Well, dear readers, it’s very late and therefore I must write these here notes in a hurry although not too much of a hurry since I have a lot to write about. And they’re off and running. First, I had an absolutely restful and wonderful Christmas Day. I slept until ten-thirty (I didn’t get to bed until two), got up, answered a few e-mails and finished cleaning up. Then I did the four-mile jog, surprised that the streets weren’t completely empty – in fact, there were a surprising number of cars out – does no one stay home and celebrate Christmas anymore? After that, I ate a LOT of tuna pasta salad whilst sitting on the couch like so much fish.
Yesterday, I finished watching a motion picture on Blu and Ray entitled Fright Night. I saw this film during its original release and thought it merely okay – a good idea not especially well executed, but fun to see Roddy McDowell up on screen again, and a fun turn by Chris Sarandon. Somehow this sort of middling box-office performer (it did okay, but not much more than break even, but I guess well enough to do an even less successful sequel) became beloved by those who saw it at a tender age. The decade of the 80s is rife with this sort of thing – the generation that came of age then is like no other – they just LOVE anything they saw at a formative age – The Goonies – they LOVE it – it’s terrible, but they LOVE it. Those are the soundtracks that sell out in a day these days. Anything from the 80s and now that’s moved to the 90s a bit.
When Twilight Time announced Fright Night as a limited edition title the boards were rampant with spewing vitriol the likes of which were actually breathtaking. How dare Sony take one of the greatest horror films ever made (this is what these crazy people were saying, I kid you not – one of the greatest horror movies ever made – it is to laugh) and not release it themselves at a price of ten bucks. How DARE they give it to Twilight Time and how DARE Twilight Time limit it to 3000 copies and charge thirty bucks? They moaned and said they wouldn’t be buying it, but that they would if it were more reasonably priced, say twenty bucks. I began responding to these nutjobs at that point, merely pointing out the truth: If it were priced at twenty bucks they’d want it for fifteen. If it were priced at fifteen they’d wait until it was ten. Most wouldn’t pay ten, they’d wait for it to hit the five-dollar bargain bin. Which is why Sony gave the title to Twilight Time. They get a healthy royalty and no bother – no returns, no loss, no nothing. Because these entitled “people” have made the studio understand that it is futile to do most catalog titles, which is why you’re seeing less and less of them. But they don’t see it that way, these people. And the posts they make are so offensive and inane that one simply has to respond, although it does no good whatsoever and just fuels them on to further nonsense. Our very own JMK told me that you cannot win with these people and he was absolutely right.
So, these folks predicted a one day sellout and were incensed. And this chatter went on for weeks. Then pre-orders began. Guess what? Despite the dire predictions, it did not sell out in a day. It did not sell out in two days. It did not sell out in a week or two weeks or four weeks. And still they complained and still they yammered on about the injustice of it all – of course a few smart people were saying, “Hey, if it weren’t this way we wouldn’t have the movie at all.” People were also positing doomday scenarios that were hilarious – how, as soon as it sold out, that another company would immediately put it out, probably Sony themselves. I continued to explain reality and even said that Nick was a good friend and that we’d been in business together and done many projects. Well, people came at me and accused me of lying and just saying why should they believe me and on and on and on, and saying it really offensively. Finally someone figured out who I was (not hard – I wasn’t exactly being coy) and two people apologized for others’ bad behavior.
There was one guy who read a review that said the sound was less than stellar and he immediately began a crusade to crucify the transfer and sound and this he did relentlessly, even after people had gotten the disc and been very happy with it. For him, the sound wasn’t good enough, for him the image was okay but not great. The only problem was he hadn’t actually seen the disc. Oops. But he kept posting, and then when I came in after every post and asked, “Have you or have you not seen this disc?” he finally disappeared into the good night. Because these people, when proven wrong, do not have the simple human ability to apologize. They are sickening and everything that’s wrong with the Internet. They are loathsome creatures (not all – there are some very nice folks posting on various and sundried message boards, but these creeps run rampant) who suddenly have a forum to be heard.
