Product: The Transformers - The Movie (1986)
Rating: 3.0
False Advertising
The main reason I was excited about this new DVD release, and the reason I purchased it immediately, is that it was advertised as being "brilliantly remastered and color corrected" and presented in the original theatrical aspect ratio. Tragically, this is not the case. Instead the "Theatrical Widescreen Version" is simply a cropped version of the ALREADY CROPPED full screen version of the film. Now, some claim that this full screen version is the only version that exists, and that a widescreen version was never created in the first place. Although this is certainly possible, I find it highly unlikely, since many sources cite the original film as having a 1.85 widescreen aspect ratio, and even the film's original advertising, which is included in this DVD, say that the film is widescreen. Again, it is possible that it was merely theatrically exhibited as a matted presentation of a 4:3 film, but I find that also unlikely. Instead, I think it is far more likely that Sony/BMG was not willing to spend the time and money acquiring a copy of the original negative and doing a new transfer and restoration, as it is extremely expensive. I think they merely used a Super-VHS copy or some other high-quality tape format as their source, which I imagine was also the case in the original DVD release. And as for the restoration, what would have been more accurate is if they advertised it as having been "Run through a brightness and contrast filter on somebody's desktop!" Because calling what they did "Color Correction" is a great disservice to real restoration experts. [See the well-known mini-doc on the Se7en SE DVD for a great example of REAL color correction techniques.] NO, this film is not "color corrected" in the true sense of the term. Some may prefer the changes, but those who know a thing or two about image quality know that the transfer on the old Rhino DVD release is superior to this botched version. Sometimes the image is overly bright, then overly dark, the colors more washed out or the image is less sharp. The added contrast simply results a loss of luminosity range, causing blown out bright areas and loss of detail in dark areas. I personally prefer the Rhino transfer, but the old DVD release does have one fatal flaw (other than being full screen), a little over an hour into the film, the image quality takes a drastic turn for the worse, and stays that way for about 6 minutes (basically the entire Junkion warriors action sequence). Luckily, this edition does not suffer from that problem. I don't yet have a surround system, so I can't speak on the 5.1 mix, but I'm not holding my breath.So although the real reason I bought the DVD was for naught, that's not to say that this 2-disc edition is completely worthless - quite the contrary, it has many redeeming aspects. For those of you who bought the old DVD release, don't throw it out just yet! This new edition has completely different features. The two discs are chock-full with all kinds of stuff. Sony/BMG deserves a lot of credit for getting fans to participate in the creation of this DVD, and it really helps. There's plenty to keep you busy for hours and hours. However, there's nothing mind-blowing, it's mostly a lot of table scraps and filler to try and please the die-hard fans. It may be quantity over quality, but its enough that you won't feel ripped off. The most interesting features are the "Autobot Matrix of Knowledge", a very well done trivia track and a series of mini-docs featuring interviews with the cast and crew. Which are not very well done, but do offer a good insider's view on the making of the film. Although there are two commentary tracks, a great feature would have been an isolated score track, the music being especially popular with fans. It's a great feature that almost no DVDs utilize, and I don't understand why. One of the better aspects is the gorgeous packaging, featuring stunning artwork by Don Figueroa. The packaging reminds me of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles cartoon DVDs, in that it is of extremely high quality, yet the content on the Discs don't live up to the pretty wrapping. As a collector, I'm gonna buy it anyway, so luckily it looks really great on the shelf. The main menus are animated and feature music from the film and series, which is good, but they could have been better. And they also put a trivia game as DVD-ROM content. But why did they bother? You see this kind of thing on nearly every DVD these days, and I still don't know why DVD companies spend the time and money on this worthless stuff, when they could be working to make the real content better. Like every other lame DVD-ROM feature you've probably never bothered to try, this one is also not worth your time. They also put "Easter Eggs on both discs!" on the back of the DVD cover. Again, why? It's no longer an easter egg when its included on the features list!I was expecting this to be the End-All-Be-All Edition of Transformers: The Movie, but I was disappointed. A lot of good stuff here, but not up to standards set by high-quality DVD releases. Here's what I'd want to see in the inevitable HD version: New Transfer from the Original Negative, Digitally Remastered and restored at an actual Film Restoration Lab, and Presented in its original 1.85 Aspect Ratio! And a quality Surround Mix and Isolated Score Track would be nice, too. That might sound like asking for a lot, but I don't see how else you'd be able to do an HD release without going back to the original negative.