123-519: Uwe Boll ( German: [ˈuːvə ˈbɔl] ; born 22 June 1965) is a German filmmaker. He came to prominence during the 2000s for his adaptations of video game franchises. Released theatrically, the films were critical and commercial failures; his 2005 Alone in the Dark adaptation is considered one of the worst films ever made . Boll's subsequent projects, released during the 2010s, were mostly released straight to home media. After retiring in 2016 to become
246-415: A Toronto Star article, recounts being invited to Boll's beach house on the following day, where Boll asked him about the reasons for his negative reviews. Alexander bluntly told Boll that his movies were "bloated, expensive and incoherent attempts at aping American genre pictures, sporting some of the most boneheaded casting choices in filmdom". He also stated that Boll was an "insane, two-fisted rogue, and
369-437: A $ 20 million budget, although the home media releases were more successful. A sequel with a different cast and story was released to home media in 2008; Boll served as a producer. Edward Carnby, a paranormal investigator , has a nightmare in which he hides from alien-like creatures as a child. Carnby flies to an urban museum where his girlfriend, Aline Cedric, is an assistant curator . Carnby holds an artifact-puzzle piece of
492-679: A BD player. Japanese optical disc manufacturer Infinity announced the first "hybrid" Blu-ray Disc/(standard) DVD combo, to be released on February 18, 2009. This disc set of the TV series Code Blue featured four hybrid discs containing a single Blu-ray Disc layer (25 GB) and two DVD layers (9 GB) on the same side of the disc. In January 2007, Hitachi showcased a 100 GB Blu-ray Disc, consisting of four layers containing 25 GB each. It claimed that, unlike TDK's and Panasonic 's 100 GB discs, this disc would be readable on standard Blu-ray Disc drives that were currently in circulation, and it
615-486: A baby creature into Fischer's mouth. Carnby discovers that the Abkani had fought the creatures, which can be killed by light. They also disrupt electrical light, creating blackouts. The Abkani artifacts found all over the world open the gate to another dimension, where millions of creatures sleep, waiting to be freed. Hudgens further experiments, injecting himself with the blood of one of the creatures, which allows him to control
738-523: A big online game success, maybe a bad movie would destroy that ongoing income, what the company has with it." Blair Erickson, a writer of a treatment for Alone in the Dark , has written a critical account of his experience working with Boll, in which Erickson alleges that Boll stole ideas from prior movies and wanted to add elements to the story that were not true to the tone of the source material. Boll chose not to use Erickson's script, citing reasons such as it having "not enough car chases." Boll has blamed
861-425: A cable) typically have a SATA interface. More recent half-height Blu-Ray writers have reached writing speeds of up to 16× ( constant angular velocity ) on single-layer BD-R media, while the highest reading speeds are 12×, presumably to prevent repeated physical stress on the disc. Slim type drives are limited to 6× speeds (constant angular velocity) due to spacial and power limitations. The Blu-ray format has
984-521: A chain reaction in the industry, with major American retailers such as Best Buy , Walmart , and Circuit City and Canadian chains such as Future Shop dropping HD DVD in their stores. Woolworths , then a major European retailer, dropped HD DVD from its inventory. Major DVD rental companies Netflix and Blockbuster said they would no longer carry HD DVD. Following these new developments, on February 19, 2008, Toshiba announced it would end production of HD DVD devices, allowing Blu-ray Disc to become
1107-501: A consortium founded in 2004, had been developing the DRM platform that could be used to distribute movies to consumers while preventing copying. However, the final AACS standard was delayed, and then delayed again when an important member of the Blu-ray Disc group voiced concerns. At the request of the initial hardware manufacturers, including Toshiba, Pioneer, and Samsung, an interim standard
1230-667: A day before CES 2008, Warner Bros. , the only major studio still releasing movies in both HD DVD and Blu-ray Disc format, announced that it would release only in Blu-ray after May 2008. This effectively included other studios that came under the Warner umbrella, such as New Line Cinema and HBO —though in Europe, HBO's distribution partner, the BBC , announced it would continue to release product on both formats while keeping an eye on market forces. This led to
1353-598: A dual-layer disc. It is similar in concept to the MiniDVD and Mini CD . Recordable (BD-R) and rewritable (BD-RE) versions of Mini Blu-ray Disc have been developed specifically for compact camcorders and other compact recording devices. " Blu-ray Disc recordable " (BD-R) refers to two optical disc formats that can be recorded with an optical disc recorder . BD-Rs can be written to once, whereas Blu-ray Disc Recordable Erasable (BD-REs) can be erased and re-recorded multiple times. The current practical maximum speed for Blu-ray Discs
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#17328528500251476-408: A firmware upgrade. This technology was later used on BDXL discs. On July 20, 2010, the research team of Sony and Japanese Tohoku University announced the joint development of a blue-violet laser, to help create Blu-ray Discs with a capacity of 1 TB using only two layers (and potentially more than 1 TB with additional layering). By comparison, the first blue laser was invented in 1996, with
1599-516: A format of rewritable discs that would eventually become Blu-ray Disc (more specifically, BD-RE). The core technologies of the formats are similar. The first DVR Blue prototypes were unveiled by Sony at the CEATEC exhibition in October 2000. A trademark for the "Blue Disc" logo was filed on February 9, 2001. On February 19, 2002, the project was officially announced as Blu-ray Disc, and Blu-ray Disc Founders
1722-428: A laser can be focused is limited by diffraction and depends on the wavelength of the light and the numerical aperture of the lens used to focus it. By decreasing the wavelength, increasing the numerical aperture from 0.60 to 0.85, and making the cover layer thinner to avoid unwanted optical effects, designers can cause the laser beam to focus on a smaller spot, which effectively allows more information to be stored in
1845-437: A negative review of Postal , Boll responded with an email claiming that the critic didn't "understand anything about movies and that you are an untalented wannabe filmmaker with no balls and no understanding what POSTAL is. You don't see courage because you are nothing. and no go to your mom and fuck her ...because she cooks for you now since 30 years ..so she deserves it" [ sic ]. Boll stated that this angry email
