I have only recently jumped aboard the DVD collecting bandwagon [previously i preferred to buy $2 vhs tapes from amazon, but eventually i caved in and realized everything good is on DVD these days]. So now I have a core list of movies I want to get on DVD, but there are few things I want to find out about from the experts here on Mobius before I go on a credit card rampage.

First of all, the following titles are either OOP or not on DVD yet. Does anyone know if they'll be released or re-released any time soon?

CLASS OF 1984
CEMETERY MAN
LIQUID SKY
DOOM GENERATION
HELP!
TAXI BLUES
DEADBEAT AT DAWN

-And sorry for asking such a silly question, but if you do have this information, where did you get it?

Secondly, I'm surprised that the following movies are available on DVD, but without any extras. I'm worried that I'll buy these editions, but next year some better version will come out and I will have wasted my money. So if anyone has any info on that, I'd really appreciate it.

THE TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE [original]
THE ABOMINABLE DR. PHIBES
THE WARRIORS
SCANNERS
Jan Svankmejer's FAUST

And finally, which DVD versions of the following movies would you consider to be the best?

NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD
DAWN OF THE DEAD
DRACULA starring Bela Lugosi [the legacy collection?]
RETURN OF THE LIVING DEAD

Thanks a lot for the help!

DELLAMORTE DELLAMORE (aka Cemetary Man - a truly awful title IMO) is due to be released by Anchor Bay in the US early next year. It's already available in Italy from Medusa with a superb transfer and some nice (albeit Italian-only) extras, including a making-of and a commentary.

CLASS OF 1984 is also due next year from Anchor Bay along with DELLAMORTE DELLAMORE. There was scuttlebutt about a new DVD of DEADBEAT AT DAWN, but I am not at liberty to say who was linked to it, suffice to say it is obviously not Synapse.

There is only one DVD version of RETURN OF THE LIVING DEAD, and that is the one from MGM. Overall good save for the punk songs that have been removed for rights issues.

The Elite "Millenium Edition" of NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD is easily the best version available; it is ridiculous that PD versions still exist on store shelves when compared to this presentation.

Pioneer's DVD of THE TEXAS CHAIN SAW MASSACRE contains all sorts of extras, including deleted scenes, a Tobe Hooper commentary and more. Better yet, it's been available at Best Buy for $5.99 (!) since the remake hit DVD. I wouldn't be surprised if yet another DVD were to come out one of these days, but picking this extras-laden disc up for six bucks would hardly be a waste of money.

THE ABOMINABLE DR. PHIBES and SCANNERS are both $10 MGM releases. I don't recall an example of MGM going back to revisit something they have already released and putting it out again as a Special Edition (oh, wait, just thought of one...THE HOWLING), but, again, for $10, they're worth buying (plus with PHIBES, you're also getting DR. PHIBES RISES AGAIN on the double-feature disc).

MGM has a better (or worse) track record than some, with both THE HOWLING and ESCAPE FROM NEW YORK being revisited after initial release...but I haven't heard any news about any of the titles you listed as being ready for reissue, so...

Excellent, thanks for the info on these movies so far. I'm excited about the DELLAMORTE DELLAMORE set [yeah, that is a better title] and CLASS OF 1984, and I'll be keeping my fingers crossed for DEADBEAT AT DAWN.

Somehow I guess I overlooked that TCM release on Pioneer. Best Buy must be crazy to sell that for six bucks! I'm kind of surprised by Best Buy actually... they generally have a pretty good assortment of cheap B movie titles, like four movies on one disc for $5 or so.

MINOR SPOILERS WITHIN FOR SCANNERS (1981)

-------

As regards SCANNERS, the current DVD from MGM may very well be all we're going to see anytime soon. In CRONENBERG ON CRONENBERG, the man himself describes the making of this film as an uncomfortable, stressful, painful experience, and seems, even in print, very reluctant to say that much about it. This was mentioned on the prvious board, but I don't think any details were covered. I don't have the book with me at the moment, but off the top of my head, I remember the following things that left a bitter taste with him about this film:

