- 2 days ago
Remember the excitement of popping in a DVD and being greeted by an animated menu? From Captain Spaulding's unique dialogue in House of 1000 Corpses to Shrek 2's Brady Bunch-style intro, these interactive features made movie watching special. Join us as we explore why physical media's golden age still holds a special place in our hearts.
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00:00Is this a spy?
00:01No, behind-the-scenes footage for the...
00:03Just DVD extras.
00:04Yeah.
00:05They're gonna put this on the DVD?
00:06Welcome to Ms. Mojo, and today, we'll be discussing that nostalgic center in our brain,
00:12and how it's connected to that warm, cathode-ray glow of menus and bonus features present on our old DVDs.
00:18Oh! Oh, pick me! Oh, pick me! Oh, me!
00:23The history of home video dates all the way back to pre-VHS formats, such as home reel-to-reels,
00:29while the mighty VCR dominated much of the household viewing habits throughout the late 1970s and into the 80s.
00:35Dynasty again?
00:38Dad, do us a favor and get a VCR!
00:40The DVD boom occurred primarily during the late 1990s and early millennium.
00:45This was a period when many movie fans were updating their old VHS tapes for DVD discs,
00:50then arrived with something new—menu screens.
00:53Listen to audio commentary.
00:55Choose from features like director's notes, behind-the-scenes footage,
00:59trailers, and more.
01:00The truth is that many Hollywood insiders and A-listers, as recently as 2024,
01:06have discussed the continued relevance of home video and physical media,
01:09including, of course, DVD and Blu-ray discs.
01:12Kevin Costner even commented to Deadline about how no company is going to leave any amount of money on the table.
01:18I think we get caught up in numbers, and why not? I mean, it's just, it's what dazzles us.
01:23But I think always the measure of a great movie will be that movie that you share five years from now, 20 years from now.
01:28This is despite chain stores like Best Buy removing discs from their shelves,
01:32and Disney subcontracting the production of their physical media discs to Sony.
01:36It's a crossroads of sorts that's seen the DVD format's popularity decline significantly since the 2010s,
01:43while at the same time being embraced by a youth culture that's increasingly attached to the memories of our physical media legacy.
01:50The slow death of physical media is a terrible thing for consumers.
01:54I think it's a terrible thing for filmmakers who want their films to have a life beyond whatever their initial release is.
02:02And I think that all of us should be doing everything that we can to keep it going.
02:07So yeah, the home video market certainly isn't what it used to be.
02:10But many of us possess very powerful core memories about those animated DVD menus and how they spoke to us during our youth.
02:17Nostalgia can be a very powerful beast, after all.
02:20This is no longer your world, Jones.
02:24The immaterial has become immaterial.
02:31Every generation misses what was around during their formative years.
02:34Physical media has consistently evolved as well,
02:37with older viewers remembering the eras of VHS, Laserdisc, and even CEDs,
02:42none of which contained animated menus.
02:44The DVD was different, however,
02:46representing a creative leap forward that allowed some very unique viewing experiences
02:51before the film's opening credits even hit the screen.
02:53Hey, Roldi, check it out. We're on DVD.
02:58Are you serious?
02:59Yeah, yeah, look. Look at all those options.
03:02Nice! Nice!
03:05Take the menu screen for Rob Zombie's House of a Thousand Corpses, for example,
03:08which featured Sid Haig performing in character as Captain Spaulding.
03:12Haig delivered multiple minutes of dialogue that was unique to this DVD menu right to the home audience.
03:18It's lunchtime already.
03:20Damn!
03:21You will excuse me, won't you?
03:23Well, thank you very much.
03:24This immediately sets a mood and vibe,
03:29one that's perfectly suited for Zombie's world of horror and exploitation ugliness.
03:34Meanwhile, the menu for Shrek 2 is designed to mimic that classic opening introduction to the Brady Bunch,
03:40featuring tons of animated mayhem.
03:42The disc is wholly interactive, with unique voice acting, production trivia,
03:47and endless in-jokes to keep even the most diehard Shrek fan busy for hours.
03:51How about this?
03:52Shrek 2, dude, where's my donkey?
03:55Oh, there he is, cut from the movie, because he talks too much!
03:59What kind of title is that?
04:00Sometimes the bonus supplemental materials on a DVD are more interesting than the actual feature.
04:05Or, watching an in-depth, making-of featurette present on a disc
04:09can sometimes make the movie-watching experience feel more fulfilling for cinephiles.
04:13On this first disc, you'll be able to see how Tolkien created the story
04:18and how we began our process of interpreting his book.
04:22The second disc of our appendices covers everything from when the cast got involved
04:26through the process of filming, post-production, and ultimately the release of the movie.
04:30But what happens to all of that unique content that was present on those menus?
04:34If nobody archives them or uploads menu Easter eggs to YouTube,
04:38many of the stories we're sharing here will be forgotten.
04:41Imski Garzikov! That's a lot of eggs!
04:44Uh, how much time do we have?
04:46This all ties into ownership.
04:48True movie collectors often buy and rebuy their favorite movies over and over again,
04:53upgrading for new, fresh features year after year.
04:56It may be an AV boost, or a new director's commentary track,
04:59all included on that shiny disc that, naturally,
05:03all supports over those classic extras from that DVD you still have sitting on that shelf.
05:08Okay, we can't stream anything, but I brought my DVD collection.
05:12Do you like Nick Cage movies?
05:13I don't know who that is.
05:14Only the greatest and most compelling actor of all time.
05:17And why wouldn't we want to keep all of those discs?
05:19Space is valuable, sure, but so are memories, particularly whenever art is concerned.