It got sillier and sillier and when it was announced that only five hundred copies were left, it went insane. And one or two boards were completely responsible for the madness that ensued, because five hundred is, believe it or not, a LOT of product. It could have sat around for weeks or months. But these people single-handedly created a frenzy – it was hilarious to watch, trumpeting the falling numbers (which weren’t real) until people and speculators began buying up multiple copies. It became a feeding frenzy and a game and it sold out three days later. Then copies started showing up on eBay for sixty bucks or a hundred bucks. And some people were paying sixty bucks. They had FIVE WEEKS to buy the damn thing. And all this over a perfectly average film from the 80s.
And so, having watched this nonsense for weeks, I finally sat and watched the film again. And it is as ordinary as it was back in the day, and I perhaps liked it even a little less than back then because the music is so irritatingly bad and some of the performances are just dreadful. McDowell is okay, and Sarandon is really having a good time, but the kids are not so hot, and the director/writer never really delivers on what is a very good idea for a film. A few scenes work very well, but more often than not scenes are undone by really bad dialogue and pacing. But the kiddies who saw it back then or on cable LOVE IT and nothing will dissuade them from LOVING IT now. And that’s fine. One person actually posted recently that it was his favorite movie back then and he knew every line from the film, but in watching it again he actually had the honesty to admit it just wasn’t very good.
And then there’s the transfer and sound. If one thought these people were ridiculous about everything else, reading their posts about the transfer and sound were even more hilarious and stupefying. These people are all “experts” – they know everything because, you know, they own a Blu-ray player and have watched a few movies from their childhood. And several of them thought the image was average. And you just want to throttle them because they just don’t get that this was a low-budget film and this is what it looks like. And you know what? It’s a good-looking low-budget film whose transfer from Sony is perfect. It’s off the camera negative and I hate to tell these people from Boobsville that it looks better than the theatrical prints did. They also think the audio is average – it doesn’t have the PUNCH that their favorite bombastic movies from last month have. Well, guess what, boobs? It never did. It was a two channel stereo film. What would the boobs have them do, create a whole new mix so it can sound like these crappy films made today – bigger, louder, more blasting our eardrums? It’s not enough that a studio creates video and audio that is absolutely true to the film? Not to the boobs.
And there you have it – a perfect transfer, both video and audio, of a perfectly average film that has garnered more stupid posts than twenty other films – on one board it tops 2500. Rant over. Twilight Time has once again delivered a quality product.
After that, I ate a tiny slice of banana cream pie and cherry cheesecake along with a chocolate donut. That was bad, but that was also yummilicious. Then it was time to be on my way to see a screening of War Horse and Hugo. But since these here notes are already like War and Peace, I’ll save my comments on those two films for tomorrow’s notes – but just so you know, I really liked War Horse a whole lot, and I thought Hugo had some wonderful moments and too many not so wonderful moments, and that includes Sasha Baron Cohen’s character and everything he does. A major misstep for me and it stopped me from thinking it a great film. I’ll explain more in tomorrow’s notes.
Well, why don’t we all click on the Unseemly Button below because I really must try and get another good night’s beauty sleep.
Today, I shall hopefully arise after a good night’s sleep, I shall do the four-mile jog, I shall finish the rest of the tuna pasta salad and try not to succumb to too many desserts. I have one little errand and whatnot to do, and that’s about it.
Tomorrow, I will do a little work, some banking, some bill-paying, some jogging, and hopefully picking up some packages and the rest of the week will be about the same.
Well, dear readers, I must take the day I must do the things I do, I must, for example, do the four-mile jog, eat, try not to succumb to too many desserts and do and errand and whatnot. Today’s topic of discussion: Your Christmas Eve and Christmas Day meals – all of it, but especially the desserts.