Apparently the production was horribly disorganized and many people were flatly lied to by the producers and the whole thing was rushed to be completed by year's end to qualify for the CFDC (now Telefilm Canada) tax shelter - meaning filming in the last couple of months of the year (not exactly desirable for shooting a film in Canada) and I think there was even still some trickery by the producers to say that the film was completed by year's end when it was not nearly out of post-production). Due to the disorganization, on the first day of shooting, they were not able to shoot interiors at all and had to shoot on the side of a highway. The crew and equipment caused a lot of curious gazes from motorists and there was a particularly bad accident involving a large truck whose driver was looking at them rather than the road and the passengers of a small automobile. The crew went to try to help those in the automobile who were pinned inside and under the truck which had run up on them to find them dead on the spot. Cronenberg states that he knows that they didn't cause the accident directly, but that he feels like that they were responsible for these fatalities and that it would never have happened had everything been organized properly before the shoot and producers Victor Solnicki, Claude Heroux, and Pierre David not insisted that it be rushed to begin production and complete in time to get the tax credit. He also states that the producers obtained lead actress Jennifer O'Neill under false pretense knowing that she did not wish to be in this sort of film (perhaps a negative experience in working with Lucio Fulci on SETTE NOTE IN NERO? Who knows.) and he was very displeased over their dishonesty and disrespect towards her in that regard. He also states that Patrick McGoohan was very difficult to work with and drinking heavily at the time. There is an unbelieveable quote that he conveys from Mr. McGoohan that I can only try to approximate without the book. He had asked Mr. McGoohan how or why he had let it get to the point where he drank so much and he responded something like 'If I did not drink, I would kill somebody.' Startling comment indeed - but I would venture a guess it was the genesis to some degree of Benjamin Pierce's line about his art and how it keeps him sane in the film. It should of course be noted that after his next film, VIDEODROME, he has not since worked with any of these three producers. The only other element that I can recall at the moment is that he was vehemently against Pierre David's cashing in with four sequels. I would also assume he's none too thrilled about Mr. David's plans for a remake of the original film either.

The reason for all that background - it has been mentioned here before that David Cronenberg only gives commentaries on transfers that he has personally approved. Reading this chapter in the book, it sounds as if the man does not wish to see or talk at great length about this film. I would venture a guess you could also count out any interviews or commentary from Jennifer O'Neill and Patrick McGoohan That leaves the other three principal players (all Canadian - I assume again probably prompted by the tax credit). Lawrence Dane and Michael Ironside are both still active and have gone on to greater success in following years, but Stephen Lack is actually an artist primarily, despite several film credits. But O'Neill and McGoohan were the names used for box office draw on this film in its initial release, and my guess is that without their participation and that of Mr. Cronenberg, it is the studio's opinion that it is not worth producing supplements for this film (though I would love to hear what any of them have to say about it).

I also own the Image LD from the mid-90's and the DVD transfer is only slightly better - but the Image transfer was quite good, so that is not meant as a negative - and MGM's disc is 16x9 enhanced. The soundtrack on both is mono, sounding (to my ears, at least) a llittle bit better on the LD's digital tracks than the Dolby Digital 2 channel mono mix on the DVD, but that's really just a minor quibble. I'm amazed that they didn't try to pull off a gimmicky 5.1 remix on this title. What's NOT such a minor quibble (and why I still own the Image LD) is that Howard Shore's excellent score - in stereo - is isolated on the analog tracks. The score has only been published once on any recorded medium that I know of, on a UK import CD paired with Shore's score for DEAD RIGNERS, but has proven quite elusive (apparently it's long out of print). Having watched the film once all the way through with just the isolated score was quite a surreal experience - the exact opposite of the entire scanner concept. You can see the lips move, but you can't hear the voices (in sharp contrast to Cameron's assertation to Dr. Ruth early in the film that he is bothered by the voices without lips that move), yet Cronenberg's imagery and Shore's evocative score actually tell this story fairly well without words. It would have been nice for MGM to have included this track, but I realize that (especially in the eyes of major studios) the average mainstream consumer is perceived to be uninterested in the soundtrack in any form 'detatched' from the film - or it could have been a rights issues. I have no idea who Image licensed the title from - it had the AVCO Embassy logo still at the beginning (rather than the MGM logo that is carried on the DVD and on current pay cable broadcasts) but to the best of my knowledge that copmany was long defunct by that point, so who knows who owned the film at that time, and if they also held publishing rights to the score - and if so, where they have gone. The only other extra on the LD was a TV spot for the initial theatrical release - but nothing to get too excited over - it is clearly sourced from a VHS recording off broadcast TV (even with the voiceover 'Starts Friday....' and so on at the end). The MGM DVD does include a theatrical trailer - strangely, it is the UK trailer (complete with the BBFC 'X Preview for a Cert X Film' card), in OK shape, but fullscreen. I have never seen an actual American or Canadian trailer for this film and am starting to wonder if one was ever prepared. Does anyone know more about this?

