Look, folks, I'm right there with ya. If you told me to name the last film I'd ever want to see, a bio pic of Tonya Harding would be right at the top of my list. But, man oh man, this movie is so good! I'd say "believe the hype," but the hype doesn't even do this movie justice. I've heard I, Tonya described as Goodfellas on ice, and yeah man, that really nails the feel of this movie. It's both ingeniously entertaining and yet runs deeper than you'd ever have thought possible of the source material. When I first heard of it, I was happily going to pass over this movie. But I read enough good things from people whose opinions I respect that I decided, fine, I'd check it out online. Half way through, I had to pause and look up release dates, because I knew I needed this movie in my collection. And this week, it's finally landed: a pretty strong blu-ray/ DVD combo pack edition from Universal. And I loved it even more the second time!
You don't need to give a single crap about The Olympics or ice skating, or even the famous scandal to get into this movie. It's just a terrific crime flick. It's a genuine human drama that's too whip smart not to also double as a hilarious comedy. And don't worry, you're not being asked to like Tonya Harding. But while this film may not be a perfect factual account of events - it's based on contradictory testimony of the people involved, and we're even given full-screen first person interviews to the camera (inspired by The Thin Blue Line) where characters deny events we see onscreen - you'll definitely come away with a deeper understanding of her and why everything they turned out the way it did.
I, Tonya (the title of which I assume is a riff on I, Claudius) gave me something to root for at The Oscars, which often feels like we're just weighing nine different sacks of Hollywood pap against each other. Allison Janney absolutely deserved her win for supporting actress, and while it's nice that Margot Robbie got nominated for her role, too; everything shook out the way it was supposed to. I'm really glad this film showed clips of the actual footage of the real people this is based on in the closing credits, because some of the supporting cast could be perceived as going over the top, or playing for comic effect; but we see they really nailed it. We saw the same kind of thing in other films, like Disaster Artist, but I don't think I've ever seen it have as much impact as it does here/
But it's not just the acting and clever writing. This film is invested with so much style, that's really where the Goodfellas comparisons come in. Stylish shots, impressive long takes and camera moves, big soundtrack drops. I, Tonya is definitely one of those rare movies that can be described as "firing on all cylinders." Like if Mad Max: Fury Road was also a tragically relatable Boys Don't Cry-like examination of the plight of modern American girls. It certainly doesn't softball any of the story's heavier issues. I've seen most of the work of both writer Steven Rogers and director Craig Gillespie, and I can't say I've ever been terribly impressed with either of them. ...To the point where I'd almost write them off as just bad filmmakers. But they have both really risen far above their stations here and brought out new heights in each other's work. I don't know if they'll ever be able to follow this up, or if they just caught lightning in a bottle this once, but I have newfound respect for them now, so I'll be checking in on them again for sure.
Universal 2018 DVD on top; Universal 2018 blu-ray beneath.
This film was shot on 35mm film, and then delivered digitally because of the extensive CGI effects. And that urns out great on this blu, with a distinctly classic grainy look beautifully blended with not only the effects but CG color timing and other work they've surely done to the film. Compare this to the recently released Wonder Wheel, which looks beautiful; but up close, I, Tonya looks more like a "movie." The film is presented in a very wide 2.39:1, and naturally the DVD matches the blu, except for a softer lack of fine detail. The blu-ray's a beaut, and given a powerful 5.1 mix in DTS-HD along with optional English subs.
And while this release falls a little short of a packed special edition - what can you expect from the big studios these days? - we actually get some decent extra stuff here. First and foremost we get an informative but low energy audio commentary from the director. Ha delves into the technicalities and covers various aspects of the film. Then there are five featureless, which get increasingly interesting. They start out as pretty disposable, standard fare promos, essentially trailers for the film with interview soundbites interjected. It's nice to hear Robbie speaking with her natural accent as a comparison and stuff, but basically it's just fluff. Then they start to get more specifically into the director and the true story behind the film, which is more interesting but all too brief to really sunk your teeth into. But finally the fifth featurette is still short, but cuts all the repetitious promo clips from the film and just takes a serious look at the special effects work that went into getting some of the seemingly impossible skating shots. Robbie getting her head scanned inside a giant ball of lights looks like something out of 2001!
