Friday, September 11, 1998
1:28pm PDT - After successful negotiations, we're pleased to announce that The BIG Picture has entered into a multi-year, non-exclusive agreement to license our original review content to Internet retailer BigStar.com. BigStar will feature our entire catalog of unedited DVD reviews on their website and will receive an average of 30 new reviews per month from The BIG Picture. Our unique, in-depth reviews will continue to first appear on our own pages, after which they will uploaded to BigStar on a monthly basis.

9:00am PDT - Today, Sony is unveiling the first CRT projector in it's product line designed specifically for home theater use. According to Sony, "This projector will display programming from virtually any video source in any analog and digital format available."

8:54am PDT - The article below was originaly written last month. To see the very latest info on the new DVD Audio spec version 1.0, click here. We can't wait to hear how it sounds!

8:20am PDT - With all the competition between Dolby and DTS, it may come as a surprise to you that neither one has been selected as the heir-apparent to the DVD audio spec. Read this interesting Stereophile article to see which the "dark horse" has been annointed by the DVD-Audio Working Group and is probably going to steal the show as the search for a single standard moves forward. According to our friend, Dean McManis, who alerted us to the article, "Apparently current DVD players will not need upgrades to work with the
new format, but the digital processors will have to be replaced, except for a few high-end models. MLP audio DVDs are expected to be out by Christmas. Motorola has already
intgrated MLP into their new chips, and Dolby has licensed the MLP technology. " Thanks, Dean!

Thursday, September 10, 1998
11:19pm PDT - Be sure to read Techweb's interesting story in which the president of Pioneer says that Laserdisc has about "two years left" before it's dead. And that statement is considered optimistic by some. Meanwhile, not finding any financial backers, Circuit City prepares to throw good money after bad, pumping another $75mil into the Divx debacle until February, when, presumably, some sort of decision will be made, after the retail giant has spent $200 million dollars on the project. Best quote from Divx spokesman, Josh Dare: "We are not just going to walk away from that kind of investment." Uh-huh... Special thanks to the DVD sPy for the link!

7:09pm PDT - Bob has just completed another review for all of us! Read what he has to say about Columbia Tri-Star's WILD THINGS.

1:57pm PDT - Sometimes, good things take time. Though it was one of the very first movies to become available on DVD last year, we never thought to pick up SINGIN' IN THE RAIN. Why? Maybe we thought the quality would be lacking - after all, it was released in 1952-- how good could it be, right? Boy, were WE wrong. At long last, The BIG Picture reviews the American classic musical: SINGIN' IN THE RAIN.

7:59am PDT - In case you missed it yesterday, Image Entertainment announced the November 18th release of DANCES WITH WOLVES in DD 5.1. The RSDL disc will feature a commentary track with Kevin Costner and producer Jim Wilson for three hours. Wow! Also yesterday, NetFlix published their latest "Top 10 DVD Rental" list.

7:44am PDT - As the lines begin to blur between Web TV and PC's, there's even talk of adding DVD-ROM drives to Web TV for watching movies or playing games. Speaking of Web TV, I couldn't help but bring up TBP while I was in a Good Guys! store buying a battery for my camcorder. I saw the "Divx - coming soon!" sign and just couldn't keep my mouth shut. The sales rep asked me what I didn't like about Divx -- and I told him. Then, I introduced him to The BIG Picture via the store's Web TV display. The GG employees were shocked and amazed to see the quote from the news the other day from one of their own managers in The Bay Area, lamenting that Divx sales were just 5-7 units per week, while open DVD was selling "real well". You could have knocked store manager over with a feather when he saw that Zenith would be dropping Divx from its product line in the same article. He almost seemed bewildered.

7:40am PDT - Today's Philadelphia Enquirer notes the excellent timing of PRIMARY COLORS as life imitates art in Washington D.C. After watching this movie the other night for the very first time, it was almost eerie...

7:35am PDT - Time for your morning constitutional? The Atlanta Journal Constitution features an article today on the CAMELOT DVD, of all titles. Not that there's anything wrong with Camelot -- a most congenial spot.

