There's no word yet on features, but here's what I know thus far: May 11th Back to the Future: Collector's Edition Gods and Monsters The Land Before Time Psycho (1998): Collector's Edition June (probably the 8th) Battlestar Galactica K-9 The Last Starfighter: Collector's Edition Patch Adams: Collector's Edition 2/9/99 I've been told by a reliable source, that A Thin Red Line is currently in production for DVD release by Fox, sometime early this summer. Also look for a DVD version of Gods and Monsters sometime in the spring. (LATE UPDATE - 2/8/99 - 5:15 PM) 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment has apparently decided to move the street date for their Alien series DVDs up, from June 8th to Tuesday, June 1st. The decision was apparently made last week - no word as to why. We'll have more soon. (EARLY UPDATE - 2/8/99 - 12:15 PM) I've been told by those in the know, that Paramount is working with the DVD team over at Warner Bros, to get advice and guidance on DVD production for the international market. Also, have you noticed... BigStar is no longer part of Go.com? They used to share the movies section with DVD Express, but no longer. Not sure if this means anything, but a reader brought it to my attention. 2/5/99 Try this on for size, folks - my sources are telling me that three Paramount DVD titles, all with March 30th street dates, WILL be released in full anamorphic widescreen (enhanced for widescreen TVs). As you may know, Paramount's first four DVD titles were all in anamorphic widescreen, but the studio has literally abandoned the important feature since. If this information proves true, it could signal an overall return to anamorphic support from the studio - a move we at the Bits would definitely welcome. The DVDs expected on 3/30 are Days of Heaven, The Court Jester, and The Ten Commandments. Cross your fingers... 1/29/99 In addition to A Bug's Life, look for the following DVDs from Buena Vista on April 20th: Father of the Bride Bullets Over Broadway Beautiful Girls Armageddon - The Criterion Collection Also in April, look for Holy Man (4/14). March should see The Waterboy, in addition to the already mentioned Il Postino (Miramax), Mighty Aphrodite (Miramax), The Parent Trap (1998), Splash and Mother's Boys (Miramax). Also look for Beloved in May. By the way, I'm hearing that Halloween: H20 has been delayed, so that a Dimension Collector's Edition DVD can be prepared for release. Now on to another studio. We've had a number of Canadian readers say that they've seen Fox's How Stella Got Her Groove Back on store shelves up north, and I'm told that the official street date here in the U.S. is now February 2nd. 1/27/99 Paramount Home Video is expected to release the following DVD titles on 3/30: Rugrats Ten Commandments Court Jester Days of Heaven Also the release date for Fox's How Stella Got Her Groove Back is up in the air at the moment, but other Fox titles (Shooting Fish, Ever After) are on schedule for day-and-date release. And speaking of Fox, I'm looking for them to do a major, Universal-style turn around with their DVD product this year. More as soon as I can post on this subject... 1/26/99 MGM is currently working on a host of of their classic musical titles for release to DVD over the next few months. Among them are Hair, Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, Gigi and An American in Paris. Also, look for Singing in the Rain to be repackaged in the Amaray keep case. More as soon as we hear it. 1/20/99 Look for the following DVD titles from Universal in April: The Doors (Collector's Edition - not the film, three actual concert videos of the Jim Morrison-led band on DVD, plus lots of extras) Meet Joe Black (Collector's Edition) The Burbs Gorillas in the Mist La Traviata Pillow Talk The War The Wiz Also, look for a new company called Broadcast DVD, to begin releasing a series of DVD titles called Film Fest. Created by James Volk and Scott Epstein, both formerly involved in Short Cinema Journal, the DVD series will, "take DVD ROM and DVD player owners to the best film festivals in the world. We'll give subscribers a virtual ticket to see the films, people and parties that make film festivals so exciting...." The first issue of this quarterly series will feature a great selection of award-winning short films from this year's Sundance Film Festival and other recent festivals, including More, the first stop-motion animation prepared for release in 70mm format. Also included will be previews of the hottest films playing at Sundance this week, interviews with director Robert Altman, and actors Val Kilmer, Peter Fonda, Ethan