There's also a nice collection of deleted scenes, some of which make nice little additions to the bigger picture or provide additional laughs. The last one is actually a long, unedited collection of takes of Paul Hauser recreating one of Shawn Eckhardt's infamous television interviews. Again, while it's unquestionably enjoyable and works for the film, you might be tempted to dismiss the portrayal as too silly, like something out of Mallrats, until you've seen the actual footage of the real guy. So, anyway, you get all that, plus a couple trailers for the film; plus it comes in a nice, embossed slipcover. So it's heartening to see that Universal took a little extra time to do this one right. Sure, there's no eight-hour Lord Of the Rings-style appendix documentary, but it's pretty well kitted out.
So, if you can't tell, I highly recommend the film and am quite happy with Universal's release. Sure, there's room to expand if Criterion decides to release a fancy 4k signature edition ten years down the line. But what we've got now is already better than what the major studios give most of their new releases these days. In short, it's all good news.
A few posts ago, I mentioned that if you're a serious Larry Cohen fan, you have to be prepared to track
down obscure imports and MOD
discs from the various major studios. Well, today we're going to look at a film that's been released as both; and the definitive version switched from one to the other. I'm talking about 1990's amusing thriller The Ambulance.
Update 2/9/15 - 3/15/18: "Obscure imports and MOD discs" are for suckers; just get the blu-ray! Okay, no, there are obviously still some terrific, definitive obscure imports and even a few MODs... But since my initial post, this film has finally gotten some proper love from our friends at Scream Factory. So it's definitely time to reassess The Ambulance situation.
I'm pretty sure everybody who's ever seen The Ambulance has liked it. For non-Cohen fans it's probably just a faded memory of a flick they caught on cable or a weekend rental from Blockbuster, but a pleasant one. A movie that was just a little bit better than most of the others. It's not a showy movie; it's not a great work of art or anybody's favorite. I was going to say it's not ambitious, but actually, considering the cast they enlist even for the small roles, and some of the stunts they go for on an indie budget - they get several live horses running loose for one quick moment just to add a little extra excitement. So it is ambitious, and that's a big part of it's charm. While they could have easily gotten away with a very obvious, generic thriller, they take every opportunity surprise with a great line, creative plot twist, clever character moment and pretty much just making every moment better than you'd expect.
It's a charming story of Eric Roberts (in a complete 180 from the last film I just wrote about him in) as a lovesick comic book writer who falls for a woman he sees walking in the city streets during his lunch breaks. He finally gets up the nerve to talk to her when she passes out. An ambulance comes and collects her before he can get her last name, and the story is his journey to find her and make sure she's alright. But he has no idea just how sinister the ambulance to took her really is. It's such a great cast, from the major roles: Roberts, James Earl Jones, The Young & The Restless's Eric Braeden as the sinister villain and a surprisingly good turn by Red Buttons as a news reporter who gets wind of the story. To the small parts: Stan Lee as himself (Roberts' character doesn't just work for a generic comic book company, but Marvel Comics! Look for more authentic Marvel guys in the background), radio host Tim Byrd, Richard Bright and of course Cohen staple James Dixon.
So, for almost a decade, The Ambulance, like Full Moon High, was only available on Australian DVD. In fact, it was from the same company: Shock. Somebody over there must be a real Larry Cohen fan. Unlike Full Moon High, however, it was just a fullscreen transfer. But eventually, in 2011, MGM released it as one of their MOD discs. And happily, their disc is anamorphic widescreen, slightly letterboxed to a proper 1.85:1. The MOD opens with a message stating that, "[t]his film has been manufactured using the best source material available." That had me expecting a damaged print or something; but it actually looks pretty fine for the most part. There is an issue or two, though, that I reckon it's in reference to. But that's all academic now, anyway, because just this week, Scream Factory has put it out on blu-ray!
