"Ghostbusters" (DVD) Release Date (box set): August 2, 2005 Release Date (individually): March 14, 2006 MPAA Rating: PG Movie Length: 105 minutes Color/Black&White: Color Closed-Captioned: Yes Sound: Dolby Digital 5.1/2.0 (language dependent) Format: Widescreen (Enhanced for 16x9 TVs) Languages: English, French, Spanish Subtitles: English, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Chinese, Korean, Thai DVD-Rom Enhanced: No Layers: Dual (most likely) Sides: One Regional Coding: 1 Video Format: NTSC Package Type: Slim Keep Case in Slipsleeve Box SPHE Catalog Number: 05160LIT (05160 box)

This DVD was bundled with Ghostbusters II as part of the "Double Feature Gift Set." Each movie was in it's own clear slim case with artwork, nestled inside an outer slipsleeve box, along with a "movie scrapbook" (a glossy 24-page book with photos, concept art, storyboards, biographies, and making-of information). The original release had the wrong aspect ratio data list on the back of the outer box (the movie was fine). In the second or third printing, this was corrected, as I've seen the corrected box on Wal-Mart shelves ever since.

There have been two significant re-releases. It was released individually on March 14, 2006. In 2008, the "gift set" was repackaged in one double-disc plastic case, sans the "movie scrapbook", under the title "Ghostbusters Collection". I saw it on a Wal-Mart shelf in July 2008 selling for $9.96.

Special Features

• Remastered Video (& Audio?)
• Most of the Special Features from the 1999 DVD (see below for what's missing)
• Mostly Non-Animated Menus

Missing Special Features
(from the 1999 DVD release)

• Video Commentary subtitle track.
• "Tricks & Trivia" subtitle track.
• All four trailers.
• All DVD-ROM content (screenplay & filmographies).
• Menu transitions & animation.

Errors

• Outer Slipsleeve Box - The back of the box lists the aspect ratio for GB1 as 1.33:1 Full Screen and GB2 as 2.40:1 Widescreen. This is incorrect. As the inner case art shows, GB1 is in 2.40:1 Anamorphic Widescreen and GB2 is in 2.35:1 Anamorphic Widescreen. Interestingly, correct box art was released online a few months before the product was released. Why Sony kept the incorrect box art that they first released, instead of the corrected art that they released later, is unknown to me.
• Outer Slipsleeve Box - The back of the box (as well as all of Sony's marketing materials for the set) says that the films are "together for the first time in this exclusive DVD gift set." This is incorrect. Shortly after both films were released on DVD in 1999, those editions were packaged together in a slipsleeve box brandishing a "Double Feature" gold banner. That box set would be the first time that both films were released together on DVD. Since Sony's text is just casually saying "together for the first time," and not even specifically stating DVD, I could go one further and point to at least one VHS box set of both films released in the mid-1990s. For photos of these other box sets, see the GB1 Home Video page.
• GB1 DVD - On the "Scene Cemetary" menu screen, the option "Burns" should be "Bums." This is the deleted scene with Bill Murray and Dan Aykroyd as bums strolling through Central Park. This menu option was correctly labelled on the 1999 DVD release.
• GB1 DVD - The deleted scene "Honeymooners" has this horrible reverb/echo effect in the audio throughout the entire scene. This did not exist in the 1999 DVD.
• GB1 DVD - In Special Effects Before & After With Multi-Angle, the chapter 2 mark in "Crossing The Streams" was placed too soon. It's placed before the scene ends, not after it.

DVD Notes

• The main menu essentially is the same as the 1999 DVD, but there are no animated cars in the streets. This is also the only menu screen that is animated and has audio. All of the others are still and silent.
• Although the menu is essentially the same, lots of options have been moved, and the menus take you all over the place with no rhyme or reason as to why. Click on "Languages" on the movie theater, and you'll be taken to a menu on the adjacent building. Click on "Spook Central" on the grey building(!), and you'll be taken to a menu on the Shandor Building rooftop.
• Before the movie starts you have to view several non-skippable warning screens. However, there's an easy way around this. Instead of selecting "Play Movie" from any of the menus, just go into "Scene Selections" and select Chapter 1.
• The angled and non-full-screen still images from the 1999 DVD were not corrected for this release.
• In the Audio Commentary, they left in Ivan Reitman's now-dated remarks that "this movie will be a bit hit at the upcoming millennium celebrations" (72:19).
• At 82:12 in the Audio Commentary, Ivan Reitman says, "I think everything above this line is phony." Ivan's remarks now seem odd since his silhouette is no longer there to illustrate what he's talking about.
• Sony has included a ton of subtitles, more than would be useful for just Region 1 (United States, Canada, and Mexico). This leads me to believe that they're going to use the same disc content for all regions, just change the region coding and maybe the outer packaging and disc art. It's sad they chose to do this as some fans state that the "Video Commentary" and "Tricks & Trivia" subtitles tracks from the 1999 DVD were removed just to make room for all of these useless (to those of us in Region 1) subtitles.

