DVD~~~~still waiting............ ..
and waiting, and waiting. C'mon, somebody, get us this movie on DVD!!! What the hell's the hold-up?
shareIt's already out ...
shareUm... I think this is talking about the U.S. release.
I'm lucky enough to have a VHS recording of the widescreen laserdisk, anyway. Still the 2 1/2 hour American release version, and still not a DVD, but at least it's widescreen! Someday I might just make a DVD of that for myself so it lasts.
Yeah, though- this absolutely needs an American DVD release! What a great movie- It does not deserve all the trash-talking it gets! You just have to remember that its running time was cut by OVER HALF, and it becomes a LOT easier to overlook its flaws (awkward-as-hell narration bridging the gaps created by omitted scenes...).
If only Warner Bros didn't have their stupid policy of not letting other companies release their films! If it weren't for that, this movie (probably in both director's cut and theatrical cut forms, in a box set) would seem destined for Criterion!
I can understand your frustration about this for a few reasons, but for the most part, Until The End of The World is already out, or rather it's about as out as it's going to be. Here are some of the versions you can buy:
1. 3 Disc (Long Version) PAL Region 2 (279 Minutes runtime) AR 1.85:1
available at Amazon.co.uk for about $20 US
2. 1 Disc PAL Region 2 (151 Minutes runtime) AR 1.85:1
available at Amazon.co.uk for about $11 US
There are several other versions also out there like the Japanese Laserdisc, the VHS tape, the 4 Disc Italian Release, which is the same as the 3 Disc directors cut and a few Fan Creations that pop up on Amazon from time to time. I personally own about six different versions that I've purchased over the years and usually watch #1 once a month.
But the last time I posted this info, this is what people responded with:
1. But I live in America and I cant access Amazon.co.uk!. My response:
I cannot begin to tell you the sadness I felt for that person. Just go to Amazon.com, scroll to the bottom of the page and click the link for United Kingdom and viola! ... you're there. Don't worry, Amazon will convert the currency and exchange rate after you click purchase.
2. But my DVD isn't region free!. My response:
OMG. Let me let you in on a little secret. ALL DVD players are capable of playing either a specific region other than number 1 (USA) or playing All Regions, and the fix is quite simple.
Just do the following:
1.http://www.videohelp.com/dvdhacks/
2. Type in the model of your DVD
3. Download and burn the file onto a disc
4. Put it into your DVD player
5. When the menu pops up CHOOSE ZERO.
Done. Your DVD player is now region free. "Welcome to the Free World, Mr. Bond." I adjusted my 1080p player will no ill-effect and I'm very happy about doing so, as I have a lot of multi-region movies that I can now see in up-conversion. I've always felt that regioning was a scam, but I'm done worrying about it after I adjusted my player. Anyways, now you can watch whatever version you wish.
3. I don't have the Internet, I don't have a computer, I can't burn a CD, I don't want to shop online, I'm not interested in your post. I just want Wim Wenders to release a US Version, because I'm backwards, I deserve it and I don't want to listen to 15 minutes of French dialog on disc 1. My response:
Please people, this is a movie about living in the future, there's no need to live in the past. Get with it, Folks - the Stone Ages and the Spanish Inquisition went out hundreds of years ago. If you're still trying to figure out the Oldowan Era Paleolithic tool case and cant make heads or tails of it ... well then.
Wim has stated that he has done everything he could to get WB to release a US version, but to no avail. He even had to have Sam Neil come in and re-record another version of the narration for the Directors 3 Disc version, because WB had rights to the original. Yes, it makes me want to scream, too, but if you want to support this film and its creators then go to Amazon.co.uk and buy the Directors 3 Disc Version and be done with it. If your only motivation is to support WB, then keep on griping about it.
So much has been said about WB's intractable position, that if you haven't read up on it, I would suggest doing so - if you have the time, lol.
So, that's about all that can be said, on my part, regarding the versions. Hopefully this info helps out, even if you don't choose to purchase the 3 Disc set, which I highly recommend as an absolute masterpiece. If you find a better site for the DVD region update, let me know. As far as I know videohelp.com are the best.
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Ah, thanks for the tip about making any DVD player region-free.
That's been my one real hang-up: not having the expendable income to buy a region-free DVD player at the moment (college film student... sorta short on cash...).
Yeah, I'll try that out. Does doing that avoid the NTSC/PAL difference, though?
As I said, I have a VHS copy of the widescreen laser, which looks really nice- the only problem is that it's the U.S. cut, and the large missing chunks of the film really frustrating! And no, I DO NOT feel at all bad about technically owning a bootleg, since Warner Bros COULD release it any time, and if they did I would buy it immediately, but they JUST WON'T, so no, I feel no problems with not supporting them. I will gladly seek out the three-disk extended version, though, as soon as I verify that this hack does indeed work with my DVD player, since I would love to see Wenders' whole vision, and I always prefer to own legit copies of films.
Haha, as for people who complain about the few minutes of French dialogue... anyone who would seriously bitch about something like that probably isn't in the target audience for this movie anyway!
Does doing that avoid the NTSC/PAL difference, though?
Your naked eye wont register the frame rate difference and there is no generation loss between the two formats after you adjust your player. I've adjusted three of my DVD players through that site and haven't experienced any problems with changes in picture quality or anything else. Most of my foreign (non US) films are all region 2, but even the region 3 & 6 (asia) films I have work just fine, too. One of my players was close to $500 when I bought it, I felt it was worth the gamble as I'd already downloaded from that site before without problems. The files are mostly firmware upgrades direct from the manufacturer, they just happen to have a consolidated library of them.
I agree with your comments regarding the French dialog and the audience. I could never understand why people complained about it. Watching the film, understanding little French, it was almost obvious what they were talking about by watching their pantomimes. I always wondered if Wenders did that on purpose, many times I was convinced of it.
All the best, post back if you buy the 3 Disc set and watch it. share