With over 1,000 titles in the French Bros. library, we’ve had a lot of experience over the last few
decades buying home video titles. We were there with the old VHS tapes in the 1980s, in the 1990s
we moved into LaserDiscs (look ‘em up if you aren’t familiar with these lost gems), and in 1998 we
made the shift into DVD. Over the last seven years, the DVD market has seen a lot of changes,
trends and shifts. In that time, we’ve learned all the tricks of the trade. However, we’re constantly
surprised that so many still walk into the home video retailers and are caught unawares.
Well, all this month we are going to unravel the mysteries, sort out the messes, reveal everything we
have learned and hopefully save you all a lot of grief and cash in the process.
Welcome to our August special feature, the French Bros. Reviews Ultimate DVD Buyers Guide!
Every week this month watch for a new section on the ins and outs of these shiny little discs.
decades buying home video titles. We were there with the old VHS tapes in the 1980s, in the 1990s
we moved into LaserDiscs (look ‘em up if you aren’t familiar with these lost gems), and in 1998 we
made the shift into DVD. Over the last seven years, the DVD market has seen a lot of changes,
trends and shifts. In that time, we’ve learned all the tricks of the trade. However, we’re constantly
surprised that so many still walk into the home video retailers and are caught unawares.
Well, all this month we are going to unravel the mysteries, sort out the messes, reveal everything we
have learned and hopefully save you all a lot of grief and cash in the process.
Welcome to our August special feature, the French Bros. Reviews Ultimate DVD Buyers Guide!
Every week this month watch for a new section on the ins and outs of these shiny little discs.
| CHAPTER ONE NEEDLESS DUPES |
Did you know that the Rambo movies have been released on DVD three times in three
different editions? Same goes for “Lawrence of Arabia,” “Leon: The Professional,” “The Mask
of Zorro,” “Labyrinth” and “The Dark Crystal.” Shaking your head? This is only the tip of the
iceberg. Rather than bring out unreleased movies, studios recycle what they know has sold in
the past. Word to the wise on this: BE CAREFUL. Often times those "unrated" editions or
"special ultimate deluxe" editions aren't all the studios say. Sometimes you might get an extra
"featurette," but often it's the same film repackaged or it has two seconds of extra footage.
In the case of some movies, such as "The Great Escape," the film is re-transferred with an
anamorphic enhancement for those who own widescreen televisions, and this is very
important for said owners. However, if you don't own a widescreen television and you don't
care too much about behind the scenes stuff, you're getting hosed. An anamorphic
enhancement does the owner of a normal television no good whatsoever. Same goes for the
overpriced "Superbit" titles that purport superior picture quality, and they do, but ONLY if you
own a widescreen television.
So what's it gonna be? The $9.99 DVD of "Lawrence of Arabia" or the $29.99 Superbit movie-
only DVD of it that does your normal television no good? Don't get duped by dupes.
different editions? Same goes for “Lawrence of Arabia,” “Leon: The Professional,” “The Mask
of Zorro,” “Labyrinth” and “The Dark Crystal.” Shaking your head? This is only the tip of the
iceberg. Rather than bring out unreleased movies, studios recycle what they know has sold in
the past. Word to the wise on this: BE CAREFUL. Often times those "unrated" editions or
"special ultimate deluxe" editions aren't all the studios say. Sometimes you might get an extra
"featurette," but often it's the same film repackaged or it has two seconds of extra footage.
In the case of some movies, such as "The Great Escape," the film is re-transferred with an
anamorphic enhancement for those who own widescreen televisions, and this is very
important for said owners. However, if you don't own a widescreen television and you don't
care too much about behind the scenes stuff, you're getting hosed. An anamorphic
enhancement does the owner of a normal television no good whatsoever. Same goes for the
overpriced "Superbit" titles that purport superior picture quality, and they do, but ONLY if you
own a widescreen television.
So what's it gonna be? The $9.99 DVD of "Lawrence of Arabia" or the $29.99 Superbit movie-
only DVD of it that does your normal television no good? Don't get duped by dupes.
| CHAPTER TWO SHAKE SHAKE SHAKE |
This is one of the lesser-known tricks amongst movie buyers. While DVDs have the advantage of great picture without any deterioration over time like the old
videotapes of yesteryear, they do require some tender and loving care to maintain their amazing shelf life. DVDs, like music CDs, are prone to damage from
scratches on the playing surface. This can be one side on some DVDs, which have the snazzy artwork and title on the other side, or it can be a double-sided DVD
where both sides have material, such as "Superman: The Movie." In the latter case, only handle the DVD from the edges. NEVER touch the playing side, or
sides, with your fingertips for any reason. Oil from your fingertips will destroy the discs' surfaces and render them unwatchable.
Sometimes however, through no fault of the buyer, the DVD is already scratched to heck, because the fragile plastic spindles in the cases that hold the discs in
place are sometimes broken in shipment due to pressure or the disc never was properly mounted in the factory and so inside the shrink-wrapped case, the DVD is
jostled around, with the playing surface getting scratched horribly by the spindle as it slides over it again and again. The best way to avoid this disaster is to
SHAKE every DVD you are about to buy while you are in the store. That includes box sets! You WILL hear a loose DVD clacking back and forth in the case if the
spindle failed. So, avoid frustration and shake those suckers beforehand, listening for the sweet sound of silence.