1968-501: A normal life. Natassia Malthe was expected to return, and was expected to be loosely based on the video game BloodRayne 2 . In August 2013, Boll announced plans to produce a sequel to Postal based on achieving $ 500,000 from a Kickstarter campaign. The campaign was, however, cancelled on 5 October 2013. In October 2016, during an interview with the Toronto edition of Metro , Boll announced his retirement from filmmaking, chiefly citing
2091-500: A personal stance on the entire cinematic universe concept." In March 2012, it was announced he had finished directing a short horror story for the anthology film The Profane Exhibit . The story, inspired by Josef Fritzl , focuses on parents with a daughter locked in a room, where they can partake in immoral acts against her. Boll planned a fourth entry in the BloodRayne franchise in a contemporary setting involving her trying to live
2214-410: A production basis, allowing for the development of a denser storage format that could hold higher-definition media, with prototype discs made with diodes at a slightly longer wavelength of 407 nanometers in October 1998. Sony commenced two projects in collaboration with Panasonic , Philips , and TDK , applying the new diodes: UDO (Ultra Density Optical), and DVR Blue (together with Pioneer ),
2337-469: A red positioning/addressing laser (650 nm). It was to offer MPEG-2, MPEG-4 AVC (H.264), HEVC (H.265), and VC-1 encoding, supporting a maximum storage capacity of 6 TB. No systems conforming to the Ecma International HVD standard have been released. The company responsible for HVD went bankrupt in 2010, making any releases unlikely. A boutique Blu-ray label or specialty Blu-ray label
2460-455: A resolution of 1440 × 1080 pixels, with Ultra HD Blu-ray players extending the maximum resolution to 4K ( 3840 × 2160 pixels) and progressive frame rates up to 60 frames per second. Aside from an 8K resolution ( 7680 × 4320 pixels) Blu-ray format exclusive to Japan , videos with non-standard resolutions must use letterboxing to conform to a resolution supported by the Blu-ray specification. Besides these hardware specifications, Blu-ray
2583-547: A restaurateur, Boll returned to filmmaking in 2022. His films are financed through his production companies Boll KG and Event Film Productions. Boll was born in Wermelskirchen and studied at the University of Cologne . He holds a PhD in literature; in 1994, he published a dissertation at the University of Siegen . Boll first decided to go into the movie business at ten years old after seeing Marlon Brando 's Mutiny on
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#17328528500252706-407: A shockingly honest one at that, someone who absolutely adores film, knows its history and truly lives for what he does." Alexander referred to the event as "the weirdest pop culture bizarre journalism stunt I've ever been involved in." Minter also praised what he had seen of Boll's upcoming production known as Seed . Boll praised the contestants in a post fight press conference, stating "I now like
2829-561: A smaller area, thus enabling it to read information recorded in pits that are less than half the size of those on a DVD, and can consequently be spaced more closely, resulting in a shorter track pitch, enabling a Blu-ray Disc to hold about five times the amount of information that can be stored on a DVD. The lasers are GaN ( gallium nitride ) laser diodes that produce 405 nm light directly, that is, without frequency doubling or other nonlinear optical mechanisms. CDs use 780 nm near-infrared lasers. The minimum " spot size " on which
2952-519: A standard DVD keep case , generally with the format prominently displayed in a horizontal stripe across the top of the case (translucent blue for Blu-ray video discs, clear for Blu-ray 3D video releases, red for PlayStation 3 Greatest Hits Games, transparent for regular PlayStation 3 games, transparent dark blue for PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 games, transparent green for Xbox One and Xbox Series X games and black for Ultra HD Blu-ray video releases). Warren Osborn and The Seastone Media Group, LLC created
3075-482: A supernatural threat. The film's story is a loose adaptation of the game Alone in the Dark: The New Nightmare (2001). Upon release, the film was panned by critics for the story, dialogue, special effects, and Reid's performance. Holding a 1% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes , Alone in the Dark is considered one of the worst films ever made . It was also a box-office bomb , grossing $ 12.7 million on
3198-513: A task force was created three months prior to conduct a study concerning an extension to the Blu-ray Disc specification that would add the ability to contain 4K UHD video. On August 5, 2015, the BDA announced it would commence licensing the Ultra HD Blu-ray video format starting on August 24, 2015. The Ultra HD Blu-ray format delivered support for high dynamic range video that significantly expanded
3321-439: A ten-minute opening back story scroll read aloud to the illiterate audience, the only people able to successfully miss all the negative reviews. I mean hell, Boll knows that's where the real scares lie. As a result, there were seven distinct scripts in circulation without a consensus to which one was used. Tara Reid starred in the film opposite Christian Slater. Artisan Pictures picked up North American distribution rights to
3444-455: A thriller into an action film. Erickson stated his disgust at the treatment and spoke negatively of his working relationship with Boll on Something Awful : The original script took the Alone in the Dark premise and depicted it as if it were actually based on a true story of a private investigator in the northeastern U.S. whose missing persons cases begin to uncover a disturbing paranormal secret. It
3567-478: A thriller, but it's good for some head-slapping, incredulous laughter". Metacritic gave the film a 9 out of 100 based on 25 reviews, meaning "overwhelming dislike". Audiences surveyed by CinemaScore gave the film an F grade. Scott Brown of Entertainment Weekly gave the film an F grade, commenting that the film was "so bad it's postmodern". In the film's only positive review listed by Rotten Tomatoes, Michelle Alexandria of Eclipse Magazine wrote: " Alone in
3690-406: A trailer for Boll's film, titled Auschwitz , about the concentration camp of the same name , was posted on YouTube. The trailer, in which Boll appears as an SS gas chamber guard, contains explicit scenes of the brutalization and killing of concentration camp inmates. Boll has been quoted as saying that films such as Schindler's List "no longer had the ability to reach young people and that it
3813-399: A vital part in keeping the technology affordable while allowing it to move forward. In an effort to increase sales, studios began releasing films in combo packs with Blu-ray Discs and DVDs, as well as digital copies that can be played on computers and mobile devices. Some are released on "flipper" discs with Blu-ray on one side and DVD on the other. Other strategies are to release movies with
