For those who don’t know, I’m an avid DVD (and only recently, Blu-ray) collector. With my collection clocking in at well over a thousand, I’ve come to learn all the nastiness that comes with buying and collecting DVDs and Blu-rays which I’ve compiled into ‘The 7 Deadly Sins of DVD and Blu-ray’. These are grossly unnecessary and headache inducing problems that I’ve encountered that are a little trivial but can cause a bit of frustration and definitely some buyer’s remorse. So take the following into close consideration when purchasing movies or even upon inspecting movies you’ve already bought.

Who's Guilty?: DVD
What’s the big deal?: So this makes the end of the list because It’s not as relevant as it used to be even though overall it has been my biggest annoyance over time. Because widescreen TVs have become the norm, fullscreen is a dying breed. Even TV shows are now being released in widescreen and I’ve yet to come across fullscreen Blu-rays. However it was not too long ago that they would release separate widescreen and fullscreen versions of a new release which is strange because even earlier, in DVD’s infancy, many DVDs would feature both as an option. Fullscreen is a menace to to anybody over the age of 10 or that is interested in films beyond killing an hour or two. Ok that’s a bit of an exaggeration because sometimes fullscreen doesn’t look THAT bad. It wasn’t until watching my fullscreen edition of ‘Starsky and Hutch’ where I really noticed how much had been cropped out to achieve the aspect ratio. Actor’s faces were cut in half and the framing was constantly so tight to the point where it was a distraction. It was then that I said nay to fullscreen from then on and started to bleed out the fullscreens that I had which was more than I thought.

The worst is when It’s not clearly stated whether the copy you’re buying is fullscreen or widescreen. Many times in big bold letters it will be stated at the top but other times it will be printed in tiny letters amongst the technical specs on the back or on the spine of the case. Once again, this only applies to buying releases more than a few years old as it doesn’t seem to be much of a trend anymore. However, watch out especially for bargain bins and movies marked cheaper than they should be. I can’t count the times where I’ll be shocked to find a certain movie for only 5 dollars only to spot that nasty word printed somewhere on the case and before I was more self-aware, I fell into this pitfall way too many times.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uIjWHtGYwGI&feature=related

This is not as bad as I’ve seen but here’s a good example.

Who’s guilty?: Both
What’s the big deal?: To the average movie buyer this really isn’t much of a problem but to other collectors it’s always a headache. I can’t count the times I’ve been excited to pick up a DVD only to discover I got the cheaper or older releases. This could be chalked up as my own problem for not doing the research but sometimes I can’t control it. DVDs go out of print all the time and if it happens to be a popular movie, they’ll rerelease it shortly afterwards, mixing up the box art/packaging and or special features. Two good examples I can mention are for ‘Ferris Bueller’s Day Off’ and ‘Watchmen’. The original DVD release for ‘Ferris’ has a commentary track by Hughes which is not something he did often (this was one of the few if not the only one he did). This went out of print and sometime later the ‘Bueller…Bueller… Edition’ came out which was loaded up with more features and new box art but was missing the commentary track. The original DVD was released again in the ‘I love the 80’s’ set of releases that came out a few years back but it was the same as the original release without the new features. The ‘Bueller…Bueller… Edition was rereleased twice again. One with different limited edition packaging and once again just this year with all new packaging once again (I believe to coincide with the new Blu-ray release) but still neither have the commentary track. It doesn’t make sense.

With Watchmen, there are three cuts of the film available separately in 3 different releases. The Theatrical cut is on the one disc release, the Director’s cut is available on the two disc release and the Ultimate cut is available (with the motion comic) in the 5 disc boxset. Because I really enjoyed this movie, I wanted to see all the cuts so I eventually came to own all three copies of the DVD. It may be obsessive but It shouldn’t have to be this way. There needs to be more releases like the Limited edition ‘Blade Runner’ Briefcase which comes with every cut of the film in one package.

Another smaller example of this is Franchise collection boxsets being released before the franchise is finished. Sometimes this is easy to avoid with things like ‘Harry Potter’ (I feel no sympathy for the people who bought the ‘Years 1-5’ or ‘Years 1-6’ boxsets). It’s for things like the ‘Final Destination Thrillogy’ or ‘The Fast and The Furious Collection’ boxsets which I bought with little expectations of upcoming sequels. It’s a pain because odds are a new boxset will come out again and again suckering many people out of their well-earned dollars.

Who’s guilty?: Both
What’s the big deal?: So there’s really not too much to say here. Living in Canada, a bilingual country, we are subjected to some of the worst bilingual covers you could imagine, ruining what could have been nice cover art and cramming every nook and cranny with more text. In the odd time I’ll be relieved to find a small “Version Français Inclus” underneath the title but most of the time there’s just another French duplicate somewhere else on the cover removing most aesthetic qualities completely. I find the treatment on the spine is always the worst; filling in what little space there is with text. The same goes for the back of the box. Most times everything that will be written in English on the back will be duplicated in French. It’s just ugly. Unfortunately it’s something we have to live with but it doesn’t have to be as bad as it gets (‘Toy Story 3’ comes to mind which is pictured below). On a minor related note, on the rare occasion the title (French or English) will be reversed on the spine for god knows what reason making it stand out awkwardly when lined in amongst other DVDs on a shelf. It’s minor aesthetics but it’s still mind boggling why it’s done in the first place.

Who’s guilty?: Both
What’s the big deal?: This one is like a double edged sword. I love fancy limited edition packaging as much as the next person but they always come with a price. Do you know how easy it is to dent a Steelbook? Especially these new widely released Blu-ray ones? Sometimes Steelbooks (or any release with metal packaging) come dented already just from being handled in store, etc. This is why I would never order something like that online as the trip through the mail would most likely be bad for its health). This sucks in particular because Steelbooks are expensive and generally limited editions. You want an older Steelbook that’s out of print? Be prepared to pay a little more. Anything with limited edition packaging will go out of print fairly quickly (in comparison to a regular release) and Steelbooks aren’t the only thing to worry about. I’ve seen nasty thing befall on Special edition ‘Simpsons’ seasons (My Homer head Season 6 began falling apart ages ago) and those ‘Book of the Dead’ editions of ‘Evil Dead’ 1 & 2 (I bought mine new and plan on keeping them only for display to keep them in good condition).

As bland as they are, bare bones plastic cases are the way to go because if they get cracked or broken you can swap it out for a new one. Releases that come in cardboard sleeves or boxes or so help ye god those awful cardboard Warner Brothers cases, are going to slowly get shelf wear and even tiny nicks or scratches that they succumb to will be there to stay. The edges of my 'Alien Quadrilogy’ boxset (which I bought new) are faded and white; just from being on my shelf and being moved occasionally.

Discs are always a problem too (more with DVDs as Blu-Rays are much more resistant to scratches). VHS tapes wore out over time but they were built to last. Drop ‘em , leave ‘em out, they could withstand quite a bit of abuse. Get one big scratch on your DVD and it’s pretty much garbage. Double sided discs (mostly seen in older releases or multipacks) are the worst and are the most susceptible to damage. Now let me say first that I take very good care of my things and the DVDs I own that are scratched up are ones I either bought used or ones that I used to keep in a binder that unfortunately scuffed a bunch of them up. Unfortunately I like to save money and buy things used and not everyone takes good care of their things. Want an undented ‘Reservoir Dogs’ gas can? Be prepared to do some hunting.

As a fan of nice packaging and boxsets I just have to live with it but one should be aware that expensive packaging does have its price. ( I don’t even know If that was a pun, but if it was, it was a bad one)

Who’s guilty?: Both but mainly DVD
What’s the big deal?: It’s cheap and reels in suckers. Everyone should know what I’m talking about. They dedicate an entire section to them in some stores. ‘Double Feature’, ‘Triple feature’, ‘4 Movie pack’; whatever they say, they are the cheapest of cheap releases. These are so deceiving because they usually price at about 10-15 dollars and for the most part they’re well known movies but there’s a reason they’re so cheap. Most of the time, the discs included are double sided to cut down on costs and as mentioned before these discs are easy to damage especially when there are more than one in the same case. Going back to the Widescreen/Fullscreen debacle, many times the movies that are included are fullscreen. What makes it even worse is that sometimes it’s mixed. I believe there was a ‘Blade’ triple feature where two of the movies were in fullscreen and one was widescreen. What is the point of that?

A ‘Clerks’ double feature was released recently which features two regular discs instead of one double sided one. This is only at first a relief but upon closer inspection these are literally just the first discs of previous multiple disc special editions with “Disc 1” still printed on the disc. They’ve just been plucked out and slapped together. It’s stuff like this that shows how cheap these releases are. The companies that put these out just don’t care. These sell. Parents or people who just don’t know any better will buy them thinking that they’re a bargain and sometimes they are for certain people.

Much to my chagrin, Blu-ray has started to adopt this trend as well which I’m not pleased with especially considering that some of these releases appear to be the only versions available on Blu-ray. It should be said before I end this that not all multipacks are cheap. Shout Factory for example has been releasing double features in their ‘Roger Corman’s Cult Classics’ line but these have been made with much more attention and care.

For people who really don’t care, these are probably a good investment but everyone else should avoid them and don’t get suckered in.

Who’s guilty?: Blu-ray
What’s the big deal?: being a bit of a newbie to Blu-ray this is a topic I’m only just getting to know. This is something that I haven’t dealt with much directly, but mostly read about after making the switch. There isn’t too much to worry about when picking up new releases but picking up older films that have been upgraded to Blu-ray is a different story. First and foremost the most obvious one to anyone, horrendously hideous box art. For some reason Blu-ray seems to be tied in with some of the worst photoshopped garbage is that is used to replace great covers. Here are a few examples.

‘National Lampoon’s Vacation’s iconic painted poster is replaced with an awkward photo of Chevy Chase in front of the desert. ‘Better off Dead’s also classic cover is replaced by an awfully photoshopped but incredibly bland and simple cover. ‘Daylight’ looks like a Michael Bay cop movie and Legend looks as if it’s supposed to be the next ‘Chronicles of Narnia’. Changing covers to tie in with popular modern films is sacrilegious but understandable but why, oh why change awesome classic posters like ‘Vacation’ to something like that? It’s absolutely ridiculous and totally unnecessary.

Now another problem is bad transfers. When one purchases a Blu-ray, one would expect to get better visual and overall quality, after all, that’s what they advertise. But for certain cases, so little effort is put into the transfer that there aren’t really any discernable differences between the DVD and the Blu-ray which is really unfortunate for people who spent the extra money to upgrade their DVDs only to find that there really was no point. I personally upgraded my copy of ‘Evil Aliens’ to Blu-ray only to find an awful transfer with small amounts of distortion in the picture quality.

This is also tied in with another serious problem. In some cases rereleases of an older DVD will be ported to Blu-ray with the same box art but with all or most of the special features stripped. ‘Dawn of the Dead’ and ‘Predator’ are two examples that were ported to Blu-ray without most or all of the special features included in the previous DVD release. This is despite the fact that for the most part, they completely resemble the DVDs at first glance. This makes no sense. Why do this? The amount of people that fall for this is most likely pretty high which sucks because I know when I’ve made upgrades I sell off my DVD. This kind of thing is just unacceptable. With Blu-ray being the future of home media, it’s just ridiculous that so many half-assed rereleases are being put out.

Who’s guilty?: Both
What’s the big deal?: I think everyone has run into this problem and this isn’t even something that can be avoided really. Peeling off price/sale/barcode stickers is a movie buyer’s nightmare. Sometimes it’s

quick and easy and sometimes you have to spend 10 minutes nursing that sticker off and sometimes there’s no escaping the damage that the stickers will cause. This is also something that will happen buying both used and new. The worst is when a store will put an enormous sale sticker on a cardboard sleeve which will easy cause a rip or will leave a big ugly sticky spot which will only get worse as it slowly grows a culture of hair and dirt. Good luck if you buy a movie with a lenticular cover because stickers damage those too and the spots never seem to go away. My worst case of that was buying my copy of ‘District 9’ from Wal-Mart which had an enormous “Wal-Mart Exclusive” sticker on the front; a sticker that took up over 50% of the cover. Getting that off was like brain surgery.

Stickers on the outside of the packaging aren’t even the worst offender. What on earth is the point of sealing all three sides of a DVD case with that white strip? WHY? It only makes matters worse that 90% of the time that you see this situation, you’re going to have one hell of a time trying to remove them without gumming up the edges of the case. I’ve had to do this so many times that I consider myself a pro but there’s times even I can’t surgically remove those sticky strips from hell without stretching the plastic or leaving a layer of glue behind. But one of the worst things is that glue they use to stick paper on the back of boxsets or other special packaging. It’s usually just a piece of paper that acts as the back for in store purposes that is meant to be pulled off and thrown away. In most cases, including Steelbooks, there’s usually nice artwork behind them as well. However if it’s been sitting on the shelf a little too long, that glue is there to stay and it’s damn near impossible to remove the paper without permanently scaring the box. I’ve got ugly white blotches on a few boxset just because the glue was old when I went to remove the backing. I once spent a good chunk of an afternoon trying to peel the cemented crud off the back of a Steelbook.

This takes the number one spot because it’s unavoidable and it has to be dealt with every movie you buy. Sometimes it goes smoothly but it can get ugly and it really just doesn’t seem necessary. Stop sticking this stuff on cardboard. It’s common sense.

A few other nasty things that go on in the world of DVDs and Blu-ray’s that I’ll touch on briefly are; mislabeled features, misused quotes and misleading box art. I have actually come across the rare occasion where features are advertised that aren’t actually present or wrong information is included somewhere on the box. The classic B-Movie slasher ‘Intruder’ is one DVD that presents a handful of faulty information. Quotes from critics or bloggers are also used quite sneakily to sell the movie even if they are snipped and clipped to the point of having a different meaning. I could drop an example in here but I can’t be bothered to properly cite my information. I’ll just say there’s a part of a quote used for the film ‘Dead & Breakfast’ (A film I have reviewed already) which is taken out of context in the way it’s used to advertise the movie. Finally comes one of the most aggravating; misleading box art. Often but not exclusively associated with mockbusters and Asylum Entertainment, it’s clear that most of these films’ budget went into making awesome looking covers for truly awful films. Some examples…

So there you have my long and in depth list of “The 7 Deadly Sins of DVD and Blu-ray”. It may sound like whiney ramblings of a geek but I mean it as sage advice to take heed of when perusing the DVD/Blu-ray shelves or at least something to simply mull over for a bit.