Hawke, Eric Stoltz, Laura Dern, Katie Holmes and Scott Wolf. 1/15/99 Word is that DreamWorks is hopeful that they will be able to release a features-laden DVD version of The Prince of Egypt, sometime later this year. If at all possible, the title would be released as close to the VHS release date as possible, if not day-and-date. 1/13/99 This doesn't come from official studio sources, but it comes from a source likely in a position to know. During my interview with Divx president Paul Brindze at CES, he let it be known that certain studios are likely going to be creating a rental window for some of their DVD releases, similar to the rental window that now exists for VHS. The DVD and VHS versions would be released at a rental price (and likely on Divx is my guess), and then appear at a sell-through price a few months later. The reason for this, is that VHS sales and rentals are likely to be severely cannibalized by DVD over the next few years. Rental windows give the studios a way to minimize the damage, and slowly (and more confidently) shift into greater DVD release volumes. No word on which studios are talking privately about this, but I think you can guess, based on who is supporting Divx, and who is doing a lot of day-and-date... 12/29/98 OK, here's what appears to be the skinny on that Divx "player hack" everyone's been talking about recently. There is a way to "decommission" a Divx player, effectively wiping its memory clean of billing and account information. This can likely be done on all Divx players, and instructions for doing so on the RCA RC-52303 and Zenith Inteq 2100 have been posted widely around the Net (check this Anti-Divx site for the instructions, under the section appropriately labeled "Little Black Boxes"). So great, right? A Divx-killer? Not exactly. Here's the problem: while decommissioning your player will prevent the billing information (for say, several movies you just watched) from being sent to the Divx host computer, it also kills your billing account registration data. And your player requires the registration data in order to function. So you'll have to keep registering your player over and over again. Which will likely tip Divx off to what you're doing. So while it may work once or twice, you might regret doing it in the end, especially if Divx decides to start charging a penalty fee for repeated re-registration. All in all, I certainly can't recommend this procedure. Then again, if you're willing to take the risk, be sure to let me know what happens. As they say, inquiring minds want to know...! ;-) 12/27/98 Divx makes The Rumor Mill again! First of all, a very good source has passed me information that Divx sales numbers will be much more in the low end of the range of 30,000 to 60,000 players. This goes along with information I'd reported here earlier this month. In any case, the information will be officially announced on Thursday, January 7th, at CES in Las Vegas. Finally, I've heard from a couple of readers that the Divx hack may work, but only on one model of RCA player (which probably explains why lots of others are saying it doesn't work). The hack is preformed (using the remote) with the power on, then when the player is turned off and on again, the letters "dec" will flash in the display. We'll have more on this as soon as we can learn it. 12/22/98 Could there be a hack for some Divx players, that allows you to view Divx movies on an unlimited basis without having to re-rent them? Some readers on alt.video.dvd, E-Town's It's All DVD forum and The Home Theater Forum think so. If it works, it would likely be a manufacturer-enabled tech support option to reset the player's memory. The idea is that you could watch a slew of Divx movies, then reset the memory before the player communicates the billing information to the Divx computer via modem. In effect, your player would think it had never played the discs. The actual instructions for doing so are available on the afore mentioned forums (just follow the links above). There is no word yet as to whether this works, and even if it did, you'd have to wait a month to see if you were charged. But we'll keep an eye on it and let you know... 12/17/98 I've been hearing some whisperings of Divx sales numbers, which would place the number of players sold at between 30,000 and 60,000. I'm guessing this is on the high side, and obviously these numbers do not reflect return rates, or the number of people who are actually using the Divx service regularly. I expect we'll hear something official from Divx after the holidays, in any case. Also, look for Columbia TriStar's Apt Pupil and Ghostbusters on March 9th if all goes well. This is earlier than had been expected (Ghostbusters has previously been planned for June 29th). Stay tuned... 