Just days ago, DreamWorks’ CEO Jeffrey Katzenberg commented that his studio was awaiting word from Toshiba about when that studio could pack up their HD DVD bags and go home. It appeared that we’d at least get Bee Movie from them, and who knows how many others.

Parent company, Paramount, had already indicated that they’d be making Blu-ray movies soon but had not said exactly when HD DVD discs would stop being released.

Well, we now have closure on the above topics. Video Business (from the same people that make the The Hollywood Reporter) is reporting that the Paramount HD DVD titles coming out on March 4 will be their last. Into the Wild and Things We Lost in the Fire are scheduled for release next week, and the article says that any titles scheduled beyond that have been pulled. This includes Bee Movie due March 11, and Sweeney Todd on April 1.

I’m curious whether they had actually started pressing any discs for Bee Movie yet, and whether some will leak out at all. It’s been common for discs to get shipped out around a week before their street date, which suggests they get through manufacturing at least some days prior to that.

Meanwhile, Universal has not indicated what their last HD DVD title will be, and Warner appears to still be committed to releasing discs out through May and some weeks into June.

• Paramount done with HD DVD next week at Video Business
• Paramount Stops HD DVD Production – much shorter article at Hollywood Reporter

The Discovery Channel Store is bringing back last week’s $29.95 sale on the US version of Planet Earth, and adding a promotion on Sunrise Earth: American Sunrise this time.

You can only get this deal through the various websites that are affiliates for the Discovery Channel Store (like this one). If you go to the site on your own, the discounts are not going to show up.

The US version of Planet Earth is not the same as the BBC version currently selling on Amazon for $55. Sigourney Weaver narrates the US version, and while the BBC version is 1080p, the US version is 1080i just as it was broadcast on the network. Because it’s the same thing that was on TV, each episode is also a few minutes shorter to account for where the commercials were placed. A lot of people have been willing to overlook these differences because of the $29.95 price, and they loved what they saw on TV.

The other promotion they’ve got is Sunrise Earth: American Sunrise for $35 off at $24.95, plus free shipping. Same deal on this set, you need to click through from an affiliated site instead of visiting them directly on your own.

Here’s the tricky part: if you want to do both deals, you need to make them separately. In other words, click on one and then complete it. Then come back to click on the other deal and complete it separately. You’ll see the free shipping and discounts on both only after the item is added to your cart. These aren’t being advertised at the site. If you’re having trouble seeing the discounts, then clear your browser cache/cookies and try again. I did one transaction in Firefox and another in Internet Explorer in order to see/get both discounts, and I tested the cookie clearing method in IE to get both offers to work. (How to clear your browser cache)

Here are the links (they open in a new window/tab so you can try to order both if you want to):

• Sunrise Earth HD DVD Set for $35 off at $24.95 and free shipping
• Planet Earth HD DVD Set $50 off at $29.95 and free shipping

February ends on the 29th this year, but something very, very important ends today, February 28: the 5 Free Movies mail-in rebate.

February 28 is the date that your qualifying HD DVD player purchase must show on its receipt in order to be eligible for the 5 free movies offer. All models of Toshiba’s HD DVD players, including the HD-A3, HD-D3, HD-A30, HD-A35, as well as the Xbox 360’s add-on drive are included in this offer. At the recently lowered pricing on these machines, especially the HD-A3 and 360’s drive, this rebate works out to be a really great deal.

In the case of the A3, D3, A30 and A35, HD DVD players, you end up getting two more movies in the box which nets you 7 movies total. The 360’s add-on drive comes with a remote control, and King Kong, and you end up with 6 titles in the end.

Also qualifying for this offer are several models of Toshiba Qosmio and Satellite laptops that include HD DVD drives in them.

You get to pick 5 movies from the following list of 15:

You have until March 31, 2008 to mail in your rebate, but do yourself a favor and mail that paperwork in as soon as possible. You’re already cutting it close by waiting until today, so don’t press your luck a second time. And finally, don’t forget that this offer will not be renewed because Toshiba has pulled the plug on HD DVD player production. After today, you only have the rest of March to find players wherever you can, and they’re likely to disappear after that except in the world of eBay and their kind.

• The Perfect HD DVD Offer – info and redemption form

In case you didn’t understand the headline, BFF is texting-speak for “best friends forever,” and recent comments by DreamWorks CEO Jeffrey Katzenberg in a Reuter’s article give the impression that his company’s relationship with Toshiba might have a certain component of that BFF sentiment to it.

Katzenberg said, “We have a partnership with Toshiba and have an obligation to see this through.” Acknowledging last August’s exclusivity deal, he went on, “As you know, we have been well-compensated for our support. It really is in their court at this point to really declare what the next step will be. We’re poised either way to jump into the marketplace when the conditions are right to do so.”

If these comments had come a month ago, we’d have lumped them together with those from Universal’s Ken Graffeo. But coming exactly one week after Toshiba’s announced exit from HD DVD production, these remarks are a little harder to understand. But then, we don’t really know what the terms of the exclusivity deal are other than the widely publicized $150M in financial incentives that brought parent company Paramount over as well.

An analyst from JP Morgan suggested that the market for high-def media is still small enough that it’s probably not a very big deal for DreamWorks to release Bee Movie exclusively on HD DVD and miss out on Blu-ray sales in the short-term. But look at it this way: (more…)

As the second week of big name releases in several weeks, this week would have been so much greater under different circumstances in the format war. While last week brought out only two titles, including the Oscar-nominated American Gangster, this week has over half a dozen movies.

The most notable title in the list is Beowulf, the Robert Zemeckis film, famous for being a really neat 3D experience in IMAX, and its “nude” shot of Angelina Jolie. I put that word in quotes because it’s just a computer generated version. There’s a review coming in the next day or two, so I’ll have more to say then.

This week also brings the latest installment in the Freedom series from Bandai Visual. They’re also putting out a box set of the first three episodes, which includes a toy vehicle. If you’ve followed this blog, then you know that I’ve always got a review of Freedom episodes as they come out, so keep your eyes open for that this week as well.

Starring Brad Pitt and Casey Affleck, The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford has quite the long title, and is Warner’s contribution to the notable titles for the week. The release slate is rounded out by a few opera and classical discs, and a rare martial arts flick.

Beowulf (2007) Ray Winstone, Anthony Hopkins, John Malkovich, Crispin Glover, Anjelina Jolie Rated PG-13

The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (2007) Brad Pitt, Casey Affleck Directed by Andrew Dominik Rated R

The Brave One (2007) Jodie Foster, Terrence Howard Directed by Neil Jordan Rated R

Vivaldi – The Four Seasons – Acoustic Reality Experience Not rated

Gustav Mahler: Symphony No. 2 Resurrection Mahler, Skb, Boulez Not Rated

Cecilia & Bryn at Glyndebourne: Arias & Duets (1999) Cecilia Bartoli, Bryn Terfel Not Rated

Rain in the Mountains (2006) Steve Piere, Audrey Seymour Directed by Joel Metlen, Christine Sullivan Unrated

Freedom 4 Daisuke Namikawa, Directed by Shuhei Morita Not Rated Freedom 1-3 Set with Vehicle Figure at dot-anime.us

Dragon Tiger Gate (2006) Chen Kuan-Tai, Yuen Wah Unrated

Amazon has had this 50% off sale for a few weeks now, and lots of websites that are new to covering HD DVD seem to think it’s a fire sale. Just a little bit of investigation would show that this is simply an ordinary sale where many discs are $15, $17 and $20 instead of closer to $30.

However there is a noteworthy development in this sale for this week. It seems that almost two dozen Paramount titles are now 60% off and selling for $11.95. The same titles are selling at DeepDiscount.com for $9.98. There are some pretty good titles in this 60% off club, so take a look and see if there’s anything you might like. All of these links here open in a new browser window that goes to the corresponding Amazon ordering page, and clicking on other links here opens that title in the same new window. You can visit DeepDiscount.com from the link at the end.

• Selected Paramount titles for $10 at DeepDiscount.com
• Amazon 50% off sale on 150 titles that the list above is part of
• 33 Warner titles up to 57% off at Amazon
• Previous post about sales, many of which are still on like these at Amazon and DeepDiscount.com.