Now that is mroe detail than you possibly needed or wanted to know, but basically what we have here is a film that is now 23 years old, a director who has far less than fond memories of the production and not an exactly aimiable relationship with the production team, and key players who were not exactly happy to be there themselves. It is a difficult film to market because it has both a mainstream and a cult audience. The film apparently did moderately well at the box office and was a staple of pay cable stations in the early 80's (like when I saw it first at the ripw old age of 10 iway back in 1982 on HBO) and is fairly well-known and liked by many who would not necessarily enjoy other Cronenberg films. But it is precisely this audience that the larger studios seem to think are OK with catalog releases being barebones (hopefully with a nice transfer of the film) as long as the price is right. MGM, of all the larger studios, especially seems to know that audiences for cult films really want supplemental content - and are willing to pay a little more for a title that's a special ediition (though they particularly have been good about keeping prices reasonable) - but the mainstream buyer who would pickup a catalog title on the cheap may not. This is the buyer that a difference of $5 may be a dealbreaker for. With a marketing quandry like this (likely to be even further misunderstood after the sale of the MGM librrary), the only supplemental materials to pop up in 23 years being the soundtrack, a TV spot, and a foreign theatrical trailer, and the other complicating factors mentioned above regarding cast, crew, director, and production team, I think this is going to be one of those titles where we're going to have to accept that 'it is what it is.' I have similar suspicions about THE BROOD. Cronenberg has had mich more to say about this film, but I suspect it is perhaps still too personal of a film for him to want to be involved in a full blown special edition with commentary, interviews, etc. Also - be aware that Cronenberg seems to have a policy of not releasing deleted scenes. He is very firmly of the opinion that when he cuts a scene from a film he has done so for a very specific reason and that it does not need to be there. This would apply to releases of any of his films. The only variants you are likely to see are if a film suffered from censorship (like THE BROOD), but the difference there being the censors either forced or 'recommended' (depending on the territory) the cuts, not the director, and this is simply a restoration of the director's original intended presentation of the film, not an expansion or recut.

But - being what it is is not such a bad thing - the SCANNERS disc looks and sounds pretty good and the print is in excellent shape. It is also quite inexpensive. The list price is $14.95, so you know that you can do even better than that. It is a no brainer - if you like this film, pick up this DVD - you will not be disappointed - it's the film and the quality of its presentation that really counts first and foremost.

Sorry to have gone on such a ramble regarding this one title on your list, but with the archives not being accessible to look for past comments on this film and disc, I wanted to offer as much information as I could. And by the way, should you choose to purchase this title online, DVDEmpire is currently running a special on many of their MGM horror titles -- 2 for $15, with their usual policy of buy 3 or more discs get free shipping. SCANNERS is one of these titles, as is THE BROOD, and several other good choices you may want to look at. If you do decide to take advantage of this offer, please make sure to click on the Mobius Affiliate link for DVDEmpire at the top of the page so that a small bit of your purchase will go back to supporting MHVF. The special is featured on the front page of their site. I hope that this helps you!

Wow! Thanks for the info; that's really interesting stuff! I love SCANNERS but never knew it had such a traumatic back-story. That's just the sort of thing a director's commentary is good for explaining... ah well. I need to read Cronenberg on Cronenberg... he's one of my favorite directors. And I think I will buy SCANNERS and some other titles using that link.

I would heartily recommend reading CRONENBERG ON CRONENBERG. I know you mentioned being new to DVD, but if you have heard one of his interviews or audio commentaries, you know that he is always intelligent, articulate, insightful, and informative when speaking about his films. The book is no exception, and in fact, is not only a fascinating but also entertaining read. If you don't already have a copy of the book, make sure to seek out the second edition (year published 1997 - paperback only for this ediition, I believe) as it contains a chapter on CRASH that was not present in the first edition. It is out of print at this time, but you may still find a copy at a local birck and mortar bookstore (I found a new copy of LYNCH ON LYNCH that way at a local Borders) or a used copy through one of the various online booksellers. Or hey - maybe even your local library - stranger things have happened!

