QoS will be out tomorrow in Germany.
My DVD copy is on the way from Amazon, I sincerely hope, that I'll receive the good version of that movie and not the "dog sh*t on a paper plate" version.
Loeffs, how did you manage to receive both the good version: In the cinema and on DVD?
President of the 'Misty Eyes Club'.
Dalton - the weak and weepy Bond!
wait a minute! Do you imply, that Loeffs may have perception issues? 8-)
That would be another explanation, why I have only seen the dsoapp* version
* dog s**t on a paper plate (Loeffs, we should use this in the glossary {[])
Don't know about a 'magical portal of perception'...last time I looked through one of those, I ended up trapped inside the grooves of a Queen LP for hours
To answer your question, Bondtoys...what can I tell you? When you flip a coin, there's a 50/50 chance it'll come up a given way---still, there's no way to guarantee that you won't get the same outcome two times in a row B-) Chances are, the next three guys on the list got the "Dog S**t On A Paper Plate" version of the film.
Perhaps an unusually large number of the DSOAPP edition* got shipped to Scotland Too bad, that. So much in life is beyond one's control; it calls for a particularly pragmatic brand of philosophy...
* I think you're right about the glossary, my friend. I think I'll put it in
Check out my Amazon author page!Mark Loeffelholz
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
Don't know about a 'magical portal of perception'...last time I looked through one of those, I ended up trapped inside the grooves of a Queen LP for hours
Nothing wrong with that. {[] Which album was it?
"He’s a man way out there in the blue, riding on a smile and a shoeshine. And when they start not smiling back—that’s an earthquake. and then you get yourself a couple of spots on your hat, and you’re finished. Nobody dast blame this man. A salesman is got to dream, boy. It comes with the territory." Death of a Salesman
LoeffelholzThe United States, With LovePosts: 8,998Quartermasters
Don't know about a 'magical portal of perception'...last time I looked through one of those, I ended up trapped inside the grooves of a Queen LP for hours
Nothing wrong with that. {[] Which album was it?
The Game. It was 1981. I was in Zaragoza, Spain, and somewhat 'experimentally inclined' when it came to things such as hashish. I've never heard that record the same way since. It took my friend and I two hours to get down the stairs in his apartment building...and then, outside, on the street, we were extra late meeting up with our friends, because we were sinking up to our ankles in the concrete sidewalk.
"Strange days, indeed!" - John Lennon B-)
Check out my Amazon author page!Mark Loeffelholz
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
With the possibility to move back to repeat certain details, the movie feels a bit better.
I also agree, that the shaky cam is a bit better on the smaller screen.
What bothered me in the movie and is bothering me even more on DVD are the fonds of the location titles, terrible! For the first time, I realized some 007-worthy notes on Arnold's score and I could enjoy the car chase a little (but only a little).
But the movie left me absolutely cold and bored back. I even stopped the movie to get some coffee twice and had not hurry to go back.
On DVD, I have to say, that the plot appears to be even thinner compared to the time, that I have seen the movie in the cinema.
The only thing, that I wanted to see more from was agent Fields, unfortunately her makeup and styling at the party has been absolutely terrible!
To reply 2 questions:
Yes, the waitress in the dune hotel wore clearly pink underwear and the boat trick has been caused by Bond applying a hook on the villain's rubber boat and then throwing the attached anchor.
President of the 'Misty Eyes Club'.
Dalton - the weak and weepy Bond!
LoeffelholzThe United States, With LovePosts: 8,998Quartermasters
To reply 2 questions:
Yes, the waitress in the dune hotel wore clearly pink underwear
How can one not love the advancement of technology?
Check out my Amazon author page!Mark Loeffelholz
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
To reply 2 questions:
Yes, the waitress in the dune hotel wore clearly pink underwear
How can one not love the advancement of technology?
I know, that nobody will believe me, but pausing was NOT necessary to find this out ;%
Of course not! It's simply a matter of focus and concentration... :v )
Check out my Amazon author page!Mark Loeffelholz
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
My brother and I picked up the QoS BluRay today and just got thru watching it. My opinion of the film while watching it at home pretty much matched my original opinions: a quickly paced adventure not bogged down by an overly complicated plot or too much unnecessary character development. Unlike CR, which got more tedious with each viewing for me, this one still seemed fresh and watchable.
