Now that Death Ensemble is a little more established as a horror site, I’m starting to get free screener copies of horror flicks from companies. Shao Kahn is most pleased, as this definitely does not suck, especially on my wallet. But there’s an evil out there, and as evil as Shao Kahn is himself, it definitely sucks. The Blu-Ray player is video’s new toy, and it’s the most overrated viewing experience I’ve ever come across.
I bought a Blu-Ray player for two reasons. First, I’m smart enough to see this is where video is going for the near future, so I might as well hop on instead of resisting. This is the same reason I have a smart phone, and why my sister is buying me a Kindle Fire for my birthday in two weeks. I don’t want a Blu-Ray at all. But DVD is on its way to extinction, and unlike some people who grudgingly refuse to accept change, I try to stay at least with the curve, if not ahead of it, so I don’t get boxed out. Note, this does not mean I wanted a Blu-Ray player.
The second reason is purely a business decision for DE. If companies send me Blu-Rays instead of DVD’s, I’m out of luck when it comes to reviewing. I really do put my max effort into giving our audience here the best possible experience. So I decided for the site that it was worth it to get a new player. Note again, this does not mean I wanted a Blu-Ray player.
And it’s a good thing I didn’t want one, because what a waste my Blu-Ray is. People brag about 1080 this and Hi-Def that and 5.1 Surround this, but I don’t see a huge difference from DVD. The depth of field is a little improved, but that’s about it. Now admittedly, I don’t have an $8,000 HDTV that’s 1007 inches, nor a 67 speaker setup. As far as high tech goes, I’m low grade. But I don’t need any of that stuff. I have a small apartment, so a TV the size of the Dallas Cowboys’ scoreboard would be ridiculous. My two ears do just fine with the two speakers attached to my TV. Plus, that stuff is expensive, and I work my tail off at three jobs, so even if I were that into the movie watching experience, I would be boxed out. Which is fine by me, because Blu-Ray is not the second coming of video. It’s an upgrade, and not even a necessary one at that.
Plus, once I got one, I discovered an interesting phenomenon that pissed me off. The FYE around the corner from my house was running a buy 3 used, get one free deal on Blu-Ray discs. So a few days after I bought my player, I decided to justify it with a few purchases. What I found was surprising. Though Blu-Ray is trendy, the size of the DVD collection for sale at FYE dwarfs it. Going on this, I surmise the majority of us still buy DVD. And even if we did want to upgrade, there’s another annoying ploy the studios are using: the DVD + Blu-Ray combo pack. It usually runs $5-10 more, and included both formats. Now why the Hell, after you’ve asked me to upgrade, would I want a DVD packed in with my Blu-Ray? I’m only going to give the DVD’s away to friends and family who haven’t upgraded, which means they won’t have to spend money, and you lose. This is a rip off, a ploy by the studios to bilk an extra few bucks out of me by offering something that’s basically obsolete. They might as well package in a wired rotary phone next time I upgrade my cell phone.
Those studios also like screwing the buying public by putting the brunt of special features on the Blu-Ray discs and leaving bare the DVD’s. This is unacceptable. They can’t claim it’s a space issue, because old DVD’s used to come loaded. They’re trying to force us into paying more, instead of being fair and offering an equal share to both types of consumers. It’s an insult to those who either can’t afford Blu-Ray or have chosen not to get one.
There are people who swear by Blu-Ray. They see a crisper image, hear a sharper sound, say they enjoy an enhanced experience. I respect that, and say to each his own. I also think they’re deluded, and have bought themselves happily into getting swindled. Blu-Ray is a cheat of the highest order, an extremely marginal improvement on DVD. You say I’m wrong? Think of the giant leap between VHS and DVD, with images that won’t fade after 1,000 viewings, and special features. Now ask yourself honestly about just how big an upgrade Blu-Ray is. If you’re straight with yourself, I think you’ll see things my way. If you disagree, by all means please share with me why by leaving a comment.
The teacher in me feels compelled to sum up this lesson: As Shao Kahn would say to the Blu-Ray experience, IT’S OFFICIAL! YOU SUCK!
-Phil Fasso
Dude, you haven’t even the slightest idea of what you’re talking about. Seriously. Blu-ray is a tremendous advancement over DVD (which isn’t bad, per se).
The article’s not clear but implies you don’t even have an HDTV? Of course you see little difference, standard TV’s are limited to 480p (progressive, odd and even lines rendered at the same time) over component and 480i (interlaced, odd and even fields rendered alternatively) over s-video or composite.
There’s no obligation to get a humongous HDTV. You can get a good 1080p 23″ monitor with HDMI for around $250 ~ $300. Please keep in mind that the transfer process affects the look of the film (not all transfers are done well), plus, they’re limited by the source material. So, if all that’s left of any particular film is a crappy print this will reflect in the overall quality. This is a non-issue for newer films which are either shot or converted digitally before home release.
If you consider yourself a film lover you are doing yourself an absolute disservice by not having an HDTV to take advantage of blu-ray. I suppose you may have bad eyesight or perhaps simply don’t care about image quality.
Of course I have an HDTV. Re-reading this article, I’m not quite sure where you got the idea that I didn’t. What I did say was that I don’t have a high end, huge, vastly expensive HDTV. As for my eyesight, it’s been better than 20/20 my entire life. And I do care about image quality, just not as much as those who are blown away by Blu-Ray, which you clearly are, and I clearly am not.
Phil, yikes. Can’t believe you fail to see the awesomeness that is Blu-Ray! For me, the difference between DVD and Blu is a night and day. I have a hard time watching DVDs now. I could go on and on about the clarity, color saturation, depth of field. Some amazing Blu-ray’s out there like Hellboy, The Thing and Evil Dead 2 that totally benefit from the high-def treatment. Can’t wait for Jaws on Blu in a few weeks, going to be amazing! I wouldn’t look at Blu as a shameless cash grab from studios - this is the way the world is watching entertainment right now. If you’re seeing a lot of DVD’s at Best Buy, etc. it’s because they can’t get rid of them, not because they are popular. Also, 5.1 sound has been around forever, you can enjoy that on most DVDs (Blu actually offers up to 7.1 but whatever). I just watched The Devil’s Rejects on Blu and it was amazing - especially when the surround is cranked up. Totally immerses you in the movie. As far as the multiple Blu-ray/DVD/digital packages, for me they totally make sense. I have a few TVs in the house and still have DVDs my kids watch (and in the car) so it’s a good deal. The DVDs definitely come in handy as do the digital copies. I mean c’mon, who doesn’t love watching Hobo with a Shotgun on their iPhone?!
Blu-Ray is a scam.
It’s all about making money.
It’s all about aiming for rich yuppies With money, and trying to drag everyone else in on their “upgrade” (I Love how that term’s been perverted over the past decade or so!).
A bad movie is still going to be a Bad movie regardless of how greater the resolution and sound is.
Blu-Ray discs take forever to load and play and require a shitload of extras to get the most out of them. Thanks to big business again and all the copyprotection bullshit loaded in there (so Everyone gets to make a buck off of it!).
And please note that I’m not calling you “dude” or using terms like “awesomeness”-I’m near-middle-aged. I also never pay for bottled water because I know That’s a scam, and am quite content with tap water.