Packaging

• Ghostbusters Case Artwork
• Ghostbusters Disc Artwork
• Ghostbusters Key Art (1000x1732, 620 Kb, cover art without the text, courtesy of the SPHE Publicity website)
• Outer Slipsleeve Box - Front (3-D mock-up)
• Outer Slipsleeve Box - Front (final product, dark with foil shine)
• Outer Slipsleeve Box - Back (final product with incorrect aspect ratios)
• Outer Slipsleeve Box - Back (corrected art released online a few months before product release) (image courtesy of the SPHE Publicity website)
• GB1 Disc In Case
• Everything - Outer Box, Inner Cases, Scrapbook (front) (photo taken by "Captain Nate")
• Everything - Outer Box, Inner Cases, Scrapbook (back)

Movie Scrapbook

• Front Cover
• Front Cover - Original Design (the subtitle was originally "Gift Set Collection" not "Movie Scrapbook") (taken from the bottom of the front of the "Long Box" packaging, courtesy of the SPHE Publicity website)
• Back Cover
• Inside Sneak Peek (taken from the bottom of the back of the "Long Box" packaging, courtesy of the SPHE Publicity website)
• Inside Sneak Peek (photo by "Proton_Defender")

Multimedia

• Back Cover Group Shot (courtesy of the SPHE Publicity website, preview image)
• Back Cover Stay Puft Shot (courtesy of the SPHE Publicity website, preview image)
• DVD-ROM Jacket Art MP2 Files (this is the only real worthwhile content on the DVD-ROM portion of the disc)
• A few select stores gave away little Stay-Puft Marshmallow Man squishy figures for pre-orders of the box set. They're not antennae toppers as some have erroneously reported. (photo provided by Joey Ellis via Proton Charging)

Outside Links

• Official Mini-Site
• Captain Nate's Screen Captures & Photos
• Giant Magazine Review - This is the same magazine who put that Free Issue card in with the DVD set.
• IGN Review
  NOTE: They incorrectly state that the movies are not remastered (anyone who has seen the 1999 DVDs can instantly tell that the picture quality is different on this new release - Temple of Zuul, anyone?) and that there's no obvious context as to why the two animated RGB episodes are included (anybody who watches them should be able to pick it out pretty easily as each one blatantly ties into either the first or second film).
• The Digital Bits Review
  NOTE: In recapping GB2, he incorrectly states that "Stantz (Aykroyd) and Spengler (Ramis) run a pawn shop." Stantz ran a bookstore and Spengler worked in a science lab. No one worked, owned, or operated a pawn shop. He also incorrectly states that GB1 includes "a terrific "live" video/audio commentary." Audio yes, video no.

IVAN REITMAN INTERVIEW

DVDX: So you prefer then to do a commentary looking back with a little distance from the film?

REITMAN: I actually like that. I've been able to do it lately, because there has been a great resurrection of my first decade of work. Meatballs, we're going to come out with a new version of that pretty soon. And of course we're doing Stripes now. We did Animal House and both Ghostbusters. I think we're in the midst of talking to Universal about the group of Schwartzenegger movies I did, because they're really interested as well.

DVDX: The Ghostbusters are great DVDs but they're now a few years old. Do you think there's any chance of updating those?

REITMAN: Yeah, we're talking about a new edition of at least the first Ghostbusters, that's everybody's sort of favorite. Now that I did this on Stripes, I see how much better the transfer is. I think the sound was already pretty good five or 10 years ago, but visually there has been tremendous improvement. Especially with high-def coming in the next year or two in a serious way, there's even more to do.