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Friday, February 12, 1999
10:57am PST - EXCLUSIVE: Here's a first peek at some of the March slate of titles from Warner Bros. We'll be posting more over the weekend or perhaps on Monday.Have a great weekend!

8:57am PST - Warner announces several new titles for March, including: SOLDIER, HOME FRIES, THE OUTLAW JOSEY WALES, THE GAUNTLET, CLEOPATRA JONES (honey), THE MAN WITH TWO BRAINS, INNOCENT BLOOD, THE BETSY, FINAL ANALYSIS, TRUE STORIES, RUNNING ON EMPTY, FAIR GAME, BURGLAR and JOE'S APARTMENT. The first five titles listed will retail at $19.98, the remainder fall under the $14.98 budget-gourmet variety. If the past is any indication that will probably mean full-frame with few if any extras on the less expensive titles.

8:44am PST - Here's the oficial press release from Multimedia 2000 concerning the three-DVD volumes of BUBBLEGUM CRISIS. Multimedia 2000's president even makes an an "utterance" for the occasion. (who's the goof who writes M-2K's press releases?)

8:40am PST - Here's a another article, this time from Infoworld, describing the DVD Forums' adoption of a DVD audio standard.

8:34am PST - The Detroit news tells its Motor City residents that a DVD players can play CD's, but not the other way around. This beginners' DVD primer also touches briefly -- and pushs off on, Divx.

8:23am PST - Laserviews goes into overdrive... We can't recall in recent memory when Laserviews has updated their news quite so frequently, but it sure is nice. Yesterdays' news contains new title announcements from Dreamworks (if you consider Antz a new announcement at this juncture), Trimark, Paramount (in which RELIC is touted as a 16x9 enhanced transfer) and others. Lots of good information there -- and something a trifle disturbing. PRIDE OF THE YANKEES will be a colorized version? Icchh!

5:09pm PST - Here are the most recent top ten DVDs rented on the Internet according to NetFlix:

1. The Truman Show
2. Out of Sight
3. Blade
4. Armageddon
5. Six Days Seven Nights
6. The Avengers
7. Lethal Weapon 4
8. Godzilla
9. Mask of Zorro
10. The Horse Whisperer

11:23am PST - Here's a reprint of an interesting Kevin Brass article about Divx in today's DVD Access. Thanks to Special Field Correspondent Dana for the link.

11:15am PST - Love those concerts on DVD? Then you'll be thrilled with Warner Record's plans to release 15-20 concert DVD's this year, with the first wave hitting next month. Eric Clapton, Frank Sinatra, Rod Stewart Paul Simon and Madonna fans will all have something to cheer about in March.

10:51am PST - Like taking candy from a baby...Don't look now, but here's another new review for you. This time, Bob Banka reviews one of his favorite movies: THE BIG EASY.

10:42am PST - Here's a look at some of the upcoming titles from Universal on March 16th. MADIGAN, WINNING, JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR, DEAD MEN DON'T WEAR PLAID and MERCURY RISING:SE. Not shown: ONE TRUE THING, BRIDE OF CHUCKY, BATTERIES NOT INCLUDED, CHILD'S PLAY 2 and SHOCKER.

10:38am PST - There is nothing wrong -- do not adjust your set... Here's a new BIG Picture review for you that you should definitely read before renting or purchasing Spike Lee's CROOKLYN.

9:23am PST - Laserviews has updated their news page again with new title announcements (including the Universal line-up we reported last week), plus street date confirmations, changes, etc.

9:19am PST - Showbizdata.com reports that "Imax has signed its first deal with a major studio to release a full-length feature in its giant-screen format. It announced Tuesday that it will team with Walt Disney Co. on the release of Fantasia 2000, which will premiere in Imax theaters next year before moving into general release." Click here for the full story.

9:08am PST - Want to know what the heartland thinks about the future of home entertainment and DVD? Check this article in the Decatur Illinois Herald-Review.