DOOM GENERATION (full frame) should be readily available from on-line reatailers for under $15. I don't know that it's out of print, but it's a pretty dumpy release. Come to think of it, Araki has been almost totally shafted on DVD. It would serve, say, Criterion well to add some Asian-American filmmakers to their roster and bolster the queerpunk street-cred they got with their JUBILEE release.

It should be obvious, but if you are a DAWN OF THE DEAD fan, the only release that will sate you is the recent (and shockingly affordable) DOTD ULTIMATE EDITION including 3 cuts of the film, DOCUMENT OF THE DEAD and a wealth of extras both useful and frivolous.

DRACULA, was not among the titles that benefitted from upgrades in the Legacy sets. Clearly the Legacy collection is the way to go, with identical extras and the desirable sequels for the same price as the original issue. In the unlikely event that you only want the Browning film, a slew of the first Classic Monster discs are available used, no longer at the $50 OOP prices. Honestly, I still pop my old one in more often, in quick-fix situations: the cover art is cooler, and there is no ugly shilling for VAN HELSING.

There was a theatrical trailer for it,I saw it at the crossroad cinema in 1981, it was basically the same as the tV trailer, with the "countdown" approach. I always like the "teaser" 1-sheet much much better. The film did open number one on the week it opened, so it was another hit for Avco.

Thanks for those thoughts and information on SCANNERS, Rob.

I think given McGoohan's general reticence about discussing his work that we're not likely to hear his thoughts on the film. McGoohan's had a fascinating career. It will be a real shame if the man doesn't write an autobiography.

Yeah, the one site I checked said THE DOOM GENERATION was out of print, but it doesn't seem like it's too hard to find. I only wish it were available in widescreen.

Re: Cronenberg on Cronenberg, I heard a new edition is coming out which includes commentary on Existenz and Spider. I'm not sure if that's true or not, though... I read it in an amazon.com review.

RE: A Third Editiion of CRONENBERG ON CRONENBERG - let's hope so, Kate. I'm right there in line for it if it comes to pass as I actually really enjoyed the much maligned eXistenZ (by the way, if you really liked that film - don't waste your time on the US DVD, it is bare bones - the Canadian DVD is absolutely loaded with extras (including multiple commentaries and a great hour-long documentary on the production design work of Carol Spier) and a very nice transfer) and I also thought SPIDER was brilliant work - even if it was quite polarizing amongst Cronenberg fans (and I was amazed that it actually got a nice US DVD release, despite a spotty theatrical distribution here in the US). I count myself lucky to have actually caught SPIDER theatrically - not a soul stirred until well over a minute after the credits had completely rolled and the lights had come up in the theater - and then it was a silent procesion out of the theater before you would hear groups turn to each other to discuss the film, but not really be able to find the words because they were just shaken by it. The atmosphere doesn't have nearly that same impact on home video, but it is still fantastic work in any venue. Thanks for that bit of encouraging news!

Yeah, to be honest I'm not such a big fan of eXistenZ, though it's alright. SPIDER I really disliked until I sat down, read other peoples' reviews, and thought about it for a long while. I shortchanged it, not realizing it was much more complex and unique than I had originally given it credit for.

Have you heard anything about A HISTORY OF VIOLENCE, which is in production now? I'm excited!

eXistenZ is an interesting film. It's what I would call "Cronenberg Lite". It contains many of his most common themes but in a more overt and accessible way than most of his other work. That said, it was essentially my entry point into his work -- I'd only seen Crash prior to it and while I had enjoyed that film I didn't really appreciate it fully until I came to understand his work better -- and if someone asked me which of his films they should start with, I'd be tempted to suggest eXistenZ. It also contains a really fantastic performance by Jennifer Jason Leigh and some very nice examples of good integration of CGI into live action.

