Monday, February 8, 2010

Gladiator: take two?

9:56 PM / Blu-ray / 3 Comments

Source: AV Science Forum

A rumour posted at The Digital Bits suggests that, hot on the heels of Disney atoning for the disastrous initial BD release of Gangs of New York, Paramount are preparing to do the same for their own embarrassment, Gladiator.

I'm not going to jump up and down with joy just yet - I'll wait for an official announcement, not to mention viewer reports/screen captures - but this is very good news indeed, if true. Despite the negative word of mouth in the AV circle, Gladiator sold extremely well on BD, and was generally reviewed positively by the "mainstream" press, so it's not as if this was a PR disaster that Paramount has a pressing need to correct, as was the case with, say, Sony's initial The Fifth Element release. If they do end up re-transferring and re-releasing the film on BD, however, it will in no small measure go some way towards repairing the tarnished image of Paramount's prestigious Sapphire Series brand among AV enthusiasts. It's not my favourite film in the world, but I do find it incredibly rewatchable, and if the news turns out to be good, then I'll certainly be among those lining up to pick up a copy of the new and improved release.

3 Comments

 
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