Shock's 2003 DVD on top; MGM's 2011 MOD mid; Scream Factory's 2018 blu bottom.
The upshot for owners of the Shock disc, as you can see, is that it's open matte. Nothing was chopped off the sides or anything. And for the most part, it otherwise looks like the same transfer; the MOD just matted to 1.85:1. It's clearly the right way to view the film however; there's a lot of excess headroom on the Shock disc, and the framing just looks so much more artfully composed on the MOD. And that winds up becoming one more aspect that works in this film's favor, making it all the more enjoyable. But let's get back to that warning. Here's why it's probably there: their disc is interlaced, as you can clearly tell by the ghosting in the second set of shots. Why? Did they take it from a PAL source? Was the best source material available... Oh jeez, I think it was. I think they only had Shock's PAL transfer (MGM was also involved with that disc) - or perhaps just weren't willing to pay to scan the film elements again for this new release; but their message promises us they used the best they had - and so they just transferred it to NTSC and matted it. ((sigh))
But thank goodness, we no longer have to choose between a burned, interlaced disc and an old PAL DVD in the wrong aspect ratio. Scream Factory solves all of those issues, also giving us a nice boost in the clarity department by bringing the film to HD! And just look at the posters on the wall behind Megan Gallagher; they're so much clearer. Oh, and while you're looking at those posters, you've probably noticed something else. While Scream's disc is still slightly matted to a 1.85:1 aspect ratio, they've clearly uncovered a little more information around all four sides. And while both DVDs featured the stereo track, the blu bumps it up to DTS-HD, and also kicks in optional English subtitles.
If you're looking tor extras, I can start by telling you there's none to speak of on either DVD. There's literally nothing on the MOD disc; even the menu is generic and the chapters are just randomly generated at 10 minute intervals. And the Shock release is almost as barren, not even a trailer, despite some misleading packaging. In fact, look at this:
You'd think from reading the above that the theatrical trailer might be included for this film? Ha ha ha.... So naive! No, it's not here, though there are bonus trailers for Vampire's Kiss and Monkey Shines. The photo gallery is on there, at least. It's mostly just stills from the film, but there is a nice shot of Cohen directing the actors. But yeah, that's pretty desperate at this point. There's essentially no bonus features of value on either disc.
But on the blu? Yeah, we've got an audio commentary by Larry Cohen (and moderated by King Cohen director Steve Mitchell). Larry Cohen commentaries are always great, and this one's certainly no exception. He's very enthusiastic about this film, calling it one of his favorites, and fills the track to the brim with great filming stories. Also, there's a better stills gallery and finally, the trailer. Scream also includes reversible artwork, with that same original artwork the previous DVDs had.
So yeah, I highly recommend the film for any Larry Cohen fan who hasn't seen it yet, and casually recommend it to anyone interested in an inexpensive B-movie for a good time.It's worth noting, though, that before Scream put this out on blu in the US, a couple other countries beat them to the bunch. And most notably Koch in Germany released a mediabook that not only has a Cohen commentary, but a unique 70ish minute interview with Cohen, which is apparently more of a career retrospective. So if you really want to go all out, you might prefer to import. But I imagine most horror fans will be perfectly happy to just get this new Scream blu and call it a day. I mean, even I was, and look who's talking here.