eXistenZ is certainly a more palatable to the uninitiated than a lot of other Cronenberg work, but, like Michael, it is Jennifer Jason Leigh's performance as Allegra Gellar that is a real standout for me. I wasn't impressed or unimpressed by the film the first time that I saw it, but the commentary tracks add quite a bit of background (and some of the offense taken due to misinterpretations of certain symbolism in the film in foreign markets is actually quite amusing). However, I would tend to disagree that it might be the first jumping off point for someone who had never seen a Cronenberg film basically becasue much of the disdain for it comes from mainstream audiences (the few that actually saw it, most on home video I'm sure) who said it was a thematic ripoff of THE MATRIX 'withtout any cool effects or fight scenes'. The huge point here being missed that Cronenberg insisted on every effect that could possibly be done as a practical effect rather than CGI being done as such in keeping with the fact that the pods themselves are organic, living matter, not idigtal devices - and because of that, they literally link the nervous systems of the game players making the game as Allegra says 'realer than real' - not the digital repesentations of reality in computer games, but a lfull sensory experience - stripping hte virtual from 'virtual reality'.. I actually have always thought SCANNERS was the best jumping off point because it can be taken at face value by just about any mainstream filmgoer as a sort of hybrid action/suspense/horror with shades of sci-fi but not enough to put most people off. But it can also be interpreted far more deeply if one so chooses. The only argument there is that the film may move just a little too slow for some shorter attention spans. I wouldn't change a thing, but some people start squirming in their seats if something isn't happening on the screen every 30 seconds. What you said about SPIDER I can understand - and you can understand it having left a theatrical audeince shellshocked I'm sure. My friend that I saw it with and I didn't really even discusss it until a couple of days later - it took some thought after seeing it to really absorb and process it. It is one that is most certainly not for the short attention span. I would never start anyone with CRASH, however - it can be a hard film to take for alot of sensibilities, even those of some that enjoy a lot of the other Cronenberg works. I liked it the first time I saw it, but it took repeat viewings for it to really grow on me and become more apparent as part of the sort of collective thematic psyche of most of his films.

That was actually the first that I had heard of A HISTORY OF VIOLENCE, so thanks again, Kate for that bit of information. Sounds promising - let's just hope with this one being bankrolled by a US studio that it doesn't compromise the film or lead to clashes between director and studio that hold up distribution. THanks to both of you, Michael and Kate, for those thoughtful responses.

Borders had two copies on the shelf today.

I finally saw SCANNERS last night for the first time. Best Buy recently had a sale of 3 selected horror titles for $20, and SCANNERS was on that list (I also picked up the SPECIES: SE and 1978's INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS).

I like the movie, but it's dreadfully uneven. The performances by Patrick McGoohan, Lawrence Dane and Michael Ironside are wonderful to watch; Stephen Lack's much less so--his acting is the film's biggest detriment. Jennifer O'Neill is gorgeous, but doesn't bring anything additional to the table; in fact, she seems miscast to me. I don't know how old she was at the time, but she comes across as too mature for her role. Gore fans will get a big kick out of Dick Smith's makeup effects, including what is probably to this day the greatest exploding head in cinema history. The climax is a bit of a letdown, mainly because it's confusing and I'm not sure what happened. I have a guess, but it doesn't feel consistent with what we've previously been told about scanners.

I wish a U.S. trailer had been included with the DVD, because I'm curious to reflect back upon how Avco Embassy marketed this picture. Otherwise, the DVD is a very good presentation of an interesting SF/horror film.

According to the back of Avco Embassy Pictures' original advertising manual for SCANNERS, a theatrical trailer and complimentary teaser trailer were both available from National Screen Service, while TV & Radio Spots were available from Avco Embassy's "Exploitation Department".

The advertising manual had all kinds of bizarre advertising and PR concepts to hype the movie, including running classified ads for people with psychic abilities ("You may be a SCANNER!") , having a red warning light outside of the cinema with a sign reading "Caution: Scanning in progress", and holding PR-related experiments involving college parapsychology departments.

(spoiler)

One thing I would like to have seen included as an extra on any DVD - the television material prepared by Cronenberg to act as substitute for the film's more graphic moments, specifically Louis Del Grande's alternate death by massive heart attack versus his cranial expansion demise. The TV version also involved more in the way of optical effects during the last duel between Revok and Vale.

I found the TV version of the end sequence kinda funny and cheesy, but it would be nice if they did include it.

As I said previously, the Avco campaign trailer was that of a countdown style, something like in 30 seconds your shake (shows action sequences) 15 seconds your pulse goes numb (show more action scenes) in 10 seconds, your head explode (shows explosion sequences of the gas station, etc).

FWIW, Mr. Lack currently lives in Upstate New York, keeps in touch with Cronenberg (at one time, Lack's artwork was under consideration for the Crash title sequence), and has no problem talking about his Scanners experiences. If Cronenberg was willing to participate, I'm sure MGM would have little trouble getting Lack and Michael Ironside to sit down for interviews.

SPOILERS!!!