Just about a week after Toshiba formally announced the end of their HD DVD player production, Microsoft has followed suit and announced that the HD DVD add-on player for the Xbox 360 will be discontinued. There had been rumors that the drive would start selling for $50, and those came true today as all the major retailers updated their pricing overnight.

The “non-believers” (people who never supported HD DVD and still don’t) will say that this is $50 too much to pay for technology that’s going nowhere. If you’re a little more involved with HD DVD, for example you have a reasonable collection of discs, there’s a whole other angle to consider.

The HD DVD add-on drive is actually just a USB peripheral that can even be hooked up to a PC. With the right software and capable video card, you can watch HD DVD movies on your computer, or let your computer pass the signal along to an HDTV. $50 is much cheaper than any of the internal drives made for the PC for this same purpose (usually because those internal drives are combo drives that also play Blu-ray discs, and can burn DVDs).

If you already have a 360 to hook it up to, $50 is now the cheapest way to get into the fading world of HD DVD. This may be more important to people looking for a way to have some sort of back-up drive in case their primary HD DVD machine breaks down.

Another reason to get this drive right now (as commentor Bob points out) is because it comes with King Kong and qualifies for the 5 Free Movies offer (if you get it by the 28th). That’s 6 HD DVD movies for $50!

Whatever your reason for wanting the $50 add-on drive, the time is now. Amazon appears to have sold out and is now offering them through their partner vendors, some of whom had not updated their prices yet. Amazon could also get these back in stock in case you’re patient. We’ve also had at least a couple of visitors to the site report that Best Buy currently offers this same price, and I’m sure it’s available at Circuit City and elsewhere for $50 as well.

• $50 Xbox 360 add-on at Amazon.com
• $50 at Best Buy
• $50 at Circuit City

Tuesday, February 19, should have been a great day for HD DVD fans because it marked the release of American Gangster. This movie was one of the bigger titles that would help shake us all out of the dry spell that begain weeks earlier. I was preparing to post this review then, but the news in the world of HD DVD was overshadowed by Toshiba’s announcement that they would discontinue their line of HD DVD players.

Since that day, many people have either decided to sell off their HD DVD players and movie collections, or keep them around while they bide their time until getting a Blu-ray player. People staying “red” in any way at all have at least a few months of interesting HD DVD titles ahead, and it’s movies like American Gangster that make it easier to put off that potentially inevitable Blu-ray adoption.

American Gangster has a ton of things going for it, and there’s little surprise that it’s such an eagerly awaited title on HD DVD. Academy Award winners Denzel Washington and Russell Crowe star in this Ridley Scott directed movie about the rise and fall of Frank Lucas, a real-life 1970s Harlem druglord who outdid the Mafia, and Richie Roberts, the police officer who brought him down.

The scenes alternate between following Lucas’s rise to power and the establishment of his empire, and the parallel story about super ethical police officer Roberts facing his own issues in life, while he’s on the trail of an unknown criminal mastermind. Neither figure knows about the other until later in the movie, and you’re along for the ride as these two worlds literally crash into each other. (more…)

With all the other news happening this week, I got behind on a few movie reviews that have been waiting on the sidelines. We know that the absolute end is coming, but there are titles due over the next several weeks, and the release slate contains many titles of interest to HD DVD owners.

I’m writing this on the day of the Academy Awards and two recent HD DVD releases are among the numerous movies nominated for an Oscar. In this first piece, I want to talk about a disc that was released a couple of weeks ago.

Elizabeth: The Golden Age
In 1998, the first Elizabeth movie garnered 7 Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture and Best Actress for Cate Blanchett. In 2007, much of the same team reunited for the sequel, Elizabeth: The Golden Age and Cate Blanchett has again been nominated for Best Actress for reprising her role as Queen Elizabeth I.

I like history, but I realize that most movies based on historic events or figures are usually going to bend the truth here and there in order to make the movie more interesting. Just as the first Elizabeth was chided for taking some liberties with historic details, so too has this sequel. If you can get past that, as I’m sure many North American viewers are likely to since we don’t spend a lot of time focussed on British history, then you can better appreciate the simplified themes highlighted from Queen Elizabeth’s life.

The tagline for the movie is “Woman, Warrior, Queen.” (more…)