Boy, people really are missing how good this movie is. And please don't get me wrong. If you're against supporting Woody Allen given Dylan Farrow's recently re-stated allegations against him, I'm not about to try and change your mind. Unlike a lot of cases, where the accused was either convicted or confessed, it's tough to decide upon a final opinion in this case. I don't want to influence anyone from trusting their instincts here; I just want be sure people are making an informed decision strictly in terms of the merits of this film. Because all the reactions I've read strongly suggest Wonder Wheel is just another lower tier effort, a disposable weak entry in Allen's extensive catalog; and that's just not the case. It's a flat-out good movie. I mean, obviously, it's not for everyone. If you tell your tweens you're going to see Black Panther and then shove them into a screening room for this, I'm not suggesting they'd thank you for it. But if it matters to you whether Wonder Wheel (and/ or Universal's blu-ray release) is actually any good or not, then let's have a look.
Update 3/14/18 - 3/28/18: Gotta be pro. Added the DVD edition for a proper comparison.
Admittedly, it asks a lot. Like I mentioned in my review of one of Woody Allen's last pictures, he's happy to wear his influences on his sleeve. It's more than homage - we're meant to be in on it. It's part of the experience, from the 8 1/2 experience of Stardust Memories to the wild notion of him breathing life into the famous manual Everything You Ever Wanted To Know About Sex But Were Afraid To Ask; these are the toys we're invited to play with Woody, combining his distinct humor and point of view with the source material. And in Wonder Wheel, O'Neil is mentioned in this script more than some of the main characters. Our protagonist narrator even turns to the camera to prepare us, "be warned, as a poet, I use symbols; and as a budding dramatist, I relish melodrama and larger than life characters." So really the question may be more about how interested are audiences in a theatrical (in the sense of the stage) story like that in 2018.
Not that I'm saying the film is immaculate perfection. Having that kind of set-up doesn't future proof the film from criticism anymore than having Mark Duplass turn to the camera in his first scene and saying, "this film is packed full of aborted ideas and plot contrivances that never go anywhere" would force us to regard The Lazarus Effect as an unparalleled work of genius. You could just as well tell a great melodrama with larger than life characters or a terrible one. In fact, over the years, more filmmakers have probably done the latter. But this film has a lot going for it. Kate Winslet gives an award-worthy performance (and this is really her story), and Jim Belushi, hot after a winning role in Twin Peaks: The Return, still nearly manages to steal every scene.
The supporting cast is quite strong, too. Juno Temple holds her own against some major actors, the kid, in his small role, is hilariously written and played; and if you keep your eyes on the bit players, you'll spot a few Allen regulars, like comic Bobby Slayton, The Sopranos' Steve Schirripa, David Krumholtz and even Debi Mazar. Justin Timberlake is the weakest link. I've been impressed with him inThe Social Network and Alpha Dog, but here he seems to struggle to speak in the style of the period. The 50's era Coney Island location is great, and I can tell you from my dad's reaction, pure, uncut nostalgia porn for a select demographic. The blue and gold color scheme does come dangerously close to going over the top at points, but overall Vittorio Storaro's photography is elegant and absorbing. And it's impressive how much use Allen is able to make out of a single, old Mills Brothers tune (it's not the only song in the film, but it almost feels like it).
So, this is Allen's latest film with Amazon Studios, and this time the DVD and blu-ray are from Universal. Last time they were from Lions Gate and the time before that they were from Sony. I guess things are a little catch as catch can with him over there, but hey, I'm happy just to still get a properly pressed blu with a minimal token special feature (this is Woody Allen we're talking here). And Universal's bid has substantially lowered the initial asking price, so it's all good news. While we're at it, can we get a disc for Crisis In Six Scenes, too?
2018 US Universal DVD top, 2018 US Universal blu bottom.
This time around, it's not a combo-pack, so we've just got a blu. Woody did shoot this on film, so this is a pretty straight-forward port of their DI to disc. The only way you could really expect more is if they were to give us a 4k disc (yes, please! But it was hardly like in this small film's case). Colors are certainly strong, the image is sharp when it wants to be. There seems to be a soft film grain effect added to the feature, I guess to give it a more traditional feel, but that's down to the film itself, not Universal's blu-ray presentation. The same can be said for the film's unusual aspect ratio: 2.0:1. It's apparently a trending ratio that ties in with this film's DP, Storaro. Interesting stuff; but anyway, it looks and sounds pretty great, with a dual-layer disc, while the DVD's predictably softer and less clear.
