Criterion Prices

[Jeff]

This may not be the thread for this, but Costco is currently selling The Thin Red Line, Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence, The Last Emperor, and !2 Angry Men blu-rays for $20 each. However, rather than Criterion's casing, they're in the standard blue blu-ray cases. I'm not sure where this is coming from, either, since two of these are from Hanway, one's from MGM, and one's from Fox. Anyone have information about this?

Regardless of who they're licensed from, all of those titles are distributed by Image, and Costco has non-Criterion Image product for a long time. What's surprising is that Image has gone to the trouble of printing art sized for standard Blu cases (presumabley to reduce costs), and that Criterion is letting them do that.

[scoundrel]

This may not be the thread for this, but Costco is currently selling The Thin Red Line, Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence, The Last Emperor, and !2 Angry Men blu-rays for $20 each. However, rather than Criterion's casing, they're in the standard blue blu-ray cases. I'm not sure where this is coming from, either, since two of these are from Hanway, one's from MGM, and one's from Fox. Anyone have information about this?

At my Costco (Delaware), I've seen them in the standard clear Amaray cases, so who knows?

[mfunk9786]

Is anyone else a bit perturbed that Pina is going to have an MSRP of $49.99 (had to clarify that it was the MSRP before someone went 'durrrr, you are gonna pay $49.99 for it? durrrr') because of the 3D disc, which for most people is totally superfluous? It's not like the disc is going to be a huge seller to begin with, seems like Criterion is shooting themselves in the foot by raising the price by $10 as if another disc of bonus features are included.

[knives]

Given the essential nature of 3D for the film it makes sense to have that second disc and given that that is their pricepoint for 2 disc Blus I see nothing to complain about.

[matrixschmatrix]

Oh, you're right- I got faked out by the $39.95 selling price on Criterion's site. Pina might wind up being the rare Criterion where the blu is available but I go with the DVD anyway, seeing as how it's practically half price- though with the way the coupons work for B&N sales (assuming they still do next year) the bumped up price might wind up not costing any more.

Between this and Dial M, I'm starting to wish I knew someone who had a 3D TV right now.

[mfunk9786]

Given the essential nature of 3D for the film it makes sense to have that second disc and given that that is their pricepoint for 2 disc Blus I see nothing to complain about.

It's their price point for releases with enough content to warrant 2 discs - but this is 1 disc worth of content on two discs, one of which is going to be a coaster for 99% of people who purchase it. Does it really cost that much to press the extra disc that the customer should be charged $10 more? The 3D obviously isn't 'essential' like you say, or they would have only released it in 3D and excluded a regular Blu-ray and DVD release of the film altogether.

[albucat]

Some people, myself for instance, don't get the 3-d effect and instead see a blurry mash of images and get a headache. So it's frustrating to have to pay more for something I would never be able to use. It may be "essential" to the film, but that doesn't make it any more possible for me to watch it that way.

[swo17]

I assume that 10 years from now I will accidentally have a 3D setup, simply because it will be next to impossible to buy a TV/player/projector that isn't 3D capable. So I welcome the futureproof disc. Also $10 extra ($5 on sale) on one unique title isn't going to break the bank. If CC were to start forcing 3D discs into every package and charging accordingly, then I'd be concerned.

[domino harvey]

Oh come on, considering most will wait for a half sale anywàys it'll cost you all of five dollars extra, if that, big freakin deal

[mfunk9786]

And even people who don't encounter issues with their sight would need to purchase a $1k+ television, a couple of pairs of $100+ glasses, and a new Blu-ray player to be able to watch the disc. I understand why they wouldn't want to create a third SKU for this release, I really do - but to bump up the pricepoint by $20 over the DVD for such a niche pack-in is a real fuck you to people who want to purchase the film on Blu-ray.

And Domino, I figured someone would chime in eventually to adjust for some future sale price, I am just talking MSRP and specified as such in the first post. The fact of the matter is that at any given time/upon release on Amazon or whathaveyou, you're looking at the difference between something like $27.99 plus tax and $34.99 plus tax for a disc that will be useless to most of the people purchasing the film. If people gripe about the inclusion of stuff like DVDs and Digital Copies that don't actually bump up the MSRP of studio Blu-ray releases, why can't I gripe about an arguably more useless pack-in that actually does raise the price of a release?

[knives]

Then wait for it to drop into your comfort zone for the disc. Complaining about something that ultimately won't effect you seems silly.

