Lear Media

[AndrewLA]

Has anyone dealt with Lear Media? I just ran across them today. They sell an amazing array of otherwise unavailable British DVD titles to the U.S. market, including OH, WHAT A LOVELY WAR and THE WIND CANNOT READ. Hugely expensive, ridiculously high postage. I'm thinking they can't be totally legitimate, can they?

They also offer many non-British films, including long-missing westerns like GREAT DAY IN THE MORNING -- only this is a black and white print of a beautiful Technicolor movie. So what goes on there? Are they taping off the air, making unlicensed DVDs and selling them...?

Learmedia Rare and Classic Videos

[DB7]

Never dealt with them myself but understand some of the rare films are 2nd gen copies and they can be poor on delivery.

[sippog]

Originally Posted by DB7 Never dealt with them myself but understand some of the rare films are 2nd gen copies and they can poor poor on delivery.

Second that. See my previous post.

Sippog

[AndrewLA]

I was afraid that the quality might not be the best. Sad, though -- they have a film I've always loved, THE HOLLY AND THE IVY. But to pay almost thirty dollars plus eight dollars shipping is too much.

[jazzylady]

I had no problem with LearMedia.

Ruth

[Cheeky Bob]

Isn't OH WHAT A LOVELY WAR currently tied up in fiendishly complicated legal dispute involving music rights issues and the Joan Littlewood estate?

I suspect the answer is "yes" (or at least something similar), because if it wasn't a legitimate DVD release would have appeared by now - demand is certainly there.

Sorry, why am I being so coy - of course it's a pirate copy! In fact, they've got balls to advertise it quite so blatantly, as Paramount owns the film rights, and like all Hollywood studios they have some very expensive lawyers on retainer.

[julian_craster]

Julian's motto:
If you trade with crooks, expect to get ripped off.......shoddy service, lousy copies ! All they want is your cash....

[DB7]

Originally Posted by julian_craster expect to get ripped off.....

I wouldn't go that far, but I would say don't build your hopes up, rather than a commercial release you're likely to receive a vhs-dvd transfer. All depends how desperate you are for a given title. I've dealt with Bob and he will tell you the quality of transfer first. (tho he used to deal in tapes only)

[JamesM]

The statement on their website that the 'all' films they distribute 'are part of the public domain' is not true.

[Cheeky Bob]

Oh! What A Lovely War is categorically not in the public domain, and never has been. That applies both to the film and the original 1963 stage version.

In other words, even if they're touting a camcorder-shot recording of an amateur dramatics production instead of the 1969 feature film, it still wouldn't be in the public domain.

[theuofc]

Originally Posted by AndrewLA Has anyone dealt with Lear Media? I just ran across them today. They sell an amazing array of otherwise unavailable British DVD titles to the U.S. market, including OH, WHAT A LOVELY WAR and THE WIND CANNOT READ. Learmedia Rare and Classic Videos

Hello, Andrew,

I haven't dealt with Lear Media but unlike some EBay sellers who are rather evil in touting the "quality" of their DVDS (often burned imports or 3rd gen) and who also charge ungodly prices, I'm glad Lear is upfront about his copies. He is high though. Yet I've seen dvd-r copies on EBay that started at $39.99 plus 6.50 (for a DVD!), and it is like pulling teeth to get them to admit they are selling a
dvd-r copy from who knows what.

There are other sources to try such as Bob's movies for copies. He charges $20 per, but this includes s/h and then less progressively depending on the number of vhs or dvd-rs (same charge) you order. I haven't heard any complaints about his service. When one dvd was bad, he quickly replaced it free.

Bottom line as someone said, if you can't get it elsewhere and want it, well...one is in the grip.

Do you have a multiregion dvd player? If so, you can get a new DVD of The Wind Cannot Read from online sources such as movie-mail for 7.99 gbp on sale.

Good luck in your search,

Barbara

[AndrewLA]

Originally Posted by theuofc Do you have a multiregion dvd player? If so, you can get a new DVD of The Wind Cannot Read from online sources such as movie-mail for 7.99 gbp on sale.

