Emma Thomas Should Be Running A Studio • No Digital Window For Her Husband's Odyssey Means NO PIRACY • Extras And Aspect Ratio Revealed

All the discussion in the blog-o-sphere is, and will be, about the details of director Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey when it arrives in the physical media marketplace on Nov. 17.   But all of these discussions; the various debates over the details, will be missing one key, very critical point … 
We will get to that in a moment, but first … 

Universal Pictures Home Entertainment has at last revealed the specifications and bonus features for director Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey.   It has been no secret that the physical media launch will take place on Nov. 17, but the details were lacking.

We now know that the aspect ratio will 1.78:1 … purest cinephiles will take issue that it is not exactly the same as the IMAX 70mm theatrical presentation of 1.43:1.  That’s of little matter, this will be wonderful.   The 4K Ultra HD will be stunning.   Even the DVD edition will look great.

There will certainly be those who take issue with no commentary track from Nolan.  Three hours of commentary … tag team, cast, crew, etc., would have been nice, but if Nolan wants to take a pass, that’s his call; his film.   What will be included as bonus goodies is a 12-part “Behind-the-Scenes” presentation — a whole disc unto itself. 

 There’s also a featurette titled “The Journey of Film on The Odyssey” and the “When I’m Home” music video.  That’s a nice package.

For the record, The Odyssey has pulled in $623.6 million in domestic ticket sales and the ARR is 123 days.   There will be both double-disc DVD and double-disc Blu-ray editions available.  There will also be two 4K Ultra HD purchasing options — without or without SteelBook (although that ship might have already sailed having sold out the supply … at least Amazon.com has stopped taking orders for now).

And if you want to go whole-hog, there will be a premium gift set available on Nov. 17 as well.

OK, that’s out of the way … here’s the one thing that everyone is missing.

NO DIGITAL WINDOW prior to the physical media launch of The Odyssey.  That means NO PIRACY … no digital masters prior to the arrival of the legitimate DVD, Blu-ray and 4K Ultra HD versions from Universal Pictures Home Entertainment on Nov. 17!

Spider-Man: Brand New Day from Sony Pictures Home Entertainment — the only film to gross more than The Odyssey theatrically this year — opened up a digital window on Oct. 6 and immediately the “Helper” community (pirates, bootleggers, etc.) began selling DVD and Blu-ray editions … and will be doing so for ten solid weeks until the real physical media editions arrive on Dec. 15.

Toy Story 5 served up a 35-day window for the pirates to sell their own DVD and Blu-ray editions before for the real deal arrived from Disney on Sept. 26.  Consumer don’t know … consumers don’t care.   They bought it on eBay, it arrived, it looked good.  

We could go on … Super Mario Galaxy Movie, 28-day piracy window; Michael, 35-day piracy window … and on.

We’ve said it before.   Emma Thomas should be more that a movie producer.   She should be running a studio.  She knows what is good for business … for the health of the industry.  

Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment Targets Nov. 10 For The 4K Ultra HD SteelBook Debut Of Director Simon West's Con Air

The chatter in the consumer press during the summer of 1996 was all about who producer Jerry Bruckheimer was recruiting for his forthcoming action film about hardened convicts taking over a prisoner transport plane.   The director, Simon West, was an unknown.  He had done some music videos and a Budweiser commercial, but never a feature film.

While the director was making his debut with Con Air, the screenwriter, Scott Rosenberg, had cut his scripting teeth with Things to Do in Denver When You’re Dead and the cast — from top to bottom — was shaping up to be a dream team.   

Nicholas Cage had just won the Oscar for Leaving Las Vegas and was on fire with The Rock and co-star John Cusack was already a name, but it was the casting of the convicts that pointed to something special was on its way to the silver screen for action fans to enjoy.   John Malkovich, Steve Buscemi and Danny Trejo for starters (WOW!), plus the likes of Ving Rhames, Dave Chappelle and veteran character actor M.C. Gainey as “Swamp Thing” meant that this prisoner transport plane was certain to be one wild ride.

While Simon West was a newbie, Bruckheimer was backing him with no less than an eleven-strong second unit team, plus a crew of eight established production technicians to handle the aircraft live shots and all of the miniature work required to bring the final film production together.   Call that an insurance policy!

Con Air opened in June of 1997 (three months after the launch of the DVD format) and pulled in $101 million in domestic ticket sales — a smash hit!

The first physical media arrival for Con Air, the DVD, was 291 days after the film opened (March of 1998) … the first Blu-ray surfaced ten years later (January of 2008) and now word has arrived from Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment that a 4K Ultra HD/Blu-ray SteelBook Combo Pack edition will be available on Nov. 10.

Bonus features are a pair of vintage featurettes — “A View from Above” and “The Destruction of Las Vegas.”