It seems that Fox decided to release a "lean and mean" version of the film in its initial Blu-ray release. All that juicy Blu-ray disc space is dedicated to high quality picture and sound, so, although not in 3D, the film should look and sound spectacular on Blu-ray Disc. [update - Editor at Large Chris Chiarella agrees having spent some quality time with the disc. Check out his Avatar Blu-ray review].
And if you are one of those who likes their giant HDTV or home theater projection screen to be filled with picture, then you'll be happy to hear that the Blu-ray release is framed in 1.78:1, not the 2.4:1 version as seen in cinemas. But don't worry - this is not some horribly butchered pan and scan version, but a director and producer-approved HDTV-optimized 16:9 window on the film which, in most cases, includes more of the filmed (or computer-generated, as the case may be) image than was shown in the cinemascope version seen in theaters.
And while all that sounds nifty, the thought of plunking down $40 for an Avatar Blu-ray Disc that is eventually going to be, um... "supplemented" with a super-duper multi-disc special edition version, followed by a Blu-ray 3D version, followed by a super duper special 3D edition is tough to swallow. Fox is throwing in a bonus DVD edition of the film in the package, but still: $40?
Fortunately Amazon is making this whole thing a lot more palatable by offering the Disc at a full 50% below its list price - $19.99 instead of $39.99 - for a limited time. Here's the link:
If you act soon, you can actually buy it today and have it delivered tomorrow on Earth Day, the official release date. And if you buy it with one of a select list of other action films on Blu-ray you can save an additional $3.
And hey, if you decide to replace it in a few months with the multi-disc special edition, or next year with the Blu-ray 3D version, then you can always hang the shiny silver disc up as a decoration on that tree you planted on honor of Earth Day.
(Am I the only one who sees the irony here?)
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