Paramount Home Entertainment has formally announced an exchange program for Blu-rays of Gladiator, Ridley Scott’s Academy Award winning movie whose initial release in high definition was marred by edge enhancement and digital video noise reduction problems.
The Digital Bits received confirmation that a remastered disc will be available in the US and the studio will offer a “limited exchange program.”
The studio announcement shies away from admitting that their initial disc was defective, instead saying that some customers may have had “preferential issues with some of the technical DVNR (digital video noise reduction) and EE (edge enhancement) choices made in the original source transfer, and so would prefer to exchange it for one that addresses those preferences in a different manner. While the version that we originally distributed was of the highest quality, some enthusiasts may prefer to view it without the Edge Enhancement and DVNR implemented as standard process in bringing the film to hi-def. This new master resolves those issues.”
Way to save face Paramount. Next you’ll be issuing statements that critics may have had “preferential issues” with the quality of The Last Airbender, thus explaining the drubbing the film received.
Those customers who had “preferential issues” with the original disc can receive a replacement disc by calling Paramount Home Entertainment’s service hotline number at 323-956-3010 for instructions.
For those who don’t yet own a copy of the disc, future editions of Gladiator on Blu-ray will include the new transfer. My advice is to hold back on buying the disc for a few months until the new editions roll into your neighborhood store. For all other countries, the new disc is gradually being rolled out in each region by Universal.
