'Bram Stoker's Dracula' - High-Def Digest review

[Dave Mack]

Originally Posted by goshikisen

If you aren't a Blu-ray owner.... what are you doing in the "Blu-ray Software General Discussion" forum? Format Bashing isn't allowed in the format specific forums. Telling us how disappointed you'd be about a release that you can't buy seems to venture into the realm of bashing...

Well, you could always go into the HDdvd forum and say how shocking it is that "Sea OF Love" another catlog title of a hit film got such a terrible transfer and if you were an HDdvd owner, you'd be disappointed.

[Bruuce]

If anyone finds another review for this one, please post the link here. Thanks

[Josh Z]

Originally Posted by evivbulgroz

Regarding the review of the film itself, I think the reviewer fails to place the film back in its early 1990 context.

This is NOT a "Horror" film. The Horror genre was mostly a "b" affair in the early 90s.

Coppola's Dracula is primarily a film about love, lust, and the ever consuming passion that can result. I also always appreciated the obvious references to AIDS and religion... very... 1990...

Keep in mind that Peter is a horror fan and viewed the film from the perspective of expecting a horror movie (it is Dracula, after all), whereas Copolla didn't much care about the horror aspects of the story and approached it is a Victorian-era gothic melodrama instead. I also liked the movie a lot more than Peter did, but at the end of the day both are merely opinions and each valid to the people who hold them.

[tru2blu]

I'll still get this. I really like the movie. It has to be better than my laserdic version
And the artwork does it for me

Cheers

[ag2ke]

yeah me too I am still getting it I got the standard dvd and it got to be better than that and the price is not bad either.

[Spideybat]

Thanks Dave Mack! That's the exact scene I compared my Superbit with the HD broadcast version.

[Ph8]

Dave, I think I like the look of the "new" version better in the scene above....At least by the cap you did it looks like the old version is too blu the bottom one looks much more "natural".

[Dave Mack]

yep. About 95% is the exacts same color-wise but there are 3 scenes that look VERY different like this. I too think it looks better. The SB version is too bright and WAY too BLUE looking. Much more atmsopheric here.
I will try to take better screenshots. I broke out the tripod.

[Dave Mack]

spideybat, GREAT avatar!!!!!

Love the 'Lot!

[taygan315]

Originally Posted by Ph8

Dave, I think I like the look of the "new" version better in the scene above....At least by the cap you did it looks like the old version is too blu the bottom one looks much more "natural".

Agreed. Bottom one looks better,imho.

[runchuckrun]

Outstanding effort Dave Mack!

This answers lots of questions for me about the disc. I think I like the darker look of the images, though I'm a bit concerned about the loss of details in the darker scenes.

I was on the fence about purchasing this disc, but, though it still appears to be less than stellar, I think I will go for it.

Thanks for the good work!

[Dave Mack]

it's definitely worth it but it IS different looking in several scenes. It also is IMHO a bit too dark and flat. And I wish there was more detail. I know it's suppossed to be the shooting style, yada, yada, but it really should look a bit more detailed than the SB dvd. Most of the time it simply doesn't.
The Vamp lucy in the crypt scene DOES work better now IMHO, simply because before it seemed too bright and "blue"

In some ways, it seems like Coppolla wanted the film to look more realistic and less over the top than before.

[cary]

Thanks Dave, your pics have convinced me to not buy this. I'm sorry, but the Superbit is the way the movie looked in theaters and in every tranfer up 'til now. The BD looks absolutely drained of color - a horrible proposition considering that the movie was a Bava-inspired color conception from the start. Also, the true night scenes have far too much fade to black for my taste.

I'm sticking with the old version for now - I'm sure there will be a correct BD by 2011 or something.

BTW - what is it with Coppola (and his buddy Lucas)? They just can't screw up their movies enough. It would be one thing if they jacked around with their conceptions and improved them, but they always end up making them worse!

[Dave Mack]

Oh, you know, artists just can't leave well enough alone. My better 1/2 gets on me all the time when I remix or remaster one of my songs. My explanation is always, "but it's BETTER now!"

[Spideybat]

Another poor review: http://www.digitalaudiovideo.com/blu...iews_14772.htm