8:19am PST - Jimi Hendrix fans will rejoice at the April 20th release of D.A. Pennebaker's `Searching for Jimi Hendrix' on DVD. According to the press release, "The documentary feature, set to debut on Bravo Feb. 12, chronicles the making of the CD and illustrates Hendrix's tremendous influence on a generation of artists representing a wide variety of genres. The film celebrates both his innovations in music and his talents as a composer" and features intimate interviews and performances by eleven artists including Charlie Musselwhite, Cassandra Wilson, Neville Staple and Sheena Staple (of The Specials), The Blind Boys of Alabama, Roseanne Cash, Los Illegals and Taylor Dayne.

1. THE CAIN MUTINY
2. WEEKEND AT BERNIE'S
3. ARMAGEDDON
4. BLADE:SE
5. OUT OF SIGHT

5:02pm PST - At last... (insert sigh of relief, here)... A DVD Audio standard has been established.

4:48pm PST - Would you like a long, cool mint julep to go with that "Midnight In the Garden of Good and Evil"DVD rental? NetFlix and DVD Wave get more company... Here's another long-time video retailer hoping to make a splash with online DVD rentals. VideoLtd.com promises "fast delivery with a touch of southern hospitality."

3:32pm PST - Was it something we said...? Our attempts to confirm the rumors of 16 x 9 ehnancement on upcoming releases directly with Paramount publicity were met with a rather curt company line of: "We are in the final stages of preparing our press release and can neither confirm nor deny the rumors." Well, we certainly wouldn't want to spoil anyone's surprise in the interests of spreading good news...

3:15pm PST - We've noticed an interesting message thread on our The BIG Picture DVD and Home Theater Forum that merits a mention on this page as well. It has to do with the hearing impaired and the frustrating lack of subtitling standards on DVD that's beginning to cause a lot of concern within that community. Here's why: While subtitling works on both DVD Video and DVD-ROM drives, "Closed captioning" subtitles only works with DVD Video in conjunction with either an internal TV decoder or set-top box. This obviously precludes the hearing impaired from enjoying movies on their computers that don't include standard subtitles, since the closed-captioning feature does not work on PC's . The BIG Picture supports a minimum standard of English, Spanish and French subtitling on ALL releases, regardless of their native language. We hope that the studios will join forces with the PD manufacturing community to insure that their movies can be seen and "heard" by everyone that wishes to enjoy them.

9:26am PST - One of our sponsors, BigStarDVD.com has just announced BOOGIE NIGHTS for $12.49, 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY for $12.49 and DAS BOOT: DIRECTOR'S CUT for $14.99. Get 'em while they're hot! And remember, every DVD purchased through any of our sponsor banners helps to support The BIG Picture!

9:18am PST - Now here's an interactive DVD film that we wouldn't mind reviewing. Read on about Tender Loving Care starring John Hurt, shot in 35mm with some decent sounding production values. We're intrigued....

9:09am PST - Here's Disney's press release on their March 23rd day and date release of MIGHTY JOE YOUNG. Do you find it significant that there is no reference to Divx whatsoever in this rather lengthy announcement?

9:04am PST - Our European readers in particular should find this story about the DVD Production Europe 99 conference relevant and interesting.

8:35am PST - Like a moth to a flame... Bob just can't get his hands on enough of those Criterion titles. It's a good thing he's got deep pockets. Bob delivers the goods with another great review of the French film WAGES OF FEAR.

8:20am PST - Roses are red, violets are... for Panasonic's next generation DVD players? Techweb reports that Matsushita is the fourth company to announce the development of a stable violet laser, which they plan to experiment with in their next generation DVD players...

8:16am PST - Somehow, our link to the NY Times Letters to the Editor about Divx (below) got corrupted and was sending our readers to the wrong page. Our apologies. The link has been corrected.

