DVD, Blu-ray, 4K, VHS, Laserdisc. Streaming is all the rage nowadays, but physical media isn't going anywhere. Boutique labels are on the rise and studios are digging into their archives. (Even Joe's Apartment got a new 4K scan for its Warner Archive release!)

The last thing I (re)watched on Blu-ray was Midsommar and its special features. Still as great as it was the first time. Theatrical cut. I would like to one day see the director's cut. This was actually my first time watching it since I got my AV receiver and Audio-Technica headphones.

Previous:

Friday the 13th (from the Paramount/Warner Bros. box set) and some of its special features.
Talk to Me (A24). I'm a big fan of A24, and this one was very well made. The picture and sound are incredible. It has a Dolby Atmos soundtrack that kicks ass on headphones.

My last Blu-ray purches were Enter the Dragon (40th anniversary from 2013), The Warriors 4K (Arrow), Oppenheimer, and Disney's Hercules. Since The Warriors is only 4K, I will need a 4K player to play it (and eventually a 4K TV to get the most out of it). If I had known I might be going down this journey, I probably would have asked for the 50th anniversary Enter the Dragon and Oppenheimer 4K. But it's all good. I'm still waiting for Big Trouble in Little China (Scream Factory, soon to be out of print) and a slasher film with P.J. SOles and Sid Haig called Hanukkah.

I haven’t watched any videos or DVDs in a few years.

Mean Girls (2004) on DVD.

I just got my 4K player yesterday, and once everyone and everything finally settled down and I had time to myself, I set it up, and then I played the film that got me into this mess, The Warriors (theatrical cut). I watched about half of it before I was spent. But the (1080p downscaled) picture was incredible. The HDR > SDR conversion was perfect, thanks to Sony's proprietary process.

The audio seemed better (Louder?) than my LG. I think I did fine enough without subtitles. The audio defaults to the original mono in uncompressed PCM. (Thank you, Arrow!) I usually have to select mono tracks manually.

One curiosity, "Nowhere to Run" sounded a bit different to me than I remember it always sounding.

The player actually displays more programming information than my LG.

I just got my 4K player yesterday, and once everyone and everything finally settled down and I had time to myself, I set it up, and then I played the film that got me into this mess, The Warriors (theatrical cut). I watched about half of it before I was spent. But the (1080p downscaled) picture was incredible. The HDR > SDR conversion was perfect, thanks to Sony's proprietary process.

The audio seemed better (Louder?) than my LG. I think I did fine enough without subtitles. The audio defaults to the original mono in uncompressed PCM. (Thank you, Arrow!) I usually have to select mono tracks manually.

One curiosity, "Nowhere to Run" sounded a bit different to me than I remember it always sounding.

The player actually displays more programming information than my LG.


Are you talking about that movie "The Warriors" from 1979 that was supposedly about gangs of New York? It's just my opinion, but honestly, that was about the silliest movie I ever saw. Those characters--- coiffed, costumed and prancing like they were in a Broadway musical were supposed to be gang members? They wouldn't last a second on the mean streets of any US urban center. I get that maybe it was supposed to be a high concept of sorts, but it was just laughable. And it was taken SO SERIOUSLY when it came out in 1979. It had to be shut down in some cities due to outbreaks of violence that showings caused. I just never got the whole thing. Not to mention the plot, or lack thereof, where they just seem to keep going and going and never get anywhere. Like I said, just my opinion.

Are you talking about that movie "The Warriors" from 1979 that was supposedly about gangs of New York? It's just my opinion, but honestly, that was about the silliest movie I ever saw. Those characters--- coiffed, costumed and prancing like they were in a Broadway musical were supposed to be gang members? They wouldn't last a second on the mean streets of any US urban center. I get that maybe it was supposed to be a high concept of sorts, but it was just laughable. And it was taken SO SERIOUSLY when it came out in 1979. It had to be shut down in some cities due to outbreaks of violence that showings caused. I just never got the whole thing. Not to mention the plot, or lack thereof, where they just seem to keep going and going and never get anywhere. Like I said, just my opinion.


You know what they say about opinions. I'm also a big fan of Escape from New York from the same era (1981). But I'm a big Carpenter fan in general.

I avoided owning The Warriors for about a decade because it wasn't the theatrical cut, then Arrow came to the rescue. Is it silly? Maybe. But that's part of the charm. The Jets and the Sharks would never survive on the real streets either. :D

wrestling

Watched the movie 1776 on DVD.


