Ebert on Blockbuster

A. True, but Blockbuster has made a corporate decision that casts a pall over the emerging DVD market. The majority of DVD users want letterboxing, which is why most DVDs have been recorded widescreen or offer both formats. Now Blockbuster has asked manufacturers to supply DVDs in the pan-and-scan format and does not carry letterboxed DVDs in many of its stores. This takes me back to a day years ago when I had one of the founders of Blockbuster in my home and was proudly showing off a letterboxed laserdisk. To my disbelief, he did not understand the format and I had to explain it to him. He was a retailer, not a movie lover. The company follows in the same tradition.

Q. I recently rented the film ''Bully'' by Larry Clark, and was played for a fool. On the box it was given an R rating, even though I knew it had been rated NC-17. Yet there was no disclaimer on the box stating that it had been altered from the original. I went home to watch it and sure enough before the movie began there was a title screen explaining that the version I had rented was not the version the director intended to be seen! I was unable to return the film for a refund--nor would anyone else who made the same mistake! How could they market this film without a written disclaimer stating it had been altered, and why can't they carry the original ''Director's Cut'' as well?

Kevin Young, Whitman, Mass.

A. You did not name the video store. If it was Blockbuster, the chain refuses to handle NC-17 movies, insisting that R-rated versions be supplied. Blockbuster thus dictates both format and content. Imagine the outcry if a book store stocked only the Reader's Digest Condensed Book versions of a novel, and quietly removed all the offensive parts.

Excerpt from the July 14, 2002 edition of Rober Ebert's Movie Answer Man:

Q. "Be Kind--Rewind!" I've seen this label on rental DVD cases at my local Blockbuster. I asked a person who worked at Blockbuster why rewinding would be necessary on DVDs, and was told, "DVDs can be rewound so please rewind it." I asked the manager and he told me, "DVDs can be rewound like VHS." I e-mailed Blockbuster. They told me, "Most DVD players have a 'Rewind' button. What it does is spin the DVD the opposite direction from the play mode. It's similar to the rewind feature on a VCR." I emailed them and told them they were wrong, Blockbuster e-mailed me, "Sir, you are very wrong, please don't contradict what we say, we know more than you do about DVDs. Please don't e-mail us regarding this topic again." They were very rude. But I know that a DVD cannot be rewound.

Kun Sun Sweeley, Baltimore

A. Your message first appeared on a Web site devoted to "useless warnings." It sounded like an urban legend to me, but when I contacted you, you replied: "This is true. I have seen labels on DVDs at my local Blockbuster, asking for the DVDs to be rewound. The post that I wrote is true." I asked around, and columnist/critic David Poland supplied the likely explanation: The stickers double as magnetic security tags. The tags for VHS ask you to rewind. When they run out of DVD tags, they just use the VHS tags. What that doesn't explain are your phone conversations and e-mails with Blockbuster. Is it possible the chain has employees who don't know the first thing about DVD? Judging from their cluelessness on letterboxing, I think it's a possibility.

Excerpt from the December 15, 2002 edition of Rober Ebert's Movie Answer Man:

Q. Being a fan of DVD, I've been growing more and more uneasy with the saturation of "Full Frame" DVD titles into stores. Blockbuster and Wal-Mart are the worst offenders, rarely even offering the original theatrical widescreen at all. Does it cause you any worry that just when millions of DVD players will be under Christmas trees, people will still go on watching chopped-up versions of movies?

Blake A. Smith, Kitchener, Ontario

A. It does. The chains give their customers little credit for intelligence, and, incredibly, still believe many of them do not understand letterboxing. The obvious solution is to offer widescreen on one side of a disk, and "full frame" (sliced-and-diced) on the other side. It's my belief that no true movie lover has any business going into Blockbuster in the first place, since its policies have done so much harm to modern American cinema. By refusing to handle NC-17 movies, Blockbuster has all but destroyed the freedom of American directors to make studio pictures intended for adults. At the same time, by killing the safety valve of the "adult" rating, Blockbuster has contributed to the downward leakage of unsuitable material into the R and PG-13 categories. Thus it corrupts youth while appearing sanctimonious. A recent Boston Globe article by Geoff Edgers documents another Blockbuster transgression. Two of the most acclaimed recent foreign films, "Y tu Mama Tambien" and "The Piano Teacher," have been "sanitized" for Blockbuster. Edgers notes many cuts in "Y tu Mama" and adds that at the end: "The dramatic seduction scene is neutered in a way that completely alters the film." There is no point in seeing these films unless you see them in the theatrical version, so DVD renters should patronize stores that offer movies in their original forms.

