Discs in a Box: MAD MAX Trilogy Blu-ray

The Mad Max Trilogy Blu-ray set is a mixed bag in the only positive sense of the term.

The Mad Max disc is an exact duplicate of the existing Blu-ray (which lacks the extras on the DVD included on the MGM release), the Mad Max 2/The Road Warrior  disc is a completely new AV transfer that improves substantially on the 2007 release, and Beyond Thunderdome looks great in its Blu-ray debut.

The $35 price tag is less than the movies cost separately, and roughly equals how much the first two movies generally go for ($15 each). Whether you're fine missing on the couple of extras only found on the packed-in DVD of MGM's Mad Max release (more on that in a moment) is one thing...

From the exact, down-to-the-data duplicate Blu-ray disc of Mad Max .

An example of one of the few seconds where the print reflects damage, in this case from mold.

Packaging & Potential Repackaging Speculation

...and whether you want them all in one metal tin, which lacks text on its ostensible "spine", is another matter entirely. I would have preferred a steelbook, personally, but I don't have any other sets like this on my shelf. Anyone complaining about the case not saying "MAD MAX" along its side is picking nits.

As is the pattern with Warner multi-movie sets, there will likely be a budget version down the line, but there's no way of knowing whether extras will be preserved, or if movies will be crammed together on discs rather than on their own, causing quality to suffer.

As it stands, the standard multi-disc, plastic Blu-ray case that sits inside the tin carries the exact same UPC as the outer tin packaging, so don't expect this exact set to be duplicated without the tin...that is, unless it really is a "limited" release, in which case the plastic case guts will replace the old SKU at a presumably lower price.

Movies, Gaps, and Value

There are a few extras on the DVD included in MGM's release of the Mad Max Blu-ray that are missing here, but they don't break my heart.

The most prominent is a 17-minute documentary called Mel Gibson: The High Octane Birth of a Superstar. Also missing are a trivia track (no big loss), a photo gallery (ditto), and some TV spots (double ditto). The Birth of a Superstar  thing is a Peter Cullen-narrated puff piece with a few talking head bits with George Miller, Piper Laurie, and others who knew Gibson early in his career. It's no enormous loss, except for completists.

From the brand-new picture and audio transfer of Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior , which finally sports lossless DTS sound.

Flesh tones are more natural, and the color balance looks natural across the board.

All three movies look and sound great, with the biggest Blu-grade improvement going to Mad Max 2 , whose previous WB Blu-ray was from the earliest era of Blu mastering (2007). If buying just that movie, make sure you get this one, and not the old one, which Amazon is still selling for some godawful reason.

I can't help but have a hunch that all three movies will drop to the magic price point of $7.99 apiece at some point before the holidays (as catalog releases often do these days, but if these movies mean a great deal to you, the (unnumbered) limited edition tin is a better deal than buying the discs separately for the moment.

I don't know why I focused on frames that show off shafts of light. Contrast is very consistent, with a multitude of dark scenes looking great throughout.

For a movie that's mostly black and brown and dark, when you do see color, it pops nicely (and not to the point of over-saturation).

Buying Advice

Here are some "if this then that" cases and how I recommend you buy what as a result. 

Have:  Mad Max  Blu-ray and/or 2007 Road Warrior Blu-ray
Want: New The Road Warrior  Blu-ray
Don't Care About: Beyond Thunderdome 

Get the single The Road Warrior Blu-ray

Have: None of the Mad Max movies
Want: At least Mad Max and Road Warrior Blu-rays

Get the Trilogy set if you want Beyond Thunderdome  (comes out cheaper than separately), grab single Mad Max  and The Road Warrior  discs if pinching pennies.

The stupidest reason that I like the tin is the Road Warrior image with Max and his dog glued to the inside cover. If you're a diehard Max  fan, the current price is reasonable, and if a collector, it seems Amazon is having trouble keeping it in-stock due to popularity.

Discs in a Box reviews and provides contextual commentary on Blu-ray and DVD box sets. DIAB covers everything from repackagings to true Blu-grades to the opulent mega-boxes that pack in loads of extra physical goodies.

Recent and upcoming releases are examined here, in addition to sets that have been collecting dust on store shelves for months (or years, in some cases).

Discs in a Box: Clint Eastwood 20-Film Collection Blu-ray

This past week's Clint Eastwood: 20-Film Collection on Blu-ray includes a very nice cross-section of the director's movies with WB that are on Blu-ray, but it isn't designed for the completionist. The style of packaging and timing of release makes it plain that it's aimed at Father's Day buyers here in the States. That aside, the relative per-movie cost almost makes this a bargain mega-set. 

The average $90 price tag breaks out to $4.50 per movie, which is a great deal if you own none or few of these and want them. If you're most interested in just a few of these, or want the entire Dirty Harry series specifically, other sets or individual discs are a better bet.

Packaging

It fits on a shelf just like any standard-height Blu-ray case would. The paper "pages" of the book-style slipcase allow you to pop the discs in and out easily, and I wish all studios would go with something like this for all future 20-ish disc sets. If they want to do a 40-disc thing, then fine, stick two of this in one slipcase. On the slipcase, I'll note that the super-thin plastic has never worked very well, and in my case, the review copy I was sent had a couple of the interior tabs snapped off just from the rigors of shipping and handling. Thicker, sturdier material is the simple solution.

Movies, Gaps, and Value

This set is not every single Warner Bros.-Eastwood movie that's on Blu-ray. Three out of the five Dirty Harry movies are in here (The Enforcer and The Dead Pool are missing), Letters from Iwo Jima is (Flags of Our Fathers is missing), and Eastwood's most iconic prestige pics are as well (Unforgiven, Mystic River, Million Dollar Baby). In the Line of Fire , Absolute Power , and various others are missing. All of his most recent directing jobs (except for Changeling , oddly) are included. Here's the list of the included movies:

A Perfect World, Dirty Harry, Every Which Way But Loose, Firefox, Gran Torino, Heartbreak Ridge, Hereafter, Invictus, J. Edgar, Letters from Iwo Jima, Magnum Force, Million Dollar Baby, Mystic River, Pale Rider, Space Cowboys, Sudden Impact, The Gauntlet, The Outlaw Josey Wales, Trouble with the Curve, Unforgiven

In addition to all previous extras being on those discs, the set includes both the previously-available Eastwood Factor doc by Richard Schickel and the brand-new Eastwood Directs: The Untold Story, which is now playing intermittently on TCM.

Welcome to another new recurring feature. Discs in a Box takes its name from the title of The Lonely Island's best song.

Discs in a Box will provide commentary on opulent Blu-ray/DVD box sets that go the extra mile, packing in loads of extra physical goodies in boxes well larger than what is required to just house the discs.

Sometimes they're the shelf-unfriendly chocolate box size (Singin' in the Rain), whereas sometimes they actually fit alongside standard discs albeit taking up a great deal of horizontal real estate (Ultimate Collector's Editions of The Town, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest).

As with other features, I'll be covering recent and upcoming releases in addition to things that have been collecting dust on store shelves for months (or years, in some cases).