Cat

I just watched The Warriors all the way through after fully calibrating my 4K player. I used the test patterns from the Ghostbusters and Toy Story 2 Blu-rays. I was particularly curious which picture mode was correct and would give me the intended image. Blu-ray/4K/home theater enthusiasts kept saying that "Direct" is the setting I should use,  and that "Auto" (the default setting) has built-in noise reduction (DNR), which you do not want as that will remove the film grain! "Direct" is supposed to give you the most accurate picture to what was filmed. (It's important to calibrate all of your equipment, especially if you're serious about any of this.)

The two reasons "Nowhere to Run" sounds different than I remember are:

1. This is a cover.
2. I've been remembering the Martha and the Vandellas original in the wrong key, my only frame of reference being half-remembered TV spots for Operation Dumbo Drop. :D

I last watched the movie GETTING EVEN WITH DAD (1994) on VHS :)

I just pulled out my Soundstage - America live in Chicago DVD (recorded 2005, released 2008).  It's wonderful!  A couple things about the concert - first, it was televised on PBS (late 2005 or early 2006); second, I was there.  I will add that the concert was much longer than the DVD.

Here's a clip, this is Sandman:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kW6nrM8fuhQ

Batman (1966) - "The Entrancing Dr. Cassandra" and "Nora Clavicle and the Ladies' Crime Club" (Blu-ray).

Dr. Cassandra was alright. I mistook Howard Duff for Richard Dawson. They had him playing a hip beatnik co-villain.

Nora Clavicle... Batman takes on the nefarious trend of feminism and women's liberation. Who approved this episode? Even by 1968 standards, this is horribly sexist. Almost all the women of Gotham are stereotypical 1950s-1960s housewives who only cook and clean, are dumb as rocks, and are deathly afraid of mice. This episode was written by Stanford SHerman and William Dozier and directed by Oscar Rudolph. Clavicle is a parody of Gloria Steinem (Steinem -> Sternum -> Clavicle or something) who fires Gordon and O'Hara and she and her posse of women take over Gotham PD, with ulterior motives. Then at the end we get a Pied Piper parody. The Trio get flattened into cardboard cutouts. An online friend just watched this episode and posted about how sexist it was and I had to see it for myself. It really is that bad.

Beetlejuice Beetlejuice came out the day before my birthday and I'll probably get it on DVD when it comes out.

Batman (1966) - "Hey Diddle Riddle" / "Smack in the Middle" (Blu-ray)

We briefly had cable/internet turned off until my folks paid the bill, so I watched the first week of the old Batman series. Episode 1 was way too quiet, but episode 2 was loud and clear. Lorenzo Semple Jr.'s writing was snappy with fun wordplay and riddles. The costumes were bright and colorful. It's no wonder this show was such a hit or why it has continued to be so popular.

The last movie I watched on DVD was The Adventures of Sharkboy and Lavagirl in 3D (2005) from a DVD I rented from a local video store a few weeks ago.

As for television series, the last show I watched on DVD was Degrassi: The Next Generation season 6 on Christmas Day. I got the season 6 box set as a Christmas present and am considering eventually getting the other seasons from 1 - 9 (or basically the seasons with the original cast members) as well in the near future.

The last thing I watched on physical media was John Carpenter's The Fog on Halloween.

I was gonna watch some Friday the 13th movies for Friday the 13th, but it dawned on me it would be a golden opportunity to watch the fan films Never Hike Alone and Never Hike in the Snow.

There's a good chance I might watch The Hitcher 4K or Late Night with the Devil next. I'm also planning Dune before I watched Dune 2 and Prophecy on Max (or if I get 2 for my birthday).

I've been trying to watch Lost Highway on Criterion Blu-ray, but I keep getting tired and my brain turns to mush. I wish our house didn't have to be so hot during the winter. Do I have to wait until March? :D

80th Anniversary of the Liberation of Auschwitz

Pop videos, from the 1980s

Live football: Manchester United v Leicester City

The 1952 film "You're Only Young Twice".

The 1954 film "It Should Happen to You"

Inspector Morse: The Dead of Jericho

Morse and Lewis investigate the death of a woman at her home, but Morse is not convinced that it was suicide.

I'll watch it complete on catch-up