I've seen the SCANNERS U.S. theatrical trailer many times at local repertory film events, where it always gets a great reaction. It's a red bander that opens with a heart rate like pulse streaking across the screen. That's followed by the entire landmark expoloding head scene, which cuts away right as the head blows up and goes to the whole 30 seconds, 15 seconds spiel. Great stuff.

I'm not surprised to hear that, as Mr. Lack has indeed worked again with Mr. Cronenberg (DEAD RINGERS), and it is my understanding that Mr. Cronenberg has quite vocally defended what many refer to as poor acting by Mr. Lack in the role of Cameron Vale as absolutely right for the character - the very 'detatched' performance (ever notice that his dialogue sounds far more post-synced than any other character in the film? I hardly believe that to be a fault in the sound mix since it affects no other characters nearly as prominently. I am referring to the original mono sound mix, of course - I'm not sure if MGM tampered with the sound mix (dual mono on the DVD) to minimize this or not - I'd have to go back and check) appropriate of someone that for 35 years has been unable to develop any sense of self due to being constantly barraged with the thoughts of others. I find myself agreeing with him - I simply cannot chalk it up to bad casting, but that the role was intended to be played out as it was. I would certainly also think that Michael Ironside would have no problem discussing the film either, as the role of Darryl Revok shaped his career and the roles he would play for some time to come and brought him to the attention of the American film industry. I would also love to hear what Lawrence Dane has to say - his performance as Braedon Keller is absolutely chilling to me. I've never seen him in any other films (including the highly regarded RITUALS), though I know he's had many to his credit since SCANNERS. Even though he has aged considerably in the past 20 years, I recognized him immediately when he guest starred on several episodes of the American version of QUEER AS FOLK as Jack Kinney, an alcoholic, abusive father dying of cancer - his performance was intense and chilling in a strange way for a show that was taking much criticism at the time for being too lightweight. Indications given here previously, though, are that he's quite the congenial man and willing to talk about his films. Again, I think the stumbling block for any forseeable future is going to be Cronenberg himself - and the two 'name players' that were used to sell the film at the time - Jennifer O'Neill (for reasons mentioned earlier), and Patrick McGoohan (which is a real shame - the man really brought the character of Dr. Paul Ruth to life).

So far as the TV footage, again, like with VIDEODROME, I wouldn't count on seeing it - nor for that matter the final climax of the battle between the brothers which never made the final cut. Cronenberg seems to be THE anti-revisionist director, and, except in cases of censorship, stands by the final cuts of his films as exactly what he intended to be seen. He even readily admits that sometimes he's criticized for cutting his films too tightly, but that they are what they are and that is what he intended for his audience to see. I think in the case of TV footage, he equates it to compromising - having to give a very begrduging nod to censorship, wihch he is vehemently against, to increase marketability for his producers.

The comments about the Avco Embassy trailer are interesting - because the TV spot (from Avco Embassy for the US market with an R Rarting) on the Image LD is nothing like what is described, nor like the UK cinema trailer on the MGM DVD. There is no countdown sequence involved, and the voiceover is completely different, as are the scenes used. From the sounds of it, it was not just an abbreviated edit of the theatrical trailer, but created entirely on its own. It seems to have been an advance spot to create some interest (which clearly worked - as mentioned previously, it was the #1 grossing film it's opening week in the US) because it ended with a 'Starts Friday at a theater near you, check local newspapaers for showtimes.' I also clearly remember there being radio spots played quite frequently at the time. Avco Embassy really seemed to be banking on the fact that they had a winner here.

It just really is a shame that we can't know more about it from those who were involved.

I bought the MGM disc of SCANNERS when it was first released, but had to return it to the store (twice!) because the soundtrack slipped out of sync midway through the movie. Every time I see a DVD of SCANNERS, I wonder whether the audio glitch has been fixed.

Since nobody has mentioned any audio problems in this thread, is it safe for me to assume that a working copy of the DVD could be in my collection quite soon...?