The blu features a DTS-HD 5.1 mix, while the DVD gives you a choice between lossy 5.1 and 2.0 mixes. And both include optional English subtitles.
Well, maybe they did on the special features. This is Woody, so we're used to that; but the sole feature here is a very brief, 3 minute featurette that cuts together footage of a cast and crew Q&A with a few red carpet soundbites. Still, it's worth the watch. Timberlake enthuses about how Wonder Wheel is like a play on locations. But that's it; not even the trailer. I'm a little surprised they left off the trailer, but whatever. This does come in a slipcover, though, so there's that. But then again, it just reminds me of the far superior poster art [right] they forsook at the last minute in favor of the typical Hollywood "big head" art for both the cover and the slip. Oh well.
So, okay, this is no special edition. That was never in the cards anyway. But this is a first class, high quality presentation of the film. And that's fitting, because it's a first class, high quality film. So add it to your collection or don't. But don't let 'em tell ya you're not missing anything.
Brand new from the Warner Archives, it's the HD home video debut of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 3: Leatherface. The first Leatherface from 1990, not the 2017 one. Yeah, the remakes have even started cribbing the previous films' sub-titles; and no, the 2017 is in no way a remake of the 1990 version - all they have in common is the titular character and some basic themes. So I guess it's really kind of an arbitrary distinction calling the films after The Return remakes. They're just... some more Texas Chainsaw movies.
Update 3/6/2018: A mysterious oval appears!? Scroll down to the very bottom of this post for some additional discussion (and screenshots!) about the reports of a faulty oval people have been reporting during the night shots of Warner's new blu.
Anyway, I've always liked TCM3. It's the first non-Hooperinstallment, and some ambitious elements from the original script were never filmed. Plus, the theatrical version was heavily cut, so I can see why it had a rough time winning audiences. But especially since we got the unrated version (first we got a restored, unrated cut on laserdisc... then the DVD restored even a bit more footage), Leatherface holds up as a pretty effective, bloody horror film in its own right. It's directed by Jeff Burr, a Texan director who made From a Whisper To a Scream and a fairly satisfying sequel to The Stepfather, and for a New Line franchise film, plays things refreshingly straight.
In theory, this is a direct sequel to the third film, if you can accept that Leatherface somehow found an equally murderous, cannibalistic family to adopt him and grandpa after the events of TCM2. "Like attracts like," explains screenwriter David J. Schow in the special features. Caroline Williams even returns in a silent cameo as Stretch. But anyway, this film begins a tradition of Leatherface finding himself with a brand new killer family in every subsequent film. This time he's got psycho parents, a wicked killer little girl, a Chop Top-reminiscent cousin who runs the local gas station and Viggo Mortensen as his brother Tex. Meanwhile, our protagonists the She-Wolf of London herself, Kate Hodge, and Ken Foree ofDawn Of the Dead. So overall, it's a very strong cast delivering a series of memorable performances, with Mortensen and the little girl stealing the show, and only Foree phoning it in a little bit (when a new character reveals herself, he says, 'who the heck are you," exasperated and showing no signs that he just barely survived a jump attack by a psychotic chainsaw-wielding maniac wearing human skin for a mask literally seconds earlier).
Story-wise, they do play it probably a little too safe. Another kidnapped woman is tied down and forced to participate in another gonzo dinner scene after being chased through the woods for the first half of the film. It's a bit crazy that they all just keep returning to this same set piece. For all their faults, none of the other franchise horrors, like Nightmare On Elm Street or Hellraiser, stuck to the same script so closely. In that sense, it's almost like the original Texas Chainsaw Massacres play as remakes of the first more than the later "remakes" did. But hey, if you have to rehash a scene time and again, the psycho dinner is a great one. This film (at least in its current, unrated form) is thoroughly gruesome, with some great effect gags by KNB, and has some fun, heavy metal theme music. Every time I let a few years go by and then return to Leatherface, I'm surprised by absorbing and entertaining a watch it still is.