Uwe Boll - Misplaced Pages Continue
3936-412: A working experimental Blu-ray Disc capable of holding 200 GB of data on a single side, using six 33 GB data layers. In 2007, Hitachi was reported to have plans to produce 200 GB discs by 2009. Behind closed doors at CES 2007, Ritek revealed that it had successfully developed a high-definition optical disc process that extended the disc capacity to ten layers, increasing the capacity of
4059-407: A write verification feature, similar to that of DVD-RAM , but brings this feature to a write-once disc for the first time. If activated, the correctness of the written data is verified immediately after being written so unreadable data can be written again. In this case, the writing speed is halved because half of the disc rotations are for writing only. "Write verification" is not an official term for
4182-443: Is 12 centimetres ( 4 + 3 ⁄ 4 inches) in diameter and 1.2 millimetres ( 1 ⁄ 16 inch) thick, the same size as DVDs and CDs . Conventional (or "pre-BD-XL") Blu-ray discs contain 25 GB per layer, with dual-layer discs (50 GB) being the industry standard for feature-length video discs. Triple-layer discs (100 GB) and quadruple-layer discs (128 GB) are available for BD-XL re-writer drives. While
4305-667: Is a home video distributor that releases films on Blu-ray or 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray format, characterized by a specific or niche target market and collectable features like " limited edition " or "special edition" releases, deluxe slipcases or packaging, and other materials. Examples of boutique Blu-ray labels include the American Genre Film Archive (AGFA), Arrow Films , Canadian International Pictures, The Criterion Collection , Kino Lorber , Severin Films , Shout! Factory , Twilight Time , Vinegar Syndrome , and
4428-475: Is associated with a set of multimedia formats. Given that Blu-ray discs can contain ordinary computer files , there is no fixed limit as to which resolution of video can be stored when not conforming to the official specifications. The BD format was developed by the Blu-ray Disc Association , a group representing makers of consumer electronics, computer hardware, and motion pictures. Sony unveiled
4551-402: Is especially critical of his Internet detractors. Referring to two Ain't It Cool News critics who negatively reviewed his work, Boll said, " Harry (Knowles) and Quint (Eric Vespe) are retards." Boll later claimed Knowles was being "played" by film studios that "kissed his ass" with set visits and pretend offers to produce large-budget films and suggested to Knowles the reason he did not like him
4674-441: Is related to the Abkani because everyone who disappeared was from the same location. Carnby arrives that evening at the museum with the artifact, and Cedric shows him another recently arrived Abkani artifact that she has been studying since Hudgens' absence. The mysterious creature from the ship attacks them inside the museum, killing a security guard. Carnby and Cedric hide in a storage closet until troopers from Bureau 713 arrive, and
4797-507: Is three feet tall. If you were watching Attack of the Show during the time I cohosted, you might have noticed that I could have leaned over and eaten host Kevin Pereira ." A producer of the show then asked if Seanbaby would come and spar in the host's place for the event. Seanbaby said that he trains in muay thai and Brazilian jiu-jitsu , stating that "boxing is to fighting what Hungry Hungry Hippos
4920-532: Is to fighting", but that he was eager to fight Boll nonetheless. When Boll heard of this, he wanted to know Seanbaby's age, height, weight and fighting experience since he "learned he wasn't fighting a midget." Seanbaby stated he sent said information to Boll, after which Boll chose not to appear on the program. Boll similarly declined to fight Canadian comedian Ron Sparks . The boxing matches are referred to in Radu Jude 's 2023 feature film Do Not Expect Too Much from
5043-462: The DVD-Video specification has a maximum resolution of 480p ( NTSC , 720 × 480 pixels) or 576p ( PAL , 720 × 576 pixels), the initial specification for storing movies on Blu-ray discs defined a maximum resolution of 1080p ( 1920 × 1080 pixels) at up to 24 progressive or 29.97 interlaced frames per second . Revisions to the specification allowed newer Blu-ray players to support videos with
Uwe Boll - Misplaced Pages Continue
5166-533: The Plaza of Nations in Vancouver , Canada. After Kyanka lost his match, he would go on to make several allegations against Boll, including a claim that Boll refused to fight against Chance Minter who was an experienced amateur boxer. However, Boll fought Minter as his fourth opponent. He also alleged that Boll had misled them by claiming that it was a PR stunt when he actually intended to fight them, and that Boll stated that
5289-479: The Warner Archive Collection . Boutique Blu-ray labels, which are popular among collectors and enthusiasts of film and physical media , have been credited as a factor in a "Blu-ray renaissance" dating back to at least 2018, with some consumers choosing to purchase films on physical formats in an age of digital streaming. Reasons some consumers prefer Blu-rays to streaming include higher video quality,
5412-536: The "format war" ended, Blu-ray Disc sales began to increase. A study by the NPD Group found that awareness of Blu-ray Disc had reached 60% of households in the United States. Nielsen VideoScan sales numbers showed that for some titles, such as 20th Century Fox's Hitman , up to 14% of total disc sales were from Blu-ray, although the average Blu-ray sales for the first half of the year were only around 5%. In December 2008,
5535-490: The 1,000,000 signature goal. On 7 May 2008, the makers of Stride gum announced they would give each signer a digital coupon for a pack of gum if the petition obtained the required 1 million signatures by 14 May 2008. This deadline ultimately passed without the petition reaching 1 million signatures. In a later interview with Mike Gencarelli of the Movie Mikes website on 22 March 2010, Boll stated that he would not retire if
5658-587: The 2018 Whistler Film Festival . The film offers insights into Boll's filmmaking journey, capturing the perspectives of those who collaborated with him. In October 2020, Boll decided to return to making films and announced Germany in Winter as his next project in development. In 2022, Boll announced that he would be directing and producing Ness , which follows the later part of Eliot Ness 's career, and an action thriller titled 12 Hours . In February 2023, Variety reported that Boll would be directing and producing
