Back to the Future problems

Movies 2 and 3 are improperly framed on DVD. Universal has to re-press the discs, and the new ones will not be available until late-February. Of course, since Universal no longer provides DVD screeners to online media, no DVD site was able to warn the public about the problem. Word to the wise--do not buy any Universal discs until you have been able to find some information concerning probable problems with their products.

Awwww......this is just so wrong! [:(] I bought the set on Tuesday but have not had the time to watch it yet.

Looks like I've got to return the set I have now. If you can't or won't return it, Universal will replace them for you in February but you have to send it back to them at your own expense.

Gotta put this reminder in my Palm: DO NOT BUY UNIVERSAL DVDs!!!!

Eddie, I know this is going to sound like a stupid question but what do you mean by improperly framed? Like, does that mean there's more black space on the top and less on the bottom, or vice-versa?

The movies were filmed 'open-frame', meaning, with 4:3 dimensions (the shape of each frame of film). However, Robert Zemeckis wanted them exhibited with a certain ratio. The new Universal transfers frame each shot incorrectly--the 'focus' is too high, too low, too far to the left, too far to the right, to thin, or too wide depending on various shots. Some visual gags are left out of the new transfers, believe it or not!!!

Hi, im new here, but I own both the region 1 and 2 sets of BTTF. Im sure I read that the framing issue applies only to a few minutes of parts 2 and 3. I tried to check this against the VHS versions I have and it seems that it may be right as I could not notice much difference between them.

Having said that, the region 1 set is awesome, although MJ FOX concersation is a damp suib.

I have watched all 3, and on the whole was pretty impressed with them.

But if its wrong, I guess its wrong. Ill get the replacements if they are offered to the UK, otherwise I dont mind sticking to the ones Ive got now.

Anyone being turned of from buying the discs due to this 'mistake' my advice is to buy them NOW, and exchange them in Feb. In the mean time enjoy the movies, they seem fine to me.

Anyone has the V2 or correct version?

How does the packaging look like?

I have the first release, but i assume the packaging is the same for both.

Does anyone know if these problems have been fixed and why some retail outlets are charging more for the Fullscreen than the Widescreen? I know its been over a year since this problem was first brought to light but these are a few of my favorite movies and I would love to have them on DVD. Best Buy (on their website) is asking $49.99 for FS and $39.99 for WS. Amazon.com is asking $41.23 and $19.59 respectively. What gives?

Michael

I'd say a bargain gives here, even if the cheap widescreen editions are the "improperly framed" versions. Go for it. I'd be willing to bet that you won't be able to tell anything's wrong, given that the different framing occurs in only a brief scene or two and looks fine in any case. I never even bothered to replace my discs when I could have done so because even from the comparison shots I've seen, the differences are much too small to fret over. A bargain is a bargain!

John

John,

Thanks for the input. I did some searching on the web today and found a page that deals with this problem. They said to look for the DVDs that have "V2" next to the bar code. This is supposed to mean that these problems have been fixed. I may do a little more research before I make a purchase. The prices for the trilogy seem to be more expensive in the store than online. If I'm gonna pay 39 bucks for a bad version in the store I might as well get it for 19 bucks on amazon. I also saw someone's review of the trilogy on amazon and they said that a new version of the trilogy will be released this year. Whether this means it is going to be a completely different set or the same set with all of the problems fixed, I don't know. If anyone has any information on this I would like to hear it also.

Thanks,
Michael