The probability that you will get a loose DVD increases exponentially when you buy DVDs on the Internet. I'd say an easy 50 percent of all the DVDs I order online
show up loose and scratched beyond repair. Why you ask? Because the people handling your order in the warehouse don't employ the shake method and likely
the amount of abuse the disc receives in shipping makes it more likely the DVD will pop loose from the spindle. Therefore, unless it is a rare DVD that cannot be
obtained anywhere else, it is advisable to buy your DVDs in stores first so you have the last word in quality control.
videotapes of yesteryear, they do require some tender and loving care to maintain their amazing shelf life. DVDs, like music CDs, are prone to damage from
scratches on the playing surface. This can be one side on some DVDs, which have the snazzy artwork and title on the other side, or it can be a double-sided DVD
where both sides have material, such as "Superman: The Movie." In the latter case, only handle the DVD from the edges. NEVER touch the playing side, or
sides, with your fingertips for any reason. Oil from your fingertips will destroy the discs' surfaces and render them unwatchable.
Sometimes however, through no fault of the buyer, the DVD is already scratched to heck, because the fragile plastic spindles in the cases that hold the discs in
place are sometimes broken in shipment due to pressure or the disc never was properly mounted in the factory and so inside the shrink-wrapped case, the DVD is
jostled around, with the playing surface getting scratched horribly by the spindle as it slides over it again and again. The best way to avoid this disaster is to
SHAKE every DVD you are about to buy while you are in the store. That includes box sets! You WILL hear a loose DVD clacking back and forth in the case if the
spindle failed. So, avoid frustration and shake those suckers beforehand, listening for the sweet sound of silence.
The probability that you will get a loose DVD increases exponentially when you buy DVDs on the Internet. I'd say an easy 50 percent of all the DVDs I order online
show up loose and scratched beyond repair. Why you ask? Because the people handling your order in the warehouse don't employ the shake method and likely
the amount of abuse the disc receives in shipping makes it more likely the DVD will pop loose from the spindle. Therefore, unless it is a rare DVD that cannot be
obtained anywhere else, it is advisable to buy your DVDs in stores first so you have the last word in quality control.
| LEFT: Note the way the spindle holds the disc securely. RIGHT: Sometimes the DVD doesn't catch in the factory and it gets shipped loose, sliding all around inside the case and the spindle scratches the jeepers out of the disc, making it unusable. |
| CHAPTER THREE BUYING ON SPECULATION |
Ah, yes. The last and most important chapter of this guide. Saving you money, and I mean LOTS of money is the name of
the game here. To do this, you must first prepare to become a patient person. If you are not a patient person, then you are
out of luck. However, if you can become a patient person, a massive movie library can be yours for peanuts. See, it works
this way. There are two kinds of DVD releases. "Day and date" releases and "catalogue" releases. Day and date releases
are DVDs of movies that have just left the theatre. You know, new and hot DVDs of current films. Catalogue releases are the
ones of films that have been on home video numerous times before, films that are older in general.
Catalogue releases usually get released at a lower retail price than newer films. For example, while "The Lord of the Rings"
is $19.99 a disc, the new DVD of "Red Sonja" starts at $9.99. Be assured however that ALL day and date titles are subject to
serious price cuts within mere months of release. BE PATIENT and soon you will see those prices plummet. Usually it works
on a six month cycle. Approximately six months after a DVD is released, it will drop by five dollars. Take "Road to Perdition,"
a DVD that started life new at $19.99. Six months later it was $14.99. Now it's a standard $9.99 and you can find it in some
places for around $7 new.
There are a few studios that are bad about price dropping. Paramount used to be the worst, keeping no-frills DVDs up in the
$30 range for years. Within the last two years they have finally caught on a bit. 20th Century Fox is still pretty bad at
dropping prices. The best? Warner Bros. and MGM know how to slash those prices and quick. Fox and Paramount will too,
it just takes a bit more waiting. Universal and Dreamworks DVDs fall somewhere in between.
Speaking of studios, this is a great way to prioritize your buying. A lot of times, the studio distributing the DVD should help
influence your purchase. For example, Anchor Bay and Artisan have limited libraries of films, so even though they claim to be
releasing "Limited Editions" of a lot of their stuff, you can bet your bottom dollar you'll see it again in another year or so after
it's gone. Take the Rambo Trilogy from Artisan and the Evil Dead Trilogy from Anchor Bay. Both have been released three
times or more on DVD, just repackaged with new extras.
the game here. To do this, you must first prepare to become a patient person. If you are not a patient person, then you are
out of luck. However, if you can become a patient person, a massive movie library can be yours for peanuts. See, it works
this way. There are two kinds of DVD releases. "Day and date" releases and "catalogue" releases. Day and date releases
are DVDs of movies that have just left the theatre. You know, new and hot DVDs of current films. Catalogue releases are the
ones of films that have been on home video numerous times before, films that are older in general.