5781-600: The 2023 Romanian film Do Not Expect Too Much from the End of the World . As of 2023, Uwe Boll’s estimated net worth is approximately $ 10 million. Boll's films have often performed poorly at the box office in the United States and around the world. House of the Dead , which was budgeted at $ 12 million, made $ 5.73 million in its opening weekend, Alone in the Dark , which was budgeted at $ 20 million, made $ 5.1 million, and BloodRayne , which
5904-713: The 29th Golden Raspberry Awards on 21 February 2009 for In the Name of the King , 1968 Tunnel Rats , and Postal . He has been nominated for Razzies three times in total. In September 2010, Darfur won the New York International Independent Film and Video Festival prize for the best international film. In the Alone in the Dark DVD commentary, he responds to criticism that his adaptations make significant changes to
6027-421: The Abkani, an extinct Native American tribe. A strange man follows Carnby and attacks him with supernatural strength, but the man dies after many escape attempts by Carnby. Simultaneously, a ship recovers a gold coffin from the ocean floor. After docking, the captain locks up the curator of the museum, Prof. Hudgens, while his crew opens the coffin. Hudgens escapes to find everyone killed by a mysterious creature and
6150-551: The Advanced Optical Disc. It was finally adopted by the DVD Forum and renamed HD DVD the next year, after being voted down twice by DVD Forum members who were also Blu-ray Disc Association members—a situation that drew preliminary investigations by the U.S. Department of Justice . HD DVD had a head start in the high-definition video market, as Blu-ray Disc sales were slow to gain market share. The first Blu-ray Disc player
6273-562: The Blu-ray Disc specification has been finalized, engineers continue to work on advancing the technology. By 2005, quad-layer (100 GB) discs had been demonstrated on a drive with modified optics and standard unaltered optics. Hitachi stated that such a disc could be used to store 7 hours of 32 Mbit/s video (HDTV) or 3 hours and 30 minutes of 64 Mbit/s video ( ultra-high-definition television ). In April 2006, TDK canceled plans to produce 8-layer 200 GB Blu-ray Discs. In August 2006, TDK announced that it had created
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#17328528500256396-465: The Blu-ray Disc version of Warner Bros.' The Dark Knight sold 600,000 copies on the first day of its launch in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom. A week after the launch, The Dark Knight BD had sold over 1.7 million copies worldwide, making it the first Blu-ray Disc title to sell over a million copies in the first week of release. According to Singulus Technologies AG, Blu-ray
6519-557: The Bounty . Boll's first two major releases were the horror movie Blackwoods and the drama Heart of America , both of which he directed and co-wrote. He achieved recognition for loosely adapting video games into movies, having directed and produced a number of such adaptations, including House of the Dead , Alone in the Dark , Alone in the Dark II , BloodRayne , BloodRayne 2: Deliverance , BloodRayne: The Third Reich , In
6642-546: The DNA of man and beast. Carnby investigates his past by visiting his former orphanage to learn more about Hudgens' research. While patrolling the museum, several creatures attack Bureau 713 soldiers. Several soldiers and most of the creatures, who are revealed to be people who disappeared earlier, are killed. Carnby arrives, and Burke again tells him to stay away. During a scuffle, Carnby picks Burke's pocket containing his security badge. Carnby goes to Bureau 713 and talks with Fischer in
6765-456: The Dark isn't going to set the world on fire, but it largely succeeds with what it has to work with. Just don't take it seriously and you'll have a fun time". The 2-disc soundtrack was released by Nuclear Blast , with Wolfgang Herold as executive producer. The German band Agathodaimon 's contribution was the title song. Finnish symphonic metal band Nightwish had a music video of " Wish I Had an Angel " directed by Uwe Boll, with clips from
6888-438: The Dark , Rob Vaux states that the movie makes other "bad" movie directors feel better in comparison: "'It's okay,' they'll tell themselves, 'I didn't make Alone in the Dark .'" Another reviewer wrote that Alone in the Dark was "so poorly built, so horribly acted and so sloppily stitched together that it's not even at the straight-to-DVD level." One critic has dubbed him as the " Jonas Brothers of movie directors". After Boll
7011-408: The Dark , which was released on June 26, 2008. Alone in the Dark grossed $ 2.8 million in its opening weekend, ranking at #12; by the end of its run, the film had grossed $ 12.7 million worldwide. Rotten Tomatoes gave the film a rating of 1% based on 123 reviews, with an average rating of 2.2/10. The site's critical consensus reads: "Inept on almost every level, Alone in the Dark may not work as
7134-520: The Digital Entertainment Group, the number of Blu-ray Disc playback devices (both set-top box and game console) sold in the United States had reached 28.5 million by the end of 2010. Blu-ray faces competition from video on demand and from new technologies that allow access to movies on any format or device, such as Digital Entertainment Content Ecosystem or Disney's Keychest . Some commentators suggested that renting Blu-ray would play
7257-411: The End of the World . Boll appears in a cameo as himself directing a sci-fi horror movie and gets into conversation with the film's lead, a runner, Ilinca Manolache. In April 2008, The Guardian ran an article claiming Boll had promised to retire if an online petition at PetitionOnline.com asking him to do so received 1,000,000 signatures. A petition was later started on the site in response, with
7380-400: The Name of the King , In the Name of the King 2: Two Worlds , In the Name of the King 3: The Last Mission , Postal , and Far Cry . In the opening credits to Seed (2007), Boll used footage of animal abuse and torture he acquired from PETA to underscore the film's nihilism . He has also promised to donate 2.5 percent of his net profits from Seed to PETA. In September 2010,
7503-525: The U.S. for fear of unauthorized copying. However, personal computers with Blu-ray recorder drives were available. In October 2009, TDK demonstrated a 10-layer 320 GB Blu-ray Disc. On January 1, 2010, Sony, in association with Panasonic, announced plans to increase the storage capacity on their Blu-ray Discs from 25 GB to 33.4 GB via a technology called i-MLSE ( maximum likelihood sequence estimation ). The higher-capacity discs, according to Sony, would be readable on existing Blu-ray Disc players with
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#17328528500257626-471: The United States were slower in the first two years than DVD software sales. Blu-ray's competition includes video on demand (VOD) and DVD. In January 2016, 44% of U.S. broadband households had a Blu-ray player. The information density of the DVD format was limited by the wavelength of the laser diodes used. Following protracted development, blue laser diodes operating at 405 nanometers became available on