Like most films released for the home video market, the picture is considerably brighter than what I remember at the movies; this, combined with watching it on a smaller screen calibrated to my personal liking made the previously jerky action sequences much easier to follow and helped to mitigate the extremely quick editing style. There are other advantages as well, like access to the MUTE button during that title song.
As to the presentation on BluRay, very solid with a couple of minor quibbles. The picture has nice depth, is ultra-sharp, hyper-detailed and really colorful, especially the quarry sequence during the PTS. Lots of little details also pop out all over the place, like the plane Bond and Camille are in slowly starting to tear apart as Bond makes his climb. The nighttime scenes, often a bane of home video, are very clear with nice, deep blacks, very good contrast and good delineation; there's no difficulty at all in picking out stuff in the foreground or background. Where the video falters ever so slightly, suprisingly enough, is during a few of the daytime scenes, like the aforementioned PTS, where a very visible layer of film grain is present, almost as if the sequence was shot with high-speed cameras (which it probably was, come to think of it) and extreme zoom lenses. There's also some surprising color banding and crushed detail in Bond and Camille's hair when Bond is cradling Camille as the hotel is blowing up around them. It's as if the people responsible for mastering the film had a hard time with the extreme contrast of colors during that little scene. Still, those two quibbles add up to maybe 1 minute of screen time and hardly detract from the picture's overall quality.
The sound on the BluRay is very punchy with some great bass, very nice positional audio (explosions happen all around you and bullets whiz by your head) and a good dialog track that is easy to understand and not overwhelmed by the other audio pyrotechnics.
The extras are, as already expected, somewhat sparse. Particularly disappointing is the omission of the much discussed alternate ending featuring Mr. White.
We picked up the BluRay at BestBuy as part of a 3-movie set (along with the LTK and MWTGG BluRays) for $59.99; I also had a $5 coupon so it worked out to about $18 a movie a movie which is a great deal for BluRays no matter how you cut it.
Overall, a solid addition to the fast growing Bond BluRay library that plays even better at home than on the big screen. This one will definitely get some more playtime.
LoeffelholzThe United States, With LovePosts: 8,998Quartermasters
edited April 2009
Well, I said in my review that it was hard not to be cynical about the lack of 'special' features in the initial DVD/Blu-Ray release...
It's depressing to have one's cynicism rewarded so quickly X-(
But yeah, you guessed it, they'll get my money...
Check out my Amazon author page!Mark Loeffelholz
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
I also agree, that the shaky cam is a bit better on the smaller screen.
I agree and actually, I noticed that the shaky cam was in fact only used when the audience was invited to feel as though part of the running action, in other words, when it was a close up of Bond running across the roof, then it was like you were actually participating in that - it would then cut back to wide shot, when you were not so 'close' to the action so to speak. On watching the film again, I was surprised at how little shaky cam was in fact used, especially as it was discussed and criticised a lot, for some reason I thought there was more.
What bothered me in the movie and is bothering me even more on DVD are the fonds of the location titles, terrible!
I actually thought the fonts were used very cleverly. Especially the London one, as it seemed it was written into the pavement. The font type and style, I thought, represented the locations very well, and I am sure they were picked for specific reasons, rather than, 'oh that looks nice' But my fascination with fonts perhaps makes these types of observations obsolete (My second job and passion is desk top publishing and fonts play a large part in setting the mood for a specific piece of writing, plus all the history that comes with the psychology of how fonts look and feel)
However, it is a shame that those of you who didn't like it in the cinema, don't like it* after a second (or even dare I say it, third) viewing, but that is the nature of this beast I guess.
* although there are a few exceptions to this rule, as some have in fact found more in favour after seeing it on DVD -
What bothered me in the movie and is bothering me even more on DVD are the fonds of the location titles, terrible!
I actually thought the fonts were used very cleverly. Especially the London one, as it seemed it was written into the pavement. The font type and style, I thought, represented the locations very well, and I am sure they were picked for specific reasons, rather than, 'oh that looks nice' But my fascination with fonts perhaps makes these types of observations obsolete (My second job and passion is desk top publishing and fonts play a large part in setting the mood for a specific piece of writing, plus all the history that comes with the psychology of how fonts look and feel)
I'm with you there, Lex. I enjoyed the fonts---their various styles, and means of presentation. The appearance of the word 'London', on the rainy street, was particularly clever and effective, IMNO.
