AD's DVD
Created | Updated Jun 16, 2004
Buying a good DVD
Okay so after a five week absence for various reason, it's about time I made my return. However, my attempt to do a review of Gladiator is frequently interrupted by stupid things like weddings (congrats dad), holidays to mind cats (damn you dad) and birthdays (being 18 is good). Having promised Shazz on more then one occasion to get it done,
expect it next week. Maybe...
So with my new found wealth from my birthday I decided to take a trip down to a local shop for local people and buy a few DVD's. It was then that I realised that I'd never actually told you lot1 what I look for in a DVD. What oddities does the almighty AD look for when spending his hard earned money? Well my little trip landed me with three DVD's. In no particular order and with bugger all fanfare, heres what they are and why I chose them.
The Cheap One
Probably the deciding factor of buying anything really is the price. Of course, buying the cheapest DVD doesn't always result in getting the best film, but a DVD always seems a lot better when you've grabbed it at bargain price, and a lot worse when you've paid over the odds. Never pay more then about £15 for a single DVD, and anything over should be something either extremely long or extremely good. There's exceptions of course, like extended editions and two disc specials, or new releases. Stay around the £15 mark and then work around that. Shop around as well. Go through a store your familiar with then go to another store and have a minion (also known as shop assistants) track it down for you. Most stores have a computer that can tell you the price instantly. It may take a bit of work to find the cheapest price, but it saves disappointment in the long run.
The film I bought that proves this is Elizabeth, for 7 quid. Not too bad, especially being at half my maximum limit of £15. With Catt Blanchett, Christopher Eccleston, and Joseph Fiennes, I have vague recollections of seeing it a few years back. Should be a good watch.
The Missing One
Okay everyone must have one of these. It's a film that you love to bits and yet have seen it so often see no point in buying it, so eagerly use one of those steam-driven things from time gone by called VCR's to tape it. All well and good until someone tapes over it with Ground Force or Changing Rooms. Many great films in my collection have been lost because of this from Braveheart (The Scottish were very impressed by Charlie Dimmocks water feature... ahem), series 6 of Red Dwarf (although I must say those drapes looked fabulous in the cockpit) and yes, even Adolf Hitler: My Part In His Down Fall (Spike Milligan looked shocked when Bettie announced she was leaving The Rovers... again) have all been victims to the evil VCR.
So to combat this I give you the power of the DVD. Near indestructable discs of power2! No Ground Force nonsense for these babies! No sir! William Wallace can quite happily surge over the battlefield. To this end, I bought Top Gun. Now I love Top Gun, but my mother's infinte wisdom decided to tape over it again because she wanted to watch it on TV but something else was on at the same time. So bye bye went Mr Cruise and Mr Kilmer replaced by a film that's as old as I am. Don't think there's any extras, but I'm not too fussed.
The New One
Okay this one's an easy one. It's the one you see at the pictures and say 'wow.. as soon as that comes out on dvd I'm getting it'. However, this has one major draw back. Usually new DVD's are fairly cheap if they're brand new. Buy them on the week they come out and you'll notice the stores competing for the lowest priced version, good news for you. However, leave it a few weeks and the price will level out, leaving you with the choice of either waiting or paying full. My advice is to grab it early if you can remember the storyline, otherwise wait.
The advantage of the newer DVD's is that they usually come in more than one format. One usually devoid of any extras and fancynessity (boo hiss) and two disc special edition (thats the one). Usually around the £17 pound mark for the two disc, with one disc being crammed full of extras. Well worth a few extra pennies.
The DVD? Another Mr Cruise film in the form of The Last Samurai. I thought it was excellent at the pictures, being a fan of all things feudal and Japanese. Plus you get to see Ken Wantanabe before he runs off to become a Batman Villain.
So there you have it. Three basic criteria for buying a film on DVD. Not comprehensive like but I didn't want to spend all my money on DVD's. For some reason I can't just starve and wear my old clothes.
Until next time.