Excerpt from the December 29, 2002 edition of Rober Ebert's Movie Answer Man:

Q. I work part-time at a Blockbuster Video store. I tried to get this job because I love movies and while the job didn't pay as well as some others it offered five free rentals per week. I completely agree with nearly everything you said about Blockbuster. If they didn't give me the movies for free I wouldn't go there. Because of all this, when I saw the Answer Man question about the spread of full-frame (pan-and-scan) DVD titles, I was thrilled. This is something that has always bothered me. I cannot stand to watch pan-and-scan movies and had always loved the fact that most DVDs came as letterbox by default. But you write, "The chains give their customers little credit for intelligence, and, incredibly, still believe many of them do not understand letterboxing." While I would love to believe this, I can tell you, the chains are correct in their assumptions. I can't count how many times per day people come up to me and ask if we "have the DVDs without those black bars on the top and bottom." The vast majority of these same customers have no idea and actually believe letterbox cuts off the top and bottom, not understanding that pan-and-scan cuts off the sides. I try to explain the truth to them but they usually don't care. The assumption that the general public deserves more credit is sadly untrue.

Mike Fortier Jr., Worcester, Mass

A. I can understand why people with small screens might resist letterboxing, which is why I see nothing wrong with offering the choice of letterbox on one side of a disc and pan-and-scan on the other. It would not be that hard to offer an in-store demo of the difference. Here, recommended by reader Joao Solimeo of Valinhos, Brazil, is a Web site with an excellent explanation of letterboxing: www.ryanwright.com/ht/oar.shtml.

Excerpt from the January 26, 2003 edition of Rober Ebert's Movie Answer Man:

Q. More about Blockbuster's refusal to stock widescreen formats: Earlier this week, I considered renting 'Unfaithful' at a Blockbuster and decided against it because, out of the 40 DVDs available, all copies were full-screen. When I complained to the high-school kid checking me out, he actually said that Blockbuster had no control over that because "they buy what the director wants the audience to see." I looked at him dumbfounded. Later, after I was able to rent the widescreen version from a local video store, I realized that I should have said, "If the director wants the audience to see a movie that is the shape of my TV screen, why on earth would he make it in the widescreen aspect ratio ?"

Katie Dahlquist, Austin, Texas

A. Blockbuster's policy is OK for people with small-screen TVs, but as screens grow larger and home theater systems more popular, it is lingering in the dark ages.

And you can add Wal-Mart to the list as well:

Excerpt from the March 9, 2003 edition of Rober Ebert's Movie Answer Man:

Q. I would like to "commend" Wal-Mart on their new DVD releases. There is a shiny, silver sticker that reads: "Special Limited Release! Formatted to fit your TV! No black bars on top and bottom!" It's bad enough that these morons disfigure artwork, but now they're using their ignorance as a marketing pitch!

Lee Stringer, Brampton, Ontario

A. In a few years Wal-Mart will be selling wide-screen TVs, and their customers will be bringing in those DVDs and demanding a refund because there are black bars on the left and right.

Excerpt from the May 20, 2003 edition of Rober Ebert's Movie Answer Man:

Q. I don't know if you've heard yet, but Blockbuster has changed its policy and is now opting for wide-screen DVDs when available. So congratulations. Scratch one more personal cause off your list.

Alan Podmore, Canoga Park, Calif.

