DVDBeaver.com - DVD Comparison 'Army of Darkness' R1 Anchor Bay vs R3 MGM

(aka The Army of Darkness (1993) (USA: original script title), Army of Darkness, The Ultimate Experience in Medieval Horror (1993) (closing credits title), Army of Darkness: Evil Dead 3 (1993), Bruce Campbell vs. Army of Darkness (1993) (UK: video title), Captain Supermarket (1993), Evil Dead 3 (1993), Evil Dead II: The Medieval Dead (1984) (USA: working title), The Medieval Dead (1993) )

directed by Sam Raimi

U.S. 1993

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DVD Comparison:

Anchor Bay - Region 1 - NTSC - Director's cut vs. MGM Director's cut - Region 3 - NTSC

Thanks to Mark Wilson for all of the screen captures

(Anchor Bay R1 - NTSC-Left vs. MGM R3 - NTSC-Right)

DVD Box Covers
Distribution	Anchor Bay Region 1 - NTSC	MGM Region 3 - NTSC
Runtime	1:35:48	1:36:12
Video	1.66:1 Original Aspect Ratio 16X9 enhanced Average Bitrate: 4.99 mb/s NTSC 704x480 29.97 f/s	1.85:1 Original Aspect Ratio 16X9 enhanced Average Bitrate: 8.19 NTSC 704x480 29.97 f/s
Bitrate: Anchor Bay R1 NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes.
Bitrate: MGM R3
Audio	English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo)	English - Dolby Digital 5.1
Subtitles	None	English, Mandarin, Portuguese, Spanish, Thai, Korean, Cantonese and none
Features	Release Information: Studio: Anchor Bay Entertainment Theatrical Release Date: February 19, 1993 DVD Release Date: October 23, 2001 Run Time: 96 minutes Production Company: Anchor Bay Entertainment Package Type: Keep Case Aspect Ratio: Widescreen anamorphic - 1.66:1 Edition Details: • Color, Widescreen • Commentary by Sam, Bruce and Ivan • 15 Minutes of Additional Footage Including the Original Ending • 4 Never-Before-Seen Deleted Scenes • Director's Storyboards • Widescreen anamorphic format The Anchor Bay R1 Director's Cut version is available in the long OOP 2 disc LE, the Bootleg Edition, and the recently Boomstick Edition. The 2 disc LE and the Bootleg are identical. It is the same disc. It is 1.66:1 anamorphic. Listed as 96 min. DD 2.0 and includes a director's commentary and 4 deleted scenes. Director's storyboards and creature concept drawings are also included on the disc. DVD Release Date: October 23, 2001 Keep Case Chapters 23	Release Information: Studio: MGM Region 3 Theatrical Release Date: February 19, 1993 Aspect Ratio: Widescreen anamorphic - 1.85:1 Edition Details: • The MGM R3 Director's Cut is 1.85:1 anamorphic and includes a DD 5.1 track. It also includes the same commentary as the Anchor Bay, 4 deleted scenes and alternate ending. Theatrical trailer and Photo gallery. Its listed as 93 minutes but as you can see it clocks in at 96 mins. Keep Case Chapters 16
Comments:	'No competition here. The R3 MGM disc wins hands down. Color and detail are much improved over the Anchor Bay version. Shadow delineation and detail in darker scenes is excellent. The AB version looks cropped on all four sides in some scenes and even zoomed in others. The MGM version sports the best 5.1 mix I've heard for this movie, and I know, I've got 4 dvds and 2 laserdisc versions of AOD! Kudos to MGM for putting such great work into this release. - Mark Wilson