Catalogue releases usually get released at a lower retail price than newer films. For example, while "The Lord of the Rings"
is $19.99 a disc, the new DVD of "Red Sonja" starts at $9.99. Be assured however that ALL day and date titles are subject to
serious price cuts within mere months of release. BE PATIENT and soon you will see those prices plummet. Usually it works
on a six month cycle. Approximately six months after a DVD is released, it will drop by five dollars. Take "Road to Perdition,"
a DVD that started life new at $19.99. Six months later it was $14.99. Now it's a standard $9.99 and you can find it in some
places for around $7 new.
There are a few studios that are bad about price dropping. Paramount used to be the worst, keeping no-frills DVDs up in the
$30 range for years. Within the last two years they have finally caught on a bit. 20th Century Fox is still pretty bad at
dropping prices. The best? Warner Bros. and MGM know how to slash those prices and quick. Fox and Paramount will too,
it just takes a bit more waiting. Universal and Dreamworks DVDs fall somewhere in between.
Speaking of studios, this is a great way to prioritize your buying. A lot of times, the studio distributing the DVD should help
influence your purchase. For example, Anchor Bay and Artisan have limited libraries of films, so even though they claim to be
releasing "Limited Editions" of a lot of their stuff, you can bet your bottom dollar you'll see it again in another year or so after
it's gone. Take the Rambo Trilogy from Artisan and the Evil Dead Trilogy from Anchor Bay. Both have been released three
times or more on DVD, just repackaged with new extras.
| "The Hunter." The DVD that wouldn't drop in price. $29.99 from 2002 to 2005...and counting. |
There are other companies like Criterion that specialize in rare classics and foreign films, giving them the royal treatment
and costing you anywhere from $30 to $50 for your favorite Akira Kurosawa or Alfred Hitchcock films. The thing about
these though, is that they are worth every penny and when they're gone, they rarely come back. Grab these while you
can. "Sleepover" and "Mean Girls" won't be selling out anytime soon, so don't get nervous and choose those over some
seriously good flicks.
Truthfully, it's these classics that can be troublesome in the speculation department. Because a lot of older movies are
made in shorter runs, meaning that fewer DVDs of "His Girl Friday" were produced as compared to "Gladiator," many of
them don't drop in price...EVER. For example, I waited and waited for "The Hunter" to drop in price. It was a no-frills DVD,
just the movie, for $29.99. I waited THREE YEARS. Then I couldn't find it in stores. Even after three years, it was still $29
online. I sucked it up. Good rule of thumb: If you wait two years and it hasn't dropped in price, buy it, because likely it will
disappear after that and then you'll really be mad!
Keep in mind, these things are rather unpredictable. While Columbia classics like "Only Angels Have Wings" and "Mr.
Smith Goes to Washington" remain in the $24 range, a two-disc special edition of Paramount's "Once Upon a Time In the
West" dropped to $9.99 in a matter of weeks quite literally and can now be found for $7.50 in places.
So to sum it all up with this guide, what have we learned? Don't get suckered by claims of "special edition" and "unrated"
this and that. ALWAYS shake those cases at the store, and avoid buying common titles when you can help it. And finally,
be patient when making a purchase and you can avoid paying $24 for a DVD that will be $9 in a year or two.
and costing you anywhere from $30 to $50 for your favorite Akira Kurosawa or Alfred Hitchcock films. The thing about
these though, is that they are worth every penny and when they're gone, they rarely come back. Grab these while you
can. "Sleepover" and "Mean Girls" won't be selling out anytime soon, so don't get nervous and choose those over some
seriously good flicks.
Truthfully, it's these classics that can be troublesome in the speculation department. Because a lot of older movies are
made in shorter runs, meaning that fewer DVDs of "His Girl Friday" were produced as compared to "Gladiator," many of
them don't drop in price...EVER. For example, I waited and waited for "The Hunter" to drop in price. It was a no-frills DVD,
just the movie, for $29.99. I waited THREE YEARS. Then I couldn't find it in stores. Even after three years, it was still $29
online. I sucked it up. Good rule of thumb: If you wait two years and it hasn't dropped in price, buy it, because likely it will
disappear after that and then you'll really be mad!
Keep in mind, these things are rather unpredictable. While Columbia classics like "Only Angels Have Wings" and "Mr.
Smith Goes to Washington" remain in the $24 range, a two-disc special edition of Paramount's "Once Upon a Time In the
West" dropped to $9.99 in a matter of weeks quite literally and can now be found for $7.50 in places.
So to sum it all up with this guide, what have we learned? Don't get suckered by claims of "special edition" and "unrated"
this and that. ALWAYS shake those cases at the store, and avoid buying common titles when you can help it. And finally,
be patient when making a purchase and you can avoid paying $24 for a DVD that will be $9 in a year or two.
| The fastest dropping DVD in freaking history! $19.99 to $9.99 in like...TWO days. |