Hi, pholmer - FYI this film is absolutely NOT in the public domain. This is a bogus claim made by way too many eBay sellers who 'presume' (in fact knowing it to be false) that because a film has never been released to home video in this country that that therefore somehow gives them the 'right' to peddle bogus, inferior quality bootlegs (like the one you bought). That said, you are in no way liable, having been mislead and lied to by a THIEF. The MPAA, if it's really serious about piracy, needs to clamp down and HARD on these sellers, perhaps with some high profile arrests, convictions, even jail time. Then maybe lying douche-bags like the one from whom you bought your DVD would think twice about committing intellectual theft. If you haven't left negative feedback yet, I'd suggest you do so, openly accusing the seller of purveying pirated materials, even reporting him to eBay (not that they'll do much).
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MovieHobbit
17 years ago
Take a pill, Gangster.
I used to be total anti-piracy until I realized that studios don't release great movies because the profit margin isn't there. I know because I've asked, even written numerous times, to studios petitioning for releases of dvd for release...only to be given b.s. answers...meanwhile, they release 1, 2, heck even 3 versions of some of the modern drivel because people will buy it.
Bottom line...if there is an official DVD release of a movie, then by all means purchase it. But if the studio will wait until after your corpse of a body has rotted awhile, I say if you REALLY want the film and don't care if it's a great copy, then buy from people who are selling it as long as it doesn't cost you an arm and a leg.
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cinders2001
16 years ago
Totally off the subject of piracy etc...... can anyone tell me where I can get a copy of this film please?
My uncle is in it and so is our daimler!
Would love to know where I can find one.
Thanks.
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lifesaversocks
15 years ago
i purchased a copy from a website called modcinema.com and it's really great quality. i know copyrights are only good for 28 years unless a renewal is filed, many popular films have now because public domain but i'm not exactly sure what the story is with this one however i know that enough of a cult following gathers on the internet for a film it really helps the studios decide the release them on DVD but only if the original negatives are in good enough condition to be restored.
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jjsteich
12 years ago
What you say about copyrights being good in the US for 28 years unless renewed is correct for works produced before January 1, 1964. Any work produced after that date and before January 1, 1978 was granted an automatic extension to 67 years--with some minor but important exceptions. Any work created after 1/1/1978 has protection of life of the author plus 70 years or in the case of a corporate-owned copyright the duration is 95 years from publication or 120 years from creation, whichever is less.
What this means for The Jokers is that it automatically has the 67 year protection term.
I saw The Jokers once when I was young, probably 16 or 17 years old, and I have wanted to see it again ever since. It is a shame that this hilarious movie is not available. The "no profit margin" rationale from the studios is without merit. They can digitize this, make it available for download from Amazon or rental from Netflix at a low cost and with good return.
You can read more about basic copyright at http://www.copyright-laws.com/pgs/copyright-basics.html
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