DVD you wish you hadn't bought...

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  • George Bellefontaine
    Moderator Emeritus
    • Jan 2001
    • 7637

    DVD you wish you hadn't bought...

    I bought several, but the worst by far is:

    THE ST. FRANCISVILLE EXPERIMENT




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  • Andrew Pratt
    Moderator Emeritus
    • Aug 2000
    • 16507

    #2
    Titan AE would be on my list...its got awesome LFE and drew berrymore but I've only ever used it as a demo DVD :roll:




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    • Burke Strickland
      Moderator
      • Sep 2001
      • 3161

      #3
      I have a stack of marginal movie titles on DVD that I won't be watching very often, but can't quite bring myself to jettison (in some cases because no one else would want them). :>) However, the ones I really regret buying are a handful of films that got a lot of buzz either when the movies came out or when the DVDs were released but which I found, upon watching, that I really hate, especially given high expectations going in.

      If I pretty well know in advance that a given flick is regarded as a "bottom feeder" POS, then if it offers any entertainment value at all, it is a "keeper". But if it has been awarded the "Best Picture" Oscar and is still virtually unwatchable and unenjoyable for me for whatever reason, then buying the DVD was a colossal waste of my money, despite the high regard others may have for it.

      Here are a few in the "I don't care how much other people love these movies -- I hate them and wish I hadn't wasted my money on the DVD" category:

      1941 – If Spielberg hadn't already given us "Jaws" and "Close Encounters" before concocting this lumbering leviathon of boredom, we would probably never have gotten to enjoy "Raiders".

      A Beautiful Mind – It may be well crafted, but then so was the Titanic. (I'm referring to the ship, but if you see another connection, knock yourself out with it.) :>) The main character reminded me too much of an unbalanced person I once knew and one close encounter of that kind is more than enough. Jennifer Connolly’s lovely visage (and they even managed to make her appear dowdy) wasn't enough to save this depressing reminder that just because you're paranoid doesn't mean everyone isn't out to get you.

      Dead Men Don’t Wear Plaid – It may seem clever to insert Steve Martin into classic film noir-style scenes, but that's about it. He's been a lot more effective in a number of later roles.

      Dogma – George Carlin does standup in church Cardinal drag. Yawn. Ben Affleck and Matt Damon exchange lines like they are reading jokes out of their college yearbook for the first time. Can you say "wooden"? The story reads a lot better in the capsule reviews than it plays on the screen.

      Sleepy Hollow – If Tim Burton had actually used Washington Irving's classic story as the basis for his movie, it might have been a lot less annoying. As it is, the lead character is a foppish twit who makes the headless horseman seem charismatic by comparison.

      While I hated them, the above films are undoubtedly someone elses favorites. There is no accounting for people's taste. :>)

      Dishonorable Mention:

      Patch Adams - I don't really HATE this one so much as just wonder "why did I buy it"? (Probably to help out sales of widescreen editions instead of "full frame".) :>) If I had gone into this one thinking it was going to be a well-told and uplifting or inspiring story, I'd have been as disappointed with it as I was with the five listed above. But since I had a premonition that it was really just going to be a string of over-the-top Robin Williams sketches that merely purport to relate to a real life character, I had low expectations.

      Instead of a cohesive, believable story, this one sinks to maudlin pandering. But if you take some of Williams' comic riffs in isolation from the plot, (and they almost invite that anyway), they can be quite funny. Not really recommended, but I would probably sit through it again if a guest asked to watch it (and I can't say that about the other five named above).

      Burke

      What you DON'T say may be held against you...

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      • SiliGoose
        Senior Member
        • Aug 2000
        • 942

        #4
        DVD you wish you hadn't bought...
        Every new release that saw a "special edition" come out a month later! I have re-purchased more DVDs than I care to remember.





        -Sili
        www.campmurphy.net

        Comment

        • David Meek
          Moderator Emeritus
          • Aug 2000
          • 8938

          #5
          Bad Company is a REALLY sucky film. I bought it sight-unseen because it had Anthony Hopkins in it. THAT didn't even save it.




          David - HTGuide flunky
          Our "Theater"
          Our DVDs on DVD Tracker

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          Comment

          • Danbry39
            Moderator Emeritus
            • Sep 2002
            • 1584

            #6
            This is sooooooooo easy for me to answer:

            Blue Angel with Marlene Dietrich

            I absolutely love old movies, so when I saw this at Borders for like $5, I had to have it. Absolutely unwatchable (though I forced myself to). Worst vidio/audio quality I've ever seen by far. You absolutely couldn't even make out faces on some scenes. Arghh!!!

            George, it's like if you bought such a bad copy of Red River that Mongomery Cliff looked and sounded like John Wayne and vice-versa and it looked like a huge dust storm hit the cattle drive, when it was sunny and a clear day.




            Keith
            Keith

            Comment

            • Burke Strickland
              Moderator
              • Sep 2001
              • 3161

              #7
              Blue Angel with Marlene Dietrich...
              Absolutely unwatchable...
              Was this a Madacy release? Any DVD with their name on it is a POS, even if the movie itself is a good one. They scoop up titles in the public domain and, using goodness only knows what source materials, crank out cheap discs with crappy audio and video. Too bad they haven't been sued in a widely publicized class action for consumer fraud.

              Burke

              What you DON'T say may be held against you...

              Comment

              • Danbry39
                Moderator Emeritus
                • Sep 2002
                • 1584

                #8
                Nope, at least not according to the package, it's from some company called - Alpha Video. Somehow, I think it's the same type deal though. Actually, both companies might be labeled the Anti-Criterion with a icon like :evil:




                Keith
                Keith

                Comment

                • David Meek
                  Moderator Emeritus
                  • Aug 2000
                  • 8938

                  #9
                  Mentioning Madacy reminded me of another stinker. The Final Countdown which was FINALLY released by a mom 'n pop company called Pacific Entertainment, was simply the worst audio/video transfer I've ever run across. From comments on other forums, I think it was mastered from a VHS, but no VHS I've ever bought (or recorded at home) looked this poor.
                  BE WARNED! :smackbutt:




                  David - HTGuide flunky
                  Our "Theater"
                  Our DVDs on DVD Tracker

                  .

                  David - Trigger-happy HTGuide Admin

                  Comment

                  • George Bellefontaine
                    Moderator Emeritus
                    • Jan 2001
                    • 7637

                    #10
                    Yeah,Tex, I remember the fiasco about The Final Countdown dvd. I had that on order but canceled it after I heard about the crappy transfer.

                    Wonder if we'll ever see a decent copy of this. It was a favorite film of mine.




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                    Comment

                    • Danbry39
                      Moderator Emeritus
                      • Sep 2002
                      • 1584

                      #11
                      Oh, one more for me. I bought a three DVD set of 50's sitcoms, in large part because it advertised episodes of "The Life of Riley", which I absolutely loved growing up. Didn't get around to watching any of it for a couple of months, til one day, the mood hit. Even though it said episodes of "The Life of Riley" were included in the advertisement and on the cover of the set itself, none were to be found. Most of you are way too young to remember this sitcom, but it brought joy to my life as a young one. All I have to say is, "What a revolting development!!!"




                      Keith
                      Keith

                      Comment

                      • George Bellefontaine
                        Moderator Emeritus
                        • Jan 2001
                        • 7637

                        #12
                        Life of Riley ? Keith, you do bring back memories for me.




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