VCD and DVD

[David Desser]

Thanks to Lori for the valuable information about VCD sales on-line.  When
I was in Hong Kong recently, I bought an English-subtitled copy of VILLAGE
OF DREAMS which looks fine.

For anyone who has or is thinking of purchasing a DVD player:  DVD players
will play VCDs.  The superiority of DVD over tape, of course, makes
purchase of this machine very desirable.  The fact that it plays VCDs was a
happy discovery!

David Desser

 )At 7:53 AM 2/12/99, Lori Hitchcock wrote:
>There is *one* way to get ahold of a subtitled version of "Shall We Dance"
>that is the full running time (that I know of), but it involves getting a
>VCD (video cd) player.  Online stores that sell Hong Kong VCD's (not the
>pirated ones, but from distributors) also sell some Japanese movies with
>English subtitles.  Since they bypass the Miramax (in this case)
>distribution stronghold, they are usually the same running time as the
>Japanese versions, and most (although not all) have English subtitles.
>
>This, by the way, is also a nice way to get ahold of Japanese movies with
>English subtitles that haven't been generally distributed in the West
>(specifically the US): titles I've been able to get include "Suzaku," just
>about everything by Iwai Shunji, "Nagisa no Sinbad," "Shiko o funjyatta"
>(Sumo Do, Sumo Don't - Suo Masayuki).  The main problems with VCDs is:
>they tend to pixelate; HK versions often work off a poor quality master
>print, so they can be very dark (this is the case with "Swallowtail
>Butterfly").  But if you're trying to show some examples of recent
>Japanese film to students who don't know Japanese, they can be a great
>resource.
>
>Some good sites to visit include: SASA <www.sasavcd.com>
>                                  HKPOP <www.hkpop.com>
>                                  Amae Enterprises <www.hkdb.com>
>
>I've ordered from the first two with no problems (Sasa also sells VCD
>players for about $288) - they have secure servers; Amae lists a lot of
>movies (although it helps to know the Chinese title of the Japanese
>movie), but I haven't yet ordered from them.  HKPOP requires membership
>(free).  Sasa's most recent Japanese titles are "Fuyajyo" and "Shigatsu
>Monogatari."
>

>
>Lori Hitchcock