Surprisingly, there aren't a whole ton of iterations of this film on home video. New Line updated their laserdisc version with a fairly definitive DVD edition that was ported out to different regions around the world, naturally, and served as the single, definitive edition of this film for many years. It had the R and unrated cuts, and was a fairly rich, anamorphic special edition. We didn't really need anything more. But now in the HD age, we really do. And finally, just this week, Warner Archives have delivered, with a sweet blu-ray edition. Now, typically, WA disappoints in terms of special features (Demon Seed, you make me sad); but fortunately, though they haven't produced anything new, they did port over everything from New Line's DVD (Time Warner bought New Line, so it's not like they had to license it). So let's see how much of an upgrade we've got out of this deal.
2003 New Line R-rated DVD top; 2003 New Line unrated DVD mid;
2018 Warner Archives blu bottom.
2003 New Line unrated DVD
Oh, I'd say quite a substantial upgrade! I was always happy with the DVD, but it's nice to see how much better things can be. The colors are a lot more natural - goodbye, orange skin tones. Warners has chosen to open the framing up a bit to 1.78:1 (the DVD was a slightly windowboxed 1.82:1), but this is clearly an all new scan that actually reveals more on all four sides. Also, if we take that second set of shots just two frames back, we see [left, but you'll have to click to enlarge to really see what I'm talking about] that the DVD was interlaced. It really made horizontal pans look glitchy, so it's great to see that done away with. Detail is really clarified - look at Viggo's 5 o'clock shadow, which is just a soft color distinction on the DVD. Speaking of DVD distinction, the transfers of the R and unrated cuts are identical, except for the fact that the R is missing about 5 minutes of footage; I just included both to be thorough.
Audio-wise, I suppose a few fans might be slightly disappointed. The DVD offered listeners a choice between a DTS ES 6.1 Surround mix, Dolby Digital EX 5.1 Surround mix and the original Stereo Surround stereo. Warner's blu just gives us the 5.1 mix, albeit in lossless DTS-HD. But goodbye, fancy 6.1 and goodbye presumably original stereo mix. Both discs also include optional English subtitles, though.
Again, Warner Bros didn't cook us up any new special features, but they did carry everything over from the DVD except for some bonus New Line trailers, some light DVD-Rom content and an insert with chapter titles. First, there's a packed audio commentary with Burr, Schow, Greg Nicotero, William Butler, R.A. Mihailoff (he played Leatherface) and executive producer Mark Odesky. It's so packed because the laserdisc originally included two audio commentaries, and the DVD/ blu features an edited together hybrid cut of the two. Overall, that's just fine, as it never hits a stand-still and is jam-packed with great information and anecdotes. On the minus side, the editing is a little sloppy, with two soundbites repeated twice, verbatim - somebody clearly lost track of which clips he'd already used! Besides the commentary, there's a 30-minute 'making of' with all the same people from the commentary (plus another producer), which repeats a lot of the same stuff from the commentary, but also has some exclusive stuff.
One thing that's great about the commentary and this doc is that they were recorded long after the film, and people aren't afraid to talk about what went wrong, or even openly disagree with each other. Did you know Burr, for example, was fired from this film and then rehired because they couldn't find a replacement over the weekend? Burr talks about getting fired, the producers talk about firing him. Yeah, the extras are very forthcoming, which is a treat. And sure, 30-minutes probably seems a little short for those of us used to Scream Factory's lush feature-length docs, but this is edited so tightly, it has just as much content, just shown at a break-neck speed with no leisurely credits or film clips.