Check out my Amazon author page!Mark Loeffelholz
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
I am pretty sure that Loeffs got the irony in my comment
I did indeed I was mildly surprised they didn't at least let a month go by before they started pimping the next version, however ...just for the sake of appearances )
Check out my Amazon author page!Mark Loeffelholz
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
... the only occasion that I am getting snarky is when I am reading unconditional praises of QoS ;%
President of the 'Misty Eyes Club'.
Dalton - the weak and weepy Bond!
LoeffelholzThe United States, With LovePosts: 8,998Quartermasters
edited April 2009
Unconditional condemnation is just as absolute, really, and there's been plenty of that here as well, but it's all just opinions! Nobody gets hurt, so let's all try to be friends...
Not much middle ground with this particular picture...but if anything it will stay on people's minds as we wait for the next one
Check out my Amazon author page!Mark Loeffelholz
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
Here is my review of the DVD, copied over from my blog.
The film has been released in both single disc and 2 disc DVD editions. Here in South Africa, the 2 disc DVD would appear to be exclusively available at Musica stores, while all others are only stocking the 1 disc release ...
Hey Golrush007, I don't know about the single disc version but the copyright info on my copy of the "Musica" 2-disc version is completely wrong - refers to some The Simpsons production from 2007. Makes one wonder how accurate the rest of the info on the back sleeve is!
I suppose the shaky cam effect worked with Bourne because his chase scenes are usually at base level meant to be unenjoyable. He doesn't want to be in this situation, he hasn't signed up for it. It is exciting but fraught in a negative way.
Traditionally, we are sort of meant to enjoy and embrace being Bond so the action should be enjoyable on a visceral level, and aesthetically pleasing.
I was watching the Blu Ray I noticed on scenes (as in the fire scene at the hotel and the Russia scene)I noticed that some colors are distorted especially in the Russia scene Bond's neck has a shadow effect, but the other objects in the shot are sharp as supposed to be. Did anyone else notice this?
I was watching the Blu Ray I noticed on scenes (as in the fire scene at the hotel and the Russia scene)I noticed that some colors are distorted especially in the Russia scene Bond's neck has a shadow effect, but the other objects in the shot are sharp as supposed to be. Did anyone else notice this?
Yeah I noticed that too during closeups of Bond and Camille in the fire at the end (also mentioned it in a post I made on the previous page). Its a minor quibble but the people mastering the film for DVD and BluRay clearly had trouble with the extreme contrasts of the skin and the shadows in those bits. Maybe they'll fix it for the Special Edition.
LoeffelholzThe United States, With LovePosts: 8,998Quartermasters
I suppose the shaky cam effect worked with Bourne because his chase scenes are usually at base level meant to be unenjoyable. He doesn't want to be in this situation, he hasn't signed up for it. It is exciting but fraught in a negative way.
Traditionally, we are sort of meant to enjoy and embrace being Bond so the action should be enjoyable on a visceral level, and aesthetically pleasing.
That's an interesting point, and I can buy into it. Unfortunately it doesn't seem as if Forster made such a distinction, and perhaps he should have. To him, it seems that immersion is immersion---it's the action style-of-the-moment, trendy and increasingly ubiquitous. The good news about trends and styles is that they wane...
Check out my Amazon author page!Mark Loeffelholz
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
Here is my review of the DVD, copied over from my blog.
The film has been released in both single disc and 2 disc DVD editions. Here in South Africa, the 2 disc DVD would appear to be exclusively available at Musica stores, while all others are only stocking the 1 disc release ...
Hey Golrush007, I don't know about the single disc version but the copyright info on my copy of the "Musica" 2-disc version is completely wrong - refers to some The Simpsons production from 2007. Makes one wonder how accurate the rest of the info on the back sleeve is!
That's weird! I hadn't noticed this until I read your post and had a look at my copy which is the same. I suppose the old saying applies again: "This is Africa"!!