[mfunk9786]

But by Domino's argument - I'll still be paying $5 more. It's not the actual money - I can afford it (I think), but since when do people who swarm around an Amazon seller who accidentally mispriced thousands of dollars of merchandise not care about how much media releases cost? Perhaps Criterion should just increase their prices to $60 per title on the off chance that we can stack B&N coupons at some point during some unconfirmed sale to bring them down to $20

[knives]

That argument seems to be deliberately missing the point of what I'm trying to argue. That would be a radical change through their whole pricing system rather than them using their pricing system exactly as they've done in the past.

[swo17]

But by Domino's argument - I'll still be paying $5 more. It's not the actual money - I can afford it (I think), but since when do people who swarm around an Amazon seller who accidentally mispriced thousands of dollars of merchandise not care about how much media releases cost? Perhaps Criterion should just increase their prices to $60 per title on the off chance that we can stack B&N coupons at some point during some unconfirmed sale to bring them down to $20

In the time you've spent complaining about this, you could have gone outside and panhandled the $5 extra that you need to be able to afford this.

[mfunk9786]

That argument seems to be deliberately missing the point of what I'm trying to argue. That would be a radical change through their whole pricing system rather than them using their pricing system exactly as they've done in the past.

They've never released a 3D disc in the past.

But by Domino's argument - I'll still be paying $5 more. It's not the actual money - I can afford it (I think), but since when do people who swarm around an Amazon seller who accidentally mispriced thousands of dollars of merchandise not care about how much media releases cost? Perhaps Criterion should just increase their prices to $60 per title on the off chance that we can stack B&N coupons at some point during some unconfirmed sale to bring them down to $20

In the time you've spent complaining about this, you could have gone outside and panhandled the $5 extra that you need to be able to afford this.

The irony is that I'm not even going to be buying it - I just thought it might be worth discussing, I found it particularly off-putting. But hey, I didn't realize that we're all feeling so good about paying whatever Criterion charges - until the next Blu-ray that's low on features comes out and everyone complains that it should be $29.99, that is.

[knives]

That argument seems to be deliberately missing the point of what I'm trying to argue. That would be a radical change through their whole pricing system rather than them using their pricing system exactly as they've done in the past.

They've never released a 3D disc in the past.

And they have now set precedence using past precedences of two disc Blurays.

[mfunk9786]

Not to belabor this, because I didn't expect it to turn into a zany forum argument, but this isn't a two disc Blu-ray. It's a one disc Blu-ray and a one disc 3D Blu-ray release packaged together. 3D Blu-ray has a very small market share, an expensive buy-in cost, and a potentially shaky future. A 2nd disc with bonus features that can be played on any Blu-ray player doesn't have those impediments and is typically a welcome addition for most who purchase the release that it's included with.

[cdnchris]

In fairness I think all studios have charged more for the 3D/BD combos, and I can only assume that there was probably some other cost in including the 3D version other than pressing another disc, don't know for sure. Of course it would have been great if they offered an alternative non-3d version (like the other studios do) for those that really don't care, but maybe it's not worth the effort in this case.

[mfunk9786]

It's just a shame to see a niche release given another hurdle w/r/t potential sales figures. However, on the other hand, I suppose those who have a 3D set up try to snag every title released in the format, so maybe they'll break even in that regard.

[knives]

I doubt the release is all that niche as not only do you have dance people coming to this release, but even amongst casual arthouse goers this is fairly well known. I wouldn't be shocked if it wound up being the best selling release for January.

[mfunk9786]

I'd draw a Venn diagram that includes people who buy high price point 3D Blu-rays, dance enthusiasts, and casual arthouse goers, but it'd just be speculative. I hope the release does well, ultimately - and wished no ill will to Criterion or anyone, really, by posting my thoughts. I'm sorry to anyone I offended in perpetuity throughout time and space

[TMDaines]

I would probably agree with you, were it not for the fact that I don't really have any interest in this film or 3D as a whole.

[ryannichols7]

I doubt the release is all that niche as not only do you have dance people coming to this release, but even amongst casual arthouse goers this is fairly well known. I wouldn't be shocked if it wound up being the best selling release for January.

seriously. plus it was Oscar nominated. will probably be the biggest seller by a good margin. expect it to be one of the Blurays that Best Buy picks up because they know will sell.

[CSM126]

The idea that someone thinks the 3d version of a film shot with 3d cameras is inessential is bizarre. If it was a post-converted 2d to 3d film, then yeah it wouldn't matter. Personally I have a 3d capable tv and if I ever happen to get a 3d capable BR player, I'll be glad to already have the 3d version of this film handy. But that's just me.

[matrixschmatrix]

It seems like it would be more consistent to have three separate releases, a normal blu, a 3d blu, and a DVD, but that would probably be more trouble and expense than it's worth- so this is something of a compromise. Makes sense, though it's not one that works perfectly for me.