My copy of the Korean/Starmax edition arrived a few days ago, and I've had the opportunity to watch it twice -- once by itself and a second time side-by-side with the Fox Lorber disc (my Wega's split screen feature has finally come in handy!).

SHARPNESS
Softness is one of the biggest gripes we owners of the FL edition have had, so I'm pleased to confirm that the Starmax version is sharp throughout. Details that were fuzzy and indiscernible are now crystal clear: the characters' eyes, the hair on their heads, the lines on their faces; patterns on carpets; background details such as city lights are in perfect focus.

There is a noticeable amount of grain in some scenes, but I suspect this is natural and not a defect in the transfer. I'm sure the soft transfer on the FL disc simply obscured the grain.

CONTRAST/BLACK LEVEL
Starmax is also the clear winner in this category. Blacks are black, the tonal range is large and smooth; some of the more dimly lit scenes do appear to be excessively dark.

The Fox Lorber edition looks washed out, hazy, and just too light overall. Shadows are often grey, highlights are blown out.

COLOR
Color is a quality that's not so easy to objectively gauge. There are many factors which determine the color cast of a film, such as the film stock, the kinds of lighting, and any filters used, not to mention that variable known as DVD mastering. Unfortunately, this last variable has reared its ugly head and is giving me fits.

The color on both editions appears to me to be incorrect, but without knowing Edward Yang's intentions, it's hard to say for sure if either one is right. The Starmax edition has a greenish cast in most scenes, though the colors seem more natural towards the end of the film. The Fox Lorber edition looks red/magenta most of the time.

SOUND
Starmax's soundtrack possesses a clarity not heard on the FL disc, and subtle details such as foosteps and cabinet doors opening sound better, more natural.

SUBTITLES
Both editions feature optional English subs and their translations are 95% of the time word-for-word the same. Sentences are occasionally phrased slightly differently but always seem accurate on boths discs. The Starmax edition sometimes translates background dialogue that gets left untouched on the FL edition. For example: early in the film, during the wedding reception, an off-screen character is talking to someone else about the Japanese character Ota, who later plays an important role in the film.

One slightly annoying thing about the Starmax edition is the subtitling of the English dialogue spoken between Ota and NJ; I prefer the way Fox Lorber leaves this unsubtitled.

IMAGE STABILITY/ARTIFACTING
This is the other major failing of the Fox Lorber transfer: pulsing as a result of a poor PAL-to-NTSC conversion plagues nearly every scene. Stairs, blinds, carpets, tiles, etc. are always in flux, throbbing and bobbing as if afloat at sea. Starmax's transfer is relieving in its stability, though there are occasional moments where compression artifacting is evident -- very infrequently, though.

Naturally, since FL's transfer is a PAL-to-NTSC conversion and Starmax's is straight NTSC, there is a difference in running time. When I watched the two discs together I cued them up so that they were perfectly in sync. Inevitably, the FL disc kept outpacing the other one, so I frequently had to pause it to allow the Starmax disc to catch up. To rule out the possibility that the difference in speed was due to a difference in the two DVD players I was using, I ran them simultaneously again after switching players; I didn't compare them scene-by-scene this time, but I checked back towards the end of the film to discover that the Fox Lorber DVD had advanced ahead of the Starmax disc by a few minutes.

Edward Yang's commentary may by reason enough to hold onto the Fox Lorber disc, but anyone who loves this film needs the Starmax version as well. The differences between the two are staggering.