>HD-DVD Releases done right!…..??? well….
Okay… you’ve heard me rant on the podcast about things like this, and now I want to applaud Warner Bros for their recent release of The Departed on HD-DVD and DVD on the same disc. This simply is the way to go. In order to make the format work, they should simply declare disc release is both HiDef and DVD! So bravo to Warner for another combo disc release (it even includes all of the special edition features on the HD side!).
The only problem with this release is that it’s more expensive to own than the others. Okay… points to warner for releasing a combo special edition disc. But come on… does it really have to cost more than the two disc special edition below? Amazon is selling the Combo version for $27.95 ($39.99 Retail) whereas the two disc special edition is $20.49 ($34.99 Retail)! So in this case, you’ll have to pay $7.50 more for the Hidef release with everything on one disc… BOOOOooo!!! To make matters worse, you can get the Blu-Ray only version for $23.95 ($34.99 Retail) but that only gives you Blu-Ray and not standard DVD.
So for the record… Warner… Make HD-DVD/DVD discs THE STANDARD!!! If you want to charge more for a special edition, that’s fine with me, but make the HD-DVD/DVD disc with the special features THE SAME PRICE as the standard special edition dvd…. $34.99 retail price. Oh yeah… and for the record, there’s almost no one out there who needs both; I just want my HD discs at the same time as my DVD purchases so when I (an average consumer) get my HD-DVD player, I don’t have to repurchase the same movie over again. (How many times have I repurchased a title? VHS–>Laserdisc–>DVD Release 1, 2, 3, 4, 5….->HD-DVD???)
Oh… and for those who haven’t seen the film… go get a copy of The Departed..loit’s violent, but great at the same time…
On standard DVD Warner has released two different versions of the film:
The movie only version of the film (Available in widescreen and unwatchable pan-and-scan… (This isn’t a review of the film in pan-and-scan, I just personally believe a film not in it’s proper aspect ratio is unwatchable.):
Widescreen:
Full-Frame/Pan and Scan:
and the two disc special edition:
The BluRay release:
and finally… the release that should be standard… the HD-DVD/DVD Combo Disc (GET THIS ONE!):
If you thought this was foolish, check these out: