We all know what today is, so let’s skip the tagline.
Well, for all the news (interesting and otherwise) that the Blu-Ray camp made last week, Universal announced their round of November titles for HD-DVD release. Among them are Waterworld (I met Kevin Costner on the set of that film when I was in the Army, true story), The Hulk (a better movie than people give it credit for and one that should blow out a subwoofer or two) and the granddaddy of them all, King Kong. Release for all three…is 11/14. What makes this interesting is that Kong is also due for an Extended Edition release on the same day, which mildly disappoints me from that standpoint. Do I buy a movie with more Jack Black and Naomi Watts, or do I watch them as is in high def? Oh well, it’s a somewhat pleasant dilemma to have. Release news has been lacking otherwise, no new Blu-Ray releases of note (though The Da Vinci Code will NOT receive a Blu release), and You, Me and Dupree bows as a combo disc on 11/21.
The other big news this week is that supply for the PS3 has been cut in half for the US release, presumably due to a lack of lasers. The US and Japan will divvy out 500,000 units for the holidays (with the US getting 80% of that, you do the math), while Europe’s release gets pushed back altogether to next spring. Word round the campfire is the Blu-Ray player in the PS3 is supposed to be the best of all the hardware, hands down, but if someone can find one then, you can let me know, OK?
Release wise, Blu-Ray had their moment in the sun last week, with four releases, most of which being comparable (or their differences negligible) to their HD counterparts. Now if they can cut their hardware prices by 60%, that would entice me a little more. Anyway, releasing this week onto HD-DVD is House of Wax, Lethal Weapon 2, Space Cowboys, Red Dragon, Seabiscuit, That’s the Way of the World, Traffic (NOT the Criterion version) and Troy. Extras will all presumably port over to the HD versions, and nothing for Blu this week.
It’s not like it’s completely boring, I mean, next week there’s an assload of stuff to touch on, including a day and date comparison release of The Lake House and a vintage film to HD-DVD (1938’s The Adventures of Robin Hood). So until next week, high definers, keep your brightness set low and your resolution set high!