7:48pm PST - It's a mixed bag, baby... Remember those articles in last week's New York Times denouncing Divx? Readers respond in letters to the editor, brought to us by The BIG Picture's Special Field Correspondent Dana...

7:27pm PST - "gasp", "choke", "sputter" CAN IT BE TRUE? Is Paramount returning to 16 x 9 enhancement (anamorphic, by any other name) for some future releases such as THE TEN COMMANDMENTS? Can this be so?? Laserviews isn't usually wrong about these sort of things -- but they are not infallible. TBP has put a call in to our Paramount insiders to see if this is correct. Other notable title announcements today -- COURT JESTER starring Danny Kaye (also anamorphic?), DAYS OF HEAVEN, RUGRATS MOVIE, AMISTAD, PAULIE, AMERICAN X, FATHER OF THE BRIDE (1991), BULLETS OVER BROADWAY, BEAUTIFUL GIRLS, BUGS LIFE, BUBBLEGUM CRISIS #'s 1,2 & 3, and tons upon tons of "anything for a buck" "B" and "C" movie titles announced. Heck, even a "Double-D" thrown in for good measure -- TOTALLY NUDE BUSTY WORKOUT. Oh brother...

6:08pm PST - Don't shoot me, I'm only the piano player...Okay, so Jeff McNeal was feeling a bit silly when he wrote TBP's latest review of I KNOW WHAT YOU DID LAST SUMMER. Must be his way of dealing with the trauma and fear that this movie riddled him with.

1:03pm PST - You've heard that A BUG'S LIFE is coming to DVD. Reports eslewhere regarding the release date have been inconsistent and in some cases, incorrect. The official release date is April 20, 1999. Here's more detail on the first fully digital production to make its way to DVD.It would also appear that earlier reports on other sites claiming both widescreen and full-frame versions may not be accurate, either. According to this release, A BUG'S LIFE will be in its original aspect ration of 2.35:1, while the VHS version will be modified to create a 4:3 version.

12:35pm PST Do not adjust your television, there's nothing wrong with your set... Here at The BIG Picture, we seem to be reaching the "Outer Limits" of our hopelessly antiquated 486 DX100 PC, which we've been limping along with from the get-go. For a time this morning, we couldn't even get Windows '95 to load! Please be advised that if our news page isn't updated in a timely manner in the next few days, we may be down with another crash until we can make other arrangements to replace our crippled mothership with something better suited for the new Millenium. Something with, for starters, a DVD-ROM drive.

You should be dancin' - yeah...Back in the late 70's, the Bee Gees were sitting on top of the world. After fading from view for several years, they reunited in Las Vegas for THE BEE GEES: ONE NIGHT ONLY. How did they measure up? Have they run out of gas or were they still flying high 30 years later? Read Jeff McNeal's review of this new DD 5.1 concert disc.

This little piggy bombed at the box office, this big executive went home... Universal has some big plans for the home video release of BABE: PIG IN THE CITY, hailed by Siskel and Eberts as "One of the best pictures of the year and better than the first". The RSDL DVD will be released day and date with VHS on May 4, 1999. The $29.95 MSRP disc will come with a $5 mail-in rebate and proof of purchase. The disc will feature both 16 x 9 Anamorphic and Full Frame versions, a special screen saver, animated menus, production notes, talent bios and film highlights. Further savings can be obtained with cross-promotion marketing by Aunt Jemima Frozen Waffles, Pancakes or French Toast, among other venues.

Our friends across the pond at the U.K. based DVD Debate have asked us to alert our European readers of their petition opposed to the non-anamorphic flipper version of Armageddon slated for Region 2 release. Since BVHV hasn't released a single anamorphic transfer in region one, we can certainly undertstand the consistency of that decision. In fact, we'd be more than a little PO'd if region 2 got an anamorphic transfer and region one didn't. But what's the story on making the disc a flipper?

Be sure to read Bob Banka's outstanding review of the equally outstanding: THE TRUMAN SHOW.