You're an angel, Barbara. Thanks for the recommendation to Movie-Mail. I hadn't encountered them before. Yes, we do have a multiregion DVD player. Just ordered THE WIND CANNOT READ and (another pleasant surprise to find it here) THE SINGER NOT THE SONG. My wife loves movies like WIND, as do I (too bad James Robertson Justice isn't in it -- she's developed quite a crush on him based on THE FAST LADY, DOCTOR IN THE HOUSE and VERY IMPORTANT PERSON and gets the giggles every time he calls someone a nincompoop!), and I'm very curious how SINGER will hold up. I always call it a guilty pleasure, and I know how much reviled it is, but really, I remember it as a good movie -- if admittedly over-the-top and too British in tone (for a Mexican story).

[theuofc]

Originally Posted by AndrewLA You're an angel, Barbara. Thanks for the recommendation to Movie-Mail. I hadn't encountered them before. Yes, we do have a multiregion DVD player. Just ordered THE WIND CANNOT READ and (another pleasant surprise to find it here) THE SINGER NOT THE SONG. My wife loves movies like WIND, as do I (too bad James Robertson Justice isn't in it -- she's developed quite a crush on him based on THE FAST LADY, DOCTOR IN THE HOUSE and VERY IMPORTANT PERSON and gets the giggles every time he calls someone a nincompoop!), and I'm very curious how SINGER will hold up. I always call it a guilty pleasure, and I know how much reviled it is, but really, I remember it as a good movie -- if admittedly over-the-top and too British in tone (for a Mexican story).

Hi Andrew,

So glad you were able to order WIND and SINGER from movie-mail. I pester everyone in my search for new sources of dvds and even vhs tapes when all else fails.

Two other places that never occurred to me until a few years ago are German and also Australian sellers. I stumbled upon a dvd of Dirk's BOYS IN BROWN, totally unavailable on vhs at www.ezydvd.co.au which now also carries SIMBA and HUNTED. The German site jpc - Music Ã* la carte - Musik, Filme und Bücher currently has CAMPBELL'S KINGDOM, HUNTED, and GENTLE GUNMAN (this one only in German, no subtitles). I listed HUNTED twice because www.jpc may have a flat shipping rate to the US so depending on how many dvds you buy, you might save on shipping.

Amazon-France and Amazon-Germany seem to have very high shipping. One can get around A-G with jpc, but I haven't found a cheaper French source in terms of shipping. Anyone know of a good French source for videos and dvds?

James Robertson Justice is just wonderful....totally agree. JRJ the citizen and all his assorted interests and achievements always reeled me in.

Nice chatting as always,

Barbara

[AndrewLA]

Originally Posted by theuofc Two other places that never occurred to me until a few years ago are German and also Australian sellers. I stumbled upon a dvd of Dirk's BOYS IN BROWN, totally unavailable on vhs at www.ezydvd.co.au which now also carries SIMBA and HUNTED. The German site jpc - Music Ã* la carte - Musik, Filme und Bücher currently has CAMPBELL'S KINGDOM, HUNTED, and GENTLE GUNMAN (this one only in German, no subtitles). I listed HUNTED twice because www.jpc may have a flat shipping rate to the US so depending on how many dvds you buy, you might save on shipping. James Robertson Justice is just wonderful....totally agree. JRJ the citizen and all his assorted interests and achievements always reeled me in.

Excellent, Barbara. I always wonder how on earth titles like SIMBA and CAMPBELL'S KINGDOM are put out first in German. Are there really more Bogarde fans there than in England or the U.S?

I read a very sad story about James Robertson Justice recently. Apparently, he lived in a house near a fast-moving river behind his garden. I assume this was in Scotland. His wife told him that they should build a fence to prevent their young son from danger. He said no, growing up with nature was part of life, the boy had to learn to respect and deal with rivers and animals and the elements. Unfortunately, his wife's fears were justified. The boy went too close to the water, fell in and drowned. You can only imagine the crushing guilt and loss JRJ must have felt, and perhaps what it did to his marriage...