7749-587: The Web. In 2005, footage from the fights were to be included on the DVD of his upcoming film Postal . On 20 June 2006, Rich "Lowtax" Kyanka stated on Something Awful that he had been invited by Boll to be the first contestant, after Kyanka reviewed Alone in the Dark . The online gambling site GoldenPalace.com decided to sponsor this event, dubbing it "Raging Boll" (a play on the 1980 Martin Scorsese film Raging Bull ). A lot
7872-461: The aforementioned game consoles can play back regular Blu-ray Discs. In the mid-2010s, the Ultra HD Blu-ray format was released which is an enhanced variant of Blu-ray compatible with the 4K resolution . Ultra HD Blu-ray discs and players became available in the first quarter of 2016, having a storage capacity of up to 100 GB. By December 2017, the specification for an 8K Blu-ray format
7995-444: The amount of content that can be stored. Given that the Blu-ray Disc data layer is closer to the surface of the disc compared to the DVD standard, it was found in early designs to be more vulnerable to scratches. The first discs were therefore housed in cartridges for protection, resembling Professional Discs introduced by Sony in 2003. Using a cartridge would increase the price of an already expensive medium, and would increase
8118-415: The box office. For instance, "House of the Dead", which had a production budget of $ 7 million, garnered $ 11 million at the box office and an additional $ 28 million from home video. Also, he said that his film "BloodRayne" gave more visibility to the game. In 2023, in response to criticism, Uwe Boll has emphasized the importance of understanding video game source material for film adaptations and reflected on
8241-404: The coffin empty. Hudgens finds a secret compartment, collects an artifact from the coffin, and goes ashore. Several people across the western US and Canada walk off into the night after hearing an ear-splitting screech, and Carnby passes out while studying his artifact. Bureau 713, where Carnby used to work, becomes aware of evidence of electromagnetic waves by a surveillance team. Carnby thinks it
8364-408: The creature retreats. Carnby attempts to relay information to their team leader, Commander Burke, but Burke tells him to stay out of it. Carnby asks his former co-workers, including staff surgeon and pathologist Sam Fischer, about the creature. Hudgens returns to the museum with a captured creature. Hudgens uses a syringe to draw fluid from the creature to study it as part of his research in combining
8487-479: The crime drama titled First Shift with Kristen Renton and Gino Anthony Pesi in lead roles, following the journey of two contrasting NYPD officers on their initial day as colleagues. At the post-production of First Shift Boll worked with Ethan Maniquis , alongside executive producer Michael Roesch. In October, Quiver Distribution picked up Uwe Boll’s crime drama First Shift for the U.S., Canada and selected international territories. Uwe Boll appears as himself in
8610-471: The critics... Everybody who was in the ring showed guts. Nobody dived." Electronic Gaming Monthly 's November 2006 edition's "The Rest of the Crap" section, written by critic Seanbaby , described Seanbaby's own involvement. Boll was going to appear on G4 's Attack of the Show! to promote this fight by sparring with one of the hosts. Seanbaby stated that, "Again, he's a matchmaking genius, because everyone on TV
8733-510: The data is stored lies under a 0.1 mm protective layer and on top of a 1.1 mm substrate made of polycarbonate plastic, compared to 0.6 mm on either side on DVDs. Sony also announced in April 2004 a version using paper as the substrate developed with Toppan Printing, with up to 25 GB storage. In January 2005, TDK announced that it had developed an ultra-hard yet very thin polymer coating (" Durabis ") for Blu-ray Discs; this
8856-538: The decline of DVD and Blu-ray sales, noting that he has had to use his own money to finance his work since 2005. As of 2017, he continued to work as a film producer. In February 2018, he revealed in his vlog that he intends to return to film and has sent proposals to Netflix . However, he no longer wants to finance his projects. In November 2018, Boll was the subject of a second documentary film titled Fuck You All: The Uwe Boll Story , directed by Sean Patrick Shaul and produced by Prairie Coast Films, which premiered at
8979-419: The discs to 250 GB. However, it noted the major obstacle was that current read/write technology did not allow additional layers. JVC developed a three-layer technology that allows putting both standard-definition DVD data and HD data on a BD/(standard) DVD combination. This would have enabled the consumer to purchase a disc that can be played on DVD players and can also reveal its HD version when played on
9102-405: The feature, only a description for what it does. The feature may be activated by default, as is the case in the disc writing utility growisofs . Deactivating write verification may be desirable to save time when mass-producing physical copies of data, since errors are unlikely to occur on physically undamaged media. The quality and data integrity of optical media can be determined by measuring
9225-666: The film in June 2003. Alone in the Dark was released in Canada and the United States on January 28, 2005. It was released in Germany on February 3, 2005. The film was released on VHS and DVD on 10 May 2005. An unrated director's cut was released in Germany, France, and Australia and was #1 on the German DVD market for three weeks. It was released on DVD in North America on 25 September 2007. In
9348-423: The film. Blu-ray Blu-ray ( Blu-ray Disc or BD ) is a digital optical disc data storage format designed to supersede the DVD format. It was invented and developed in 2005 and released worldwide on June 20, 2006, capable of storing several hours of high-definition video ( HDTV 720p and 1080p ). The main application of Blu-ray is as a medium for video material such as feature films and for
9471-671: The first Blu-ray Disc prototypes in October 2000, and the first prototype player was released in Japan in April 2003. Afterward, it continued to be developed until its official worldwide release on June 20, 2006, beginning the high-definition optical disc format war , where Blu-ray Disc competed with the HD DVD format. Toshiba , the main company supporting HD DVD, conceded in February 2008, and later released its own Blu-ray Disc player in late 2009. According to Media Research, high-definition software sales in
9594-399: The first prototype discs coming four years later. On January 7, 2013, Sony announced that it would release "Mastered in 4K" Blu-ray Disc titles sourced at 4K and encoded at 1080p. "Mastered in 4K" Blu-ray Disc titles can be played on existing Blu-ray Disc players and have a larger color space using xvYCC . On January 14, 2013, Blu-ray Disc Association president Andy Parsons stated that