Here is my review of the DVD, copied over from my blog.
The film has been released in both single disc and 2 disc DVD editions. Here in South Africa, the 2 disc DVD would appear to be exclusively available at Musica stores, while all others are only stocking the 1 disc release ...
Hey Golrush007, I don't know about the single disc version but the copyright info on my copy of the "Musica" 2-disc version is completely wrong - refers to some The Simpsons production from 2007. Makes one wonder how accurate the rest of the info on the back sleeve is!
That's weird! I hadn't noticed this until I read your post and had a look at my copy which is the same. I suppose the old saying applies again: "This is Africa"!!
I got a chance to check the sleeve of the single DVD version in Look & Listen a couple of days ago & its copyright info is accurate, so it seems Nu-Metro just goofed the double-disc version ... which is supposed to be the collectable one! I'll give them a call later this week and complain!
Comments
My DVD copy is on the way from Amazon, I sincerely hope, that I'll receive the good version of that movie and not the "dog sh*t on a paper plate" version.
Loeffs, how did you manage to receive both the good version: In the cinema and on DVD?
Dalton - the weak and weepy Bond!
That would be another explanation, why I have only seen the dsoapp* version
* dog s**t on a paper plate (Loeffs, we should use this in the glossary {[])
Dalton - the weak and weepy Bond!
Don't know about a 'magical portal of perception'...last time I looked through one of those, I ended up trapped inside the grooves of a Queen LP for hours
To answer your question, Bondtoys...what can I tell you? When you flip a coin, there's a 50/50 chance it'll come up a given way---still, there's no way to guarantee that you won't get the same outcome two times in a row B-) Chances are, the next three guys on the list got the "Dog S**t On A Paper Plate" version of the film.
Perhaps an unusually large number of the DSOAPP edition* got shipped to Scotland
* I think you're right about the glossary, my friend. I think I'll put it in
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
The Game. It was 1981. I was in Zaragoza, Spain, and somewhat 'experimentally inclined' when it came to things such as hashish. I've never heard that record the same way since. It took my friend and I two hours to get down the stairs in his apartment building...and then, outside, on the street, we were extra late meeting up with our friends, because we were sinking up to our ankles in the concrete sidewalk.
"Strange days, indeed!" - John Lennon B-)
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
With the possibility to move back to repeat certain details, the movie feels a bit better.
I also agree, that the shaky cam is a bit better on the smaller screen.
What bothered me in the movie and is bothering me even more on DVD are the fonds of the location titles, terrible! For the first time, I realized some 007-worthy notes on Arnold's score and I could enjoy the car chase a little (but only a little).
But the movie left me absolutely cold and bored back. I even stopped the movie to get some coffee twice and had not hurry to go back.
On DVD, I have to say, that the plot appears to be even thinner compared to the time, that I have seen the movie in the cinema.
The only thing, that I wanted to see more from was agent Fields, unfortunately her makeup and styling at the party has been absolutely terrible!
To reply 2 questions:
Yes, the waitress in the dune hotel wore clearly pink underwear and the boat trick has been caused by Bond applying a hook on the villain's rubber boat and then throwing the attached anchor.
Dalton - the weak and weepy Bond!
How can one not love the advancement of technology?
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
I know, that nobody will believe me, but pausing was NOT necessary to find this out
But for verification, I went back with extreme slowmo, just to make sure, that AJB remains to be the accurate source that is. ;%
Dalton - the weak and weepy Bond!
Of course not! It's simply a matter of focus and concentration... :v
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
Dalton - the weak and weepy Bond!
Like most films released for the home video market, the picture is considerably brighter than what I remember at the movies; this, combined with watching it on a smaller screen calibrated to my personal liking made the previously jerky action sequences much easier to follow and helped to mitigate the extremely quick editing style. There are other advantages as well, like access to the MUTE button during that title song.
