Thursday, May 04, 2006
Editorial: DVD - What's Left? Part 1
It's hard to believe DVD has been around as a format for just under ten years. Of course, back then it was just emerging as the next-gen successor to Laserdisc, and it took a while for those shiny discs to win the hearts and minds of the most fickle people: the general public. But unlike LD, they managed to do it and even managed to condemn VHS to death, something which was unheard of in the late 90s. But with DVD approaching its tenth birthday, is there anywhere left to go?As you might have read, the HD-DVD/Blu-Ray bandwagon is starting, with HD titles already having been released in stores. Of course, asking the general public to buy movies again on a new format is not going to go well, so it remains to be seen how the next-gen evolution goes, especially since it's still in the middle of a format war. But while DVD has been prevalent, we've had all sorts of movies and programming that we almost never imagined we'd see. Special edition director's cuts that had once only existed in legend were showing up regularly on DVD. Mythic deleted scenes, such as the Dallas cocoon scene from Alien, were showing up on discs not only in quality better than a eighth-generation VHS tape bought at a convention, but also with commentary from the director, the actors, the editor. Hell, we've even got "lost films," such as the reconstruction of Tod Browning's legendary London After Midnight.
And with yesterday's announcement that Lucasfilm would finally be releasing the original, unalterered theatrical editions of Star Wars, The Empire Strikes Back, and Return of the Jedi to DVD later this year, the one big digital holy grail had been found. Which begs the question: what's next? What movies are out there that have yet to be unleashed? What new features are we begging to see? Well, we'll have a look at we think might be the last great films to hit the format, starting with our first instalment, featuring probably the biggest unavailable DVD that isn't set in a galaxy far, far away....
1. BLADE RUNNER
Before you throw things at the monitor, yes, there is a version of Ridley Scott's magnificent SF opus available on disc. Blade Runner: The Director's Cut, originally released seven years ago in a very no-frills edition. Hell, I've watched that thing as many times as I possibly can, but we want more. For starters we want the theatrical edition. While the Director's Cut is my favourite version, there's something about the theatrical edition - with its Chandler-esque narration - that I love. And I want it back.
I'm also going on something Ridley Scott himself said a couple of years back. The saga of Blade Runner on DVD has been connected with more rumour, hearsay and false starts than I Am Legend, but at the time, it looked like it was on its way, and Scott himself immediately intrigued us by saying that he would have the original edition, the workprint edition, the director's cut, and a new version - a brand new cut supervised by him that would be his real director's cut. Needless to say, this sent me into spasms, and I was very disappointed when it never arrived. The issues with Blade Runner have long been discussed - legend has it that financiers and owners of the theatrical edition Bud Yorkin and Jerry Perenchio disliked the film so much, they do not want to see it released again - whether that's true, who knows? But there is light at the end of the tunnel.
From a Warner Home Video press conference, as reported by TheDigitalBits in January:
"And finally, here's a bit of news that's going to get a lot of you excited (and I made a point to specifically ask about this title, believe me)... Ridley Scott's Blade Runner (1982) is currently on track for release as a multi-disc special edition in time for its 25th anniversary in 2007. The release is far from certain (as usual, there's a lot more that I can't post about this title yet - think of the old saying, "Loose lips sink ships"), but Warner says that work is proceeding, most of the key players are involved and things are "looking good" for release next year. We'll see."
Of course, that doesn't mean that it's 100% on its way, but it's encouraging. Maybe an announcement will come out of the blue at some point? I mean, let's face it, who really expected the Lucasfilm announcement yesterday?
What We'd Like: Commentaries! Ridley Scott, Rutger Hauer, Harrison Ford. A feature-length documentary (let's face it, this movie has enough material for one!), the On The Edge of Blade Runner documentary with Mark Kermode's smarmy face and voice edited out, deleted scenes, isolated score, the works. Honestly, I'd be happy just with a Scott commentary and a documentary, but the other stuff would be amazing as well. Let's hope one day Santa grants us that wish.
Source: The Digital Bits
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Does it even need to be said?
I.
Want.
It.
All.
And I'll pay whatever for it.