Andrew--

Can you give an approximation of when you lose audio sync? I can check it against my DVD as I wanted to go back and check and see if my perception that Cameron Vale's dialogue sounds to be more 'canned' than other characters in the film is still present in the sound mix on the MGM disc or if it has been balanced out. My observations of that being from the Image LD wihch was taken from an Avco Embassy print, with what is presumably no sweetening of the audio (in fact, some of the more 'shrill' sound effects still cause a little distrotion, even on the digital PCM tracks, so I am making an assumption that the sound is unfettered in that particular presentation). Also, it's not as common these days as it used to be, but some discs due to authoring decisions or mistakes (I guess which you call it depends on where you fit in the supply chain) do have glitches that are only apparent on certain manufacturers or even certain model players. Sorry for the digression, but let me know about where you remember things getting out of sync (and how bad) - and I'm assuming it stayed that way for the remainder of the film - correct me if that's not the case - and I can check my disc for the same. I bought the MGM DVD on the day it became available, so I certainly wouldn't have any 'corrected' disc if there is such a beast and could probably replicate your problem to see if it's the disc or the player.

A side note for everyone else interested, I did pull out the Image LD last night to check that my memory wasn't shot and that the advance TV spot is indeed completely different from the described US trailer (it is), but have never paid much attention to the fact that there is in fact a still on the back of the disc jacket from the filmed but scrapped climax of the final scanner battle where Cameron's head is obscured by sparks (supposedly after having blown up) - what's interesteing, though - is that he is on the right hand side of the still - if you crop out the left half, you have the shot of Revok that MGM's art department fiddled with to make their DVD cover (which I'm not a fan of) - so at the very least, they must have had access to this same production still. Why not include the still, even as an easter egg somewhere on the disc? A real treat would have been Avco Embassy's promotional manual either in pageable video format, or as DVD-ROM content - but I do wonder, not being a legal professional, if things like these promotional manuals, since they were generally original content created by the distributor, do not change hands with ownership of rights to the film because they were created separately. Anyone have insight into that?

I think the more you find out about this film, it seems to really be one of Cronenberg's greatest regrets (even though it was the film that made a name for him outside of Canada) in that the tragedies involved and the less than aimiable production environemnt have stuck with him. Despite the violent nature of most of his films, it is clear from any interview or commentary that he is indeed quite a sensitive, low-key guy and not violent or disaffected in any way. The exposure to real fatalities during one of his shoots seems to be a burden that he carries with him in association to this film. But the other thing he emphasizes is the rush on the production schedule to get the tax credit, and that the script really was not ready. It is clear that SCANNERS was a project that he really wanted to do, but not under these conditions - and compromises had to be made to something that was very personal to him (as it was something of a remake of one of his early underground films). Had the tax shelter situation not rushed filming and he had had time to get everything organized and exactly as he wanted it, I think SCANNERS actually could have gone from being a really good film to a great film. I think it's apparent in later commentaries and interviews, his style of filmmaking changed thereafter. He takes as long as it takes with his scripts now, he starts to work well in advance of production with his core team of collaborators, and generally has everything ready to go before shooting ever starts. Check out the documentary THE INVISIBLE ART OF CAROL SPIER to see just how prominent this is in the way he makes films now.

I can confirm my MGM R1 Scanners disc also has the dubbing problem. On my copy it starts from about the beginning of chapter 12, or 1 hour and 5 minutes into the film. It is extremely irritating once you've noticed it and obviously detracts from what is otherwise a solid presentation.

I don't recall the exact time (I no longer have the disc, or the player for that matter) ... but Graham's account of 1 hr 5 minutes sounds about right. It lasted for the rest of disc.

RE: The trailer differences...it's very possible that the shorter trailer decribed above is the green band version for general audiences (compared to the red band, R-rated audiences only one I described.)

Strangely, just last weekend I went to hear some bands play. Between sets they showed the SCANNERS trailer [with the countdown and the guy's head exploding, only covered in sparks so you couldn't see it]. I thought that was an odd coincidence, considering we'd just been discussing it!

Also, it seems the guy who had the trailer downloaded it off the internet, so I'm sure it wouldn't be too hard to dig up the different versions.

