Region 4 Winners and Losers

The R1 New Line version excludes the following in contrast to the R4:

• Nothing

The R4 version excludes the following in contrast to the R1:

• DVD-ROM Features; Interactive Viewing Experience, Weblinks
• Trailers for "The Thing About My Folks", "Ushpizin", "Syriana", "Tristam Shandy: A Cock And Bull Story", "A Prairie Home Companion" and "The Notorious Bettie Page".
• Easter Egg 1: DVD credits (Text)
• Easter Egg 2: Deleted Scene (0:28)

The R3 Hong Kong (Panorama Distributions) version includes an English DTS 5.1 (754kbps) soundtrack, but the impressive Making Of feature is absent from the release.

Please note that on the R1 and R3 releases, the subtitles for the Virginian Algonquian dialogue would be burnt into the NTSC transfer as opposed to R4's player-generated subtitles.

Note also that a 150 minute version of the film had a one week limited release from Dec 25, 2005, primarily for the purposes of 2006 Oscar consideration. For the film's wide release in January 2006, Malick re-edited the film to 135 minutes in length. Known as the "Re-edited Theatrical" cut (135:22 NTSC / 129.55 PAL), this is the version of the film which appears on all DVDs. Malick has also suggested his preferred version of the film to be the "Re-edited Theatrical" cut. There are no plans to release the original 150 minute cut of the film on DVD. For information regarding the two versions of the film please see here. Please note the linked site contains spoilers.

Update: An Italian R2 (PAL) Special Edition of The New World (2 Disc Set) is now available. An Italian Review of this DVD can be found here. The two versions of the film are available on separate discs (Short Version 129 - Long Version 144). There are two 5.1 Dolby Digital audio options (Dubbed Italian soundtrack and an English soundtrack). The film appears in the original aspect ratio (2:35) and the transfer is 16x9 enhanced. Reader Christopher Robert Girvan notes the subtitles for the the Algonquian dialogue appear in Italian and cannot be removed.

Finally, in regards to the artwork I prefer the R4 cover art as it is based on a unique image which was prominent in the European promotional advertisements, however it is marred by the local ratings advice. The image plays on the epic thematic concerns and the clashing of two cultures. The R1 cover art similarly shares these themes but it is more focused on the romantic theme of the film. Ultimately both designs demonstrate the difficult task of placing this film in a genre and selling the film to a specific market.

UPDATE:(27 June 2008): The 172 minute extended cut will be released in R1 (Warner Home Video) on the 14th October 2008.

The making-of documentary which appeared on the theatrical-cut DVD, will be the only extra feature.

A digital copy of the film will also be available on the DVD.