'Mona Lisa' DVD Comparison Criterion- R1 NTSC vs Anchor Bay - R0

directed by Neil Jordan
U.K. 1986

Writer-director Neil Jordan’s breakthrough film is a brilliant, noir-infused love story. Bob Hoskins (who snagged an Oscar nomination for his performance) plays George, a small-time loser employed as a chauffeur to an enigmatic, high-class call girl. His fascination with her leads him on a dangerous quest through the sordid underbelly of London, where love is a weakness to be exploited and betrayed.

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DVD Comparison:

Criterion - Region 1 - NTSC vs. Anchor Bay - Region 1-6 - PAL

Big thanks to Ole of DVDBasen for the R2 - PAL Screen Caps!

(Criterion R1 - NTSC Left vs. Anchor Bay R 1-6 - PAL -Right)

DVD Box Covers
Distribution	Warner Studios Region 1 - NTSC	Warner Studios Region 2/4 - PAL
Runtime	1:43:48	1:39:30 (4% PAL speedup)
Video	173:1 Original Aspect Ratio Average Bitrate:5.58 mb/s NTSC 704x480 29.97 f/s	1:75:1 Original Aspect Ratio 16X9 Average Bitrate: 7.26 PAL 720x576 25.00 f/s
	NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes
Bitrate: Criterion R1
Bitrate: Anchor Bay - PAL
Audio	English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono)	English 2.0 and remastered 5.1
Subtitles	English, None	English (white), none
Features	Release Information: Studio: Home Vision Entertainment Theatrical Release Date: June 13, 1986 Production Company: Criterion Aspect Ratio: Widescreen letterbox - 1.73:1 Discographic Information: DVD Encoding: Region 1 - NTSC Edition Details: • Commentary by director Neil Jordan and actor Bob Hoskins • Theatrical trailer • Widescreen letterbox format DVD Release Date: March 12, 2001 Keep Case Chapters 25	Mona Lisa Anchor Bay (UK) - Region 1/2/3/4/5/6 Ratio: 1.75:1 (Anamorphic) Discographic Information: DVD Encoding: Region 1-6 - PAL Sound: Subtitles: English (white). Extras: Commentary with Neil Jordan and Bob Hoskins (Same as Criterion?). Location Report - Film86/BBC (5:25). Neil Jordan in Cannes (14:11) Nat King Cole at the BBC 1965 (2:11). Filmographies/Biographies of cast and Crew. Picture Gallery. Trailer. DVD Release Date: February 2002 Keep case Chapters 24

Comments:

The Anchor Bay has been horizontally squished down making Mr. Hoskins look even fatter and shorter in my opinion. As well the Anchor Bay edition is loaded with very obvious edge enhancement and contrast boosting. Yuchhh. This is very bad. The Criterion may not be anamorphic but the picture is clearer and adhering to its original ratio. The Criterion color is more true in my opinion. The commentary appears to be the same with the Anchor Bay adding a few more features including bumping the sound to 5.1. The Criterion appears to be film sourced and shows some good film grain. This is a no-brainer. Criterion all the way excepting true fans may want the extra features of the Anchor Bay, but that shouldn't mean having the image quality suffer so much.

Gary W. Tooze

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(Criterion R 1 Left vs. Anchor Bay R 1-6 -Right)