Checked my disc in all 3 of my players - including my oldest player, which ironically has never glitched on a single disc (a Pioneer DV-626D), a Cyberhome CH-500DVD, and a Philips DVP-642/37. Chapter 12 is when te fun stops on EVERY one of them. It's clearly the disc, and now that I notice it it's annoying to say the least. PRIME example is when Keller is interrogating Kim and she asks his name - his line 'Not Relevant' is heard an entire second or so before his mouth even opens - up 'til that point - everything is fine. Went back to check the Image LD to make sure it wasn't a problem with the sound mix and not MGM's disc - and it's in perfect sync there - and I can also confirm that MGM did tone down Vale's 'detatched' vocal character, though not entirely (it's quite a bit more obvious in the original mono mix). So we certainly have a 'sweetened' version of the original mono mix here (there seems to have been significant noise reduction applied and the very high frequencies seem to have been rolled off in the process eliminating the distortion they caused - not to jump off topic, but I noticed the same thing when comparing my old LD of SILENT RAGE (with analog tracks only - it's THAT old) - a film which also has some very shrill high frequency sound effects generated by analog synthesizers that can cause all kind of distrotion/clipping - to the newer CTHV DVD) - I don't know if it was during that process that the mastering engineer nodded off and let the track get out of sync or if it happened during the authoring stage, but it seems to be the disc and not player related. Wow, what a disappointment - now that I see it I'll never be able to ignore it. I've heard nothing of a recall and if it's true that MGM is being sold off to Sony/CTHV - I'm not holding my breath for a corrected reissue. I'm glad I held onto my LD, but sadly, in my comparison for the audio, noticed it doesn't look as good as I remembered it to have - at least not compared to the MGM DVD. It has very minor print damage throughout and the DVD does benefit quite a bit from the extra lines of resolution afforded by the anamorphic enhancement, but that audio glitch is going to nag me each time I watch the DVD from here on out.

As a last thought - last year SCANNERS was getting frequent play on the pay cable networks (after having practically disappeared from them for nearly 20 years) with the new MGM print (pan & scan, of course) - or at least it was preceded by an MGM logo. I wish I'd have known then and been able to look at one of the broadcasts to see if the sync problem occoured there as well (which would lead me to believe it happened during audio cleanup and is part of their new master). Haven't seen it on in several months, though.

Wow! If this is the case - how the heck could've Cronenberg approved of the latest DVD release of RABID, which he provides a commentary for? This transfer, while widescreen, is horrid, blurred, and looks mis-colored. I was really disappointed in this incarnation, although - because I love RABID - I got it anyway due to his commentary. While watching it, I kept thinking there's no way Cronenberg approved this...

Very sad about the SCANNERS DVD audio glitch...I had picked this one up, and gave away my old VHS. Hadn't watched the DVD past the glitch point yet. $#&%! Re: Patrick McGoohan, I could have sworn I heard he had died! Glad to see he hasn't yet left us. Re: Stephen's alleged Lack of acting (pun intended), I agree with Cronenberg, I think he's perfect for the character. Re: the never-seen final scanner climax, can anyone give me the details of this? Re: the film's most famous scene, it's unfortunately plagued by a huge continuity error:

SPOILER BELOW!






After the head explodes, a long shot of the table is shown, and there's no blood in sight. OOPS!

Chris--

Well, interestingly enough, I have heard the transfer he approved for Criterion's LD of CRASH (which did feature his commentary) - though I have not seen it - isn't that great, and not up to par of that on the New Line DVD. I would have to agree that the previous New Concorde DVD, though full-frame, and not great quality in itself did look better. You mention framing, and what is very odd to me is that on the new Somerville House DVD that the title sequence is framed differently if you select to view the film with the French language track. I really can't figure that disc out, to tell you the truth, but it raises the question - I think we all know htat this is a Canadian import disc, though widely sold in the US through a domestic distributor. Does Somerville House have distribution rights for all of North America or is this just a case of a US distributor shuffling along copies of an import title (sort of like Tai Seng does with alot of their Asian titles when they don't produce their own disc of it)?

The reason that I question this is that at one time I thnk it was assumed that New Concorde would hold distribution rights to THE BROOD since it was released theatrically in te US through New World Pictures, as was RABID. Then we get THE BROOD on DVD from MGM. But does anyone know for certain if Somerville House actually holds DVD distribution rights for all of North America or just Canada? And if only for Canada - just who DOES own the rights here iin the US, and more to the point, with this release crossing the border will they do anything with them? I think with RABID, and SHIVERS as well, for that matter, some hurdles to good transfers are - with the budgets that they were produced with, and being what Cronenberg likes to call his first 'real movies', #1 - Did they look that good in the first place? No amount of cleanup is going to make them look better than they were originally shot., and #2 - What is the likelihood that the negatives are still vaulted with Cinepix having been a low-budget outfit by Cronenberg's own admission and presumably lhaving long since folded.

Just some thoughts - I own both RABID discs - the US one for the better transfer, the Canadian one for the extras.