12/15/98 I've learned that starting this year, the voting members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) will be offered the option of receiving at least some Academy Award screeners on DVD. For films under Oscar consideration, from at least two studios (one of which is New Line), members can choose whether they want to receive the film on VHS or DVD. Given all the problems last year with bootleg VHS tapes originating from Academy screeners (I think almost everyone had an illegal copy of Titanic), this sounds like a smart idea. 12/9/98 I've been able to learn the details of Paramount's February DVD releases. All of the following titles have an SRP of $29.99: February 16th Snake Eyes - Dolby Digital 5.1 (English), Dolby Surround (English and French), widescreen, English captions, theatrical trailer Another 48 Hours - Dolby Surround (English and French), widescreen, English captions, theatrical trailer Black Rain - Dolby Digital 5.1 (English), Dolby Surround (English and French), widescreen, English captions, theatrical trailer Jade - Dolby Digital 5.1 (English), Dolby Surround (English and French), widescreen, English captions, theatrical trailer 11/24/98 All right... today we've got some Buena Vista information for you. Peter Bracke of DVD File posted information last night on Buena Vista's February DVD releases, and I have been able to determine the studio's March line-up. So here they are: February 9th Switchblade Sisters: Miramax Collector's Series - dual-layer ($39.99) Mafia - ($29.99) Rounders - ($29.99) The Prophecy - ($29.99) Marvin's Room - ($29.99) March 9th Il Postino: Miramax Collector's Series - dual-layer ($39.99) The Parent Trap (1998) - ($29.99) Mother's Boys - ($29.99) Mighty Aphrodite - ($29.99) Splash - ($29.99)- ($29.98) 11/23/98 Here's a list of some of the DVD titles to expect from Universal in February: Crooklyn- 16x9 ($24.98) Drop Squad- 16x9 ($24.98) How to Make an American Quilt- ($24.98) Cry Freedom- dual-layer ($26.98) Henry & June- dual-layer ($26.98) The River- dual-layer, 16x9 ($26.98) 1941: Collector's Edition- widescreen, director's cut, documentary, deleted scenes, storyboards, more... ($34.98) The Flintstones: Collector's Edition- 16x9, documentary, trailers, more... ($34.98) 11/19/98 The latest buzz is that the real reason Criterion will be pulling its Seven Samurai DVD, is over an issue with Toho, the Japanese studio which is the copyright owner of the film. Apparently, Toho doesn't like the fact that you can choose to turn off the English subtitles, while watching their films on DVD. This could also affect the newly released Criterion DVD of Akira Kurosawa's High and Low, and their Samurai Trilogy DVDs as well (English subtitles can be turned off on all of them). With the Seven Samurai DVD, there is also an issue over the out-of-context use of footage from the film in the restoration documentary included on the DVD. Expect some kind of official announcements to be made soon. I would hate for anyone to be unable to get these excellent discs, in anything less than the quality in which they're now available. So if you've had your eyes on them, I'd suggest picking them up soon... Also, I received some more Fox information last night, and was able to get at least one confirmation of it, from a source I trust. Check the 11/11/98 update for Fox DVD release information for January and February. Look for the following titles in March and beyond (expect others in this time frame as well): Romancing the Stone - 3/9 ($29.98) Volcano - 3/9 ($29.98) Broken Arrow - 3/9 ($29.98) Romeo + Juliet - 3/9 ($29.98) A Cool Dry Place - 4/6 ($34.98) Waking Ned Divine - 4/13 ($34.98) Best Laid Plans - 5/25 ($34.98) The Stuntman - 5/25 ($29.98) Jewel of the Nile - 5/25 ($29.98) Commando - 5/25 ($29.98) Strange Days - 5/25 ($29.98) The Edge - 5/25 ($29.98) Firestorm - 5/25 ($29.98) The Newton Boys - 5/25 ($29.98) The Towering Inferno - 5/25 ($29.98) Soul Food - 6/8 ($34.98) Alien - 6/8 ($29.98) Aliens - 6/8 ($29.98) Alien 3 - 6/8 ($29.98) Alien: Resurrection - 6/8 ($29.98) The source who confirmed this information, tells me that DVD versions of at least some of the Planet of the Apes films are in the planning stages, and that the Star Wars films are also in the early stages of development, as previously reported. 