9717-445: The first three quarters of 2007, BD outsold HD DVD by about two to one. At CES 2007 , Warner proposed Total Hi Def —a hybrid disc containing Blu-ray on one side and HD DVD on the other, but it was never released. On June 28, 2007, 20th Century Fox cited Blu-ray Discs' adoption of the BD+ anticopying system as key to their decision to support the Blu-ray Disc format. On January 4, 2008,
9840-572: The first two years (1997–1998) compared to 8.3 million high-definition software units (2006–2007). One reason given for this difference was the smaller marketplace (26.5 million HDTVs in 2007 compared to 100 million SDTVs in 1998). Former HD DVD supporter Microsoft did not make a Blu-ray Disc drive for the Xbox 360 . The 360's successor Xbox One features a Blu-ray drive, as does the PS4, with both supporting 3D Blu-ray after later firmware updates . Shortly after
9963-479: The gate. Burke kills Hudgens. The group places a bomb and runs away, only to realize that they cannot detonate it remotely. Burke returns and sacrifices himself. Carnby and Cedric rise to the surface at dawn but find the city evacuated. As they walk down the street, something runs toward them. Blair Erickson came up with the first drafts of the script for Alone in the Dark . According to Erickson, Uwe Boll suggested through various e-mails changes that would turn it from
10086-401: The government." Uwe Boll directed films have generated $ 41.3 million worldwide. Boll has written six books: Boll appeared in the 2011 video game Postal III . As of September 2023, House of the Dead (for which VideoHound's "Golden Movie Retriever" described Boll as a "cinematic train wreck") and Alone in the Dark appear on IMDb 's "Bottom 100" film list. In a review of Alone in
10209-571: The hard coating, given that, according to the Blu-ray Disc Association, they offer the best tradeoff between scratch resistance, optical properties, and productivity. The Blu-ray Disc specification requires the testing of resistance to scratches by mechanical abrasion . In contrast, DVD media are not required to be scratch-resistant, but since development of the technology, some companies, such as Verbatim, implemented hard-coating for more expensive lines of recordable DVDs. The table shows
10332-704: The industry standard for high-density optical discs. Universal Studios , the sole major studio to back HD DVD since its inception, said shortly after Toshiba's announcement: "While Universal values the close partnership we have shared with Toshiba, it is time to turn our focus to releasing new and catalog titles on Blu-ray Disc." Paramount Pictures , which started releasing movies only in HD DVD format during late 2007, also said it would start releasing on Blu-ray Disc. Both studios announced initial Blu-ray lineups in May 2008. With this, all major Hollywood studios supported Blu-ray. Although
10455-415: The maximum exploitable drive speed is 288 Mbit/s or 36 MB/s (also called 8× speed). A USB 3.0 interface (with proper cabling) does not have this limitation, nor do even the oldest version of Serial ATA (SATA, 150 MB/s) nor the latest Parallel ATA (133 MB/s) standards. Internal Blu-ray drives that are integrated into a computer (as opposed to physically separate and connected via
10578-453: The monsters. Carnby, Cedric, Burke, and Burke's military squad go to an abandoned gold mine near Carnby's orphanage, where there are strong electromagnetic disruptions. They are attacked by dozens of the creatures; only Carnby, Cedric, and Burke survive. They reach the underground surgery room where the baby creature was transplanted into Carnby. There, Hudgens takes Carnby's artifact and opens the gate. Millions of creatures awaken and run towards
10701-422: The morgue while looking at one of the corpses. Fischer shows Carnby a small, centipede-like creature in the dorsal spine of his old friend. Fischer also discovers that Carnby has one of his own in his body, but it is dead, presumably because of the electroshock Carnby had as a child. Burke and his men arrive and escort Carnby out of the building. That evening, Professor Hudgens ambushes Fischer at his home and inserts
10824-540: The need for better script development and collaboration with game developers. Boll made headlines by challenging his critics to "put up or shut up". In June 2006, his production company issued a press release stating that Boll would challenge his five harshest critics each to a 10-round boxing match. Invitations were also open to film directors Quentin Tarantino and Roger Avary . To qualify, critics had to have written two extremely negative reviews of Boll, in print or on
10947-435: The new format, and they wanted a new DRM system that would protect more against unauthorized copying than the failed Content Scramble System (CSS) used on DVDs. On October 4, 2004, the name Blu-ray Disc Founders was officially changed to the Blu-ray Disc Association (BDA), and 20th Century Fox joined the BDA's Board of Directors. The Blu-ray Disc physical specifications were completed in 2004. The recording layer on which
11070-423: The new format. New Ultra HD Blu-ray Discs hold up to 66 GB and 100 GB of data on dual- and triple-layer discs, respectively. Blu-ray's physical and file system specifications are publicly available on the BDA's website. According to Media Research, high-definition software sales in the United States were slower in the first two years than DVD software sales. 16.3 million DVD software units were sold in
11193-437: The newest version of the film, the sex scene between Carnby and Aline has been removed. Originally, the film version of Alone in the Dark was to be released with Alone in the Dark (2008); however, the developers of the game, Eden Games , delayed and reworked it entirely from scratch. Boll stated his disappointment on the region 1 DVD commentary but also said that Atari had face shots of Christian Slater for Alone in
11316-424: The package that was adopted worldwide following the Blu-ray versus HD DVD market adoption choice. Because Blu-ray cases are smaller than DVD cases, more Blu-rays than DVDs can fit on a shelf . The "Mini Blu-ray Disc" (also, "Mini-BD" and "Mini Blu-ray") is a compact 8-centimetre-diameter (3.1 in) variant of the Blu-ray Disc that can store 7.8 GB of data in its single-layer configuration, or 15.6 GB on
11439-479: The participants would get training before the match, which none did. Kyanka added in a post-match interview that, "Half of us (the contenders) hadn't even seen his movies." Sneider shared similar sentiments, stating "I think he's a jerk. This might be PR but I don't want to keep getting punched in the head." Boll has denied these claims in an interview, stating that he gave his opponents three months to prepare. Other contestants responded less negatively. Alexander, in