05:24The DVD for the cult comedy This Is Spinal Tap contained a main menu that featured tons of
05:29unique banter from the boys themselves, kicking right off from a screen that was,
05:33in their own words, none more black.
05:35It's a great way to tune up your set.
05:39Yeah, to make sure there's no interference.
05:41Oh, look at this.
05:42Oh, it's like an airplane going over your head.
05:45Hello, hello.
05:47Oh, that's great.
05:48I recognize it.
05:49Stop. It's getting too small.
05:51Some discs even contain full, separate features hidden on their menus.
05:55These are usually accessible by pushing a specific series of buttons on the remote to unlock this
06:00Easter egg.
06:01I think these drawers work like tumblers in a safe.
06:05Okay, four drawers, four-digit combination?
06:09What about a year?
06:10Vinegar Syndrome's Blu-ray release of Roger Watkins' Corruption, for example, also included
06:15a copy of the director's infamous shocker, The Last House on Dead End Street, hidden within
06:20its code.
06:21Knowing about these secrets also makes collecting home video releases fun, and even a little
06:26obsessive.
06:27I'm not obsessed, you know.
06:31I'm sorry?
06:32I'm not obsessed.
06:33I'm just a fan and I care.
06:34Yet we continue to exist at a crossroads between streaming and physical media, a place where content
06:40may be king, but it's also owned by an ever-shrinking number of companies.
06:44One look at the leaving soon section of any random streaming service feeds into that feeling
06:48of FOMO many of us have with regards to our media consumption.
06:57You didn't see it?
06:58How could you have not seen it?
07:00You watched every episode to prepare.
07:02I was grounded.
07:03Some of those services do offer some behind-the-scenes extras that mimic bonus features present
07:08on a disc.
07:09But what happens when a film you wanted to check out disappears from your watch list?
07:12Or if a cult television show changes hands to a different streaming provider before you've
07:17had your chance to binge?
07:18No more happy thoughts.
07:22Lost.
07:25Lost.
07:26This is where physical media sweeps in to say,
07:28I'm going to watch what I want, when I want, without any interruptions whatsoever.
07:33And there's nothing anybody else can do to stop me.
07:36You are one crew, or you are the enemy of one crew.
07:40Choose.
07:41Why rush through that seven-season streaming series when you can take your time, disc after
07:46disc, at home?
07:47This comparatively, leisurely absorption of storytelling may sound like luxury that existed
07:52firmly in the past, but the fact that we have subreddits devoted solely to boutique home
07:56video companies speaks volumes.
07:58Hold on, did you say cop rock marathon?
08:00Yeah, I got them all on tape.
08:02Trying to figure out what you see in me?
08:04Yep.
08:04What do you see me in the boots?
08:05It's here where a clearer picture of home video fandom becomes evident.
08:09It's not solely a place for boomers, zoomers, or Generation X.
08:12These subreddits instead paint a vibrantly diverse portrait of disc addicts that support
08:17DVD, Blu-ray, 4K, all of it.
08:20I may not buy everything on 4K every day we release, but if you want to get the best picture
08:31quality, of course you want to buy the 4K then.
08:32You know, so if you want to get the best one.
08:34But there may be another format, like, I don't know, who knows?
08:36Maybe 5 years from now there'll be 6K or 8K discs.
08:39However, the growth of this corner of the market has seen its own fair share of controversies
08:43and pushback.
08:44This all comes down primarily to rising MSRPs of newer discs that take advantage of FOMO
08:49and hypebeast culture, in the same way that's not entirely dissimilar to the streaming giants.
08:54You're not going to like it.
08:56Dude, just tell me.
08:57$1,000.
09:00$1,000?
09:01It's a rare out-of-print VHS.
09:04A piece of film history.
09:05As the market for boutique home video grows from its niche roots, so too do prices rise
09:10to meet the demand of a subculture that's increasingly obsessed with artifacts such as slipcovers for
09:15their discs.
09:16It's really these rare movies and some special 4K discs that have these super, super limited
09:23print runs, which, honestly, we never know about until it's too late and they're already
09:27gone.
09:28So there's no way to predict it.
09:29There's no way to tell Amazon you want a slipcover.
09:32There's no way to do it unless you're in a store and you're picking it off the shelf.
09:36Before we continue, be sure to subscribe to our channel and ring the bell to get notified
09:41about our latest videos.
09:43You have the option to be notified for occasional videos or all of them.
09:47If you're on your phone, make sure you go into your settings and switch on notifications.
09:52That said, the creative partnerships of companies like Vinegar Syndrome and MGM prove that there's
09:57a lot of life left in home video.
09:59Boutique outfits like Arrow, Indicator, Severin, and Grindhouse releasing are all children of
10:04the DVD and VHS era.
10:05For the first witness for this date, please come forth.
10:09Yes, Your Honor.
10:12Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth?
10:16So help you God.
10:17Yes, I do.
10:18They remember, just like we do, those DVD glory days of scouring store shelves for rare
10:24discs, taking them home and devouring their contents.
10:27These memories make it all the more important to keep physical media alive in the modern day,
10:32even if that means firing up our old DVD audio commentaries for Conan the Barbarian or Escape
10:37from New York.
10:38Because if we don't, no one else will.
10:40You gonna kill me now, Snake?
10:43I'm too tired.
10:46Maybe later.
10:47Do you have a DVD menu you constantly come back to?
10:50And why is it not Prisoner of Azkaban?
10:53Let us know in the comments.
10:54Yeah, take it away, Amy.
10:56Fasten your safety belts, clench your buttocks.
10:59It's going to be a bumpy ride.
11:01Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha
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