Has anybody else had problems with Anchor Bay's Phenomena DVD? My Toshiba (either a 1200 or 1600) won't recognize it, but I haven't had any problems with other discs.
It seems like everyone has had problems with this disc. I went through three copies and I have one that works, maybe Anchor Bay wil re-release it as an uncut Special Edition, Dragon's new SE doesn't seem to be too good with reviews.
Re: Phenomina problem My parents first DVD player wouldn't play my Phenomina DVD. I can't recall what kind it was unfortunatly. I went so far as to return my DVD to best buy, and get another one, which in turn didn't work either. crank
Thanks guys... Isn't the AB one the uncut edition? It's got the 28 additional minutes along with Dario's commentary... What is the Dragon version?
If you can play PAL Region 2 DVDs then Divid's release of Phenomena seems to be the best just for the film. I've read that it has the best picture so far but it has a mono soundtrack and few supplements. I find it annoying that so many companies release this film and all versions have something wrong with them. Either it's the completeness of the film, sound quality, picture quality, or the bonus materials. Like Anchor Bay's version, most are the Director's cut with an NTSC running time of 110 minutes but there's a longer Integral Hard version that runs at 116 minutes. To my knowledge only two countries have released this version on DVD, Germany (Dragon) and Japan. The German version was just released but, according to reviews, has poorly translated subtitles, a dark transfer, and sound that jumps around in volume. The Japanese disc is in Italian only with Japanese subtitles but it supposedly has a nice picture. Although I don't really like Anchor Bay, I'm sure it's the only company that could release this film in a full-blown special edition without messing something up.
A better question would be, Has anybody not had problems with AB's Phenomena DVD? When I purchased the film, it was ages before I read reports of other user problems, even when I posted in forums. From my communications with others, I now know it can be classed as a Pressing from Hell. It's a shame as the commentary and extras make the disc a real bargain. Shame about that awful layer change and the other gremlins......
Ummm...well, I haven't, which is good, because it's one of my all-time favorite movies. My player (Pioneer 505) recognizes the disc, there isn't any pixel breakup, which a lot of people have complained of, and aside from one bitch of a long layer change, it plays fine.
I've had the AB Phenomena DVD for a while now and have never had any problems playing it in both DVD Players I own. One player is a Toshiba SD-2109E and the other is some unknown asian brand player. Me = happy
Not all of the discs are duds. The only reason I replaced my first disc was because I thought the layer change was a mistake, it didn't have any pixelation. My replacement came and it had lots of pixelation and freezing during the class scene. My third disc was like the first with no pixelation. I guess it's like Russian Roulette.
I don't have troubles with my AB disc and the new Dragon disc looks OK so far (have just run a few peeks). A lot of extras to go through and the longest version of the movie available. I say the Dragon disc is a winner.
Both myself and a friend have Toshiba players and have problems with Phenomena and other (though few, and mainly early) Anchor Bay discs pixelating and breaking up. Its apparently a flaw or outdated parts in the firmware that you can get upgraded, I guess, but I barely could afford a player so I havent looked into it.
NO problems here... Wow, I 've never had any problem playing my AB Phenomena DVD on my Toshiba player...weird... I didn't know that so many people had! But most importantly..... Dario himself doesn't approve of the SLIGHTLY longer Dragon DVD version. Extra footage included on that disc is stuff that he chose to cut from the final edition of the film. The AB version is the Argento approved "director's cut". If you're going to get the Dragon DVD version, just know that it is NOT what the maestro intended to be seen. I would much rather watch the version that he created.
Mario77: he doesnt approve of the Dragon version but still appears in a newly recorded interview segment made especially for that edition...? Are you saying he is a liar or stupid?
What Mario says is true. Do you even own the Dragon version? Dario is clearly uncomfortable during the interview and the questions are unprepared and silly. If the interviewee has to constantly correct the interviewer on the questions themselves then you know something is wrong. Look at the translation on the subtitles. Since when is Richard Gere known as Michael Jackson?
Yes, I do have the Dragon version (as well as the AB version). But, why oh why does he even appear on the Dragon version if he didn't like what they were doing? I agree about the subtitling, it plain sucks. I do think it's great to own another cut of the movie though. Even if Argento doesn't approve of it.
Of course I am not saying that... you just put those words in my mouth. But it has been in print that his cut of the film is not the Dragon DVD edition but the AB edition. Plain and simple. Dario was pretty outspoken about not wanting to do the commentary track on the AB Phenomena DVD and yet he still did anyway, so the fact theat he showed up on the Dragon DVD isn't a very convincing argrument.
dlundh: Don't take offense, please. I think it's just great to own either or both versions. I was just pointing something out. No biggie...