11562-474: The petition received one million signatures, commenting: I think no, it has been too long. If they would have made it to a million in like two months, then they would have had something. They even got sponsored by that gum factory. I felt like it's three years later, forget it. I also felt that people signed numerous times on the petition so it is probably only like 150,000 people that actually signed it. The petition itself failed to reach one million signatures by
11685-463: The physical distribution of video games for the PlayStation 3 , PlayStation 4 , PlayStation 5 , Xbox One , and Xbox Series X . The name refers to the blue laser (actually a violet laser) used to read the disc, which allows information to be stored at a greater density than is possible with the longer-wavelength red laser used for DVDs, resulting in an increased capacity. The polycarbonate disc
11808-420: The plot and style of the source material: "Fans are always totally flipping out and I understand that the fan of a video game has his own agenda in his head and has his ideas about what is a good movie and what is a bad movie." Referring to House of the Dead , Boll said: "I think I made a perfect House of the Dead movie, because it really shows how the game is. It's a lot of fun, it's over-the-top action." Boll
11931-423: The poor theatrical performance of his early video game adaptations on his distribution company, Romar, and has filed a lawsuit against them. Boll's films prior to the release of House of the Dead were more positively received. The New York Times , for instance, gave Blackwoods a positive review, although most reactions to the film have been negative. Boll received a rare " Worst Career Achievement " award at
12054-437: The range between the brightest and darkest elements, an expanded color range, a high frame rate of up to 60 frames per second for a smoother motion appearance, an increase of the supported resolution to 3840 × 2160 for a more detailed picture, object-based sound formats, and an optional "digital bridge" feature. New players were required to play this format, and they became able to play all three of DVDs, traditional Blu-rays, and
12177-725: The rate of errors , of which higher rates may be an indication for deteriorating media , low-quality media, physical damage such as scratches, dust, and/or media written using a defective optical drive . Errors on Blu-Ray media are measured using the so-called LDC ( Long Distance Code s) and BIS ( Burst Indication Subcode s) error parameters, of which rates below 13 and 15 respectively can be considered healthy. Not all vendors and models of optical drives have error scanning functionality implemented. Pre-recorded Blu-ray Disc titles usually ship in packages similar to, but slightly smaller (18.5 mm shorter and 2 mm thinner: 135 mm × 171.5 mm × 13 mm ) and more rounded than,
12300-411: The same area. For a Blu-ray Disc, the spot size is 580 nm. This allows a reduction of the pit size from 400 nm for DVD to 150 nm for Blu-ray Disc, and of the track pitch from 740 nm to 320 nm. See compact disc for information on optical discs' physical structure. In addition to the optical improvements, Blu-ray Discs feature improvements in data encoding that further increase
12423-629: The same method used on standard DVDs. The first releases using the newer VC-1 and AVC formats were introduced in September 2006. The first movies using 50 GB dual-layer discs were introduced in October 2006. The first audio-only albums were released in May 2008. By June 2008, over 2,500 Blu-ray Disc titles were available in Australia and the United Kingdom, with 3,500 in the United States and Canada. In Japan, over 3,300 titles had been released as of July 2010. The DVD Forum , chaired by Toshiba ,
12546-582: The size of Blu-ray Disc drives, so designers chose hard-coating of the pickup surface instead. TDK was the first company to develop a working scratch-protection coating for Blu-ray Discs, naming it Durabis . In addition, both Sony's and Panasonic's replication methods include proprietary hard-coat technologies. Sony's rewritable media are spin-coated, using a scratch-resistant acrylic and antistatic coating. Verbatim 's recordable and rewritable Blu-ray Discs use their own proprietary technology, called Hard Coat. Colloidal silica-dispersed UV-curable resins are used for
12669-478: The special features only on Blu-ray Discs and none on DVDs. Blu-ray Discs cost no more to produce than DVD discs. However, reading and writing mechanisms are more complicated, making Blu-ray recorders, drives and players more expensive than their DVD counterparts. Adoption is also limited due to the widespread use of streaming media . Blu-ray Discs are used to distribute PlayStation 3 , PlayStation 4 , PlayStation 5 , Xbox One and Xbox Series X games, and
12792-414: The speeds available. Even the lowest speed (1×) is sufficient to play and record real-time 1080p video; the higher speeds are relevant for general data storage and more sophisticated handling of video. BD discs are designed to cope with at least 5,000 rpm of rotational speed. The usable data rate of a Blu-ray Disc drive can be limited by the capacity of the drive's data interface. With a USB 2.0 interface,
12915-404: The tactile nature of owning a film physically, elaborate packaging, bonus features, and the desire to own or watch films that are not available in streaming services' libraries. While a DVD uses a 650 nm red laser, Blu-ray Disc uses a 405 nm " blue " laser diode . Although the laser is called "blue", its color is actually in the violet range. The shorter wavelength can be focused to
13038-432: The time PetitionOnline shut down on 30 September 2014, peaking at about 353,835 signatures. Alone in the Dark (2005 film) Alone in the Dark is a 2005 action horror film directed by Uwe Boll and written by Elan Mastai, Michael Roesch , and Peter Scheerer . Based on the video game series of the same name , it stars Christian Slater , Tara Reid , and Stephen Dorff as paranormal investigators who combat
13161-509: Was a significant technical advance because a far tougher protection was desired in the consumer market to protect bare discs against scratching and damage compared to DVD, given that Blu-ray Discs technically required a much thinner layer for the denser and higher-frequency blue laser. Cartridges, originally used for scratch protection, were no longer necessary and were scrapped. The BD-ROM specifications were finalized in early 2006. Advanced Access Content System Licensing Administrator (AACS LA),
13284-418: Was able to hire his loyal team of hacks to crank out something much better than our crappy story and add in all sorts of terrifying horror movie essentials like opening gateways to alternate dimensions, bimbo blonde archaeologists, sex scenes, mad scientists, slimy dog monsters, special army forces designed to battle slimy CG dog monsters, Tara Reid, " Matrix " slow-motion gun battles, and car chases. Oh yeah, and