11/18/98 As mentioned in today's DVD File, and as was originally reported here weeks ago, new Paramount dealer preorder sheets indicate that 48 Hours, The Truman Show, Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country and The Real Blonde, plus a 5th, as yet unnamed title (Snake Eyes is currently in production, and would make an obvious choice). are all due on January 12th. Also, Anchor Bay will be releasing The Black Hole on DVD on March 23rd (look for some nice extras on the disc). Evil Dead is expected in January, and also Halloween IV in either late March or early June. 11/16/98 I've got a few very interesting tidbits of information for you today, that have come to me in the last few days. First of all, remember how director Steven Spielberg wanted 1 million DVD players sold before he started releasing his films to the format? Well, he's apparently upped the ante - word is he now wants 2 million players in the market, before he allows his biggest films to be released to DVD. Hey - it makes sense. I've long said you can't have a million-selling DVD without millions of players. And at the rate players seem to be selling, I'd guess Spielberg will start to come around in the second half of 1999. Stay tuned... Here's a couple of pieces of Paramount information: word is that the studio is considering releasing the Indiana Jones Trilogy to DVD in time for the holidays next year. And I'm told that a brand new, high-definition transfer of Titanic is currently being done, from which the DVD will eventually be mastered. The transfer will also be used for a high-definition Network TV broadcast early next year. Finally, look for Buena Vista's next straight-to-video animated DVD title to be Pooh's Grand Adventure. No word on a release date. Can't go wrong with the silly old bear, right? We'll, maybe at $34.99 you can... 11/13/98 Dum dumma dum, bah bah... who you gonna call? Ghostbusters on June 29th of next year. Yuppers, I know it's like six months away, but I don't control these things (rest assured that if I did, you'd all be very happy campers!). Here's a list of some of the more interesting DVD highlights from Columbia TriStar for early next year (there's a lot more coming - these are just highlights): Hudson Hawk - 1/26 The Fisher King - 2/9 Monty Python and the Holy Grail (yeah!) - 3/16 I Still Know What You Did Last Summer - 4/6 Hard 8 - 4/6 City of Lost Children - 4/13 Hero - 5/4 Stepmom - 5/4 Ghostbusters - 6/29 Ghostbusters 2 - 6/29 Christine - 8/3 Still no specific word on Close Encounters or Men in Black, other than that they're definitely coming. Rest assured, I'm still digging. Come on, Steven... I know your people read this page. We want that aliens-flying-an-upsidedown-oil-refinery movie! Gimme a call, buddy... you know you want to. Let's talk some serious DVD! ;-) Well, I'll be... 'Grail' wasn't in my spellchecker. Help, help! I'm being repressed...! Catch the Python humor there, Mr. Mackey? MMMM-kay...? 11/11/98 Word is that Snake Eyes is currently in production from Paramount. Also, I'm hearing that the Star Wars Trilogy: SE is currently in the planning stages for DVD release sooner than most of us expected (likely to coincide with the release of The Phantom Menace to theaters, rather than late in '99). I'm told that talks are well under way between Fox Home Video and Lucasfilm, and that the set should be special, although there is as yet no word on what they may include. In the meantime, here are a list of Fox titles and release dates for early next year: How Stella Got Her Groove Back - 1/5 The Slums of Beverly Hills - 1/19 Shooting Fish - 2/3 X-Files: Fight The Future - 2/9 Ever After - 3/2 Polish Wedding - 3/2 Bulworth - 3/9 Titles in planning for later than 3/9 include: Die Hard (standard and widescreen) Die Hard 2 Die Hard with a Vengeance Die Hard Trilogy (3 pack of films) Speed 2 Romancing the Stone Volcano Broken Arrow Romeo + Juliet Poseidon Adventure 11/5/98 Word from a source within the industry is that Anchor Bay is currently working on a special edition DVD of Melvin and Howard, complete with new commentary by Johnathan Demme. Stay tuned... 11/4/98 Here's a list of some of the titles my sources are telling me will be distributed by Warner Bros in January. Note that several are titles that have been delayed from previous release dates: Hurricane (HBO) 1/12 Chitty Chitty Bang Bang 1/19 (still standard - urgh!) The Secret of NIMH 1/19 (now expected in widescreen) Why Do Fools Fall in Love? 1/19 $19.98 The Negotiator 1/26 Dolores Claiborne 1/26 The American President 1/26 Stella Dallas (HBO) 1/26 More Archived Posts Back to Current Posts
		Site designed for 800 x 600 resolution, using 16M colors and .gif 89a animation. © 1997-2015 The Digital Bits, Inc., All Rights Reserved. billhunt@thedigitalbits.com