Blu-ray Disc Revisited
Dear Gary:
I’m glad that Mr. Eklund of Sony Pictures Entertainment (see Issue 114, November 2006 letter) responded to my concerns that are shared by many Widescreen Review readers. In terms of new product launches, he should see us as the tip of the arrow shot in the market ––we can be sharp or blunt. He’s on notice that we expect SPE Blu-ray Disc movies to aim for the best they can be within the format, similar to SuperBit DVD. When SPE’s Blu-ray Disc movies meet our expectation, we will be that sharp arrow striking a favorable blow in behalf of SPE.
I am also pleased that my central point is being validated by two other movie studios. The latest reviews of VC-1-encoded Warner Brothers Blu-ray Disc movies indicated that they look as good, (excluding limitation of the Samsung Blu-ray Disc player) as their HD DVD counterparts. Furthermore, per WSR on page 48 of Issue 114, Fox is releasing an MPEG-4 AVC-encoded Kingdom Of Heaven Director’s Cut on a 50-GB Blu-ray Disc. Given that the new film source elements must be in great shape, Fox only had to do a good telecine process and compress the movie at 25- to 30-megabits-per-second to yield a great visual result. And with plenty of disc space, Fox has room for a Dolby® TrueHD or DTS® HD soundtrack. So, I am not surprised Mr. Eklund states that Kingdom Of Heaven on Blu-ray Disc received praise from Director Ridley Scott.
Lastly, I want Mr. Eklund to know that in the long run, when SPE also improves its Blu-ray Disc movies, I want Blu-ray Disc to win the battle. At the end of the day, more disc space and a disc format that is near impossible for casual pirates to rip off is better for the ecosystem of Prerecorded Home Entertainment.
Thomas Dorsey
mailto:publisher@soulofamerica.com
Editor-In-Chief and Publisher Gary Reber Comments:
We, too, are looking forward to the better image quality on Blu-ray Disc, whether encoded in any of the three video codecs. Each, we believe, have the potential for excellent image quality.
Thank you for writing about these issues and concerns.
You can E-mail Widescreen Review @ mailto:editorgary@widescreenreview.com