13407-481: Was adopted faster than the DVD format was at a similar period in its development. This conclusion was based on the fact that Singulus Technologies received orders for 21 Blu-ray dual-layer replication machines during the first quarter of 2008, while 17 DVD replication machines of this type were made in the same period in 1997. According to GfK Retail and Technology, in the first week of November 2008, sales of Blu-ray recorders surpassed DVD recorders in Japan. According to
13530-584: Was also completed. However, this specification was for Japan only so that it could be used by Japanese public broadcasters like NHK to broadcast in 8K resolution for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games in Japan. The Holographic Versatile Disc (HVD), described in the ECMA-377 standard, was in development by the Holography System Development (HSD) Forum using a green writing/reading laser (532 nm) and
13653-507: Was because, "I never kissed your ass, Harry." Boll also criticizes the game companies themselves for not providing support to the production following the selling of the film rights. He cites the cross-promotion and support that comic book-based properties adapted for the screen receive, whereas video game companies often "sell off the license and then forget about it." He argues that this is the reason video game adaptations are not well received by critics and audiences. When Wired published
13776-472: Was believed that a firmware update was the only requirement to make it readable by then-current players and drives. In October 2007, they revealed a 100 GB Blu-ray Disc drive. In December 2008, Pioneer Corporation unveiled a 400 GB Blu-ray Disc (containing 16 data layers, 25 GB each) compatible with current players after a firmware update. Its planned launch was in the 2009–10 time frame for ROM and 2010–13 for rewritable discs. Ongoing development
13899-492: Was drawn up in late August 2006, featuring Kyanka, Rue Morgue magazine writer Chris Alexander, webmaster of Cinecutre Carlos Palencia Jimenez-Arguello, Ain't it Cool News writer Jeff Sneider, and Chance Minter, amateur boxer and website critic. Boll fought and won against all five participants. The first match took place on 5 September 2006 in Estepona , Spain, against Carlos Palencia. The others battled on 23 September 2006, at
14022-466: Was founded by the nine initial members. The first consumer device arrived in stores on April 10, 2003: the Sony BDZ-S77, a US$ 3,800 BD-RE recorder that was made available only in Japan. However, there was no standard for pre-recorded video, and no movies were released for this player. Hollywood studios insisted that players be equipped with digital rights management before they would release movies for
14145-564: Was his duty as a German to make the film as a way of confronting the past." In 2010, Boll was the subject of a documentary film titled Raging Boll , directed by Dan West, which premiered at the Austin Film Festival in October 2010. In 2011, Boll released Blubberella , a satirical take on superhero movies and a critique of Marvel’s MCU. Boll said, "...my criticism of the MCU in the past could be seen as part of my satirical approach rather than
14268-547: Was linked to a potential film adaptation of the Metal Gear franchise, series creator Hideo Kojima responded, "It's impossible that we'd ever do a movie with him." Boll also made a bid to direct an adaptation of the Warcraft video game series, but was turned away by the owners of the franchise, Blizzard Entertainment , who said: "We will not sell the movie rights, not to you…especially not to you." Boll commented: "Because it's such
14391-505: Was made for $ 25 million, made $ 2.42 million. Boll was criticized in 2005 regarding his funding method, attributed to a loophole in the German tax laws that was finally closed in 2006. In the DVD commentary of Alone in the Dark , Boll explains how he used to fund his films: "[...] the reason I am able to do these kind of movies is I have a tax shelter fund in Germany, and if you invest in a movie in Germany you get basically fifty percent back from
14514-511: Was perceived as expensive and buggy, and there were few titles available. The Sony PlayStation 3 , which contained a Blu-ray Disc player for primary storage, helped support Blu-ray. Sony also ran a more thorough and influential marketing campaign for the format. AVCHD camcorders were also introduced in 2006. These recordings can be played back on many Blu-ray Disc players without re-encoding but are not compatible with HD DVD players. By January 2007, Blu-ray Discs had outsold HD DVDs, and during
14637-567: Was published that did not include some features, such as managed copy, which would have let end users create copies limited to personal use. The first BD-ROM players (Samsung BD-P1000) were shipped in mid-June 2006, though HD DVD players beat them to market by a few months. The first Blu-ray Disc titles were released on June 20, 2006: 50 First Dates , The Fifth Element , Hitch , House of Flying Daggers , Underworld: Evolution , xXx (all from Sony), and MGM 's The Terminator . The earliest releases used MPEG-2 video compression,
14760-489: Was sparked not by the review, but because the Wired editor told Boll in person that they loved the movie and then published a negative review. While his works were often met with critical disdain, Boll emphasizes that these projects were financially viable, especially in home video sales. He points out that his movies, while low-budget compared to studio blockbusters, often recouped their costs and more, even if they didn't dazzle at
14883-520: Was split over whether to develop the more expensive blue laser technology. In March 2002 the forum approved a proposal, which was endorsed by Warner Bros. and other motion picture studios . The proposal involved compressing high-definition video onto dual-layer standard DVD-9 discs. In spite of this decision, however, the DVD Forum's Steering Committee announced in April that it was pursuing its own blue-laser high-definition video solution. In August, Toshiba and NEC announced their competing standard,
15006-421: Was told through the eyes of a writer following Edward Carnby and his co-worker for a novel and depicted them as real-life blue-collar folks who never expected to find hideous beings waiting for them in the dark. We tried to stick close to the H. P. Lovecraft style and the low-tech nature of the original game, always keeping the horror in the shadows so you never saw what was coming for them. Thankfully Dr. Boll
15129-525: Was underway to create a 1 TB Blu-ray Disc. At CES 2009, Panasonic unveiled the DMP-B15, the first portable Blu-ray Disc player, and Sharp introduced the LC-BD60U and LC-BD80U series, the first LCD HDTVs with integrated Blu-ray Disc players. Sharp also announced that it would sell HDTVs with integrated Blu-ray Disc recorders in the United States by the end of 2009. Set-top box recorders were not being sold in
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