2003 New Line DVD top; 2018 Warner Archives blu bottom.
Besides those extras, we get a roughly ten minute featurette on additional deleted footage. It's not just deleted scenes, as it also features on-camera interviews with Burr and Nicotero talking about what went wrong and why they didn't make the cut; but also includes the footage itself. And they include an alternate ending, which is interesting and quite different. It's hard to say which ending I prefer, actually; this one or the one they wound up including in the final film. They both have their pros and cons. And finally, they end with the famous trailer. Even if you usually skip the trailers, if you've never seen this one, be sure to check it out. It's wildly different from anything actually seen in the film. All the extras are in in the same SD condition as they were on the DVD except upconverted and happily, they corrected the interlacing. In fact, the trailer looks like it might've been genuinely restored in HD.
Ultimately, this is an extremely satisfying upgrade from Warner Archives, and I'm happy to finally put my old DVD to rest. Don't mourn the R-rated cut; it's just an inferior version of the film. And I doubt we'll see a triple-dip of this title for a very long time, so I'm quite confident recommending this edition, as well as TCM3 in general, assuming you go for this kind of film. _____________________
So okay, about this oval. I first noticed it being discussed in the blu-ray.com forums, and was a little concerned that I failed to notice something other members seemed to think was glaringly obvious. Now, some people like to immediately dismiss the credibility of members on an online forum, so how about a post with photographic evidence by one of the leaders of the industry, Don May, Jr? We've got to take this seriously. And if you want more oval photos, scroll through that blu-ray thread, and others have posted the same sighting, although frustratingly, they're all cell-phone photos of their screens/ projections, not proper screenshots.
So, like I said, I watched this film (initial watch on a 65" Sony 4k TV with a Samsung UBD-M8500, and then analyzed for PQ on my PC), and didn't notice a thing. That's kind of embarrassing. Otherreviewsaren'tmentioningiteither. But going back to the blu again, knowing about this oval, I still don't see anything. Some people are saying it's very subtle, or lowering their screen brightness got rid of it. So I'm taking some fresh screenshots - remember to click through to see them full size in complete resolution:
2018 Warner Archives blu.
For the first shot, I picked a super dark shot, so there wouldn't be much variant lighting to confuse the issue. And the last two shots are from the time-codes Don cites in the comments of his instagram post, so theoretically the oval is there. But is the oval there? It sure doesn't look like the photos people are posting. And for the record, my copy is not a "screener" disc (nobody ever sends me those... sigh) that might be different from what everybody else has; it's just a regular retail copy I ordered from Bullmoose.
It only gets more puzzling the deeper you dig into this. Check out this email reply from Warner Archives that another member posted on the blu-ray forums. They write, "We apologize for the inconvenience, I'll be honest I'm not sure if all
the copies have the same issue. I will request information so we can
send you a replacement, they can check the new copy before sent the
tittle[sic]." So, there are just some bad copies out there? That seems like it would be pretty unlikely, since we're talking about something that appears intrinsic to the disc's transfer. Certainly, my screenshots don't look like the photos people are posting (for instance, these). But wait. Let's crank up the gamma on one of my shots...
2018 Warner Archives blu with the gamma boosted by 5 in Paint Shop Pro.
There's the oval! Just where Don said it was. So yep, it's present on my copy, just like everybody else's. We're not talking about a bad batch here, so getting a replacement copy from Warners shouldn't help until they actually make a correction (hey, they could add the stereo mix while they're at it). I'm guessing its visibility is dependent on your television's calibration; and people using projectors may be getting it worse than everybody else. I spent a lot of time following online guides to adjust all the settings on my TV, and for me, the oval is invisible, which suggests how this got past Warner's QC. But obviously your mileage will vary depending on what type of set and player you've got. It's clearly actually there on the disc, so I hope Warner starts taking these concerns seriously, instead of just removing peoples' questions on Facebook. But if you're thinking of passing on this disc, bare in mind, most of us couldn't even find the oval after we heard about it, so it very well may not wind up being an issue for you at all.