7:29am PDT - The mainstream press is finally catching on that the mainstream public is beginning to embrace DVD, as players hit the $299 mark. Meanwhile, Divx has apparently dropped the cost of their discs by a penny ($4.49 down from "about $4.50). Yeah, that'll fool 'em, Dick! The article also reports that 20th Century Fox "is being very cautious, not wanting to drain business from videocassettes." Huh? Where's the logic in that? Steven Spielberg is mentioned as waiting until the market becomes more mature, while a Disney spokesman is quoted as saying "animated classics won't be released on DVD until the format achieves broader market penetration". Would Walt Disney himself have been this miserly, tentative and shrewd? Or would he been at the forefront of the new technology encouraging its growth? We'll never know. But we can guess. When will the movers and shakers at Disney, Dreamworks and Fox understand that the best way to achieve "critical mass", "broader market penetration" and "maturity" is for them to get off their cans and release titles that will drive the market into the very position they seek?

Wednesday, September 9, 1998
9:59pm PDT - Welcome to the "Late Edition" of today's news -- and our apologies for the delay. Considering that we usually update our news several times a day, it probably came as a shock to not see any new stuff until late tonight. Without going into the boring details of why that was, let's just jump into it, shall we?

Hot on the heels of Blockbuster's announcement of (rather tepid) support of open DVD rental, Sony is stepping up efforts to promote the same concept, perhaps in anticipation of the big Divx push slated for next month. Hollywood Video and NetFlix figure prominently. Check here for details.

Ah! Another Roy Scheider film makes it to DVD! Read Bob's in-depth report of BLUE THUNDER. Hmmmm. Let's see... 2010, BLUE THUNDER... What will be next? 52 PICKUP? THE SEVEN UPS? JAWS? We say, bring on ALL THAT JAZZ.

Regarding the news that "The Mask Of Zorro will not be coming to DVD -- at least any time soon because of Steven Spielberg's feelings about open DVD, here's what the DVD sPy had to say:
"I've been covering home entertainment for over fifteen years. During that time I have made a lot of friends who work for the studios PR divisions, or outside PR firms the studios hire to push their product. I was informed by the PR firm handling "The Mask of Zorro" that as of yesterday morning, Colunbia-TriStar was indeed releasing the title on DVD. CTHV and Spielberg had gone round and round on this issue, but as of yesterday morning, it was still a go..."
Intriguing, yes? Our policy is that we will not reveal our DVD sPy's without their consent, but this particular fellow may want the attention -- so if you'd like a plug, just let us know, 007. Just let us know...

Hey boys and girls, I just found a new bookmark. Check out DVD Dish! Not only do they say MASK OF ZORRO is coming to DVD, they've got the date! Time will tell. Frankly, we'd like to see a studio with distribution rights turn to Spielberg and say: "Sorry, Steve -- we respect your position, but we're going to release the title to open DVD. Jerry Seinfeld and Larry David have expressed their wishes to add this title to their collections, and well, since they're making more money than you -- who are we to turn them down?

Tuesday, September 8, 1998
10:24pm PDT - Looks like we're not the only ones sporting a fresh new look. Laserviews has entered their first update since August 28th with a new layout. Check 'em out for some new announcements and the usual street delays/confirmations, etc.

10:09PM PDT - Another chip off the stone: ZDNET offers a story underscoring Divx's uphill climb, predicting its eventual demise. Most interesting tidbit? Zenith is dropping Divx players from its product line (have MERCY!). Biggest misnomer being perpetuated? That the $4.50 Divx rental fee is "about the same as a typical video rental". Nonsense. And everyone knows it. The fat lady has finished clearing her throat and is stepping up to the microphone...Special thanks to our most prolific DVD sPy for the link.

9:49am PDT - The Los Angeles Times looks at New Line's decision to provide both DVD Video and DVD-ROM capabilities on the upcoming LOST IN SPACE release. If you haven't already read our exclusive first look at this DVD, click here.

9:44am PDT - A proverbial drop in the bucket: Blockbuster finally finds a DVD hardware manufacturer (Phillips) willing to set up kiosks in 500 of the chain's 6,000 video outlets for the purpose of demoing and renting DVD hardware and software. Gee, one our of every twelve stores? Well, it's a start, at least. And it's about time.

9:38am PDT - DVD Express and AOL have announced a new strategic marketing alliance that will earn AOL a guaranteed $15 million over a three year period.

9:13am PDT - Compaq is announcing two new laptops featuring DVD-ROM drive options. Gotta love it. I do. Just wish I could afford one! The thought of being able to watch DVD movies just about anywhere is really beginning to appeal to me. I have visions of laptops attached to the back of the seats of my SUV that fold down so the kids can watch movies during those long trips. Wouldn't that be fun!

9:00am PDT - According to Studio Briefing, THE MASK OF ZORRO will not be issued on DVD due to Steven Spielberg's continued snub of our new home entertainment medium of choice. Too bad. I was looking forward to seeing the movie after catching the commercials, but the only way we'll ever watch or review this movie is on DVD -- or not at all. Thanks to the DVD sPy for providing a link to this interesting site!

8:51am PDT - We go straight to the source: Rumors to the contrary, our inside source at FOX hasn't heard of any plans to bump THE ABYSS and replace it with SPEED on November 3, 1998. In other words, there has been no official internal announcement at FOX to support the rumor. We'll keep you posted with official information if anything changes.

You spoke, we've listened... By more than a two to one margin (so far -- we're leaving the poll up until Saturday) our readers prefer the "new look" of the BIG Picture. Glad to see it. As for those that preferred our original "spacey" style -- there's still plenty of that going around this website to satisfy your fix for custom yellow text over black backgrounds. Based on your response -- it looks like we'll be making a few more changes in the near future.

If you're a webmaster with a link to TBP already, we hope that you'll take full advantage of our brand new BIG Picture Banner Patrol and VIP Listing! We'll be holding a random drawing of a free DVD among the first 20 sites that become members!

Despite big changes in special effects over the last 16 years, John Carpenter's THE THING sure holds up well. What a great flick! It's just too bad that Universal didn't think this cult classic was worth a new anamorphic transfer. Read Bob's review of THE THING: Collector's Edition and you'll see what I mean. The Dolby Digital 5.1 remix, however, is a knockout.

Monday, September 7, 1998
1:11am PDT - ATTENTION WEBMASTERS! Want to have over 30,000 people a day see your site listed on The BIG Picture's VIP List? TBP is pleased to announce The BIG Picture Banner Patrol! The BPBP is a great way for us to thank our leading referral websites with the recognition they deserve! To register your site to The BIG Picture VIP List, click here. Rankings based on click-thru's will make your web site eligible to receive a link on our news page as one of the The BIG Picture's VIP Sites of The Week!

Problems with the Windows '98 upgrade with DVD-ROM drives -- or just one guy that can't get it together? Read the article and decide for yourself...

Sunday, 10:41am PDT - An overcast day in the land of the rising sun: Famed Japanese Director Akira Kurosawa, dubbed the emperor of Japanese cinema for films such as "The Seven Samurai", `"Rashomon" and "Ran," died on Sunday at the age of 88, apparently of natural causes. Click here for details -- special thanks to our DVD sPy for alerting us to the somber news. Click here for the full story.

Saturday, 12:34pm PDT - What do you get for the ultimate James Bond fan that has everything? MGM tells TBP that the ultimate James Bond fan will love the limited edition "TOMORROW NEVER DIES GIFTSET, arriving on November 17th, day and date with the TOMORROW NEVER DIES: SPECIAL EDITION DVD. The giftset, of which just (?) 207,000 will be available (sounds like plenty to me!), will include a numbered certificate of authenticity, a never-before seen 60-minute video hosted by Bond gadget guru "Q" (Desmond Llewelyn) featuring a behind-the-scenes look at exciting stunts, music and personal interviews with the stars of TOMORROW NEVER DIES. Available for $39.98, each giftset will also include a reproduction of a Pierce Brosnan-autographed TOMORROW NEVER DIES final shooting script and a "unique collectible photo set". But wait! There's more! Packaged in the giftset will be a chance to enter the "Live Like Bon" sweepstakes. Winners of the contest will fly to London for a swanky 4-day, 5-night stay, receive an upscale rental car, a cell phone, $500 Sharper Image gift certificate, a Bond martini set and spending money.

On Friday, we received an e-mail from the Internet Marketing rep for Program Power Entertainment, asking if TBP would be interested in reviewing their ROARING GLORY WARBIRDS series on DVD, featuring in-depth descriptions and dossier material on vintage World War II fighter aircraft. Our reply: "Of course!" The press kit and four DVD's arrived the next day. While Bob and I generally stick with movie reviews, we're happy to take a look at specialty DVD's, also. Especially when they put you behind the controls and come in DD 5.1 sound.

In the past 24 hours, we've received two e-mails from South America -- One from Argentina; the other from Chile, from big DVD fans that are wondering why some of the studios are pulling back on offering Spanish subtitles and/or alternate language tracks. We've noticed that many of the Image titles from Universal have no subtitles or alternate tracks in ANY language. It would seem that given the technology and relative small expense, the very least DVD issuers could do is to provide subtitles in various languages. We noticed that the upcoming gem of a package from New Line, LOST IN SPACE, only offers English and English subtitles. We hope this isn't the beginning of a trend for the sake of the world community that is helping us to support DVD.

Ah, but 1929 seems just like yesterday! Time for another one as we crank out the reviews this weekend: THE COCOANUTS -- one of the Marx Brother's funniest films -- and their first!

We just posted a new review for you -- Abbott & Costello's 1941 comedy: IN THE NAVY.

If you're looking for a bit of light, romantic fare tp brighten up your weekend, be sure to catch Bob's review of IT COULD HAPPEN TO YOU. Another full-tilt-boogie review brought to you by The BIG Picture and sponsored by our friends at Digital Eyes.

Webmasters! Click here to learn more about The BIG Picture Banner Patrol!

Friday, September 4, 1998
DO NOT ADJUST YOUR MONITORS. THERE IS NOTHING WRONG WITH YOUR BOOKMARK. Variety they say, is the spice of life. So, just for fun, we've re-tooled the BIG Picture DVD News Daily. Love it? Hate it?. Be sure to let us know what you think if you have an opinion on way or another! And now, on with the news...

11:12pm PDT - We received a DVD sPy report that on Tuesday, Fox will announce that THE ABYSS has been canceled, replaced by SPEED with the same street date. Take this one with a big grain of salt until we can check with our inside source at Fox.

10:54pm PDT - Careful or I'll send you to the cornfield! We received two excellent letters today from two different gentlemen concerning our LOST IN SPACE review. The first one took me to task for some personal observations I had about the film and its actors -- I've urged its author to post his comments to our forum page. The other provided a real interesting response to my lament that it would have been great to see Bill Mumy reprise his roll as an adult Will Robinson. Here's what the second letter said in response to that comment:

"Bill Mumy did meet with the film's producers regarding the adult Will Robinson role. Mumy was excited and wanted the part. The producers decided to go in another direction. Mumy was heartbroken (remember, he authored and pitched a LIS movie treatment to Irwin Allen in
the 1970's), NLC didn't invite him to participate, so he didn't. Being the class act that he is, he didn't speak out against the film. When it was mentioned, he simply smiled, shrugged his shoulders, and gave all involved his best wishes."

As the editor and sometimes-author of reviews at The BIG Picture (Bob Banka does the lion's share), it's important for us to stress that we appreciate and encourage your comments regarding our reviews, even if your comments are critical. As a matter of fact, we urge you to post your comments, good or bad, to our forum page, so that others can see what you have to say and offer their perspectives as well. While we're always glad to receive your personal e-mail, Bob and I put our pants on one leg at a time like the rest of you -- and there's no need to be concerned that critical comments might offend us or hurt our feelings. Indeed, they serve a real value to our community and we encourage you to use our forum to share your thoughts and ideas, regardless of whether or not they run counter to ours. At The BIG Picture, everyone's input contains relevance and meaning -- particularly yours.

3:36pm PDT - Hey, it's the 60's, man! Having trouble with some of our pages that seem to loop indefinitely, as if they're re-loading over and over? We've recently added some necesssary HTML to a few of our main pages that may be causing this occurance. Upgrading to the latest Microsoft or Netscape browser should solve this problem. Please let us know if it doesn't.

10:03am PDT - We love metaphors: Like the mighty Titanic, whose arrogant financiers believed it to be unsinkable, DIVX, whose creators thought it to be invincible is popping rivets and starting to take on water at an alarming rate. The iceburg that this modern-day Titanic hit was the Internet, baby. In this Richmond Times-Dispatch, Richard Sharp, predicts a 40% cut in DIVX advertising promotion unless some deep-pocketed suck--- uh... investors can be found to repair the gaping tear in the hull of the DIVX business plan. But alas, we predict that just like the Titanic, alone at sea, no one will come to the aid of Divx, and the giant, crumpled shell of this greed-riddled concept will sink from view and forever lie at the bottom of the ocean of consumer rejection. The only question we have for ya Dick, is: Do you have enough lifeboats to save all your passengers (stockholders) or are are they destined to go down with the ship?

9:53am PDT - Hang onto your wallets: TWICE reports that Denon is set to release its THX-certified DVD player and a 100-disc CD mega-changer unit.