A. After years of claiming that consumers preferred sliced-and-diced movies that were either (a) missing the sides, or (b) panning back and forth like crazy to see everything, Blockbuster has joined the 21st century. Blake Lugash, Blockbuster spokesman, said in a news story, "We try to follow our customer preferences. As DVD becomes increasingly popular, they become more familiar with the features and with the benefits of letterboxing. They've learned it's a superior format to full-frame." This implies of course, that Blockbuster knew that all along. I agree with Lugash that the best policy is a two-sided disc offering both formats.

Excerpt from the June 1, 2003 edition of Rober Ebert's Movie Answer Man:

Q. One of the things I love most about DVDs is that the studios will sometimes release two versions of a film at once--the regular theatrical release and the definitive director's cut. This means I get to see the film as it was originally intended by the authors of the film before it was watered down by the ratings boards and the studio executive brass with their marketing department. But why do the studios have to wait until DVD to do this? Why can't the studios release more than one version of a film into theaters at the same time--a version for teens or people who are faint of heart, and a version for those of us who can stomach a bit more "realism" or want to see the director's original vision? Curtis Hanson's "8 Mile," with Eminem, reported the biggest opening ever for an "R" rated movie. It seems to me the studio could have made a bundle more money and kept everyone happy by distributing two versions of his film.

Euan B. Sharp, St. Catharines, Ontario

A. Since then, of course, "The Matrix Reloaded" has shattered all records for an R-rated film. I was told by an exhibitor at Cannes: "Once you buy a ticket, we basically don't know which multiplex screen you go to." So those under 17 buy a ticket to another movie, then slip into the "Matrix Reloaded" theater. Of course, Warner Bros., distributor of "Reloaded," doesn't collect the money on that ticket, which may go to a family film. The ratings system today has little meaning, except as a guide to parents, who should not deceive themselves that theaters will, or can, enforce it. When the DVDs come out, Blockbuster refuses to carry unrated or NC-17 rated films, so directors of unrated films (like "Requiem for a Dream") are forced to create an R-rated version for the Blockbuster stores. It's not so much that the movie can't play in theaters unrated as that it can't get into Blockbuster that way.

Yikes! Add Best Buy to the list too?:

Excerpt from the November 2, 2003 edition of Rober Ebert's Movie Answer Man:

Q. Like a lot of people, I went to Best Buy to purchase "The Matrix Reloaded" on DVD on its release date. Just inside the front door, the store had a table with all kinds of merchandise that was free or discounted with purchase of the DVD. Next to the table was a display stocked with hundreds of copies of the DVD. Each one had a free bonus disc attached, as promoted by signs taped to the display. While the other customers swarmed over the display and grabbed their copies, I took the time to check these DVDs: They were all full-screen. In order to get a wide-screen copy, I had to actually go to the DVD section of the store and take it off the shelf. It was the same price, but it didn't come with a bonus disc, nor did I get any free merchandise with purchase. Are we to really believe those studies that show that customers prefer full-screen to wide-screen, according to sales volume?

Scott Hardie, Tampa, Fla.

A. This is a sad story. "The Matrix Reloaded" is precisely the kind of movie where you want to see every last inch of screen real estate -- the picture is jammed with details, and depends on special effects. For Best Buy to steer customers toward the inferior format is inexplicable. Even Blockbuster has finally gotten the wide-screen message.

Excerpt from the November 16, 2003 edition of Rober Ebert's Movie Answer Man:

Q. Scott Hardie's experience at Best Buy, when he could not find the wide-screen version of "Matrix Reloaded," was not typical. Best Buy always carries wide-screen DVDs and displays them properly. The bonus disc was available on both the wide-screen and full-screen editions. Most likely what happened is he went later in the day and the wide-screen bonus discs were all sold out. This is a fairly frequent occurrence as wide-screen DVDs just sell faster. According to the latest sales charts, this is now the case for pretty much all movies, even stuff like "Anger Management."

Daniel Rudolph, Cedar Rapids, Iowa

A. I got a lot of similar messages. Apparently moviegoers now prefer wide-screen to "full screen" (i.e., cropped pan-and-scan) by such a wide margin that stores are routinely left with piles of unsold full screens. My apologies to Best Buy.