Al Day

1. When did you first get interested in DVD and why?

I visited a friend who had just paid over $350 for a Chinese no-name DVD player. He had it hooked up to a 51cm television and his home stereo. He only had one disc, "Charlie's Angels" and it completely blew me away. I think it was the sound rather than the image. A few months later he got "The Lord of the Rings", after that there was no hope for me really...

2. Did you ever expect DVD to become as popular as it has now?

DVD came to the fore while I was living in the UK. It was fairly entrenched by the time I got back to Australia and I have to admit I didn't pay much attention to it until then. I suppose I was mildly interested to see if we had another format war between VHS and DVD the way we did with Beta and VHS. There is after all a huge gulf between good technology and good marketing.

3. What are some of your favourite movies and some of your favourite DVDs?

The same trilogies everybody else talks about (Godfather, Star Wars, Lord of the Rings), Truly Madly Deeply, Creator, Being John Malkovich, Dangerous Liaisons, The Good The Bad and the Ugly. I have a Region 1 Box set of the HBO series "From the Earth to the Moon" that I am very fond of.

4. Which 'not so good' DVDs would you never want ruining your collection?

Last year, while looking for a fifth DVD to make up a weekly rental, I accidentally selected "Road Trip". We watched maybe three minutes and gave up. Unfortunately the disc disappeared out of the box sometime between then and when I returned it. The chap in the library actually apologised for making me pay the replacement cost for such a crap film (the ONLY time I have ever lost a disc, just to assure any video library owners who may be reading). They gave me the empty case in case I ever found the disc, I keep it on the shelf as a lesson and a warning. I live in fear of the lost disc actually turning up one day....
Still, mustn't be too critical, every director has a mother you know...
Actually, as a test of strength of character, I should write a review of it one day....

5. Which DVD(s) not yet available are you looking forward to most being released?

Star Wars - I queued for four hours at the age of fifteen or so to see the Empire Strikes Back on opening day. Star Wars was the first film I was allowed to go out and see without parental company. I've got a lot of personal history tied up in them films you know... Also, an old Ralph Maccio film called Crossroads (no, not that one!). Oh, and I have put off buying the Matrix movies in the hope of a box set, hopefully with an extras disc that explains everything.

6. Have you ever gone to extraordinary lengths to satisfy your DVD addiction?

I couldn't bring myself to pay $130 for the Godfather box set. So, I ordered it from Amazon in the UK and paid with a cheque drawing on a UK bank so that it wouldn't seem as much (30 pounds MUST be less than $130 surely!). And I'm supposed to be a scientist....

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