As to the presentation on BluRay, very solid with a couple of minor quibbles. The picture has nice depth, is ultra-sharp, hyper-detailed and really colorful, especially the quarry sequence during the PTS. Lots of little details also pop out all over the place, like the plane Bond and Camille are in slowly starting to tear apart as Bond makes his climb. The nighttime scenes, often a bane of home video, are very clear with nice, deep blacks, very good contrast and good delineation; there's no difficulty at all in picking out stuff in the foreground or background. Where the video falters ever so slightly, suprisingly enough, is during a few of the daytime scenes, like the aforementioned PTS, where a very visible layer of film grain is present, almost as if the sequence was shot with high-speed cameras (which it probably was, come to think of it) and extreme zoom lenses. There's also some surprising color banding and crushed detail in Bond and Camille's hair when Bond is cradling Camille as the hotel is blowing up around them. It's as if the people responsible for mastering the film had a hard time with the extreme contrast of colors during that little scene. Still, those two quibbles add up to maybe 1 minute of screen time and hardly detract from the picture's overall quality.
The sound on the BluRay is very punchy with some great bass, very nice positional audio (explosions happen all around you and bullets whiz by your head) and a good dialog track that is easy to understand and not overwhelmed by the other audio pyrotechnics.
The extras are, as already expected, somewhat sparse. Particularly disappointing is the omission of the much discussed alternate ending featuring Mr. White.
We picked up the BluRay at BestBuy as part of a 3-movie set (along with the LTK and MWTGG BluRays) for $59.99; I also had a $5 coupon so it worked out to about $18 a movie a movie which is a great deal for BluRays no matter how you cut it.
Overall, a solid addition to the fast growing Bond BluRay library that plays even better at home than on the big screen. This one will definitely get some more playtime.
http://www.torontosun.com/entertainment/dvd/2009/04/01/8957816-sun.html
It's depressing to have one's cynicism rewarded so quickly X-(
But yeah, you guessed it, they'll get my money...
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
Dalton - the weak and weepy Bond!
I actually thought the fonts were used very cleverly. Especially the London one, as it seemed it was written into the pavement. The font type and style, I thought, represented the locations very well, and I am sure they were picked for specific reasons, rather than, 'oh that looks nice'
However, it is a shame that those of you who didn't like it in the cinema, don't like it* after a second (or even dare I say it, third) viewing, but that is the nature of this beast I guess.
* although there are a few exceptions to this rule, as some have in fact found more in favour after seeing it on DVD -
Just the plain old DVD looks beautiful, a very impressive presentation of a very impressive Bond film.
I'm with you there, Lex. I enjoyed the fonts---their various styles, and means of presentation. The appearance of the word 'London', on the rainy street, was particularly clever and effective, IMNO.
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
I am pretty sure that Loeffs got the irony in my comment 8-)
Re. The fonts, I have been more thinking about the Haiti and Bolivia titles, which appeared to me to be out of the Bonanza series...
Dalton - the weak and weepy Bond!
I did indeed
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
Yup. Still thought it was snarky though, JMHO.
Dalton - the weak and weepy Bond!
Not much middle ground with this particular picture...but if anything it will stay on people's minds as we wait for the next one
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
Hey Golrush007, I don't know about the single disc version but the copyright info on my copy of the "Musica" 2-disc version is completely wrong - refers to some The Simpsons production from 2007. Makes one wonder how accurate the rest of the info on the back sleeve is!
Traditionally, we are sort of meant to enjoy and embrace being Bond so the action should be enjoyable on a visceral level, and aesthetically pleasing.
Roger Moore 1927-2017
Yeah I noticed that too during closeups of Bond and Camille in the fire at the end (also mentioned it in a post I made on the previous page). Its a minor quibble but the people mastering the film for DVD and BluRay clearly had trouble with the extreme contrasts of the skin and the shadows in those bits. Maybe they'll fix it for the Special Edition.
That's an interesting point, and I can buy into it. Unfortunately it doesn't seem as if Forster made such a distinction, and perhaps he should have. To him, it seems that immersion is immersion---it's the action style-of-the-moment, trendy and increasingly ubiquitous. The good news about trends and styles is that they wane...
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
That's weird! I hadn't noticed this until I read your post and had a look at my copy which is the same. I suppose the old saying applies again: "This is Africa"!!
I got a chance to check the sleeve of the single DVD version in Look & Listen a couple of days ago & its copyright info is accurate, so it seems Nu-Metro just goofed the double-disc version ... which is supposed to be the collectable one! I'll give them a call later this week and complain!